Fluent Essays

write an expository paper  below is the rubric and informationEDL  5500  Finance  School  Budgeting  Project   Assignment  Rubric                                         Part  One  –  The   Possibilities  of   Reform   (Expository  Paper)   Total  Points   for  Section   Content                                 50   40-­‐50   Analysis  includes  information  about  traditional  methods  of  school   budgeting  and  reform  efforts  like  Cycle-­‐Based  Budgeting  and  Student-­‐ Based  Budgeting  and  all  reading  resources.  From  a  principal’s  perspective,   a  comprehensive  case  is  made  for  the  ability  to  be  in  control  of  a  school’s   finances.    This  is  thought  through  in  the  context  of  hiring  faculty,  staff,  and   contracting  with  special  services.    This  is  thought  through  in  the  context  of   implementing  staff  development  initiatives  and  implementing  innovative   programs  designed  to  increase  adult  and  student  learning  on  campus.     Goals  and  a  strategic  vision  for  undertaking  this  finance  reform  initiative   are  well  thought  out  and  expressed.  Knowledge  of  the  subject  matter  is   comprehensive,  in-­‐depth  and  ranges  over  at  least  three  specified  sources   of  information.    Understanding  is  demonstrated  through  an  outstanding   ability  to  grasp  concepts  and  relate  theory  to  practice.    Writing  skills   include  excellent  mechanics,  sentence  structure,  and  organization.     Application/analysis  is  demonstrated  by  grasping  the  inner  relationship  of   concepts  and  excellent  use  of  all  specified  supporting  material.     30-­‐39   Analysis  includes  most  information  about  traditional  methods  of  school   budgeting  and  reform  efforts  like  Cycle-­‐Based  Budgeting  and  Student-­‐ Based  Budgeting  and  most  reading  resources.  From  a  principal’s   perspective,  a  good  case  is  made  for  the  ability  to  be  in  control  of  a   school’s  finances.    This  is  thought  through  mostly  in  the  context  of  hiring   faculty,  staff,  and  contracting  with  special  services.    This  is  thought   through  mostly  in  the  context  of  implementing  staff  development   initiatives  and  implementing  innovative  programs  designed  to  increase   adult  and  student  learning  on  campus.    Goals  and CYCLE-BASED BUDGETING TOOLKIT A Primer AUGUST 31, 2016 BO YAN http://www.cyclebasedbudgeting.org 1 How much money has been spent on literacy, student behaviors, etc. respectively by the district over the past five years and what is the return on each of those investments? How do we help leaders take actions so that money will no longer be wasted on ineffective programs year after year, but reinvested to meet the districts needs instead? An organization’s budget should mirror its strategic vision and goals by funding programs that most support these priorities and meet the greatest needs. Accordingly, an effective budgeting process should be engaged with both allocation of new spending and reallocation of existing spending to meet those goals. Generally, a district’s budget can be categorized into two parts. One part is norm-based spending, which is usually determined by a set of rules based on student enrollment. For example, class size caps at different grade levels dictate how many teachers a school can employ based on student enrollment and, in some districts, school enrollment determines how many counselors, specialists, custodians, or principals a building can have. In contrast to norm-based spending that rests on rather fixated rules districts have control over but seldom change, the other part is flexible spending that districts use to run various programs and launch initiatives. While norm-based spending constitutes the bulk of a district’s annual budget, budget discussions and decision making often center on the smaller-portion flexible spending that allows districts to implement strategic priorities and execute improvement plans. How to help a district make the best use of its flexible spending is the focus of this project. LIMITATIONS OF EXISTING BUDGETING MODELS Many budgeting models have been developed over the years. In the K-12 setting, incremental budgeting and zero-based budgeting are probably the two most widely adopted models. With incremental budgeting, the budget used for the current fiscal year becomes the base for incremental change (either increase or decrease) for the next fiscal year. For zero-based budgeting, budget development starts with nothing in terms of budgeted dollars, and every spending item needs to be justified for approval. At the core, budget decisions should be aligned with strategic priorities and tied to outcomes. For existing programs, those that are closely aligned with the district strategic plan and have been proven to be effective should be continued or expanded with funding support; ineffective ones or programs that do not focus on the district’s priorities should be altered or discontinued with the savings reallocated. For new programs and initiatives, the spending should be justified by alignment, evidence of effectiveness and well-developed implementation plans. Consequently, budget decisions serve as bo