Friends of Metro Schools

Friends of Metro Schools is a coalition of community residents and organizations working to make education a top priority during the state and local budget process. 

Update - Current Status of Metro Schools Budget

Since our last update, the school’s budget number has changed due to cuts in the state budget. Metro Schools’ current budget proposal stands at $620.7 million. This proposal fully funds the school board’s request and represents a $23.1 million increase over the current 07-08 school budget of $597 million.

Of this $23.1 million increase, $12.3 million goes toward required additions such as opening the new Cane Ridge High School, rising health insurance costs, fuel costs, and step pay increases for teachers and support employees. The remaining $10.8m of this increase is largely devoted toward increasing academic achievement under No Child Left Behind, such as additional positions in ELL , special education, and career and technical education. Of this $23.1 million increase, $19 million is coming from the Metro Schools reserve fund, which currently stands at $62 million. After this transfer of reserves, the reserve fund will be at about 8% of the total operating budget (at least 5% in reserves is the customary practice of the city).

The new $620 million Metro Schools operating budget for fiscal year 2008-09 would take effect July 1, 2008.  The city budget will be decided on this Tuesday, June 17 at 6:30 p.m.  Learn more.

Mayor Dean Proposes Tight But School-Friendly Budget

On Tuesday March 25, Mayor Karl Dean proposed a $1.576 million city budget for the 2008-09 fiscal year that begins on July 1. Mayor Dean characterized his proposal as a tight budget that prioritizes education and public safety without adding new taxes. Learn more.

About Us

Over the last year, Metro Nashville Public Schools have achieved significant improvements in school performance and graduation rates. However, an increasingly tight education budget puts these gains at risk. At a time when strong schools are more important than ever to our community’s health and prosperity, Nashville’s local school budget is becoming more difficult to fund. With the growing number of impoverished children in our school system we must ensure that our public schools have the resources they need to help all our children thrive.

Each year, mandatory costs rise, including a number of unfunded federal mandates. This means that the schools need additional funds just to maintain the current level of services they provide. To make sure Nashville students succeed, we need to provide them with smaller class sizes and to recruit, mentor, and retain highly qualified teachers. Friends of Metro Schools will ensure funding levels are adequate so that every child has access to a high quality public education. 

Join Friends of Metro Schools and receive regular updates and info about opportunities to influence the school budget.

Meet our Coalition Partners

Read Press Coverage

View our Timeline of Upcoming Events and Budget Meetings

Learn more about Metro Nashville Public Schools.

Contact Us at friends@stand.org.