Brevard's school board OKs tentative budget of $1.6 billion-plus after federal funds freeze
By Finch Walker
Following uncertainty regarding whether or not federal funds would be released to school districts around the country, Brevard's school board approved a tentative budget of over $1.6 billion for 2026 at its July 29 meeting.
The budget isn't set in stone yet, with another public hearing set to take place on Sept. 9 before it's officially approved. But for now, the tentative budget — which breaks down to a total of $1,638,937,775 — has been approved by the board, giving Superintendent Mark Rendell the go-ahead to notify Brevard's property appraiser and tax collector of the proposed millage and rolled-back rates.
While BPS Chief Financial Officer Cindy Lesinski warned that the district couldn't maintain its current spending, the board reassured members of the public that federal funding cuts wouldn't impact the district until next year.
"This school year is going to remain relatively untouched," board member Katye Campbell said. "Knowing that next year's budget will be leaner federally … those will be conversations we can have in the coming year."
The move to approve the budget came after the U.S. Department of Education put a freeze on more than $6 billion in federal funds for school districts at the end of June. Ultimately, the department reversed course, saying they would release those funds this week. But the confusion over the past few weeks has required Brevard to operate as though they may not get the funds.
The initial plan: Eliminate vacant positions and potentially cut additional positions as they open up, according to a presentation by Lesinski at a July 15 work session.
Now, with the funds freed up, they may not have to immediately make those cuts. However, President Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill" cuts those funds, which go toward seven local programs. The cuts — estimated to be around 70% — won't happen until the 2026-2027 school year. Under the new bill, the funds would likely be consolidated into one grant for K-12 students to be designated for certain purposes. At the work session, Lesinski said it was likely that the English-language learner funds would be eliminated.
Public urges board to hold town hall about funding
Superintendent Mark Rendell said at the board meeting that the district knew cuts were coming for months and that they were able to prepare ahead of time.
"We already made some decisions back then that we would do everything in our power to make sure that none of these reductions would affect operations at the schools," he said. "And we've been able to do that. We've been able to pull through that."
Still, members of the public had concerns. Many urged the board to host a town hall to address how they would handle funding cuts.
"You folks do not draft the federal budget," said Paul Roub, a former BPS student and father of multiple BPS graduates. "(This) simply calls for transparency, planning and a shared commitment to keeping the community informed."
Board approves code of conduct, hears concerns about resignations
The board additionally approved the 2025-2026 student code of conduct and heard concerns about teacher resignations from the public. The agenda showed that 112 instructional staff members had recently resigned, with 62 additional staff members retiring.
While audience members expressed alarm at the number, Rendell disputed their concerns, saying the district had a 93% retention rate of classroom teachers during at the end of the 2024-2025 school year and a rate of 91% the previous year.
"This narrative that teachers are leaving us in droves is inaccurate," he said. "It's a great place to work, it's a great place to teach, and the numbers show that right now."
Janet Murnaghan, a spokesperson for the district, said in an email to FLORIDA TODAY that 97% of instructional roles have been filled ahead of the new school year and that the district is on track to reach 99% by the first day of school.
Finch Walker is the education reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at fwalker@floridatoday.com. X: @_finchwalker. Instagram: @finchwalker_.