Finance

Key Contacts

Finance Overview

IPS is contractually required to pass funds to each Innovation Network School within three business days of IPS receipt of funds. This is typically in the middle of each month, and commonly referred to as “the passthrough process”. 

At the time of payment each month, schools are also deducted for the repayment of any pre-opening funds as applicable and for the agreed-upon charges for any services that IPS provides for the schools. 

Determination of education fund funding amount: The exact rate at which Innovation Schools will be funded is determined at the time of Innovation Agreement drafting. Considerations include, but are not limited to: 

•  IPS-LEA status: Most Innovation Schools in the IPS LEA will be a part of the IPS Student-Based Allocation (SBA) funding system. This determines the per-pupil funding level in accordance with current district-wide policies. 

  • For that reason, the funding amount is not fixed in an Agreement. Instead, parties acknowledge that over time, the SBA formula, and associated guidelines may change, and so too will the direct pass-through amount. 

  • Any services that IPS provides to non-Innovation IPS schools at no-charge to their school budgets (examples: special ed teachers, EL services, transportation, food service, custodial labor, and supplies) will also be provided to the IPS-LEA Innovation School at no charge.

  • There will be some services that schools can opt-out of or buy into, and updates will be provided in the winter/spring of the planning year. 

  • In addition to the SBA allocation, current practice is to release a per-student amount of “flexibility funding” to our IPS-LEA Innovation schools. This is in exchange for services that the school can no longer receive from the IPS Central Services administration and must now provision on their own. 

  • You can find an example of the in-LEA passthrough template here 

• Out of IPS LEA: 

  • State funding: Agreements will typically reflect the funding picture of the state overall. Therefore, Agreements might change over the years in response to the economic climate.

  • These determinations are typically made at the time of Agreement writing.

  •  IPS will withhold a management fee for certain functions that it performs on behalf of all Innovation Network Charters. Examples include board administration, the office of the Superintendent, Portfolio Office, and financial reporting functions. 

  •  You can find an example of the out of LEA passthrough template here 

ADM and Student Enrollment 

Schools within the IPS LEA will be funded, beginning in the July payment, based upon enrollment projections gathered by the district in the prior winter. The payment amount will not change until November of each school year based upon the official ADM count. 

• EXAMPLE: School A submits an enrollment projection of 480 for Fall 2021 ADM in December of 2020. The school is then issued payment in the amount required for 480 students beginning in July 2021. 

  • ADM count in mid-September shows the actual enrollment of 500 students. 

  • The November 2021 payment will “true-up” money owed since July to account for the additional 20 students, and the payment will be adjusted going forward to recognize the actual enrollment of 500.

  • The same would hold true if the school enrolled 450 students. IPS would recoup the amount associated with the 30 students that were over projected and adjust the monthly payment amount going forward to the appropriate amount. 

• Charter schools (out of IPS LEA) will be funded from the state on the student projection provided to the IDOE Office of School finance in the winter preceding each school year. The IDOE will “pass-through” those funds to IPS beginning in July of each school year.

  • IPS will then “true-up” monthly payment amounts in November of each school year. 

Access to Title I Funds: 

● IPS-LEA Innovation Network Schools will still work through the IPS Office of Federal and Special Programs to access Title I reimbursements 

○ While schools have full discretion under the Title I program to spend funds, schools will still need to submit all paperwork to the IPS Office of Federal and Special Programs. 

● Out of IPS LEA Innovation Charter Schools will receive all Title I dollars directly from IDOE and will not engage with IPS for spending or reimbursement. 

○ Schools converting to innovation either through the restart or conversion or jumpstart pathways will meet with the Federal Programs team to assist with the transition 

Access to Title II Funds: 

● IPS-LEA Innovation Network Schools have the option to opt-out of all IPS Title-II funded services and hence have access to more of those dollars for discretionary spending at the school level. 

○ Please note that doing so will result in the loss of most curriculum and instruction department-sponsored services and events unless you choose to buy back in. 

○ These funds will be distributed to schools on a reimbursement basis through the Office of Federal and Special Programs. 

● Out of IPS LEA Innovation Charter Schools will receive all Title II dollars directly from IDOE and will not engage with IPS for spending or reimbursement. 

○ If you are restarting an existing IPS School, a member of our Federal Programs team will meet with you to review the transition. 

Access to Operations Funds (Previously Capital Project Funds): 

•  In general, and at time of print, IPS Innovation Network Schools within IPS facilities will have access to services provided by these funds in the same way as similarly situated non-Innovation schools. To date, this has been the approach in the Innovation network agreements. As state and district funding landscapes evolve, this is subject to change. 

• District-wide, capital-project-funded initiatives that enhance school infrastructure, safety, IT services, and facilities services will continue to be provided to Innovation schools in IPS Facilities. 

• IPS-LEA Innovation Schools will not experience any change in how they receive access to Operations Funds, or the services/materials purchased by them.

•  If there is a district-wide initiative sponsored by operations funds, IPS-LEA Innovation Schools will be a part of it. 

Extra-Curricular Accounts (ECA) 

The amount of money in ECAs can vary widely across schools. These are dollars collected and managed at the school level for sports and clubs at the school. In the event of a restart or conversion, IPS will close the bank account and issue a check for any funds available. ECAs in Innovation schools are not managed by or connected to the IPS ECA process or guidelines.

Pre-Operational Funds 

In some cases, an Innovation School, regardless of type, may have access to an estimated 1/12 (one twelfth) of their annual tuition pass-through as an up-front, pre-operational loan. The amount of this loan is based upon projected student enrollment, special education estimates, and the general fund per pupil amount. It is not a number that is negotiable. In all cases, the funds are 1) planned for if the partner makes a formal request; 2) typically available in June before the school-year launch; 3) must be paid back in full within the first year of operation; 4) must be paid back in twelve equal installments as part of the monthly financial transaction between IPS and the Innovation School. 

Tuition-Pass Through/Monthly Payment 

All Innovation Network Schools, regardless of type, will receive a monthly payment via ACH transfer from IPS to the bank account of their choosing.

● To get set up, each school should provide the IPS Innovation office with the ACH form, a W-9, and a letter from their bank verifying account set up. Please reach out to ritterr@myips.org with questions about this process.

● Once set up, schools should expect a monthly payment within three days of when IPS receives funds from the state. This typically arrives on or around the 15th of each month. 

● Each school leader or financial contact will also receive a reconciliation workbook detailing the calculation of the funds sent to each school, as well as charges for any services rendered. These workbooks will always arrive before the monies have been transferred. 

• You can find an templates for in-LEA and out of LEA passthrough workbooks here 

Purchasing and Procurement

All schools within the IPS network deserve access to the purchasing power of the district. There are several ways that schools can access district prices and realize cost savings.

1. Purchasing through MUNIS

We encourage In-LEA Innovation schools to stretch their dollars through making goods/services purchases through IPS’ MUNIS system.  MUNIS is the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for Indianapolis Public Schools. In-LEA schools need only have an ‘@myips.org’ email address to use MUNIS to access all the district’s vendors/special pricing contracts. Please email BOSSTeam@myips.org to get your purchasing point person set up with access and a brief MUNIS training for placing orders for goods and services through MUNIS (inclusive of shop-on-line catalogs offered on our SpendBridge-MUNIS platform). Two users from your school site are required – the point person who will place orders and the approver who will approve spending.  You will work with IPS Federal Programs team to complete grant funded purchases. Contact us as Purchasing@myips.org for questions/support.

2. Vendor List

Out of LEA Innovation schools, please contact us at Purchasing@myips.org to confirm if a particular vendor(s) you are interested in is one of our District vendors.  In many cases, vendors with whom we contract have agreed to offer the same contract pricing to Innovation Schools.  Alternatively, you can reach out to the vendor to inquire and notify the IPS Purchasing team (email above) if you’d like an additional introduction or conversation.

3. SpendBridge

Out of LEA Innovation schools can leverage SpendBridge’s e-Marketplace in order to realize the advantages of pre-negotiated IPS contracts with vendors. Click here to learn more about how SpendBridge can assist with Innovation procurement needs. Please also refer to this Spendbridge overview for additional information about the offerings and costs associated with the partnership.

*Note: Of the sample catalogs and offerings listed in the SpendBridge overview, Staples, Acorn and Amazon marketplace will be the main areas of focus for innovation network schools for school year 2022-23. Total scope of catalogs listed will depend upon innovation type and relationship with other central service offerings. School will have a final list of catalogs upon conclusion of their onboarding conversations with SpendBridge.

Roles and Responsibilities for in-LEA operators and grant administrators 

Below is the process flow the describes the roles and responsibilities that in-LEA school leaders and grant administrators should follow when navigating purchases for grant-related items: 

1. Communicating Budget and Allocation 

Using feedback gathered from schools across the district, the grant administrator creates the budget for the specific grant. School level allocations are shared with schools immediately upon approval of the grant from IDOE.

2. Purchasing Process 

The school has two routes for purchasing: 

a. Reimbursement

The school leader or operations manager alerts the grant administrator that they will purchase an item with their own funds and will seek reimbursement through the grant.

To ensure that the purchase is an allowable cost and that the purchase will be approved for reimbursement, the grant admin must approve this purchase before it is made. Following approval, the school should make the purchase and submit the invoice along with proof of payment to the grant administrator. The grant admin will submit for reimbursement through an AP voucher to accounting@myips.org. 

b. Procurement

The school leader or operations manager alerts the grant administrator that they would like to purchase materials or supplies through MUNIS. 

Grant codes are restricted to grant admin. Grant admin or a duly authorized representative must enter the requisition into MUNIS. 

The requisition then flows to the designated approver. Once approved, the transaction is complete, and the order will be placed. 

CPA firms familiar with the innovation audit process 

All innovation schools are required to complete an audit each fiscal year. Below are several CPA firms with expertise in conducting audits for innovation schools:

1. BDK, LLP

   • Andy Rinzel, Director, arinzel@bkd.com

2. Crowe Horwath, LLP

   • Scott Nickerson, Partner, scott.nickerson@crowehorwath.com

3. Donovan CPA's

   • BJ Lippert, Partner, blippert@cpadonovan.com

4. Greenwalt CPA's

   • Amanda Meko, Partner, AMeko@greenwaltcpas.com

5. Katz Sapper & Miller

   • Scott Schuster, Partner-in-charge Not-for-Profit and Government Services, sschuster@ksmcpa.com