Final Exam Part 2

Final Exam Part 2 Joshua Rusack EDU 709: School Finance October 26, 2012

Final Exam Part 2 The attached spreadsheet includes a simulated fiscal year 2014 budget for Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School. The budget encompasses the funding for the entire district; it is a single high school district of 1,013 students ranging from grades 9-12. Also included are the 2011-2013 fiscal year budgets as a reference for past totals. The 2014 fiscal year budget was created based on the consistent total budgetary increases evidenced by the previous fiscal years. Changes that were deemed to be essential are noted in the right hand side column. All other line items were generally increased by similar percentages in prior years. The major changes in the simulated 2014 fiscal year budget includes cuts in the salaries of several administrators, minimizing transportation costs, reducing textbook purchases, and spending less on motor vehicle expenditure. With the major changes in several areas, monies could be distributed in areas of concern to help improve student learning and attempt to provide an equal and adequate education. As a single school district, it is hard to distinguish if there is an equitable education because there are no other schools to share the money with. There is no chance for intra-district schools to vie for additional funding. Assabet Valley only has to worry about itself within district and show concern for equitable education being offered in surrounding towns. Assabet Valley is competing to have students come into its classes. The school receives more funding as population increases. The school needs to promote itself as an institution that offers a comparable education to potential students. The simulated budget attempts to reach adequacy by dispersing major increases in funding to the technological aspect of education. Todays world is driven by technology. Implementing major changes in the instruction of students to include more technology could be the missing piece to intrigue students to want to learn.

Final Exam Part 2 The reduction in the salaries of administration is not designed to show any signs of a resenting nature. The job they perform is critical, but a $174,000 salary is extraordinary for a single school district. Money could be shared from the top down. A major concentration of these decreases would go to the improvement of the staff and help fund an increase in professional development. A school system is designed to show student learning and improvement. It is fair to say that much of this improvement relies on the success of the teachers. Teachers need to learn how to better their instruction. This process begins with the opportunity to attend professional development. Assabet Valleys mathematics department appears to be weaning out the use of textbooks. The previous years budget of $82,500 for textbooks is excessive. This amount cannot possibly be spent on textbooks from year to year. The mathematics department does not even use physical textbooks anymore. The department has purchased online texts for the teachers to use and implement lessons for the students. The purchase also included a multitude of resources to use. Some departments certainly require the use of textbooks, but a major decrease of the costs could provide more useful funding elsewhere. This saved money could be circulated to obtain state of the art technologies that are being introduced into the classroom; iPads, iPad applications, smartboard software, computers, and other technological accessories. Minimizing transportation costs by eliminating an extra school bus, if possible, and cutting the cost of motor vehicle replacement is further funding that could be used in more opportune areas. Some buses come to Assabet Valley less than 25% full. Finding a way to potentially contract some bus routes would save the school almost seventy thousand dollars. It also seems illogical to set aside $84,000 to replace school used vehicles from year to year.

Final Exam Part 2 Minimizing the budget to still cover repairs makes far more sense. The vehicles do not need to be replaced annually, but repairs may be necessary to still cover. The total savings by decreasing administration salaries, transportation and vehicle costs, and spending on textbooks, the school would save just under $150,000. The money is to be set aside to promote the increase in overall student outcomes. Money will be provided to purchase new technology and keep it up and running, increase professional development opportunities, and offer consistent raises for staff. A school expecting to see change needs to implement changes that will affect the students. Technology will differentiate instruction. Professional development will generate learning for teachers to enhance instruction. Raises are deserved for those who affect the lives of hundreds of students. Happy teachers are effective teachers. Schools are continually reaching for technological needs. To be equitable, it is important to keep up with the schools within the area. To be adequate, it is essential to ensure that the students are learning with what the world has to offer, so current standards can be addressed and met with a high success rate. Creating an imaginary budget provides a great chance to experience the real-life budget creation process. The difficult part is determining where funds are excessive and where they are needed. The obvious need is to guarantee that student learning is constantly a priority. Once funding can be cut, the following step includes a determination of where the funding should go to appropriately satisfy student needs. It is difficult to conclude where the excess funding deserves to go when the budget has hundreds of individual sections asking for more money. The bottom line is that funding needs to positively affect students. What affects a student the most? It is the teachers who are working with them on a daily basis. Teachers need to have sufficient materials to offer a variety of teaching styles. They need to learn an assortment of new practices

Final Exam Part 2 that can successfully reach different learners. Just over sixty-three percent of the schools whole budget went towards the teachers. They are the make-up of the school and have earned everything they have been given. By increasing the funding of what will make the biggest impact on students, equity and adequacy will be right around the corner.