Six months after Henry County added $3 million to its local match for education funding, an additional $583,368 has been earmarked for Henry County Public Schools.
Last year, county officials had to determine their local match based on the state’s public education allocation. The additional $583,368 in funding is the result of the state making a further adjustment to its education funding, based on actual school population totals, plus an increase in funding for the Virginia Preschool Initiative, according to the county.
The Virginia Preschool Initiative distributes money to schools to help students from underserved communities.
This additional funding match is a continuation from last year’s budgeting process, when local officials had to decide how best to cover what would eventually become increased state funding for education.
In Virginia, education funding is a mix of federal, state and local funds. Local funds are dependent on how much money is received by the state. Henry County had originally budgeted for a $72 million state education allocation but received about $80 million. The local match was $24 million.
The board of supervisors considered increasing taxes or taking funds from public safety to account for the education shortfall. Supervisors eventually decided to dip into reserves to cover costs.
Henry County’s education budget was set at around $107 million at the beginning of the current fiscal year, which began in July.
In other news, county staff announced that a program meant to connect low-income families with housing is once again in full swing.
“The Fuller Center for Housing of Martinsville-Henry County is now accepting applications for their homeownership program and next home build,” reads information provided by county staff.
The Fuller Center for Housing of Martinsville-Henry County offers these homes with no-interest and no-profit mortgages, according to staff.
Those interested in participating must meet three criteria: They must need affordable housing, be willing to partner with staff and be able to pay the mortgage back. Applications are available at the Fuller Center for Housing’s office at 932 Starling Ave., Martinsville. They can also be downloaded from the document’s online portal.
