Continuing my occasional series on “the basics” this post addresses something I almost skipped, thinking it was perhaps too basic. Then I worked with an employee who reconciles the district’s clearing account, cafeteria account and student body accounts. I realized that the concept of bank reconciliation might be foreign to younger employees. Growing up in the era of
December 25, 2014
Short URLbank reconciliation, best practice, public schools, reconciliation, school financeAccounting, Basics, Daily Work, Excel, Procedures and Practices, Public Schools
Textbooks, that is. I’d like to make the case that textbooks and memorization of content are at the heart of much of what is wrong with primary and secondary education in the US. I came to the United States at the age of 21. Of course my elementary and secondary schooling is now decades old and things have surely
March 4, 2014
Short URLbest practice, California school districts, education, government spending, primary and secondary education, public schools, school, school finance, schooling, student success, textbooksPublic Schools, Uncategorized
There are always a few diehard policy wonks and spending watchdogs at school board meetings. District staff know their names. We greet them with a polite nod and sometimes stop for a brief chat. In a larger district you’ll see the occasional print reporter recording and taking notes. Every now and then a television crew will show up to get
January 30, 2014
Short URLbest practice, communication, government spending, lcff, local control funding formula, politics, public education, public participation, public school finance, public schools, school board, school board meetings, school district, school district business, voters, voting, watchdogsFinance, Laws and Regulations, Local Control Funding Formula, Public Schools
I highly recommend the following commentary in the LA School Report: If iPads are the answer, what’s the question? The author interviewed tech savvy LA Unified students, who also happen to be in the target demographic for the iPad purchase (students of color in south LA and Watts). One of the student responds: “What I’m struggling to
January 21, 2014
Short URLanalysis, best practice, budget, business, California, California school districts, community engagement, decision process, government, government spending, instructional technology, iPad, iPads, laptop, lcff, local control funding formula, Management, notebook, parents parental participation, public education, public school finance, public schools, school district, school district business, school districts, school finance, technologyFinance, Government, Public Schools, Technology
Continuing my series for future school business leaders, I offer short commentaries on some of the most useful technical and policy resources for California school business aspirants. In no particular order, here they are: 1. School Services of California. This is a subscription service. If you are in California it is likely that your school district is a
January 20, 2014
Short URLaspiring leader, auditor, business, California, California Department of Education, California school districts, career development, CASBO, CCR, Code of Regulations, Edjoin, Edsource, Education Code, fcmat, Google alerts, government, government spending, leadership, legislative analyst, Management, policy issues, PPIC, public education, Public Policy, public school finance, public schools, Sacramento Bee, school district business, school finance, School Services, technical expertiseCareer Development, Finance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Local Control Funding Formula, Management, Procedures and Practices, Public Schools, School District Jobs
Dear aspiring school business leader, My recent post on California’s Proposition 13 was for you. This post is about Proposition 98. Together, these represent the two voter initiatives that you MUST understand. Start with the Wikipedia entries for both. This gives you a general overview. Then read the Legislative Analyst’s Prop 98 Analysis. If you find this intolerably dull,
January 19, 2014
Short URLCalifornia school districts, Education funding, government, government spending, lcff, local control funding formula, Management, Proposition 13, Proposition 98, public school finance, public schools, school district, school district business, school finance, voter initiativeFinance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Local Control Funding Formula, Public Schools
Click on this map for some interesting data, courtesy of BestEducationDegrees.com. The statistics for my state, California, are particularly bleak. Given the current hoopla about the new funding formula, I thought it might be useful to step back and ask a more fundamental question. Does the state collect enough revenue to support education to the extent that
January 18, 2014
Short URLanti-tax, Arnold Schwarzenegger, California, California school districts, deck chairs on the Titanic, education, Education funding, government, government spending, Jerry Brown, lcff, Local Control Funding Formual, Proposition 13, Proposition 30, public education, public school finance, public schools, role of government, school district business, school districts, school finance, tax, taxes, too much taxFinance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Public Schools
He is a senior silicon valley executive. She is an analyst in a governmental agency. Their third grade daughter cannot read. He is an abusive deadbeat dad who hides his assets and pays no child support. She is a low wage earner barely scraping by. Their eighth grade daughter is one of the top students in
January 17, 2014
Short URLbest practice, business, California school districts, education, Education Code, Emanuel Derman, Financial modeling, John Deasy, LCAP, lcff, LCFF regulations, Local Conrtol Funding Formula, Local Control Accountability Plan, Management, Nassim Taleb, public education, public school finance, public schools, school district business, school financeFinance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Local Control Funding Formula, Public Schools
Mrs. Smith came into my office. She was angry, but controlled. Her practiced smile was plastered on top of gritted teeth. “Teachers just don’t get paid enough. Every now and then we have to do something nice for them.” What was this all about? My staff had rejected Principal Smith’s expense report where she was seeking
January 16, 2014
Short URLbest practice, California, gift of public funds, government, government spending, inappropriate expenses, Management, perks, public education, public funds, public school finance, public schools, school district business, school finance, tax, taxes, teachers, teaching professionAccounting, Finance, Government, Laws and Regulations, Management, Procedures and Practices, Public Schools
Today I recommend thinkpurpose’s post Why I Don’t Care About the Reputation of my Organisation. …If you aim for a good reputation, trust takes a back seat. Spin, presentation and image are the easy ways to a good reputation but trust is made from simpler and sterner stuff. It has to be based on something
January 12, 2014
Short URLbest practice, building reputation, business, career development, customer experience, disengaged employees, employee engagement, engagement, experience, government, online reputation, public schools, reputation, reputation management, school district, success, superintendent, TripAdvisor, trustCareer Development, Government, Management, Public Schools, Working Together