The Journey of your 2007-08 GCS Budget - Planning, Revising, Implementing

The journey to the GCS budget is a long process that involves calculations and recalculations to arrive at the final operating budget.

Every year, the superintendent and the board of education embark on a challenging journey - the challenge of developing an annual operating budget for the district. The budget takes the district’s prioritized educational needs and translates those needs into a financial operating plan. This plan consists of estimates of the proposed expenditures for the fiscal year and the anticipated revenues that will finance those expenditures.

Some of the factors driving the budget include:

• salary increases,
• changes in fringe benefit rates or amounts,
• increases in energy costs (increases in costs + additional square footage coming online),
• increases in premiums charged for various lines of insurance coverage and
• projected growth in student enrollment.

 Unfortunately, these and other factors are often moving targets. Here’s an example of the budget road trip:

• Our initial budget estimates are based on information available from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
•  The initial budget estimates are then revised based on the governor’s proposed budget.
• Followed by more revisions based on the House of Representative’s proposed budget.
• Followed by more revisions based on the Senate’s proposed budget.
• Followed by more revisions based on the final budget approved by the governor and the state legislature.  

But there are more stops along the way.  Usually somewhere between the time the governor proposes a budget and the final budget is approved by the state, the board of county commissioners approves a local budget which includes funds for education expenses. These two budgets combined can impact our district budget positively if those moving-target factors are less than our original estimates – negatively if they are greater than the initial estimates.

However, somehow in the twists and turns of year-end fund balance projections, spread sheets, numerous board meetings, public hearings, work sessions, calculations and recalculations, the journey ends, and a budget for the school year emerges.

Here’s how this year’s budget journey unfolded. The board of education submitted a 2007-08 operating budget to the board of county commissioners requesting an increase in county funding of $15.8 million. The board of county commissioners funded an increase of $8.5 million. The ultimate operating budget shortfall based on the final budgets approved by the county commissioners and the state legislature was $7.3 million. Approximately $4.3 million of that $7.3 million figure was funding for a comprehensive program aimed at improving school climate while decreasing student suspensions. The remaining $3.0 million was requested to cover base budget costs including $1.4 million for modular village lease costs at Eastern Guilford High School.

Because of this shortfall, the budget was once again revised. Adjustments were made across the district, and the board of education approved $3.0 million in budget reductions in order to balance the 2007-08 operating budget equation. Those budget cuts included the loss of 50 positions: three administrative positions, 20 middle school reading/math teachers, one SRO at Brown-Summit Middle School, seven social worker positions and 19 elementary teachers. The budget adjustments made by the board of education to balance the 2007-08 operating budget also included:

• +$100,000 for the Home Field Advantage program - Approximately 41 percent of students who change schools during the school year can fall four to six months behind in the classroom. The Home Field Advantage allows students whose families move to other parts of Guilford County to stay at their original school while GCS provides round-trip transportation for these students.
• +$140,000 for the New Light suspension support program - The New Light At Risk Intergenerational Outreach Program is a partnership between GCS and New Light Baptist Church. The program is designed to benefit high school students who have been suspended from school through counseling/encouragement, educational enrichment, anger/conflict resolution and community agency involvement. The desired outcome is a reduction in the number of students who have recurring suspensions from school. 
• +$420,000 for additional teacher/assistant positions at the elementary level to address class size issues.  

 “All schools could use additional funds for math and reading,” says Laverne Bass, principal at Frazier Elementary. “I don’t think of it in terms of test scores. I am concerned with the overall growth of the students from one year to the next. We have found that small group and one-on-one instruction have resulted in the academic growth of our students each year. Without the funds for positions or tutors, there are fewer opportunities for teachers to remediate or accelerate instruction.”

On a more positive note, GCS employees received salary increases in 2007-08. The state legislated salary increases include 5% for licensed employees such as teachers, counselors, social workers and media specialists; 4.44% for principals/assistant principals and 4% for classified employees (i.e., office support personnel, secretaries/treasurers, bus drivers, custodians, maintenance staff, school food service workers, etc.). “However, some employees will experience changes in health insurance costs reflected in increases in deductibles, co-pay amounts and premium rates depending on their choice of insurance plan,” says Patty Kinkade, director of benefits.

At the end of the long budget journey, Chief Financial Officer Sharon Ozment is concerned about the future impact of shortfalls and reductions on the resources needed to address the needs of our students most impacted by poverty and to improve student achievement for all students. “We need to be mindful that our students don’t have three to five years to wait for the resources to materialize that are needed to implement programs that will make a difference in classrooms throughout Guilford County. The timeframe that is crucial for our students’ success is now.”

Volunteers like Jessica Booker at Jones Elementary assist students one-on-one with reading and other subjects to ensure academic success.