Dan's EDLD 5342 wk 2 stuff

EDLD 5342 Week Two Assignment

Part 1:

•  Definition of a goal driven budget
• Description of a goal driven budget utilizing the your district improvement plan goals and describing the financial resources focused on achieving the goals
• Provides references to the lecture/interview and the your district improvement plan goals

A goal driven budget is one in which there is an alignment of the Board of Trustees goals with the district improvement plan goals with campus improvement plan goals so that the budget supports successful implementation for all.   Dr. Arterbury says “the purpose of a goal driven budget is to assist in the attainment of a shared vision for the school district and each campus.”  He said “commitment to expending funds to achieve the shared goals of all stakeholders.” I agree. 

     In Rice ISD, the goal driven budget process is seen in the alignment of the vision.  The Board, community and district staff evaluates and implement this plan.  It requires the Board, the district and the campuses to continuously make decisions using data from benchmarks and ideas from state guidelines to keep budget updates and changes in mind for educating our kids. Our District Improvement Plan outlines each major subject and how we will implement the learning process and who and what funds will be used to do it.  

     My finance director and assistant superintendent, Mr. Larry Baer, said he is always looking at the needs and goals or each campus while still maintaining an open line of communication with the superintendent of schools, because she carries the responsibility of the budget and how it is used for educating our kids.  He used the word “stewards of the taxpayer’s money” a lot.

Part 2:

The top five events and dates that I believe are important are listed below:

1. Develop a budget using the DIP/committee input along with previous district budgets. (January/February)  

2. Determine Revenue and revenue sources using templates provided by ESC's. (March/June)

3. Decide on necessary expenditures and operating costs using numbers of kids, etc...(April/May) 

4. Submit the district budget to the School Board. (July/August)

5. Get Board approval of the district budget after many clinics and adjustments. (August)

All of these have dates of compliance as set down by TEA and can be adjusted depending on when the official district budget year begins. I can see where the personality of a district can really begin to show by the way it plans and implements the use of funds for education.

Part 3:

Reflecting on the TEA Budgeting Guide

The budgeting process is comprised of three major phases: planning, preparation, and evaluation.”   This gave me the information I will need in the future if I am to move up in administration.  I now feel better about the finance process in education.  The test we took had me putting an “I” in almost every box.  Now by reading the “Guidelines” and TASBO budget information, I know I will keep these and use these for future decisions and answering questions from others about state funding and how education spends taxpayer money.

The TEA Budgeting Guidelines provides guidance and information for the planning of a district budget was long, but very useful.  It took me a long time to read and take notes, but I am able to answer these questions because of the new knowledge I have gained in this week’s assignment.

Part 4:

Role and Responsibility of the Superintendent

The role of the Superintendent involves more than political knowledge to deal with board members that may have their own agenda for being on the school board and business management knowledge along with a strong education and instruction knowledge in order to lead the board in the direction of the district vision.  I am so much more impressed by the “other” duties that our superintendent handles on a daily basis, while helping teachers and administrators work with kids and parents. Our superintendent is a very good leader. Being prepared for any of the unexpected changes needed to help kids succeed and keeping the district goals at the front of any decision that she makes lets me know that I am learning from the best.

 The responsibility of the Superintendent is the budget officer of the district.  That is why our superintendent has surrounded herself with experienced leadership in the finance end of things.  Our finance officer was the superintendent for eight years before our current superintendent took over the head position.  He told me that his strength was finance and hers was curriculum, and that they made a good match for leading our district into the future.  They still are great leaders, training others to follow in their footsteps.  I know with the way they are teaching us we will be good “stewards” of money and the greatest resource of all – our kids.

Part 5:

Additional Stakeholder Input in the Budgeting Process

At the beginning of the week the lecture pointed out that “the Superintendent and Board of Trustees are often described as the team of eight”.  They must provide a clear direction their vision and goals for the district.  They must have open lines of communication about revenues, expenses and alignment of these budget issues following the goals of the district.  They are the team that produces the energy and drive for everyone in the district.  I thought about breaking down each and every addition these stake holders have in the decision making process for budgeting.  It would be the same for each group.  They all have a purpose and that is to give the best information to the Board through communicating with each other about how to effectively educate kids with the money that has been given to them by the tax payers of our state and local district. Central office administrators, staff, principals, decision making committees, community members, students and board members have to have the goal and vision for educating students of all ages at the front of each budget question and answer. Communication at each level is crucial to having a productive educational organism.  I believe that the ‘budgeting” process is like eating to a human being; you must plan, prepare and evaluate every meal.  Depending on your age, needs and desires what goes in determines what you become.

edld5342group4: Group 4

edld5342group4: Group 4: "This is the blog for EDLD 5342 School Finance Group 4 Becky Prentice Daniel Taylor Shelley Rex Sheri Hawthorn"

EDLD 5342 Week Two Assignment

Part 1:
Definition of a goal driven budget
Description of a goal driven budget utilizing the your district improvement plan goals and describing the financial resources focused on achieving the goals
Provides references to the lecture/interview and the your district improvement plan goals

A goal driven budget is one in which there is an alignment of the Board of Trustees goals with the district improvement plan goals with campus improvement plan goals so that the budget supports successful implementation for all. Dr. Arterbury says “the purpose of a goal driven budget is to assist in the attainment of a shared vision for the school district and each campus.” He said “commitment to expending funds to achieve the shared goals of all stakeholders.” I agree.
In Rice ISD, the goal driven budget process is seen in the alignment of the vision. The Board, community and district staff evaluates and implement this plan. It requires the Board, the district and the campuses to continuously make decisions using data from benchmarks and ideas from state guidelines to keep budget updates and changes in mind for educating our kids. Our District Improvement Plan outlines each major subject and how we will implement the learning process and who and what funds will be used to do it.
My finance director and assistant superintendent, Mr. Larry Baer, said he is always looking at the needs and goals or each campus while still maintaining an open line of communication with the superintendent of schools, because she carries the responsibility of the budget and how it is used for educating our kids. He used the word “stewards of the taxpayer’s money” a lot.

Part 2:
The top five events and dates that I believe are important are listed below:
1. Develop a budget using the DIP/committee input along with previous district budgets. (January/February)
2. Determine Revenue and revenue sources using templates provided by ESC's. (March/June)
3. Decide on necessary expenditures and operating costs using numbers of kids, etc...(April/May)
4. Submit the district budget to the School Board. (July/August)
5. Get Board approval of the district budget after many clinics and adjustments. (August)
All of these have dates of compliance as set down by TEA and can be adjusted depending on when the official district budget year begins. I can see where the personality of a district can really begin to show by the way it plans and implements the use of funds for education.

Part 3:
Reflecting on the TEA Budgeting Guide
The budgeting process is comprised of three major phases: planning, preparation, and evaluation.” This gave me the information I will need in the future if I am to move up in administration. I now feel better about the finance process in education. The test we took had me putting an “I” in almost every box. Now by reading the “Guidelines” and TASBO budget information, I know I will keep these and use these for future decisions and answering questions from others about state funding and how education spends taxpayer money.
The TEA Budgeting Guidelines provides guidance and information for the planning of a district budget was long, but very useful. It took me a long time to read and take notes, but I am able to answer these questions because of the new knowledge I have gained in this week’s assignment.

Part 4:
Role and Responsibility of the Superintendent
The role of the Superintendent involves more than political knowledge to deal with board members that may have their own agenda for being on the school board and business management knowledge along with a strong education and instruction knowledge in order to lead the board in the direction of the district vision. I am so much more impressed by the “other” duties that our superintendent handles on a daily basis, while helping teachers and administrators work with kids and parents. Our superintendent is a very good leader. Being prepared for any of the unexpected changes needed to help kids succeed and keeping the district goals at the front of any decision that she makes lets me know that I am learning from the best.
The responsibility of the Superintendent is the budget officer of the district. That is why our superintendent has surrounded herself with experienced leadership in the finance end of things. Our finance officer was the superintendent for eight years before our current superintendent took over the head position. He told me that his strength was finance and hers was curriculum, and that they made a good match for leading our district into the future. They still are great leaders, training others to follow in their footsteps. I know with the way they are teaching us we will be good “stewards” of money and the greatest resource of all – our kids.

Part 5:
Additional Stakeholder Input in the Budgeting Process
At the beginning of the week the lecture pointed out that “the Superintendent and Board of Trustees are often described as the team of eight”. They must provide a clear direction their vision and goals for the district. They must have open lines of communication about revenues, expenses and alignment of these budget issues following the goals of the district. They are the team that produces the energy and drive for everyone in the district. I thought about breaking down each and every addition these stake holders have in the decision making process for budgeting. It would be the same for each group. They all have a purpose and that is to give the best information to the Board through communicating with each other about how to effectively educate kids with the money that has been given to them by the tax payers of our state and local district. Central office administrators, staff, principals, decision making committees, community members, students and board members have to have the goal and vision for educating students of all ages at the front of each budget question and answer. Communication at each level is crucial to having a productive educational organism. I believe that the ‘budgeting” process is like eating to a human being; you must plan, prepare and evaluate every meal. Depending on your age, needs and desires what goes in determines what you become.

EDLD 5342

Week 1 5342 Wiki Assignment for my Group 4.

Part 1: Important Educational Events in Texas History

 Public education was formed by many events in Texas history.  Three important ones include the establishment of free public schools in the constitution of 1845, because Texas declared independence in 1836 from Mexico.  In the 1873 constitution a permanent and available school fund was established. The next event was the Gilmer-Aiken Laws that provided an organized approach to fund education adequately by supplementing local taxes with state legislation.

1^st Event

The Constitution of 1845
Texas joined the United States in 1845. The constitution provided for the establishment of free public schools. This event is important for education because it called for state taxes to support education.  From this point forward, Texas would have a free public education system, providing for the future of education in the state.
2^nd Event

The Constitution of 1873
The Texas Constitution of 1873 changed the laws in the state related to education. It established by name the Permanent and Available School Funds. It has provided the basis for adequacy, equity, and efficiency concerning all of the school finance lawsuits that would occur in the state for years to come.

3^rd Event

The Gilmer-Aiken Laws
State Representative Claude Gilmer and Senator A.M. Aiken, Jr. wanted to make education in Texas run more efficiently. The legislation that was passed, known as the Gilmer-Aiken Laws changed how schools operated and how they were funded. The laws increased salaries, formalized the school year, created the structure of the State Board of Education, and established how the Commissioner of Education was to be selected. The law also established an organized approach to how the state supplemented local taxes in order to adequately fund public education.

Part 2: Most important issues that impact the state formula:

There are several issues that impact the funding of public schools in Texas. The formula is designed to level the “playing field” for all students across the state.

1.  Property values and tax collection: this varies from district to district.

2.  Average daily attendance and weighted average daily attendance (ADA). This is called the “Basic Allotment.

3.  Special instructional program adjustments: Districts with higher numbers of at risk, special education, bilingual, CATE, GT, and Compensatory education students benefit from increased funding (WADA).

Part 3: Equality, Equity, & Adequacy

Three important factors to always consider in school finance are equality, equity, and adequacy.Equality
Equality refers to the standard that all students have access to the same type of basic educational program.  All schools are funded at a level in order to provide the same basic education.
Equity
Equity refers to the system being fair and responding to the needs of the individual. It refers to the fair or equal distribution of resources after taking into account school characteristics and student differences. Equity funding refers to funds that are provided for special programs such as special education, advanced career and technology education, bilingual, gifted and talented, compensatory education, and public education grants. Special funding is provided in order to meet the needs of students with these special educational needs.
Adequacy
Adequacy refers to the funding needed for schools to meet the state accreditation standards. Schools are adequately funded when they are able to meet the state standards for accreditation.  Equity in funding does not assure equal results.


Part 4: Compare the Austin I.S.D. District Improvement Plan with the Rice I.S.D. District Improvement Plan

There are many differences between the Austin I.S.D. plan and the Rice I.S.D. plan.  They follow the same basic rules of giving information to stakeholders for continuously improving education. In comparison they are both used to help guide educators in the always changing process called public education.

The Austin I.S.D. plan is much more complicated than the Rice I.S.D. plan.  Austin I.S.D. provides information on the process for school improvement, how plans are aligned, minutes and attendance from meetings. A.I.S.D. gives information on how they are doing the “business” of the district by showing all of the people and meetings concerning each specific need. To me it is how they justify the funds for each and every aspect of the DIP. The Austin I.S.D. plan seems to include more information on how the strategic planning process takes place. The size of Rice I.S.D. causes our DIP to look at the curriculum and how we need funds to adequately teach our students so that they receive the best education possible for being American citizens.

I know that the information in the Austin I.S.D. plan opened my eyes up to what is available in funding for kids. Rice I.S.D. uses our DIP to guide us in what each campus will need to improve student performance each year as the legislature decides to change some policy.  We just do not have the size needed to get so complicated. Our entire teaching staff is included in our DIP committee.  We really save paper on printing our DIP.