Final Reflection

            After completing this intense course of school finance, I feel that I have grown to have a stronger and more solid understanding the school finance system. As I proceeded throughout the weekly lessons, and learning from each individual colleague, as well as my group partnership, the wealth of knowledge that has been obtained has been well worth the experience. In addition to the coursework that has accompanied this class; I have had the opportunity to participate in a webinar series, which will also continue throughout the next few months focusing on budgetary projections for our district. There were times in the coursework that I was unsure how all this information merged together. With the knowledge that I have obtained through the webinar series, my knowledge has become more concrete. I remember speaking with Dr. Creel, and he explained this course would be intense; now at the end, I agree with his comment. Overall, I do not feel the entire amount of information required for school finance can be learned in a five week course, as students, we have to seek the remaining information and put it all together.

            In analyzing the areas of strength regarding Competency 8, I feel confident enough to apply procedures for effective budget planning and management. I understand more in depth the budgeting calendar, as well as all personnel involved with the budget process. Personally I feel that I have a strong rapport with the school board, and that effective budgeting would come through effective communication. In the areas of personnel management, I feel that I have always had strength in documentation of personnel and can effectively hire, fire, or reassign an employee; as well as, utilizing evaluation data to create personnel policies.

            After completing this course, several of the indicators from the beginning of the course to now, I have been able to grow from lack of knowledge to competent. Understanding audits and securing those that could assist in auditing the district, establishing district procedures, applying legal concepts. I have had the opportunity to formulate funding forecasts for the district and assist the Superintendent in the fiscal projections for next school year.

            The area that I continue needing to obtain knowledge on is the section on acquiring, allocating, and managing resources according to district vision and priorities, including obtaining and using funds from different resources. Further information regarding federal funding allotments would be an area that I feel that I could use more knowledge.

            Utilizing the video lectures, in the first week, it was interesting learning about the history of school finance and the parallels that are symbolized in current times; especially in the equity of funding. A major area of week one focused on goal oriented budgeting. It is important that school finance is supported by a district’s improvement plan and relates to the school boards goals for the district. Week two expanded on the concept of goal driven budgets and we had the opportunity to learn everyone’s role in the budgetary process.

            Learning about the sources of revenue and expenditures for the district gave a firm insight of the funding formulas, and a strong understanding of the M&O and I&S taxing entities. Having the opportunity to complete the task of budgetary projections, this opportunity offered adequate knowledge of the importance of budget allocations. Now in the final week, the concentration of the ethics involved with school leadership, and the many times people get into trouble violating the ethics of the district.

            Overall, out of the knowledge that I have obtained from this course and the webinar series that I have participated in is this – budget what you expect to earn, and don’t budget what is paid by the state.

Code of Ethics for School Leaders

Examples of Ethics Violations:

Standard 1.2 relates to the misappropriations, diversions or use of monies for personal gain or advantage. In Montgomery, Alabama a school district’s chief financial officer was found guilty of two felony counts of using her position for unlawful gain of money.  A district audit reviewed the district’s funds and discovered the misappropriations of funds. The chief financial officer was sentenced to ten years for each count had to pay $102,170 in restitution to the school district.

Standard 1.5 relates to accepting gratuities, gifts, or favors that impair professional judgment or to obtain special advantage. A former associate superintendent with the El Paso, TX school district pleaded guilty to bribery charges. The former associate superintendent admitted to accepting money and property for handing out vendor contracts.

Standard 1.6 relates to falsification of records, or directing or coercing others to do so. A principal at Youth Middle School in Georgia falsified student enrollment numbers in elective classes in order to meet the funding size. Students were recorded as taking classes such as music or physical education as the students were serving as office aides. The principal was suspended for six weeks.

Standard 2.3 relates to adhering to written local school board policies and all state and federal laws regarding the hiring, evaluation, and dismissal of personnel. In Texarkana, Arkansas a former teacher was fired allegedly giving special needs student’s answers to a state mandated test. It was proven that other teachers gave out answers as well, but were not fired for the infraction. The lawsuit sided with the former employee based upon the verdict that she was fired on a “flimsy basis.”

Standard 2.5 relates to discriminating against or coercing a colleague on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, gender, disability, family status, or sexual orientation. In San Diego, California, a teacher claims she was denied promotions due to her sexual orientation. She sued the school district, and was awarded $ 140,000 for damages.

Short and Long-Range Consequences

            In the case of the school districts chief financial officer being found guilty of unlawful gain of money, a short range consequence for the district would be the lack of trust the community would have with the school district. The school district would need to prove to the community that it is taking its stance in protecting the taxpayer’s funds and duly auditing the funds on a regular basis. Once the public broadcast of the ethical violation has diminished, for the long-range time, the school district will need to be consistent in their approaches to school finance and the continuous monitoring of the district funds.

            In the issue of the falsification of records, I was interested in seeing the final outcome of the investigation. The principal was placed on administrative suspension for six weeks, all of which fell during the summer months. In the eyes of the community, this would be a detrimental issue concerning honesty and trust of the administration. This short-term “punishment” the principal received, was not appreciated by the community since the principal committed fraud among the school finance system. For the long-term approach, the school district should remove the principal from the position and offer training to the administrative staff regarding funding projections.

            In the issues regarding sexual orientation, the district would need to have updated policies in place regarding Title IX for the short term, and for the long-term offer training to understand the policies. Also, in the event of the case in San Diego, the school district could use training on the association with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Actions to Prevent Ethical Violations

            I believe the school district handled the situation appropriately in the case of the chief financial officer. The school district was given the misappropriations information from the auditor, and action was taken immediately. The Superintendent acted in a manner that utilized applicable laws, policies, and procedures in a fair and reasonable manner relating the taxpayer’s investment in the school district and to protect the district’s funds.

            For the case regarding the principal that received a suspension for six weeks, I personally feel that was “swept under the rug.” However, in the state of Georgia, the laws and policies regarding falsification of records may be different. The issue that I see regarding this infraction is a moral issue. As an employee of the school district, the administrator must model and promote the highest standard of conduct, ethical principles, and integrity in decision making, actions, and behaviors.

            In reference to the issues regarding sexual orientation, it is important for an administrator to interact with district staff, students, school board, and community in a professional and ethical manner and not hinder an employee from gaining the promotions they rightfully deserve.

Understanding Personnel Salaries

            I had the opportunity to speak with our District Payroll clerk and Business Manager regarding the amount budgeted for payroll within our school district. The payroll budget accounts for 74% of the district budget totaling $ 22,241,175. There are always hard decisions to make whenever budgetary decisions have to be made regarding payroll. With the current issues of trimming budgets to balance spending with projected revenue, the small 26% remaining is hard to justify the large amounts of budgetary cuts and still retain an operations budget without cutting salaries. These hard decisions led to teacher layoffs, hiring freezes, and creative job descriptions for the district and employees.

            The remaining 26% ($ 8,313,465) is budgeted for the district operations such as maintenance, transportation, general supplies and equipment, and travel expenses to name a few.

            There could be both positive and negative issues with issuing a 5% salary increase for every employee. In the positive sense, stronger morale would be generated among the employees for a short duration. Eventually other opportunities would have to lend it to retaining high morale. It is my opinion that money is not the answer to high morale; however, it is a stronger supporter of morale. In the light of the current financial issues in the United States today, an overall 5% increase would be very much appreciated, and would certainly reflect a positive cost of living increase. This past year whenever our school district was faced with cuts in budgets, our district was able to cut positions and offer raises that were reflected in our salary audit that was conducted.

            On the negative side, with the current student population within our district growing at a slower pace than it was in the five years, a 5% increase would cost the district an additional $ 1,112,058. This in turn would reduce the remaining budget to $ 7,201,407. This salary increase would take opportunities away from students and possible maintenance items within the district. This also reduces the school district money that may be needed to react with in an emergency event.

            Taking a strong look at the budgetary process, and focusing strongly on the projections for the upcoming year will help lead the school district in making sound financial decisions for the good of the district. Whenever there are firm numbers to work with, and the focus of a goal driven budget, the cost projections will easily be calculated.

Interview on Financial Audits

            According to Policy CFC, the school board shall have the district’s fiscal accounts audited annually at the district’s expense by a Texas certified or public accountant holding a permit from the State Board of Public Accountancy. In order to satisfy the policy requirements for an annual audit, the school district must select an auditor. The school district submits a call for proposals from auditors, and the auditor is selected based on a qualifications process. The Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is completed by the various auditors detailing their individual organizations experiences with school finance. The RFQ and bid packets are received and reviewed, and interviews are conducted. The final end result, the external auditor is selected for the district.

            The audit takes place in our Central Office, where the firm (usually about four individuals) reviews the districts finances. The team reviews many documents, everything from transactions, to debt payments, and payroll, among many other items to determine if the district is financially solvent. As the auditor reviews the documents, they are seeking to determine whether procedures and policies were followed.

            The results of the audit are presented to the school board during a general session in the month of December. This past week, the auditor gave his presentation to the school board, and revealed some interesting facts for the district. The audit report explains the relationships of funds, and gives recommendations for any discrepancies that are revealed.

            Prior to the interview with the Business Manager and listening to the auditor this past week, I had a limited experience to the scope of school finance. Now, my view of school finance has widened even further.

Examining Compensatory Education Allotment in Texas School Districts

Personal Input for Part 6:

Compensatory Education Allotment:
District 1: $ 3,835,006
District 2: $ 633,369

In reference to the Summary of Finance there is a large difference between district 1 and 2 in the areas of Compensatory Education. District 1 receives over 3.8 million dollars funding for Compensatory Education, while District 2 receives only 633 thousand dollars. This shows a significant difference of approximately 3.1 million dollars of revenue. This defines a large need of funds to enhance education specific to related needs of the students.

Group Response to Part 6:

In reference to the Summary of Finance there is a large difference between district 1 and 2 in the areas of Compensatory Education. The Compensatory Education Allotment for District 1 is $3,201,637 more than that of District 2. This shows a significant difference of approximately 3.1 million dollars of revenue. If you take into account the likely needs of a campus with a high number of ELL students and a low socio-economic status, funds such as these could have a huge impact on the education of those students. The resources that they need would be able to be purchased and used to benefit the students in the district.

Examining District Funding and Facilities

Personal Input for Part 5:

The 2010 Local District Property Value (DPV):
District 1: $ 145,968,635
District 2: $ 2,916,187,709

I&S Tax Collections:
District 1: $ 94,871
District 2: $ 8,836,256

Chapter 46 (EDA) Totals:
District 1: $ 572,716
District 2: $ 0

The district that has the most funds available to make payments on existing debt/school facility bonds would definitely be District 2 with a collection of more than 8.8 million dollars. There is a reflection of a three year tax collection rate of 98% for the district as well. Thus, a minimum of 8.6 million dollars are collected annually to pay towards annual bond payments.

District 1 has less funds available, and has applied for Existing Debt Allotment (EDA) funds due to low property values; therefore, reflecting not enough I&S funds being available to pay for existing debt on bonds.

I remember back in my graduate studies for principal certification, we conducted a curriculum audit, and part of the audit focused on the physical plant of the school. Just as you mentioned earlier Jason, facilities affect how students can learn. Looking at the textbook and the understanding that District 1 is limited in its funding, and has a large population of economically disadvantaged students is a reflection upon the community. We could add in our discussion the information that Dr. Nicks shared in his article about seeking out opportunities for shared partnerships.

Group Response to Part 5:

Based upon the given information, there is probably a vast difference in the quality of the facilities between the two districts. The property value for District 2 is much higher than District 1; therefore, the facilities in District 2 would most likely be in better condition than District 1. We all know that facilities can affect learning in many ways. With this being said, District 1 should consider developing partnerships for shared programs and facilities. These partnerships have been known to bring in extra funding and collaboration with the community.

Analyzing LISD Maintenance & Operations Funds

Maintenance and Operations Funds are generated to fulfill the operations and maintenance of the local school district. The Superintendent had given me the opportunity to participate in a web conference with him, and the business manager to learn about projected funding, and the revenue the school district had received from the state. Since we have a new Superintendent as well as a new and inexperienced Business Manager, the district has contracted with an outside professional to assist in projecting revenue and understanding the Summary of Finance. In the discussion, it was learned that our school district has been overpaid through the Foundation School Fund, and the district will have to “pay back” funds to the state. I examined the information that was provided by our budgeting expert and compared the information to the Near Final (NF) information from the 2010-11 Summary of Finance and the Comptroller of Public Accounts information from the Property Tax Division.             The main source of revenue for the district is through Foundations School Program (FSP). Last school year, we were paid $ 16,220,516 with the FSP, however, through projections; we will have only earned $ 15,268,821. This reflects a revenue shortfall of $ 951,695 that will be returned to the state. However, in the discussion we determined that the new I&S tax rate was not included in the figures, so we are expecting a smaller return to the state. It was further explained, even though the I&S tax rate has changed, the M&O tax will receive a fractional part of the funding. Additionally our local M&O tax rate of 1.04 generates approximately $ 8,936,439.             The total M & O revenue for our district is approximately, 25.1 million dollars. The main areas of revenue generated come from the regular program allotment of approximately 17 million dollars, the special education adjusted allotment of approximately 2 million dollars, the career and technology allotment of approximately 1.6 million dollars, and the compensatory education allotment of approximately 1.3 million dollars.             Overall, the district is not a wealthy school district from the standpoint of tax collections from business and industry. The district is considered one of the smaller geographical districts within the state, and the sole source of tax income originates from homeowner property taxes. The values of homes in our school district are slightly higher than average, which does assist the school district with tax funds. The school district has to work hard in managing and ensuring funds are budgeted in a manner that reflects responsible spending. After speaking with our hired expert, we have learned to budget what we expect to earn, not what is paid by the state.

Analyzing Contrasts in Two Texas Schools

        According to Texas Education Code §42.001(b) all schools districts will be provided funds for public education regardless of the wealth of the district’s property and will receive “substantially equal access to similar revenue per student at similar tax effort, considering all state and local tax revenues of districts after acknowledging all legitimate student and district cost differences.” However, not all school districts are funded equally according to the average daily attendance (ADA). According to the glossary provided by the Texas Association of School Boards, “students with additional education needs are weighted for funding purposes to help recognize the additional costs of educating those students. Weighted programs include special education, vocational, bilingual, gifted and talented, and compensatory education.” The funds are now considered weighted average daily attendance (WADA). Furthermore as mentioned in the weekly lecture, WADA depends on the number of students attending the district and the type of students attending.
     Comparing the two districts (District 1 and District 2) it is clear there are flaws in the school finance system. The total refined ADA adjusted for decline in District 1 was $3,893.75 and $4,032.94 in District 2, with the total WADA being 5,555.815 and 4,794.076 respectfully. District 1 has fewer students, thus resulting in a lower ADA. However, the district has a 93% population of economically disadvantaged students as opposed to the second district with a 21% economically disadvantaged population; this in turn increases their WADA. The district with the higher number of economically disadvantaged students, will receive more appropriations from the state.
     The intent of WADA was to provide more money and professionals working directly with the students. Whether being economically disadvantaged, involved in special education, career and technology courses, bilingual, gifted and talented, or in need of specific assistance with compensatory funding, the funds needed to be successful with these programs had to be larger than traditional ADA funds. Students differ greatly in their educational needs. The costs associated with meeting these needs vary widely. The state finance system assigns an extra weight for each student with certain special needs and uses this to deliver extra money to school districts to help pay those extra costs. Under the Texas finance formula, students who are from low-income families, those who are learning English, children who are gifted, and those who have certain disabilities earn extra money for their school district. These different groups are given a “weight,” meaning that they count like one whole student plus a bit more. To determine a school district’s WADA, the state adds all of these and treats them like extra students who enroll in that school district. For example, a school district may have 100 total students but all the extra credit it receives for students with special needs may add up to a total of 120, so the state gives that school district enough money to educate 120 students. The extra weight is provided because schools often need to provide additional, specialized services for students with special needs.
Examining the districts, the funds generated through WADA was greater with District 1 than District 2. However, in further comparing these districts, the revenue per WADA @ Compressed Rate for each district are $5,044 and $7,206. The overall intent was to give assistance to District 1, but District 2 resulted in receiving more funds. This would be due to property values in the area having a significant impact on the funding contributions. Therefore, District 2 was able to hire extra teachers to implement the specific needs of the students as opposed to District 1 having to survive with fewer funds, and provide an education to a needier student population.
     While examining the Summary of Finance and specifically the Tier 1 Funding by Program Intent Code, there is a considerable difference between both districts in many areas. In District 1 and District 2 the Regular Program Allotment had a difference of approximately 1 million dollars in favor of District 2. The Special Education Allotment had a difference of approximately $ 300,000 in favor of District 1. The Career and Technology Allotment had a difference of approximately $ 700,000 in favor of District 1. The Gifted and Talented Allotment was fairly similar, considering the school district can only claim five percent of the ADA for gifted and talented education. The largest difference that was seen was in Compensatory Education Allotment of approximately 3.2 million dollars in favor of District 1. This funding source significantly gives assistance in helping the district support students with specific educational needs, such as reading support. With District 1 being a largely economically disadvantaged district, with a 100% Hispanic population, there would be a greater need to offer assistance for specific needs and prevent at risk students from dropping out of school. These funds are based upon the economically disadvantaged population. There was approximately an $ 800,000 difference in the Bilingual Allotment in support of District 1.
     Using the WADA figures and the figures in part 1, the total target revenue for the Maintenance and Operations (M&O) each district are approximately 28 million for District 1 and 35 million for District 2. Even though both school districts are fairly comparable in size, the main reason for the difference is due to the property values in each district. District 1 has a lower property value than district 2. The Maintenance and Operations Budget is the basic budget for school districts across the state. This is where much of the state revenue and the local tax end up. With this money, many programs are funded within a school district. With school finance in trying times right now, it is evident that the M and O budget will be affected negatively and positively.
The staffing for each school district is significantly different. While there is the same number of teachers, the number of professional is different by about 40. Given the average salary for this type of position is 50,000, you can see how there would be a difference in budget with this area alone. The number of professionals on a campus could negatively affect a school by having fewer resources to go to for help and needs. This, in turn, could negatively affect the academic achievement of the students. Having finance system that more equally distributes funds could help with this.
     Property tax is one of the main areas the M and O budget is funded. Given the difference in the value of the property in both districts, the resulting factor caused different funding amounts to be allocated. The number of Economically Disadvantaged students in District 1 helps to offset this some. With WADA, it is so important to have students input into the PEIMS system with the correct eligibilities. Special Education receives “X” amount, Economically Disadvantaged receives a different amount. Not including the other specially funded programs that will all receive different funds. Students all across the country need an education and should have equal access to that education. It is up to the people in Austin to help get this accomplished.

Analyzing School Finance Issues in Two Texas Districts

Personal Input for Part 2:

The revenue for WADA @ Compressed Rate was
District 1: 5044, District 2: 7206

Total Target Revenue for the M&O Fund
District 1: 28,023,530.86 District 2: 34,546,111.66

I was unsure on the number of employees - since I looked on the summary of finance and the line that stated "Teachers, Librarians, Nurses, & Counselors" stated the following numbers:
District 1: 281 District 2: 307

In contrast I noticed on the Snapshot Data: the number of teachers and professional support staff, I did come up with the same as you both had. With this information - the number of teachers and professional support staff that would have reflected would be:

District 1: 265 teachers + 49 professional support staff = 314
District 2: 265 teachers + 34 professional support staff = 299

There is a discrepancy between the two documents:
District 1: 33 positions
District 2: 8 positions

I did figure the Total Target Revenue even further, to the adjusted target revenue, however, I am unsure whether we were supposed to do this or not. I used the funding formula's that were found in the School Finance 101: Funding of Texas Public Schools information released by Texas Education Agency in April, 2010. If anyone thinks we should figure this information, just let me know, and I will post the entire breakdown.

Group Response to Part 2:

The revenue for WADA @ Compressed Rate was

District 1: 5044, District 2: 7206

Total Target Revenue for the M&O Fund

District 1: 28,023,530.86 District 2: 34,546,111.66

In the summary of finance on the line that stated "Teachers, Librarians, Nurses, & Counselors" offered the following numbers:

District 1: 281 District 2: 307

In contrast it was noted on the District Snapshot Data:

District 1: 265 teachers + 49 professional support staff = 314

District 2: 265 teachers + 34 professional support staff = 299

There is a discrepancy between the two documents:

District 1: 33 positions

District 2: 8 positions

 The total numbers of teachers are the same at 265, counselors, nurses, and librarians fall under professional support staff and make up 8% and 6% of the total staff FTE’s. This comes out to approximately 49.5 FTE’s for district 1 and 33.5 FTE’s for district 2.

Comparing and Analyzing District Snapshots

Personal Input for Part 1:

The numbers above are the same that I had found as well. Another possible reason for the differences in the WADA is the larger popoulation of students involved in CTE courses and labeled special education. District 1 had a 9% special education rate resulting in 351.27 students receive special education services, as opposed to District 2 with a 7% special education population resulting in 272.30 students receiving special education services. In addition, there is a higher population of students involved in CTE courses in District 1 - 24% of students are involved in some sort of CTE program resulting in 936.72 students participating. District 2 has 14% of the student population involved in CTE courses resulting in only 544.6 students involved. More students receiving weighted funding in these courses allows for more revenue for the district.

In reference to the Summary of Finance there is a large difference between district 1 and 2 in the areas of Compensatory Education. District 1 receives over 3.8 million dollars funding for Compensatory Education, while District 2 receives only 633 thousand dollars. This shows a significant difference of approximately 3.1 million dollars of revenue. This defines a large need of funds to enhance education specific to related needs of the students.

Group Response to Part 1:

Economically Disadvantaged:

District 1: 93.3%District 2: 20.7 %
Total Refined ADA (WADA) for Decline:

District 1: 3,893.754District 2: 4,032.937

WADA:
District 1: 5,555.815District 2: 4,794.076

WADA for the first district is higher because of the number of students who are eligible for additional funding. Districts 1 and 2 have very different demographics. District 1 has 100% Hispanic. District 2 is more complex with 4% African American, 16% Hispanic, 79% White, and 1% other. District 1 probably has more bilingual students, thus more funding for this district. In addition, there are more special education students and economically disadvantaged students which provide more funding.
According to the lecture, WADA depends on the number of students attending the district and the TYPE of students attending. The first district has fewer students, thus has a lower ADA. However, they have more economically disadvantaged students which increases their WADA. The district with the higher number of economically disadvantaged students, receive more allocations from the state.

Another possible reason for the differences in the WADA is the larger population of students involved in CTE courses and labeled special education. District 1 had a 9% special education rate resulting in 351.27 students receive special education services, as opposed to District 2 with a 7% special education population resulting in 272.30 students receiving special education services. In addition, there is a higher population of students involved in CTE courses in District 1 - 24% of students are involved in some sort of CTE program resulting in 936.72 students participating. District 2 has 14% of the student population involved in CTE courses resulting in only 544.6 students involved. More students receiving weighted funding in these courses allows for more revenue for the district.

In reference to the Summary of Finance there is a large difference between district 1 and 2 in the areas of Compensatory Education. District 1 receives over 3.8 million dollars funding for Compensatory Education, while District 2 receives only 633 thousand dollars. This shows a significant difference of approximately 3.1 million dollars of revenue. This defines a large need of funds to enhance education specific to related needs of the students.

Stakeholder Input - Budgeting Process

There are several people involved with the budgetary process at Lumberton Independent School District, all with different roles and responsibilities. While interviewing the Superintendent and his role regarding the budget process, he explained how other entities can offer valuable insight for the budget process.

Central Office Administrators and Staff

            Various people from Central Office can have valuable input into the budget process. The district technology coordinator visits all campuses and discusses with the principal and campus technology specialist about the upcoming school year needs and regarding the renewals of various technology programs. The Special Programs coordinator searches to find ways of increasing budgetary allocations through weighted funding and works alongside the PEIMS management person for the district.

Principals

            Principals are responsible for working with their campus improvement planning teams in identify the needs of the campus and formulating these needs into aligned campus goals. These goals need to be supported by budgetary allocations to successfully achieve the desired results. The principals need to be mindful of their responsibility in being an effective manager of the school funds while they are fulfilling the role of campus leader.

Campus Site Base Teams

            Campus site base decision making teams are important in developing collaborative plans for the campuses and offer support and advice in achieving the goals of the campus. The team must understand their role, as well as knowing they are the ones who represent all employees on the campus. The teachers, custodians, cafeteria employees, business leaders, and parents all come together to discuss the needs of the students and what resources are required to accomplish those needs. This collaborative structure is effective in understanding other viewpoints regarding the campus.

District Site Base Teams

            District site base teams work together to offer support and advice to the board for creating the district goals, as well as offer advice to current concerns the school district is faced with (i.e. bullying issues). These ideas are given to the Superintendent and board of trustees to identify funding resources to address the issues.

Teacher Organizations and Key Stakeholders

            In the district, teacher organizations and various stakeholders meet and offer information to the Superintendent and board of trustees through the board appointed liaison committee. This information is collected, and shows the school district is willing to listen to all stakeholders within the district. The ideas and concerns that are brought forth to the committee are used in the creation of the board adopted goals and thus budgetary allocations are appropriated to support the goals.

Board of Trustees

            The boards of trustees are the final stage in the adoption of a school budget. According to Dr. Danny Lovett, Region V Executive Director, It is important to first and foremost remember that the “power and responsibility of the board is to maintain the ownership of the school, the kids, and the money.” In order to not get into the areas of governance, the board must remember their roles; however, they are important with offering advice in the budgetary process. It is effective the Superintendent works alongside the school board, and truly involves their roles as the “Team of 8.”

Superintendent's Roles and Responsibilities - Budgeting Process

            This was a difficult week to interview the Superintendent, considering our school was out for the entire week for Thanksgiving holidays. However, with that being mentioned, I am grateful for our Superintendent taking the time to meet with me regarding his role in the budgeting process for Lumberton School District. As mentioned in previous assignment responses, the school district is currently in a focus of reorganization. Prior to this year, the school district had a Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, and a Director of Finance and Operations. Currently, we only have a Superintendent, and he has had to share all the roles and responsibilities of all three positions. With this being mentioned, he is currently in his first year as Superintendent, and having to learn many aspects of the budgeting process. I am thankful that he has given me the opportunity to participate in various webinars and participate in the actual budgeting process as he is learning as well.

            Mr. Valastro explained that his main role in the development of the budget is participating as the “chief financial and budgeting officer for the district and he must seek information to prepare and provide to the school board a well-balanced budget focused on achieving the goals and objectives of the district.” This being a vaguely mentioned statement he proceeded to explain the individual roles that he is currently faced with, and how different these roles are from the past. Prior to this school year, the Director of Finance and Operations prepared the forecasting templates for the district, and these items were submitted to the Superintendent for review. Through collaboration of the expected funds, and knowing the needs the district would be focusing upon the next year, a budget was created. Now, the Superintendent has to work with our new finance manager for the district to complete the templates and predict what revenue the district will be generating. He mentioned this is a wonderful time to learn about budgets considering all the issues affecting school funding today.

            Creating budgets also has political ties. Mr. Valastro has learned to be open with the school board, and to understand their views of the school district, and to incorporate some of their wishes through the budget. The main reason with the reorganization originated with the school board’s resentment towards the management of the school budget and the over expended funds that were utilized causing various line items to be overdrawn, thus overdrawing budgeted amounts in various functions. When this happened, the school board had to approve budget amendments. There were also some funding and payment transactions that occurred out of the view of the school board. All these issues created a “watchful board” on the budget and the budget process.

            The Superintendent also mentioned that budgeting must be goal driven. The goals created by the district must be adequately funded in order to achieve the desired results. The goals that must be obtained is crucial, and the budget provides the revenue to achieve merit.

            Another challenge he is facing this year is the creation of the budget calendar. There is a budget calendar that has been used in the past, however, being new at this position, he mentions that “it is an important tool to have” and give certain “checkpoints” where we need to be during the process.

            His final goal is to have a prepared budget by May to give to the board of trustees to begin the budget workshops and public forums. The school board has expressed an interest in not letting their part of the budget process last more than a month. The board would like to have a budget approved by the month of July.

Understanding TEA Budgeting Guidelines

            In review of the “Financial Accountability System Resource Guide” prepared by Texas Education Agency, it is my opinion this document is essential in understanding and following the budget procedures in order to successfully master the budget process. This document is easy to follow, and adequately explains the procedures of budgeting. I, alongside the Lumberton ISD Superintendent of Schools and Business Manager, am currently participating in a webinar series with Joe Smith of TexasISD.com, and a webinar with Dale Dixon from Huntsville, related to school budgets, and after the first webinar event, it is easily seen where this document is a handy resource guide.

            I especially found it interesting in learning about the different budgeting approaches that were explained in the document. In assessing our current budget pattern, it is understood that in the past we have used a line-item budgeting approach; however, we are slowly moving towards site-based budgeting. Since, LISD is currently in a reorganization state, there have been many procedures that are being looked at differently.

            From the school’s new budgetary standpoint, learning the various budgetary roles and responsibilities of various personnel within the district has been effective in working through the change. Even though the budgetary roles and responsibilities are required for school districts with an ADA of 6500, it is important seeing the responsibilities that still must be mastered in the budgeting process.

            I’ve always been issued a budgetary calendar in the past when developing my campus budget, as well as the Career and Technology budget whenever I was the director of career and technology. Seeing the requirements that are embedded in the calendar through use of the budget calendar sample, the understanding of the calendar is more complete. Especially knowing there are legal requirements in the development of the budget.

            The information found in the guide, will also be helpful in the completion of our district projections for the upcoming school year. We have learned in the webinar series that we have participated in that the school district has over-projected estimates in the past, and now the school is responsible for repayment of a million dollars back to TEA. Through the use of the resource guide, the webinars, the coursework of School Finance, and the webinar series I am involved with, I feel that I will be more than prepared to assist the school district in the upcoming budgetary process for our district.

Goal Driven Budgets

            The definition of a goal driven budget is simply a means by which the goals based upon the vision and mission of the school are put into action. In today’s school climate, the expectation for the school and community having the authority and support in making decisions based upon the academic success and needs of students is a responsibility of the site base decision making teams. The site base decision making teams, both campus and district, should therefore be involved in the budget planning process. The goals that are adopted by the school board are to be used to measure the realization of the vision and mission of the school. In other words, the budget process and spending allocations should be followed to ensure the accomplishment of the school district’s goals. 
            According to Philip Gloudermans, Director of Strategic Communications at the Annenberg Institute for School Reform, there can be many benefits to creating a goal driven budget, such as the budget will be built around academic needs. Also, campus principals and campus site base decision making teams will have flexibility in providing resources for the campus. Finally, a goal driven budget “promotes district conversations on school resource equity.” (Gloudermans, 2010).

            The Lumberton Independent School District has had a firm budgetary calendar in place to ensure the most effective process in budget planning. The school district has also adopted five main goals this school year, with several performance indicators tied to each goal. Currently, the district is in a reorganization state, with the Superintendent and Business Manager learning the budgeting process. I also have the opportunity to learn with these two individuals participating in various webinars and assisting in the budgetary projections for the upcoming school year. One main district goal that has been written is to “develop and maintain physical infrastructure to enhance educational opportunities for all students.” While this is a generally written goal, the performance indicators of the goal focus on the newly projected building projects and maintenance opportunities the school district has placed in the five year strategic plan to enhance and modernize the courses we offer to students.

            While focusing on a reorganization of the campus structure, it is important to understand the relationship between the Board of Trustees and the Superintendent as was mentioned in the lecture. The main issue resulting in the reorganization was dealing with funds and the management of the budget. Without stepping over into the area of governance by the school board, the relationship between our new Superintendent and the board has grown. The openness of the Superintendent with the School Board is evident, and the focus on the goals and objectives of the school district is being held with the stakeholders. This openness has created a stronger trust between the Superintendent, Business Manager, and Board of Trustees and all are learning their roles in creating the budgets. We have seen when there is turmoil at the top; the turmoil dwindles down amongst the campuses. This is now starting to change, and the budgeting process will be changing where the focus is upon academic achievement and growth.

EDLD 5371 - Week 2 Assignment

School-Community Relations

Week 2 Assignment

Item 1

Identify a school district program or operation that could significantly benefit from an appropriate school-community relations activity.  Give a brief explanation as to why you chose the program or operation.

The Lumberton Independent School District and the City of Lumberton has came together to capitalize on an opportunity to receive a FEMA grant to build a monolithic dome structure on the district property to be utilized as an emergency management station and shelter for Southeast Texas first responders. However, the structure can be utilized as a school district building, under the operations of the school district to be designed as a structure fit for educational use. I had an opportunity to visit another school district in South Texas that has received the grant, and have viewed the details in the beginning phases of building the structure. The structure being built at the Woodsboro Independent School District is a multi-use facility designed as a competition basketball/volleyball gym and auditorium. While visiting with the Superintendent, he was delighted to share everything he had to do to convince his community of the opportunity that the were facing.

Whenever it was identified that our school district had the opportunity of receiving the grant, high hopes were shared among the administrative team of this wonderful opportunity. The perspective of this grant outlines that FEMA will be responsible for paying 75% of the grant, and the school district will have to bear 25% of the cost plus any finishing cost.

The reason I had chosen this school-community relations activity was the opportunity we have been offered, the budgetary concerns of the district, and public (both community and faculty stakeholders) view of the structure and cost.

Item 2

Describe the proposed school-community relations activity that could benefit the program or operation.  Ex:  volunteer program, school-business partnership, communications strategy, etc.

In order to understand the benefits of the operations of utilizing the funds of this grant, it is important to understand the concerns and misconceptions that are viewed in the public’s eye. Whenever the news started spreading in the community about a proposed building project, the first concerns that came to mind was a bond issue that would easily be voted down by the community. Also, concerns were being voiced in the community stating the school had to layoff so many teachers, that now they are considering spending money on buildings, but the students are suffering because of a lack of teachers.

Being mindful of the situations, the school district has not yet received the grant, only the opportunity. Since I have visited another district to gain insight on this grant, and the directions that we need to be heading, I have been told I will be part of the strategic planning team, when a team is created. The precursors of this discussion in the community were first held between the Superintendent, the school board finance committee, city leaders, and the Economic Development Board. Now that misconceptions are moving throughout the community, I propose as part of the District’s Strategic Planning Team a communications plan to market this opportunity to the community.

The main focus we are looking at with this structure is to create a school district auditorium that could be utilized also as a community center. Our school district houses many community events; however, our facilities are not up to comparison as other school districts in the area. This design focus has not been mentioned to the public. First, for the main reason, we have not received the grant, and secondly, the misconceptions that are traveling throughout the community.

The proposed plan would take this information to the various community organizations (service organizations, and churches) as well as the school community, and generate support for the structure and promote the positive aspects and express the community need for this structure. In addition, the communications will focus on the opportunity we would have by only sharing 25% of the cost of this structure, a positive expenditure for the district in light of the economic conditions facing school districts. Once the groundwork has been delivered to the community organizations, it would be the hopes that positive feedback regarding the project would be generated and spread throughout the community. By focusing on the needed structure, and the school and community opportunities that would be created, the community will understand and support the project.

We have learned that just going out and asking the public for funds to build structures without giving the reasons and details of the plan has given the school a negative view of the management of school funds. We need to take this learned information, and give the community what it expects and outline the plans and benefits of the program.

Item 3

Identify the school district goal/objective that would benefit from the proposed school-community relations activity.  How would it benefit?

First of all, by creating this communications plan, the main district goal would be to enhance trust by the community in the operations of the school district funds, by displaying transparency and being open and honest regarding the needs and community opportunities that would be generated. We have five district goals that have been approved by the school board. The correlated goals that would be supported in the District Improvement Plan and the five year strategic plan would be to promote academic excellence, practice good stewardship of finances, and develop and maintain physical infrastructure to enhance educational opportunities for all students.

The structure that would be created would promote academic excellence, by offering our students an adequate and supportive place to practice and perform theatre, band, choir, dance, and cheerleading. These extra curricular courses the students have access to would be accentuated. Practicing good stewardship of our finances would be elaborated due to the financial support we would be receiving. Also, the main focus would be enhancing the education opportunities by developing physical infrastructure that would be useful for school, as well as community venues.

Item 4

What school district resources would be needed to initiate this school-community relations activity?

Budgetary funds would be used to fund site analysis, and the architectural design of the structure. An additional budgetary factor is the identification of cost for creating parking spaces and roadways, since the placement of the dome would be in an existing parking lot.

Another resource that would be instituted would be time spent spreading the message of this opportunity. In order to be prepared, several meetings would need to be organized in order to develop a consensual plan of action focusing on the needs of the district, as well as the desires of the community. The actions would be created utilizing the district and campus needs assessments and discussions with the District’s Site Base Decision Making Committee, as well as the Strategic Planning Committee.

Overall, with careful planning and preparation, and learning from past mistakes, the team would be able to come up with a successful marketing package to be delivered to the community. It is understood that our community has wanted to focus on the development of an auditorium. Capitalizing on the desire, and creating a plan, and communicating with the public sector, as well as the school community would enhance the development of this dome structure.

EDLD 5371 - Assignment Week 1

School-Community Relations

Week 1 Assignment

Question 1

Which staff member is given the responsibility to oversee the implementation of your district’s school-community relations program on a day-to-day basis?

In the Lumberton Independent School District, our Communications Coordinator is the person responsible for overseeing the district’s school-community relations program. I had the opportunity to interview her to learn all the task she is responsible for. The position she held in the school district is different than what I had expected to hear, however, following our visit, I had a different view of her position. I even learned some of the ways that could make my job easier by utilizing her talents.

Question 2

Does someone in your school district have a written job description that includes responsibilities associated with the school-community relations program?  If yes, please include up to three listed responsibilities that are specific to school-community relations.

According to the Communications Coordinator, the primary purpose of the position is to promote positive public relations between the school district and community. Prepare, provide and distribute pertinent information to the public about the activities, goals and policies of the school district.

After reading the job description, the most important responsibility that must be fulfilled is the work in scheduling and coordinating all media interviews and media calls. She has had to work hard to create a positive relationship with the news media in order to reflect our school in a positive view. She mentioned that the news media is always in contact with the district, and several times, they call to verify information that parents call into the news stations. In addition to news media contact, she is responsible for developing and implementing press releases, publications, and photos in the local newspapers.

Another interesting duty that must be fulfilled is the creation and implementation of staff and student incentive programs. Several times, she is responsible for soliciting public support from local businesses to offer token incentives to staff and students. Creating a positive public image with the public and monitoring the request load on the local businesses is an important task to consider. As the school-community relations person, she is responsible for monitoring the donation request of the local businesses. All campuses and district offices must report who and when they are requesting money.

Another responsibility of our communications coordinator is to be the district’s community management coordinator. She is responsible for working with the Director of Support Services to create the district management plan and monitor drills the school district campuses participate in. She has a constant communication with emergency management officials and reports to the Superintendent the plans of the community in the times of emergency situations.

A further duty of the school-community relations person is to create, develop, and monitor the district website and web pages that have photos or publications. In addition, she is responsible for attending all school board meetings, as well as the majority of extra-curricular events. Being our public relations person means she is duty bound to be one of the most seen person in the district. In addition, she trains the office staff in public relations.

Question 3

What are the most effective strategies utilized in your school district that encourages parental participation in their child’s education, promotes volunteerism, and actively recruits support from business partners?

There are several options in our school district to encourage parental participation in the child’s education. Recently upon her recommendation, the school district purchased a School Messenger system to inform parents of upcoming events, and/or school information. Our system is a phone messaging system that creates an automated call-out.

Our school webpage is the most important form of technology to our parents and the community. The school-community relations person has conducted trainings on how to offer parents valuable information through our website.

Furthermore, a strong relationship that has been built with the Chamber of Commerce and our Municipal entities (police, city hall, and library) has enhanced the community involvement in our schools. One thing about our community, the churches and schools are the center of the community. In order to stay in a positive view, parents and community members are invited to participate in the schools. Every campus holds parent orientation night(s), a community pep rally is held every year, and our school events are open to the public. In most instances at each school board meeting, businesses are recognized in public sessions in appreciation of the support to our school district.

Question 4

What are the written objectives/goals for your district’s school-community relations program?  If objectives and/or goals are not written, state this in your response.

There were no written objectives/goals, however, while interviewing, a main focus of the position is to avoid having a negative public perception. Being mindful of various communications that are out in the district and the community is important especially whenever the information comes back to central office and the stories have changed. She then has to get the story correct to the public.

In addition, another unwritten goal is to train the district secretaries and receptionist public relations skills. These people are usually the first who receives negative phone calls or angry parents, and they must learn to listen in order to not intensify the problem.

Question 5

How much did your school district budget in 2009-2010 for school-community relations?  Include activities and personnel costs dedicated to the program.

This question ended up being a touchy subject when discussing the budgetary concerns. The only area that is budgeted for school-community relations is the salary of the communications coordinator. Her salary is approximately $ 29,000 per year.

In addition to budgeting the salary, the budget is indirectly influenced by several school and community interactions. Several community activities revolve around or utilize the different school properties. For example, the Chamber of Commerce uses the high school cafeteria area to host a community banquet. This is a generous offer from the school district, and the budget is indirectly influenced by the overtime cost of the custodians, and the electricity that is utilized to host the event.

Question 6

Are all campuses in your school district actively involved in a school-community-relations program?  Give a brief explanation of overall participation.  If all campuses are not participating please explain why?

All campuses in our district are actively involved in school and community relations.

The Early Childhood campus recently needed a new restroom facility at the playground. Prior to the new facility, the nearest facility was a distance away and was out of the line of site of monitoring teachers and aides. We had a few students receiving minor injuries on the way to or back from the restroom (cuts, bruises from trips, etc.). Several community businesses came in and donated money, supplies, and time to provide the Early Childhood School with these services. In return, those that donated were appreciated with signs in front of the school, as well as plaques were given at the school board meetings.

The Primary School honors our municipal entities in the community by celebrating their positions and learning about their duties on their jobs. For example, the fire department visits the Primary School children and learns about fire safety, and learns the importance of having a fire department.

The Intermediate School celebrates the Veterans in our community by offering our facilities to the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post to host the annual Veteran’s Day Ceremony. The campus has the largest facility to honor those who have served our country. In addition the Intermediate School hosts the Lumberton Little Dribblers team competitions in our gym.

The Middle School hosts the grounds for the Village Creek Festival. This large community event is sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and involves several school district clubs and organizations, as well as community organizations.

The High School, as mentioned earlier, houses the Chamber of Commerce banquet. In addition to every campus participating, there are many shared school and community activities with all the campuses. For example, the upcoming Red Ribbon Week, the counselors have solicited to all businesses in the community to display a Drug Free Slogan while the schools are honoring Red Ribbon Week. All campuses participate in various local fundraisers for charity, and all campuses participated in the Hardin County Clean-up Day sponsored by City Hall.

Question 7

Based on your opinion, what is the most effective strategy utilized by your district’s school-community relations program?  Briefly explain.

The most effective strategy the school district has performed is being visible and available to the community. For example, our communications coordinator is actively involved in the Chamber of Commerce and the City Hall. She visits with these entities at least twice a month to share information.

Mr. Valastro our Superintendent recently visited with all the Church Leaders to create dialogue between the churches and school in offering positive opportunities for our students, and to reach out to those students who are lacking a direction in life.

Question 8

Based upon your responses to questions 1-7 above, do you believe that your school district has an effective school-community relations program?  Briefly substantiate your response.

I believe the Lumberton Independent School district has an effective community relations program due to the fact that Lumberton is a small community that still visualizes the schools as the driving force of the community. However, with the growth in the past few years, the views of the school are starting to change. We still have the traditional community that focuses around the school, but the new housing editions that have moved into the area, and the quick and sudden growth this attachment to the school community has diminished. The school district has had to work harder to explain the positions of the school and the procedures that are in place, especially with the changes in the State of Texas. We are working hard to stay in the public’s eye and ensure all positive aspects of the school district are publicized.

Another observation of the school district is the pendulum swings of school board representation that is involved with the school district. The community members that are in control of the school board are a strong indicator of the views that are being portrayed by the community. In the past it was very apparent there were two substantial groups of community members that controlled the school board positions. Now, it appears with the growth of the community, there is a third group that is starting to become visible.

Lumberton has typically been considered fairly conservative in the views of the community, which in turn reflects the community and school a safe and calm area to live. However, several comments that have recently been offered to the board during public forums, the conservative views and attitudes are starting to relax. However, at this time, we are just now starting to see this shift swing; it will be interesting to see how everything turns out.