By Rebecca Gaunt

The parent-founded financial watchdog group Watching the Funds-Cobb is holding an online information session on the Cobb County School District’s proposed $1.85 billion budget next week.

The session will take place via Zoom on May 7 at 7:00 p.m. Register at this link. 

Watching the Funds invited all school board members to participate. Becky Sayler, Post 2, and Nichelle Davis, Post 6, have both announced they will join. Jessica Bergeron, Ph.D., a parent, certified teacher, and co-founder of the group will moderate the session.

The group has been vocal about financial matters in the district, calling for more transparency and public input.

“In March, the Cobb County Schools Board of Education removed language that set the expectations for public engagement and input into the budget from its board policy. Previously, the policy stated that BEFORE the budget is officially adopted the Board shall hold public hearings to explain the proposed budget and invite questions and discussion from the administration relative to the budget. As you know, they haven’t done this since we formed 3 years ago,” wrote co-founder Heather Tolley-Bauer in an email.

The original policy language stated, “Before the budget is officially adopted the Board shall hold a public hearing to explain the proposed budget and invite questions and discussion from the administration and public relative to the budget.”

The updated policy struck through everything from “explain” onward. The new language states, “Before the budget is officially adopted the Board shall hold public hearings to receive public input on the budget in accordance with state law and State Board of Education rules.”

Tolley-Bauer criticized the way the district presents the budget at April’s public budget hearing.

“Sadly, you hold the minimum hearings required by law and you hold them on the same day as votes. While they [Atlanta Public Schools] give their stakeholders months, you give us only hours, sending a clear message that you want our money, but not our opinions,” she said. 

Other metro districts spread the process out over a longer period of time. Fulton County School District typically releases its proposed budget in April, with the two legally-required public hearings scheduled for May, and the final vote in June. Gwinnett County introduced its FY 2025 budget in March, with the two public hearings scheduled for May and June. Atlanta Public Schools also separates the release and final vote from the two public hearings.

Cobb released the budget to the board at April’s afternoon work session with the first legally-required public hearing only hours later. The next public hearing will take place immediately before the May 16 meeting at which the board will take a final vote on the budget.

At the first public hearing, Jeff Hubbard, president of the Cobb County Association of Educators, also requested an additional hearing before the day of the vote so there would be time to consider and implement any suggested revisions.

Rebecca Gaunt earned a degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and a master’s degree in education from Oglethorpe University. After teaching elementary school for several years, she returned to writing. She lives in Marietta with her husband, son, two cats, and a dog. In her spare time, she loves to read, binge Netflix and travel.