District Priorities

At Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, our vision is to be the leader in educational excellence so students can reach their full potential. To achieve this mission, we have prepared an operating budget that puts excellence at the forefront and meets the most important needs of our students.
  
Our leadership team started by evaluating the systems and initiatives needed to achieve our goals and guardrails. We aligned our work the four pillars of excellence: academic excellence, people excellence, operational excellence, and engagement excellence. By doing so, we are developing a district culture of organizational excellence that ensures student success, empowers our employees, and streamlines our operations, while nurturing an interconnected ecosystem of families, community, organizations, and corporations. 
 
We understand that it is important to include all stakeholders in the preparation of our budget.  That’s why we expanded the scope of engagement opportunities, so families, staff, partners, community, and board of education members could participate. We listened to their input, values, and concerns, and their voices were essential in determining our priorities and project resources. 
 
In our budget development process, we evaluated our current investments and redirected funding where necessary. To maximize our resources, we looked first to our state allocations and one-time COVID relief funding. Most of the new investments using the federal relief funding are targeted toward addressing student needs and in support of academic excellence. To fully execute our plan of action, our budget requires an increase in the appropriation from Mecklenburg County of $39 million.  This funding will allow us to maintain our current level of services while supporting student growth, new schools, employee investment, and new investments to improve risk management and enhance cyber defense.   

All citizens of Mecklenburg County deserve visibility into our budget and associated initiatives. That’s why we publish all initiatives for the 2023-24 school year in our Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Annual Plan. Each initiative will have clear objectives and associated metrics, and all initiatives will be monitored on a regular cadence with reporting available on our district’s website. 

We have developed the strategies necessary to deliver on the success of our students as measured by the goals and guardrails. Approval of the proposed budget is vital for meeting those goals and delivering on our commitment to excellence. We will continue to work tirelessly to provide our students with the education they deserve and prepare them for a successful future.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership.

To view the entire 2023-24 proposed budget presentation, and give your feedback visit: https://youtu.be/LK4hRBQRX18

To read the Interim Superintendent's complete budget recommendations for the 2023-24 school year, visit: https://www.cmsk12.org/Page/1167