How Do I Create a School Budget that Works?
by Doc Schwartz, M.Ed. | May 7, 2024 | Blog
Money is tight and every school leader wishes they had more money in their budget.
But what if I told you that most schools in America waste between 10-25% of their budget on things they don't need.
Yes, that's right - if I looked at your school budget, I could probably find 10-25% savings that you're not aware of.
So how do you create a school budget that works?
The Principal's Academy
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When you sign up for the Principal's Academy newsletter, there are two editions per week. The first edition allows you to ask your questions. This edition comes out every single week and this is a great opportunity to let the community know what issues, questions or dilemmas you are facing.
And then the second edition will come out later in the week, where Doc Schwartz, aka "The School Doc" will answer some of the questions school leaders raised in the first edition.
If you feel isolated and alone as a school leader, the Principal's Academy newsletter will connect you to school leaders across the country, in addition to providing you with the most current and 21st century solutions for your school.
Spending Money on the Things You Really Need
The first thing you need to do, in order to create a school budget that works, is follow a strategic plan for your school.
If you have a specific issue that your school is facing, then budgeting funds to address that problem is a good idea. But I caution you to watch out for this classic funding trap.
You should not keep throwing money at a problem that you haven't been able to solve for multiple years in a row. And the reason you shouldn't do that is simply because if the funds you spend do not solve the problem -- then you either don't fully understand the problem or the solution doesn't work.
Thus why are you wasting your limited budget on solutions that don't work?
Here are the 5 Most Common Things Schools Waste Money On:
1. New computer equipment
2. New curriculum materials
3. One Size Fits All Professional Development presentations
4. Redundant job descriptions
5. Poor Time Management & Inefficiency
How You Can Manage Your Budget Better
The key to running a high quality school is having a budget that works for your leadership. For example, I always set aside money to purchase items on my teacher's wish list every single year. Because this was an annual occurrence, my teachers were encouraged to do research and innovate in their classrooms.
This was one way my K12 district program always stayed up to date with the latest education trends and modern solutions.
But you need to make sure that your budget works for your leadership style.
If you want help with your school budget, follow the consulting link at the top of this page and schedule a Free 30-minute call with us.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR THE 21st CENTURY
Would you like another way you can save thousands of dollars in your school budget?
Then I hope you will consider the Teacher Development Program (TDP) for your school. What this program does is take over your professional development needs in a comprehensive fashion.
That means, we help each teacher create a personalized and tailored individual professional development plan, how to do teacher research and also how to improve their individual teacher talent.
The end result is that you get a much more professional and more talented teacher.
Here are some of the benefits of a more professional and talented teacher:
-- Boosted student achievement
-- Increased student attendance and engagement
-- A more positive school culture
-- Decrease in the number of teachers that feel overwhelmed and burnt out
-- A decrease in student misbehavior
Not only will you see all of these results, but you will also have less to do as a principal or school leader. Imagine coming to school and all of your teachers "just know" what to do in class every single day?
With more professional and talented teachers, you can do walkthroughs without worry, you can do teacher observations with less concern and you can talk with your teachers like they are highly trained and capable professionals - instead of a group of unruly, rude, angry and impatient people.
