AVERY COUNTY, N.C. — An Avery County Board of Education meeting scheduled for Thursday afternoon was amended to remove planned budgetary discussions. The meeting change happened as members of the community planned to attend and ask questions over reported staff changes and spending complaints.
Today's meeting was the first since parents and students gathered outside the school board Monday demanding answers from school district leaders. Superintendent Dan Brigman says the district's budgets have been constrained due to inflation and lower enrollment numbers. He also hinted at possible staff reassignment and an absorption of positions.
Photos and videos from WCNC Charlotte viewer Ellie Lecka showed a mix of adults and kids on the side of the road holding signs aimed at district leadership. Some of the signs read, "Honk for Education; Students, Parents, Teachers; the truth!!" "Kids not cuts" and "Education is the real national emergency."
Video from the scene shows a protester with a megaphone shouting, "This is our county. This is not the school board's county. This is not Dan Brigman's (the superintendent) county. This is Avery County."
WCNC Charlotte spoke with multiple people speaking against district leadership, and protestors said they are concerned with certain positions being eliminated with no explanation and other spending decisions they believe are questionable.
Lan Holtsclaw, who grew up in Avery County and was at Monday's demonstration, said her main demand is more transparency from the top.
"It just raises questions," Holtsclaw said. "A lot of things that they seem to be doing raises questions. We deserve to be treated with honesty, and clarity and transparency, and just answer the questions."
WCNC Charlotte reached out to Avery County Schools for a response to the concerns protesters raised. The district has not replied.
Meantime, a post from Friday on the district's Facebook page from Superintendent Dan Brigman alludes to the district's need for budget cuts.
"Since 2019, inflation has continued to rise, hourly wages have increased, and the cost of goods and services have drastically increased," the post reads, in part. "These impacts, combined with our loss of student enrollment (based upon which most of our state funding is calculated), continue to strain our budgets. More than 85% of our operational budgets go towards salaries and benefits, leaving us with minimal flexibility or options for reductions in our budgets. Ongoing efforts have been made over the past four years to protect our local budget and fund balances in preparation for this moment in time."
Brigman goes to on cite non-specific plans to "absorb" positions as people retire or leave the district, and reassign staff as necessary.
"We will continue to seek other options while protecting resources at the classroom level," Brigman goes on to write.
This is a developing story and this article will be updated as more information comes in.
Contact Vanessa Ruffes at vruffes@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.