KING WILLIAM — King William County Public Schools is seeking new positions to deal with student behavior experienced since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schools Superintendent Chuck Wagner spoke about what he said were continuing behavior problems at the joint budget work session with the county’s Board of Supervisors on March 6.
“Our teachers do need some professional assistance with managing the different kinds of behaviors that we are seeing appear in our schools. It’s been increasing for the last 10 years or so, but it really has exacerbated since COVID,” Wagner said.
“We are so grateful to have kids in school but … some kids come to us without lots of preparation for schooling and it manifests itself in lots of different ways at school,” he said.
The school division wants to add mental health support including a school psychologist, a school social worker and additional speech-language and student support services “in response to mental wellness needs,” according to a presentation to the board.
The county faces a tight budget in fiscal year 2025, but Wagner proposes the hiring of a division-wide behavior specialist for $112,000 in fiscal year 2026. The division wants to hire a dean of students to uphold discipline at Hamilton Holmes Middle School in FY26.
The division is proposing hiring an additional counselor in FY25 to help deal with the challenges in the schools.
“I have been told, I don’t know first hand, that there’s a bullying problem in the schools. Do you think that additional counselor will help in that manner?” asked Supervisor Ben Edwards.
“I do … that’s an important conversation to have,” Wagner said. “Just teaching young people appropriate ways to behave appropriately and responsibly in a school environment with one another.”
Wagner said not all of the behaviors would be classified as bullying under the Code of Virginia. “But we do see lots of inappropriate behaviors among kids in schools that need to be addressed.”
At the work session, the division proposed a 3% pay increase for its employees in FY25. The school board requested an additional $1.3 million from the Board of Supervisors. County Administrator Percy Ashcraft is proposing a $1.1 million increase in school funding over FY24. The draft budget contains no pay increase for county staff.
The county will hold a public hearing on the budget on April 22. The budget can be viewed online at kwc.gov/531/4470/FY25-Recommended-Budget.
David Macaulay, [email protected]