Washington Teachers Anticipate 3 Percent Pay Raise

WASHINGTON COUNTY, VIRGINIA — Teachers in Washington County, Virginia can potentially look forward to a 3% pay raise, courtesy of a section of the state budget. The information was announced by Washington County Schools Superintendent Keith Perrigan during a recent meeting of the Washington County School Board. However, it is yet to be confirmed as the state budget’s finalization is pending.

Although the finalized state budget is on the hold, Superintendent Perrigan confirmed that Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has presented amendments to the budget that involve providing funds for pay raises for school teachers.

Superintendent Perrigan expressed his confidence regarding this move, saying, “Unless something really crazy happens, we’re guaranteed of a state raise of 3 percent”. The news comes as a light at the end of the tunnel considering that the Washington County Board of Supervisors had only recently approved a school system budget that didn’t include the desired 5% raise requested earlier by Perrigan.

Improvisations in Budget Allocation

Due to the county’s stringent budget constraints, Perrigan had to cut down a line item in the school budget by $55,105. This decision to slightly adjust the raise percent was validated by Supervisor Dwayne Ball, a member of the School Finance Committee, who said, “We floated the idea of not quite doing the amount of raise that he was talking about doing.”

Another committee member, Supervisor Saul Hernandez, reiterated the intention to keep teacher salaries competitive but also maintained the practical outlook stating, “We can’t get there all in one fiscal year”.

Focus on Dual-Enrollment

Aside from discussing salary increments, Superintendent Perrigan also ushered in fresh news regarding the schooling system of Washington Country. He announced a new partnership with Virginia Highlands Community College which is aimed to set up a dual-enrollment academy for students.

There will be a change in the structure and location of the college courses. Perrigan mentioned, “Students will actually go to the community college campus and take classes, probably starting out with students from other classes.” A total of nine students have enrolled in this novel initiative till date, according to Assistant Superintendent Jeff Noe. The program, however, is in its trial phase as Noe added, “It’s a pilot project right now.”

Superintendent Perrigan shared plans that emerged from this development, including “looking at growing dual enrollment opportunities in-house.” A partnership plan for the upcoming year has been set to enable Holston High School students to attend dual-enrollment classes at Patrick Henry High School. “Students at Holston will either provide their own transportation – or we’ll provide it” Perrigan stated.