School Budget

Defense
EAD – 510 Education Finance
By: Soua Lor
 Strategic Planning
◦ Senior leadership will review, compare
and contrast the previous year’s budget
◦ Create a rational proposed budget
based on gathered data
◦ Schedule a meeting with Directors to
discuss important items on the CIP in
relation to the budget prior to
submitting for approval
Budget Development
◦ The school’s Continuous
Improvement Plan (CIP) is
carefully analyzed to
determine whether to
increase, decrease or
maintain the budget based
on the needs in each
category.
 Percentages of Cost
Other
Proposed
Budget
Insurance
Professional
Supplies Services
2%
1% 1% 1%

Occupancy Costs
18%
Salaries & Payroll: $ 279,781.80 
Occupancy Costs: $ 66,505.20 
Supplies: $ 3,735.00 
Professional Services: $
1,605.00 
Insurance: $ 1,750.00 
Salaries and Payroll
77% Other: $ 8,863
 Justification of Expenditures and
Budget Cut
◦ The majority of expenses occur in salary / payroll and occupancy
costs
◦ With the cut of a teaching position and 10% cut in budget,
occupancy costs, including supplies cleaning, contractual cleaning,
maintenance, and storage will be slightly covered by substitute
teachers at a lower expense
 Selected Teacher Release - Floater
◦ In Head Start, there is a fulltime position called the floater. This
person’s main role is to assist in the classrooms and give teachers
lunch breaks.
◦ This role does not participate in lesson planning.
◦ Future bathroom breaks can be done by a family advocate, clerk or
Center Director.
◦ With the release of this teaching role, teachers will be required to
take their lunch breaks after full day school – after 2pm.
 Promote Continual and
Sustainable School Improvement
◦ According to the National Policy Board for Educational Administration
(2015), Standard 10 of School Improvement states that an effective leader
will “employ situationally-appropriate strategies for improvement” (p. 18).
◦ The decision to cut a teaching staff will be discussed thoroughly with the
Senior Leadership Team to ensure it is the best route for the team and
school.
◦ The decision will also be discussed with the school staff so they are aware
of what is coming.
Continued...
◦ “More than half of the nation’s school children – approximately 25 million – live in
low-income households and are often locked out of schools with high-quality
curriculum, instruction, supports, and facilities” (Maier, Daniel, Oakes, Lam, 2017).
◦ The school’s mission and vision must be reminded to staff as we are all here to
provide high quality education to young children and their families by creating a
safe and healthy well-rounded learning environment.
◦ It is important to allow staff to express their thoughts and feelings privately to
leadership, if and as needed, to continue healthy practice of equity and diversity in
the school’s culture.
Human, Fiscal and Technological
Resources
◦ School operations consist of many different
roles to fully meet the needs of a safely
organized program, including our Senior
Leadership Team, a clerk, family advocates,
center director, lead and assistant teachers,
floaters, extended day teachers, custodian,
safety inspectors and licensors.
◦ All positions play a role in ensuring different
parts of the school appropriately operates.
Continued…
◦ The fiscal aspect of a school helps to ensure there is a plan to provide
the necessary tools for children’s learning and staff’s ability to teach.
◦ Technological resources, such as applications, tablets, additional
programs to help with student testing, all contribute to the school’s
operation.
◦ Often time, the change of a new program is to find a better source for
quicker and more accurate results.
Mobilization of Community Resources
◦ The cut of a teaching staff and occupancy costs
can allow more engagement with the community,
such as volunteers to help in the classroom and
school building duties, including cleaning.
◦ There could possibly be a trade of services. For
example, paraprofessionals or extra staff from an
elementary school may volunteer to assist at our
Head Start program as a partnership to enroll our
children in their kindergarten program when they
graduate.
◦ Donations from neighborhood business for
classroom usage.
 Student Needs
◦ Student needs will remain the same and as the school’s top priority
◦ Health and safety
◦ Materials and supplies
◦ Individual needs for those with physical accommodations (IEP, action
plan, wheelchair, etc.)
◦ Tutoring program / One-on-one with teacher for additional support
◦ School advocates available for family support
Current Political Initiatives and Emerging
Trends
◦ According to the 10 Top Education Initiatives (2018), some school
initiatives and emerging trends conducted by teachers are as follows:
◦ “1. Desktop computers; 1:1 laptops; 1:1 tablets; BYOD.
◦ 2. No Child Left Behind (NCLB); Race to the Top (RTTT); Common Core State Standards (CCSS); Next
Generation Science Standards (NGSS).
◦ 3. Scantron testing; computer-based testing; adaptive testing.
◦ 4. Overhead projectors; interactive whiteboards; Student Response Systems (SRS); 3D projectors.
◦ 5. Web 2.0 online resources; eBooks; Create-Your-Own textbooks.
◦ 6. Online learning; blended learning; Flipped Learning.”
 Monitor
◦ Monthly check-in with Senior
Leadership Team to reflect on the new
change
◦ Discuss change during monthly all staff
meeting
◦ Open-door policy for staff
◦ Individual check-in with staff as needed
◦ Document expenses to review data over
time
 Evaluate Plan
◦ After the plan has been approved and put in action, it’s time to
really track how effective its impact is on the school’s change.
◦ How are staff doing? Are materials for classrooms, students and the
building in at a healthy stage?
◦ Where could there be improvements?
◦ Any further questions should be addressed to the Senior Leadership
Team and Superintendent to discuss in details for better outcomes.
 References
10 Top Education Initiatives. Schools That Can. (2018). https://www.schoolsthatcan.org/10-top-education-
initiatives/. 

Maier, A., Daniel, J., Oakes, J., & Lam, L. (2017). Community schools as an effective school improvement
strategy: A review of the evidence. Palo Alto, CA: Learning Policy Institute.

National Policy Board for Educational Administration (2015). Professional standards for educational
leaders 2015. Reston, VA: Author. National Policy Board for Educational Administration. 
http://www.npbea.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Professional-Standards-for-Educational-Leaders_2015.pdf