Original Date: 08/08/1994
Revision Date: 01/18/2007

The Stafford County School Corporation applies a unique approach to saving taxpayer money by consolidating and sharing other county services and facilities. Fund raising, business alliances, and state and federal grants also generate income that does not burden the local budget. These combined efforts save the taxpayers thousands of dollars annually.

There are several examples of this program including sharing a central garage facility that maintains vehicles for both groups. A common procurement system is maintained for common goods and services and centralized purchasing for items over $500. Items not required on a full-time basis are purchased with joint funds to lower costs to each.

Special needs are also shared with other school districts in the region. Because the number of autistic students in each school district is small, one class has been developed for a five-school district region to meet special needs. Staff development and in-service education are also shared within the region to distribute costs for speakers in education.

Vocational students build needed products, thereby gaining valuable training while building furniture or meeting printing needs.

Approximately 50 school-business partnerships exist throughout the school district, providing funding to enhance instructional programs and extracurricular activities. The county school system staff received $300K in grant revenue from the state and federal government for the 1992-93 academic year. Fund raisers by support groups attributed for over $400K for the school division in the same time period.

For more information see the Point of Contact for this survey.