Strategic Budgeting

A basic premise of the reorganization of the Clark County School District is that resources are to be aligned with responsibility for results. Budget plans for school results should be developed and implemented by the schools and budget plans for central results should be developed and implemented by the central departments and divisions.

On an annual basis, a decision is made as to the responsibility and aligned resources assigned to schools and central departments.

To create the strategic budget, the various formulas that are currently used by CCSD were used to aggregate the school’s allocations and develop a per-student funding mechanism as the basis for funding a school’s operation. In addition, certain student learning conditions warranted a weighted allocation beyond the base.

Memo_2020-2021 Strategic Budgets.pdf

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Memo - Strategic Budget Professional Learning Information (5).pdf

Timeline for Budget Development and Review

MASTER CALENDAR (2).pdf

School Responsibilities

On January 15, 2020, schools will be able to access the budget planning tool by clicking on the HCM icon on the desktop. Principals, working with their School Organizational Teams, will begin development of the tentative budget. Budgets will be submitted to Region Superintendents and School Associate Superintendents as outlined above. A training guide for the budget planning tool may be accessed at http://training.ccsd.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ccsd-school-budget-planning-tool-quick-reference-guide.pdf.

Strategic budgets will include:

General fund
Title I dollars
HOPE2 dollars
SB178
all categorical funding that applies to your school

Schools are responsible for budgeting staff, supplies, equipment, and services as follows:

Staff

FY 2021 Administrator Ratios.pdf

Support Staff Allocations.pdf

Student_Teacher Ratios FY21.pdf

Central Support and Services Responsibilities

The determination to transfer any additional responsibilities and associated funds to schools will be made by January 15 each year, in consultation with principals, School Associate Superintendents, and School Organizational Teams. Specific items listed in NAC 388G must be submitted for approval by the Board of School Trustees.

The following are the responsibilities of the individual departments within CCSD Central Support and Services and are not included in strategic budgets for the 2020-2021 school year. This list is not exhaustive. Questions regarding categories of allocations that are or are not included in strategic budgets should be referred to the Strategic Resources Department.

Allocations not included in strategic budgets

Negotiation of salaries, benefits, and other conditions of employment of administrators, teachers, and other staff
Transportation services
Food services
Risk Management services
Financial services, including payroll
Qualifying employees for a position within CCSD (Human Resources)
Services to promote and ensure equity and diversity
Services to ensure compliance with all laws relating to civil rights
Identification, evaluation, program placement, pupil assignment, and other services relating to IDEA or 504
Special education and supporting departments
Legal services
Maintenance and repair of buildings
Maintenance of school grounds
Implementation of the ELL master plan
Internal Audits
Information Technology services, including helpdesk, telecom, WAN, LAN, and WiFi, excluding site-based technicians
Facility utility costs
Police services
Emergency management services
State-mandated assessments and accountability reporting
Capital projects
Substitute staff services

Small School Subsidy

The per-unit allocation for the Small School Subsidy is based on the additional units needed to provide students with the classes required to meet the requirements for a 21st Century Diploma.

A program established within a school incurs no additional overhead costs, and is not eligible for small school subsidy.

Specialty schools, due to their non-traditional characteristics and/or atypical size, get a subsidy based on programs offered to meet the needs of students.

Other Allocations

Although these dollars are not included in the strategic budget workbook, they must be considered in developing a comprehensive plan aligning all resources to improving instruction and increasing achievement. These include, but are not limited to:

Title III, Zoom, Victory, Career and Technical Education, English Language Learner, special education programs, Prime 6, athletics, off-ratio staffing (such as strings or ROTC).

Other School-Based Strategic Planning and Budgeting Requirements

School-staffing configurations will be determined at the school level with the per-pupil allocation and with no restriction on teacher/student ratio, except those required by State law.

All salaries will be assessed based on average salaries and benefits, with the exception of grant-funded positions.

Unused resource allocations funds will carry over at the end of each year.

Should there be deficits in school budgets, schools are required to carry over 100 percent of prior-year deficits as an offset to the current year’s allocation.

All schools will be required to submit a balanced budget.

Final budget will be calculated using Fall HR Staffing Day enrollment.

List of Job Codes that Cannot be Deleted

Strategic Budgeting FAQ

1. Why does the per-pupil amount change?

Per-pupil amounts vary annually due to changes to overall levels of funding at the State and District level, changes to salaries determined by negotiated agreements, transfer of any additional authority to schools to carry out responsibilities, and other factors.

2. Are per-pupil amounts changed to account for salary increases?

Yes. Changes to negotiated agreements impact per-pupil funding in strategic budgets.

3. Will schools still have to take surplus teachers if they do not want to?

Provisions in the negotiated agreement must be followed.

4. What are the standard procedures for eliminating positions?

Support staff positions can be eliminated in the spring, but not in the fall unless warranted due to substantial reduction in enrollment.

5. What school positions are mandatory?

Principal - Overall leadership

Office Manager/Administrative Secretary - Overall management of the front office

Clerk/Registrar - Student accounting associated with State funding

FASA - Health and safety of students

Campus Security Monitor - Safety (secondary only)

Please review allowable modififications above for additional business rules.

6. Does the School Associate Superintendent need to approve the annual school budget?

Yes.

7. Since my preliminary budget allocation in January, the school gained enrollment before (or after) the validation day. Can I open positions prior to (or after) the validation day?

Validation day student enrollment determines the dollars built into the school’s budget. Adjustments can be made based on the number of students enrolled at the school on that date. If there is growth at other times during the year, principals will consult with HR to determine the course of action.

8. Are special education positions purchased by the school?

Schools may use general fund dollars to purchase additional resources to support special education.

9. What salaries are being used in the budget?

All salaries will be assessed based on average salaries and benefits, with the exception of grant-funded positions.

10. Can principals revise school budgets after the preliminary budgets are finalized?

Spring budgets, which are based on projected student enrollment, can be revised in the fall after the actual student enrollment is determined on the District’s staffing count day.

11. Will there be any scheduled budget conferences for the preliminary budget development?

Principals are encouraged to build budgets using the open labs sessions offered by the Strategic Resources Office.

12. What if a school cannot balance the budget?

Schools must submit a balanced budget. For assistance, schools should work with their Region Superintendent/School Associate Superintendent.

13. Why doesn’t student data match what I am given by the District?

If the student data does not match, clerks and registrars must then work with Student Data Services to reconcile the data so that it does match.

14. Does a school receive the difference between a teacher’s salary and a substitute’s salary if a teacher is not hired?

Beginning with the 2017-2018 school year, schools will be able to retain these dollars not expended during the next year.

15. Can I carry over more than the allotted funds from one year to the next?