Erin  Meyer, Daily Reporter

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Five Eastern Hancock schoolteachers have volunteered to take early retirement in exchange for a $13,000 incentive.

Art teacher Lynn Shultz, a 35-year veteran of the district, was among them.

“This has been a tough decision,” he said Tuesday. “I will miss witnessing the expressions on students’ faces when the light goes on, and they’ve got it.”

Facing a sizable funding shortfall brought on by the state revenue crunch, all schools in the state are facing painful cuts. Eastern Hancock is looking for ways to decrease the 2010 budget by roughly $550,000.

Cuts recommended by Superintendent Randy Harris in January include savings of $268,000 in salary expenditures for support staff through layoffs.