TILS STANDARD D

4: Performs all budgetary responsibilities with accuracy, transparency, and

in the best interest of students and staff
Jasmine Farrow
June 15th, 2014
EDAS 5770
Project 4
A good principal must first possess the basic skills necessary to keep a school
running. That is, a principal must be well-grounded in budgeting and other nuts and bolts
processes at the heart of a functioning school (Peterson, 1995). Principals have many
different important tasks in their role as leader of their school, but one of the most
important is being the budget manager. Sorenson and Goldsmith (2013) say, Those
leaders who fail to do so commit a terrible disservice to their schools and, more
important, to their students (p. 1). Even though being an instructional leader and
manager are two vital roles, principals must remember that budgeting is a key component
to a successful school. It is important to look to other principals who have been
successful managers and understand their beliefs, strategies, and plans to gain a better
understanding of how budgets should be created, what they include, and how a successful
principal deals with obstacles and frustrations that may arise. It is also important to
consider how a principal chooses to supplement the budget since budget cuts are almost
inevitable from year to year.
Sorenson and Goldsmith (2013) list ten steps to budgeting success. The second
step is involving all stakeholders and they point out that it is important to involve as
many stakeholders as possible (p. 25). At Michael Jackson Elementary the

stakeholders that are involved in budgeting decisions the administrators, lead teachers,
grade level chairs, family partner specialist, the guidance counselor, a related arts teacher,
an exceptional education teacher, the secretary, and the PTA president. When the schools
budget is presented all of the stakeholders are given an opportunity to discuss, question,
and challenge each section of it. If there are any changes made outside of the group of
stakeholders, administration always brings it back to them before the changes are made
final. Title 1 money is used to support the school improvement plan. Since all allocations
of this money directly and positively support the good of the school, it makes decision
making very easy. It is important that the principal develops a plan, proposes it to the
leadership team, and then revisits the plan and revises it as necessary so that money can
be used appropriately thus ensuring the success of the school and its students.
The principal at MJ Elementary works very closely to the bookkeeper. Even
though it is the administrators responsibility to oversee all of the line items and tie those
back into the school improvement plan, he/she must still work side by side with the
bookkeeper in order to make those decisions accurately. A book keeper plays a massive
role in the way a school functions financially. Bookkeepers are responsible for
maintaining the financial records of a school's expenditures, cash flow, profit and loss as
well as other financial activities. He or she works in collaboration with the accounting
department of the school and is responsible for utilizing database spreadsheet computer
programs to perform record keeping activities of the school. They also prepare
accounting records and statements for the school. The school bookkeeper is also
responsible for balancing bank statements every month and submitting quarterly reports
to the finance department. A school bookkeeper also keeps accurate trail of all

transactions and hands them over for auditing (Muchira, 2008).

Not only do school bookkeepers have all of the previously mentioned responsibilities,
they also have to make sure the school is abiding by the state law and district policies.
The principal of MJE acknowledges the vital role his bookkeeper plays in the school.
One important thing that the principal of this school mentioned was the importance of
having a competent and organized bookkeeper and making sure that as an administrator
you make sure youre properly evaluating and checking to make sure that all funds are
being allocated correctly.
Compared to other schools in the district, Michael Jackson Elementary has a
very decent budget. Despite the fact that this school has a significant amount of money
in a savings account, administration still chooses to use fundraisers as a means to raise
money so that the money that has been saved remains untouched. All fundraising
projects have a certain protocol they must follow before they can be official. This means
completing planning and completing the necessary paperwork so that the event is
approved by the Hamilton County Department of Education. Once money has been
collected, every cent must be accounted for and it is placed in the budget as a line item.
This can cause some frustrations because it becomes a hassle to properly complete all of
the paperwork. Ultimately, all events require adequate planning time otherwise they have
to be postponed or cancelled if they are not approved.

Since the school does have quite a bit of cash being brought in from various
sources, the budget is quite large. When creating the budget the first thing that is looked
at are the monthly operating costs that the school is responsible for paying. Examples of
these costs include shredding serves, copy paper, and other office supplies. Surprisingly,
copy paper is one of the greatest costs of MJ Elementary. These materials must be
listed as line items within the budget and they are generally listed as general operating
funds. Each grade level has their own line in the budget as well. This allows for the
grade levels to deposit monies into their own account and then withdraw from them when
field trips arise. Although grade levels request money from parents for field trips,
students may not be kept away from a field trip because they cannot afford it. Because of
the great number of students who cannot or will not pay for field trips, the school has
built in some funds to cover these types of situations. While the school can carry over
money from one fiscal year to another, it is not allowed to carry money over that is
designated to the specific grade level. This money must be spent since the students of
that particular class have supplied it.
Taking care of a schools budget is a team effort and it is unwise for a principal to
attempt to handle it on their own. A principal must build a relationship with his
bookkeeper and the school must have a backup plan to make sure that money is deposited
in a timely manner. Unfortunately, Hamilton County Schools do not have bookkeepers
present at all schools every day and some bookkeepers work at multiple schools. Because
of this, it is important for the school to have procedures in place for depositing. At
MJE the schools head secretary has been trained for this job and is responsible for
depositing all money that comes in on days that the bookkeeper is not present.

Although it is a team effort and it is vitally important to have all stakeholders

involved in the budgeting process and decision making, it is important to remember that
An integrated budget and academic action plan will not work unless you do (Sorenson
& Goldsmith, 2013, p. 30). Budgeting is a very tedious job that requires much discipline
and planning. But if an administrator maximizes their office support staff and leadership
team, the load will be lightened and the outcome will be greater for the school.

References
Sorenson, R.D. & Goldsmith, L.M. (2013). The principals guide to school budgeting.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.
Muchira, M. (2008, August 4). School Bookkeeper's Job Description. . Retrieved June 15,
2014, from http://www.ehow.com/about_6601811_school-bookkeeper-jobdescription.html
Peterson, K. (1995). Principal's Skills and Knowledge for Shared Decision Making. New
York