By Chuck Thompson | The Shelby Independent

Education — As summer ends and Cleveland County Schools gear up for the start of the 2026-27 school year, Cleveland County government cut a gift allotment which it had given CCS in the last few recent years by $500,000.

During the Finance and Personnel CCS committee meeting last week, the committee discussed the $500,000 unexpected shortfall that Cleveland County Government decided not to allocate to the school system this year.

Chief Financial Officer of Cleveland County Schools, Rob McDaniel, explained some potential issues that could arise, noting that compared to recent years, the county had placed $1,000,000 in the CCS operation fund, but this year placed $500,000 in operating funds and $500,000 in the capital fund for upcoming needed infrastructure costs.

With the reduction of $500,000 in the school system’s operational fund, McDaniel noted this could lead to potential layoffs in a couple of years, thanks to the loss of funding from the county and the state’s mandate pay raises passed in the state budget this year; something McDaniel called, “an unexpected perfect storm.”

“It’s a cut two years down the road,” McDaniel explained, not wanting any panic to set in before the current school year among staff. “We can support current staffing levels, but you wouldn't want to try to do that long term.”

“But we support the rises, completely, we think it’s needed," added Interim CCS superintendent Dr. Brian Hunnell. “We absolutely support raises."

McDaniel also noted, “It won’t happen this year, but you do have to have conversations about the state mandating more raises.”

The conversation between CCS administrative staff and the three school board members on the Finance and Personnel Committee, Vice-Chair Aaron Bridges, David Fisher and Kenneth Ledford discussed the topic at hand in further detail, noting their concern.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Cleveland County Board of Commissioners Kevin Gordon defended the county’s take on the issue. He noted there was a public hearing on the issue, although County Manager David Cotton did not bring up the $500,000 cut to Cleveland County Schools during the public June meeting of the county commissioners.

“The Cleveland County Board of Commissioners has consistently supported Cleveland County Schools (CCS) while safeguarding taxpayer resources,” noted Chairman Gordon in a statement emailed to The Shelby Independent on Saturday. “The Board must therefore weigh CCS funding needs against other competing demands on limited County funds.

“The initial $1 million nonrecurring increase, approved in Fiscal Year 2024–2025, was a one-time operating budget appropriation. At CCS’s request, the Board continued that $1 million nonrecurring operating appropriation in the Fiscal Year 2025–2026 budget.

“During the Fiscal Year 2026–2027 budget process, the Board reduced CCS’s annual operating budget by $1.0 million and increased its annual capital budget by $500,000., resulting in a net reduction of $500,000 to CCS.

“The County introduced its Fiscal Year 2026–2027 annual budget in May, held a public hearing on June 2, 2026, and the Board unanimously approved the budget afterwards.

“In setting the CCS annual appropriation, the Board weighed added capital funding and continued teacher salary supplements against competing countywide needs, flat revenue growth, its commitment to avoiding tax increases, declining CCS enrollment, increased funding for Cleveland Community College, and the essential service needs of County departments.”

Read all 160 pages of the county budget here .

But, in the committee meeting last week, the Cleveland County Board of Education members, whose job is to fight for the best interest of the school system, expressed their disappointment at the reduction of funds this year, after McDaniel explained the potential consequences of the gift reduction.

“This is frustrating because you would think public education would be a priority. I guess the Justice center was more important,” Aaron Bridges said during the committee meeting.

Dr. Hunnell reassured the committee that every effort was being made to pivot and acclimate to the reduction in local county funding to the school system. The unexpected surprise added on to the top of the news was the teacher pay increases which Hunnell fully supports but it will cause CCS to navigate some choppy financial waters.

“We have made adjustments to handle the loss, but what we didn’t see coming was the increase of 18% for new teachers from the state,” Hunnell said, noting this is what threw concern to CCS.

The state’s new healthcare plan is also costing CCS more money than ever before, at a time when the school system can least afford it.

“Costs have gone up and benefits have gone down,” said School Board Member Kenneth Ledford.

According to the discussion in the committee meeting Wednesday, costs have risen $425 per employee for CCS. As the largest employer in the county, this cost will be yet another burden on the school system and the county alike, since the supplements are split between the two, with CCS paying 70% and the county paying 30% of the total.

Not to mention, Atrium was removed from the new state program causing employees to either pay an extra fee to go to a non-network provider or drive to Charlotte.

At a time when Cleveland County Schools cannot afford any more surprises, it’s understandable why McDaniel told the committee layoffs are a real possibility.

Wayne King, a parent to a CCS student and the Republican front-runner for county commissioner, had some thoughts to share about the county’s choice to reduce funding to CCS this year. King called out wasteful spending of taxpayer’s dollars and expressed his disappointment at not putting education first and foremost on the county’s budget.

 "I am deeply concerned that a $500,000 reduction in funding for Cleveland County Schools was buried within a massive county budget document and that county leadership failed to clearly inform taxpayers this reduction was being proposed. The budget was developed with little meaningful public input, leaving taxpayers on the outside looking in instead of giving them a voice in decisions that directly affect their community.”

King continued, “Transparency is a fundamental responsibility of government. Decisions affecting our children's education should never be hidden within hundreds of pages of budget documents or discovered only after the fact. Taxpayers deserve to know when funding for one of our county's highest priorities is being reduced.

“As the parent of a son who attends Cleveland County Schools, I find this appalling. Every parent wants to know that our elected leaders are putting our children first. Reducing funding for our schools while continuing to spend lavishly on government furnishings sends exactly the wrong message.

“At a time when our students, teachers, and school employees need our support, it is unacceptable to reduce funding for education while spending $7,000 per desk, $1,400 per trash can, and $877 per side table for a new government building.”

The furniture King is referring to is an issue that has come to light just at the end of the previous week, as King discovered through a public records request that over five million dollars is currently being spent by the county on new furniture; approved by County Manager David Cotton.

King posted a statement on social media denouncing the reckless liberal spending by county government on the new furniture. Look for the investigative news report by The Shelby Independent on this topic sometime this week.

King further went on to express his concern on the excessive spending of Cleveland County taxpayer dollars on pork projects that have been losing money for over a decade.

( CCS 500K reduction by county continued below....)

“The current majority on the Cleveland County Commission has chosen priorities that I simply cannot support,” King sternly noted. “Instead of focusing on strengthening public education, they have been willing to absorb significant financial losses associated with the Foothills Public Shooting Complex while asking our schools to do more with less. At the same time, county government continues to approve spending that many taxpayers would consider excessive. That is a matter of priorities, and I believe those priorities are misplaced.

“Taxpayers expect their elected officials to prioritize essential services. Public education is not a luxury; it is one of the county's most important responsibilities and one of the best investments we can make in our future workforce and economic prosperity.

“Every dollar spent unnecessarily on high-end furnishings is a dollar that could have remained in our classrooms, supported our teachers, enhanced school safety, or expanded opportunities for our students.

“Cleveland County taxpayers deserve transparency, accountability, and responsible budgeting. Before reducing funding for our schools, we should first eliminate unnecessary expenditures and ensure every tax dollar is being spent wisely. I can identify well over $500,000 in spending that could be cut immediately from the county budget without taking a single dollar away from our classrooms.

“Our children should never bear the consequences of misplaced priorities or a budgeting process that lacks transparency. The people of Cleveland County deserve an open, honest discussion about how their tax dollars are being spent before decisions like this are made. We should be investing in our students — not expensive furniture and misplaced priorities," said King.

The Cleveland County Schools Board of Education is scheduled to hold its next public meeting on Monday, Aug. 10, 2026, at 6 p.m.

The Cleveland County Board of Commissioners will hold its next scheduled public meeting on Tuesday, Aug 4, 2026, at 6 p.m.

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Chuck Thompson is a reporter and columnist for The Shelby Independent. 

2026 The Shelby Independent.