School Finance
Funding Our Future: Understanding Income and Investment
At its core, school finance is about balancing the income we receive from the state and local community with the expenses required to provide a world-class education. We believe our community should have a clear picture of where those funds come from and how they are responsibly invested in our schools.
Our Core Financial Values
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Responsible Stewardship: We act as accountable guardians of public funds, ensuring every dollar is used efficiently to support student success.
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Investing in Excellence: We prioritize competitive compensation for our world-class educators and staff to maintain our standard of academic distinction.
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Generational Balance: Our steady, long-term approach to facility planning avoids large tax spikes, ensuring the responsibility for supporting our schools is shared fairly across the community over time.
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Transparency & Accountability: We believe in an open dialogue with our community regarding how resources are allocated, audited, and managed.
Budget
The school budget represents the educational program of a school community translated into dollar need (expenditures). The budget spans a calendar year, from January 1 to December 31.
Funding
State Funding Supports
Education Fund: Supports salaries and benefits for teachers and instructional assistants, textbook costs, and school media centers.
Local Funding Supports
Operations Fund: Supports things like buses and bus drivers, administrators, front office staff, custodians, maintenance, utilities, and professional services.
Referendum Funds: Voter-approved additional funds to support teacher salaries, instructional assistants, resource officers in schools, social workers, and in-school counseling.
Debt Services Fund: The funds are used to build new facilities and to update existing facilities. These funds support the payments for this debt.