BUDGET AND ANALYSIS Rethinking School Budgeting:
Supporting Your District’s Strategic Plan GFOA’s Best Practices in School Budgeting brings leaders together districtwide to ensure student achievement goals drive the budget process.
By Carol MacLeod, CPA, SFO
among academic and finance to align limited resources with desired student outcomes.
A
s we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, we see overwhelming evidence of systemic change in public education. As we evalu- ate the changes in educational delivery and
assessment, we must also evaluate the budget process necessary to support those changes.
Now is the time to critically examine spending pat- terns to ensure that the goals for student achievement are driving the budget process.
Smarter School Spending
The Alliance for Excellence in School Budgeting (Budget Alliance) is a group of school districts working to imple- ment the Government Finance Officers Association’s (GFOA) Best Practices in School Budgeting. The Budget Alliance includes a diverse group of districts from across the United States. Member districts range from several hundred students to several hundred thousand students, representing a broad range of student performance and other key demographics. To implement and support GFOA’s Best Practices in School Budgeting, the Budget Alliance uses a framework provided by the GFOA’s Smarter School Spending Pro- gram. The framework offers guidelines centered on a comprehensive budget process focused on collaboration
28 MAY 2022 | SCHOOL BUSINESS AFFAIRS
The budget process framework is based on a continu- ous improvement cycle that includes a baseline budget assessment, collaboration and communication between all stakeholders, a rigorous process of goal setting, a data-driven evaluation of instructional priorities, and a budget that communicates the financial steps necessary to implement and support the district’s strategic plan. The budget process framework is organized into five steps: 1. Plan and prepare. 2. Set instructional priorities. 3. Pay for priorities. 4. Implement the plan. 5. Ensure sustainability.
These major steps are accompanied by 15 sub-steps to provide additional guidance on implementation, including documentation and recommendations of key highlights.
While school districts across the country may vary in size and location, they are far more similar than they are different. School districts have a singular purpose: to educate students. This may sound simplistic, but it drives home why the Best Budgeting Practices were developed to support all types of school districts.
A very unscientific review of strategic plans from ran- dom school districts identifies four similar goals across school districts. Review your district’s strategic plan to see the similarities: • Provide the very best education to students. • Maintain and support a highly qualified staff. • Provide an environment of active parent and commu- nity support.
• Be a good steward of public funds by being effective and efficient in fiscal operations.
Now ask these questions about your current budget- ing process: • Does your budget support your strategic plan?
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