FCPS, city criticize each other’s finances
Published 8:00 am Thursday, June 12, 2025
- Franklin Mayor Paul Kaplan, left, delivers comments at a Monday, June 9, City Council meeting, and FCPS Superintendent Dr. Carlton Carter delivers remarks at a Thursday, June 5, School Board meeting. (Photos by Titus Mohler)
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Leaders from Franklin City Public Schools and the city of Franklin shared pointed criticism of each other’s management of their respective finances at recent Franklin City School Board and Franklin City Council meetings.
At the Thursday, June 5, School Board meeting, Ward 4 Board Member and Vice Chair Cristina Boone asked FCPS Superintendent Dr. Carlton Carter, “Correct me if I’m wrong — $645,000 that the city is taking from us, for our students, what is that going to do for us? Because S.P. Morton and everything is coming to the (Career and Technical Education) CTE program, so do we have to fight like we did last year for the money that we deserve?”
“We absolutely will,” Carter said. “It’s $650,000, and what that’ll affect is the cosmetology and barbering program that we worked so hard to get approved by the state of Virginia, and the children are desperately waiting for that program, and they may not have it because (the city has) cut the budget by $650,000.
“Also we have plumbing that needs to be (done) at the J.P. King (Jr. Career and Technical Academy) building,” he said. “And so without this money, we can’t move forward.”
He noted that with the money that was left over previously, he has issued staff bonuses.
“Bonuses are now gone,” he said. “They’re absolutely gone. And so our teachers that work hard… it’s just gone.
“And so we’re going to have to go back to the City Council and ask them separately, and the question will be, ‘Do you care about our children?’” he said.
Boone asked about the time frame involved, and Carter said, “We’re going to speak to City Council Monday, and we’re going to begin asking them separately for these things that need to happen.”
Asked if any other programs could be threatened by budget cuts, Carter said, “The alternative ed program for all the kids that have had applied diplomas, that’s in danger because we can’t fund that. The building that we wanted to purchase for wrestling, robotics and other activities and we also share with Parks and Rec, that’s also in danger.
“There’s a lot of damage that the City Council has caused not just to the children of Franklin City but also the community at large,” Carter added. “Because the city had a shortfall, they decided they would take from the school system, who was actually good stewards of their money.”
Franklin Mayor Paul Kaplan responded to some of these comments during the City Council meeting on Monday, June 9.
“It bothers me that it appears to us that the School Board has overspent their budget by a significant amount of money, but yet they blame us,” he said. “In the (June 5) School Board meeting, it was mentioned that we had not been good stewards of our money, but they had. One of the reasons we’ve had to make cuts is because of shortages and overspending by the School Board or by the Central Office staff, and that worries me.”
Kaplan said he could not have been a stronger supporter of Carter and the School Board four months ago.
“And I’ve seen all that turn around, and I’ve also seen what’s happened at our school since decisions were made and the misinformation that has come to us over and over and over again, things that were so easily found on the state’s website and refuted by the state’s website,” he said.
Later, in conclusion, he said, “I’m sorry, it’s not a good situation, and I wish it was a good situation, and we need a strong school system. We desperately need a strong school system, and until changes are made by the board with top management, it’s not going to happen. And I’m sorry that’s the case.”
School Board Chair Robert Holt shared a statement with The Tidewater News on Tuesday morning, June 10, in response to Kaplan’s comments.
“We are thankful to have an outstanding finance department staffed by highly qualified and dedicated professionals,” Holt stated. “We always know exactly how much money we have and projections for future needs. We have also received additional state money (and eventually additional city money) due to our increased enrollment of approximately 140 students this year, from grants related to our Joseph P. King Career and Technical Academy, and for the extremely high percentage of our students classified as ‘economically disadvantaged.’ The academy provides skilled job training for students not going to college and contains the highly regarded Pearson Testing Center for a variety of industry certifications. It also includes the Old Dominion University-sponsored free community health clinic each week.
“We watch our spending, supplemented with state and federal grants, so that we can do two additional things — provide money for unfunded capital and repair needs and for important retention bonuses for our teachers and support staff,” Holt continued. “When additional funds are received for use by the school board, budget amendments are approved by the board and sent to those in the city responsible for finances. The schools then put those funds to work helping students.
“Apparently, some of these additional funds have not been credited to the school accounts, and vendor payments and reimbursements for the school division have not been processed for several weeks,” Holt stated. “There is no doubt we have the funds; we just have not been given credit for those budget amendments processed weeks ago; we have not overspent our budget. I am told this should be resolved this week so payments can be made.”