On the eve of more than 8,000 Cobb seniors celebrating their high school graduation, the Cobb County Board of Education voted 6-0 to prioritize students and staff once again with the approval of the FY2025 budget.

As Superintendent Chris Ragsdale proposed during the April board meeting, the FY2025 budget includes a significant 4.4%- 9% raise for every non-temporary staff member in the Cobb County School District. The raise incorporates a salary step increase for all eligible employees and reflects the $2,500 raise Gov. Brian Kemp budgeted for teachers.

The Cobb Schools FY2025 raise follows the healthy raise in Fiscal Year 2024, which also included the first millage rate decrease since FY 2007, benefiting Cobb County taxpayers.

“Thanks to the Superintendent and his team’s fiscal responsibility and prudent financial planning, Cobb has no long-term debt, unlike most other school districts. So, taxpayer dollars go directly to the classroom, ensuring we continue to have the BEST educators and the most successful students. It is simple; In Cobb, taxpayers get a larger return on their investment,” said Board Chair Randy Scamihorn.

As demonstrated during the meeting’s Demographics Study Update, one way Cobb Schools stays out of debt is by planning long-term for the school community's future needs. For example, District staff track the construction of new single-family and multi-family residences to plan for an increase in enrollment at those area schools and determine how the construction will impact the district's taxpayer base. Since 2021, the number of single-family residences being built has dropped while the number of multi-family homes has risen.

“This is the biggest concern that everyone should be paying attention to if they care about the quality of education in Cobb County…transiency is brought about because of apartments, and we need to be very concerned with the fact that over the past three years, more apartments have been built in Cobb County than single-family residences…when you have high transience, the constant movement of students in and out of classrooms negatively impacts the learning process for schools and students,” said Superintendent Ragsdale.

 Additional Highlights for the FY2025 Budget: 

• The FY2025 Tentative Budget is balanced.  
• FY2025 General Fund is approximately $1.7 billion.  
• The District continues to maintain a AAA Credit Rating from 3 Global Credit Rating Services (Moody’s Investor Service, Standard & Poor’s, and Kroll Credit Rating Agency).  
• The District is the only government entity or corporation in the United States with 3 AAA Credit Ratings.  
• The Cobb County School District’s finances continue to be audited annually by a professional, independent auditor (Mauldin & Jenkins CPAs).
• More specifics for the FY2025 budget are available here. 

The upcoming graduation week is a time to reflect on the impact Cobb educators have had on the Class of 2024 and the students coming behind them. Some of the highlights of the 2023-2024 school year include:

• 3rd time in a row! Cobb Schools is #1 School District in the NATION for dollars raised for the American Heart Association 
• 8,000 Cobb graduates earning about $140 million in scholarship offers. 
• Cobb Schools is home to almost 50 state champions this year. 
• 19 Georgia Scholars 
• 4 Cobb Students Earn Corporate-Sponsored National Merit Scholarships 
• 8 Cobb Students Earn $2500 National Merit Scholarships 
• The first graduating class of the Cobb Innovation and Technology Academy (CITA) 
• Best in the State! Cobb Middle Schools, High Schools Rank Among Georgia’s Best 
• Kennesaw Mountain Soccer Wins School's First Team State Title 
• Cobb Schools Expands Georgia’s BEST to Support more Educators and their Students 
• 22 Years! Cobb Once Again Named Among Nation’s Best Communities for Music Education 
• Cobb Schools Expands High-Quality Learning Option to Help More Students with Math, Science 
• Pebblebrook's Sonic Edge Wins National Championship in NYC 
• Longhorns Win Back-to-Back 5A State Titles 
• Schools like Pebblebrook High School and Hightower Trail Middle School celebrated milestone anniversaries. 
• CITA Sophomore Wins Nationwide Dozer Simulator Competition 
• Cobb Schools celebrates the One-Year Anniversary of Georgia’s BEST, and educators are thriving! 
• GA DOE Names ALL 16 Traditional Cobb High Schools as 2024 AP Honor Schools 
• Cobb AP Students Outperform State Average by More than 50% 
• Awtrey Middle School Band Earns National Recognition for Advocacy in Action 
• A First for Georgia! Kennesaw Mountain Band Earns National Blue Ribbon Award 
• Cobb Schools Team Members Earn Citizens of the Year Awards 
• Cobb Students Continue to Outperform Georgia Peers on State Report Card 
• Osborne Raiders Recognized for Excellence on National and Local Level
• Graduation Rate for Cobb Students Keeps Climbing, Bests State 
• Cobb students lead metro, top state, and national peers on SAT 
• Cobb Students Top State, National ACT Scores Again 
• Eastvalley Elementary School community cut the ribbon on a new state-of-the-art replacement school. 
• The District dedicated a new middle school to lifelong educator Betty Gray. 
• This school year marked five decades of the Cobb Marching Band Exhibition. 
• Wellstar Supports Developing Future Healthcare Professionals at Cobb Innovation Technology Academy

May Board Recognitions: 

2024 International Championship of High School A Cappella National Champions – Sonic Edge, CCCEPA/ Pebblebrook High School 

2023-2024 GHSA Class 7A Literary State Champion, Interpretation of Solo Humorous – Nathaniel Long, Wheeler High School 

2023-2024 GHSA Class 6A Literary State Champion, Girls Solo – Isabella Stringham, Allatoona High School 

2023-2024 GHSA Class 6A Literary State Champion, Essay Personal – Cruz Dupree, Allatoona High School 

2023-2024 GHSA Class 7A Literary State Quartet Champions – Juan Hernandez, Nathan McKee, Ben Trussell, Will Tyler - Kennesaw Mountain High School 

2023-2024 SkillsUSA State Leadership Conference State Winner for HVACR – Stephen Garcia, CITA/Osborne High School 

2023-2024 Georgia Health Occupations Students of America State Winner, Healthcare Photography – Helena Huebecker, CITA/Osborne High School 

2023-2024 Georgia Health Occupations Students of America State Winners, Emergency Medical Technician EMT – Ashly Guzman and Brandon Rojas, CITA/Osborne High School 

2024 PAGE (Professional Association of GAEducators) STAR (Student Teacher Achievement Recognition) State Winner, Omer Mustafa Inan – Walton High School 

2024 PAGE (Professional Association of GA Educators) STAR (Student Teacher Achievement Recognition) State Teacher Winner, Tamara Hollingsworth – Walton High School 

2024 State Adult Education Student of the Year – Patria Brown 

2023 Turnip the Beet Award – Cobb County School District Food & Nutrition Services 

The International Technology and Engineering Excellence Award – Richard White, Pine Mountain Middle School 

2024 Georgia Athletic Directors Association, Dr. Bob Stinchcomb Athletic Leadership Award – Don Baker, Cobb County School District Director of Athletics 

2023-2024 Cobb County Athletic Director of the Year – Ronald Boggs, Osborne High School