by Guest Author
Finalizing Your 2019-2020 Charter School Budget
The end of the school year is upon us, and many charter schools are scrambling to put the finishing touches on their budgets for the 2019-2020 school year. This can be overwhelming given all the moving parts —finalizing staff compensation, collecting final proposals for next year’s contracts, deciding which software and curriculum to use, tracking down charter school budget plans from all the department leads, awaiting initial QBE estimates, and preparing for public budget hearings … all while trying to finish out the school year!
Here’s my advice: Don’t sweat it! There is no way you are going to have all these items finalized by the time you need to send your budget to the board for approval. Plus, there are many aspects of the budget that are completely out of your control. Instead of worrying, try this approach:
- Pick two or three areas of the charter school budget you’re going to focus on in the 11th hour. These should be areas of the charter school budget that are either your most significant sources of revenue or expense or have caused problems in the past. And don’t pick “staff”! (See my next suggestion below for wrapping up your compensation budget.) Once you have picked your areas of focus, set aside a designated time (~30 minutes for each area) to dig in and try to firm up the assumptions — then put a bow on it! Once the new school year starts and you have access to new and/or updated information, you can work with your Finance Director or adviser to adjust the annual forecast.
- For staffing, again — do your best! Finalize the charter school budget with the information you know now and include reasonable and conservative assumptions for the things you don’t know.At some point, you must stop trying to get everything locked up and just go with what you have. But being conservative will help you to avoid the frustration of going over budget down the road.
- Make a list of the areas where you feel assumptions aren’t solid, and over the summer, push to solidify them. Also, be upfront with your board about the areas of uncertainty (note: no need to share every uncertainty, just the ones you feel are the biggest opportunities/risks.) I find that outlining the missing information at a high level strengthens the board’s comfort with the financial plan. Board members will appreciate the transparency and feel reassured knowing you are aware of the uncertainties and on top of all the moving parts.
- For most charter schools, budgeting is an art, not a science. There are countless details, many of them unknown or unknowable, so we just do our best with what we have and keep pushing for improved clarity as the year goes on!
EdTec supports startup charter schools with their charter application budgets by working closely with the school’s founding team to project revenue and expenses, build a sound, multi-year budget in the authorizer’s required format, develop cash flow projections, and prepare a corresponding budget narrative. We also work with operating charter schools to develop annual and multi-year budgets as well as updated monthly cash flow and budget forecasts as part of our back office services. To learn more about EdTec and discuss how we can support your school, please email us at askus@edtec.com.
About EdTec: EdTec is a social enterprise committed to improving public education by supporting charter schools with business, operations, and performance services. Through our core service – back-office – we provide a CFO-level resource and a team of specialists to perform payroll, accounts payable, and accounting functions. EdTec has worked with hundreds of charter schools since our founding in 2001. We are excited to be working with both operating and startup charter schools in Georgia.
Guest Author
