Pinnacle Elementary School

10/16/2026

FUTURE FOCUSED FRIDAY | Investing in Students. Building Brighter Futures! 💙💚

The future of Rutherford County starts with the students we support today! Through the Rutherford County Schools Education Foundation, our community is helping create opportunities and brighter futures for students across our district.

Parents, local businesses, and community members: we invite YOU to invest in the future of Rutherford County!

Your support helps make a difference through programs like:

* RCS Backpack Program – Fighting childhood hunger.

* Helping Hands for Homeless Students – Providing hope and assistance to students and families in need.

* Teacher Mini Grants – Bringing innovative classroom ideas to life.

* Project STEAM – Inspiring tomorrow's innovators, creators, and problem-solvers.

By becoming an annual member of the RCS Education Foundation, you're joining a community committed to ensuring our students have the resources, opportunities, and support they need to succeed.

The future is ours to shape, and together, we can make it brighter!

Become a community member today: Visit rcsedfoundation.org/membership to learn more and join!

10/15/2026

Testimonial Thursday | RCS Education Matters

October is National Principals Month, and this week, we're continuing our celebration of the incredible leaders who make a difference in Rutherford County Schools every day!

For this week's , we hear from Dr. Tammie Ash, Executive Director of Human Resources, who brings a unique perspective as a former school principal herself.

Dr. Ash reminds us that while much of a principal's work happens behind the scenes, the impact of their leadership is felt in every classroom, throughout every school, and across our communities.

To all of our RCS principals, thank you for leading with compassion, dedication, and an unwavering commitment to our students and staff. Your leadership matters, and we appreciate you!

10/14/2026

10/13/2026

TRANSPARENCY TUESDAY | Personnel represents the second major component of expenditures from the Local Current Expense Fund. As part of the 2026–2027 Initial Budget Resolution, $8,285,859.36 is budgeted for personnel expenditures from this fund.

As the accompanying graphic illustrates, the largest single component is employee benefits at $2,622,141.03, or 31.6%. Other major expenditures include teachers at $1,171,126.94 (14.1%); local supplements at $1,118,032.98 (13.5%); maintenance personnel at $1,019,094.98 (12.3%); and short-term disability and annual leave payouts at $905,723.85 (10.9%).

The remaining personnel expenditures include office support at $508,480.50 (6.1%); central office administration at $493,954.01 (6.0%); assistant principals at $307,585.30 (3.7%); teacher assistants and instructional support at $111,479.23 (1.3%); principals at $21,030.54 (0.3%); and custodians at $7,210.00 (0.1%).

These figures also illustrate an important feature of public school finance: personnel costs extend beyond salaries. Employee benefits and local salary supplements alone account for approximately $3.74 million, or 45.1%, of personnel expenditures from the Local Current Expense Fund. Local funding therefore supports not only locally funded positions and portions of positions, but also compensation and employer costs associated with maintaining the district’s workforce.

10/12/2026

MYTH BUSTER MONDAY |

MYTH: The Other Specific Revenue Fund is a catch-all for revenues that don’t fit anywhere else.

FACT: The Other Specific Revenue Fund accounts for particular types of revenue specifically identified by state law.

The name can be misleading at first glance. North Carolina law establishes the Other Specific Revenue Fund as an accounting mechanism for designated types of funding, including reimbursements, fees for actual costs, certain sales tax revenues and refunds, restricted gifts and grants, trust funds, federal appropriations made directly to school districts, certain municipal appropriations, and funds received for prekindergarten programs.

For 2026–2027, Rutherford County Schools has budgeted $5,770,161.28 in the Other Specific Revenue Fund. As the accompanying graphic illustrates, those revenues include $2,042,397.95 in local and other revenues (35.4%), $1,987,495.33 in federal revenues (34.4%), and $1,740,268.00 in state revenues (30.2%).

What defines this fund, then, is not simply that its revenues come from sources other than the district’s primary state and local operating funds. Rather, state law specifies the kinds of revenues that may be accounted for here, and those revenues carry particular purposes, restrictions, or conditions governing their use

10/10/2026

FUTURE FOCUSED FRIDAY | Investing in Students, One Backpack at a Time!

A brighter future begins when students have the resources they need to succeed!

Yesterday, the Rutherford County Schools Education Foundation (RCSEF) was honored to attend the RHI Legacy Foundation Grant Awards Ceremony, where we were recognized alongside many other outstanding organizations making a difference throughout our community.

We are especially grateful that our Backpack Program was once again selected as the recipient of TWO grants this year!

Through their continued generosity and commitment to our community, RHI Legacy is helping us fight childhood hunger and ensure that students across Rutherford County have nutritious food to take home over the weekends.

With more than 1,000 backpacks distributed each week, this program is about so much more than food. It's about removing barriers, providing stability, and giving every child the opportunity to arrive at school on Monday ready to learn, grow, and thrive.

The RCS Education Foundation is forever grateful for RHI Legacy Foundation's continued investment in our students, our families, and their futures. We are also proud to celebrate the many other grant recipients whose work strengthens our community in countless ways.

Because when we meet the needs of children today, we build a stronger tomorrow!

10/10/2026

10/08/2026

Testimonial Thursday | RCS Education Matters
October is National Principals Month, and today we’re celebrating the leaders who help make our schools places where students and staff can thrive.
Brad Richardson, RCS Chief Academic Officer, shares his appreciation for the tremendous responsibility our principals carry each day, from supporting instruction and teachers to caring for students, connecting with families, and leading their school communities.
To each of our RCS principals: thank you for your leadership, your dedication, and the countless ways you show up for our students and staff every single day.
We are grateful for you!

10/07/2026

WHY RCS? WEDNESDAY | National Principals Month
Great schools start with great leadership.

This National Principals Month, we’re celebrating the incredible principals who lead Rutherford County Schools each day. They set the tone for their schools, support teachers and staff, build relationships with families, celebrate students, solve problems, and keep their schools moving forward.
Their work reaches far beyond the principal’s office, it can be seen in the culture of our schools and in the opportunities and experiences we provide for students.
Why RCS? Because we have dedicated leaders who believe in our students, our staff, our schools, and our community.

10/06/2026

TRANSPARENCY TUESDAY - Personnel represents the second major component of expenditures from the Local Current Expense Fund. As part of the 2026–2027 Initial Budget Resolution, $8,285,859.36 is budgeted for personnel expenditures from this fund.

As the accompanying graphic illustrates, the largest single component is employee benefits at $2,622,141.03, or 31.6%. Other major expenditures include teachers at $1,171,126.94 (14.1%); local supplements at $1,118,032.98 (13.5%); maintenance personnel at $1,019,094.98 (12.3%); and short-term disability and annual leave payouts at $905,723.85 (10.9%).

The remaining personnel expenditures include office support at $508,480.50 (6.1%); central office administration at $493,954.01 (6.0%); assistant principals at $307,585.30 (3.7%); teacher assistants and instructional support at $111,479.23 (1.3%); principals at $21,030.54 (0.3%); and custodians at $7,210.00 (0.1%).

These figures also illustrate an important feature of public school finance: personnel costs extend beyond salaries. Employee benefits and local salary supplements alone account for approximately $3.74 million, or 45.1%, of personnel expenditures from the Local Current Expense Fund. Local funding therefore supports not only locally funded positions and portions of positions, but also compensation and employer costs associated with maintaining the district’s workforce.