Week 4

Part 4-

In looking at the budget for Lockhart ISD 2010-2011school year, the majority of its funds are earmarked for salaries and benefits. The total amount set aside is $28,737,258, which is 64.8% of the total budget. Currently the district employs 611 full and part-time staff. 366 of the staff are teachers, librarians, and counselors.

Prior to this course, I had no real idea how much of a school’s budget went to personnel and salaries. In studying the budgets, it was heartening to see that the majority of all districts’ budgets are set-aside for personnel. A concern with the large proportion of a district’s budget being set-aside for personnel is that in tough economic times, when cutbacks need to be made, there isn’t many areas to make cuts unless you look directly at personnel. In addition, when cutting personnel becomes necessary, it affects the morale of the entire district along with having a negative effect on the learning process in the classrooms (through increased class size, fewer courses selections offered, etc.).

Before enacting a salary increase for personnel, a superintendent needs to consider whether or not a salary increase will:

 promote or deter a goal driven budget that addresses Board of Education, District

Improvement Committee and Campus Improvement Committees goals and

priorities.

 require an ad valorem/property tax increase.

 place salaries at level comparable to area/regional districts.

 retain the best teachers in the district.

 reduce the fund balance to an unacceptable level.

 cause personnel salaries to exceed 80% of the Maintenance and Operations

budget.

 reduce the ability of the district to maintain established educational programs

 be received positively by the teachers and staff.

 be received positively by parents, key stakeholders and the general public.

 create an undesirable impact on any district function or activity. (Week 4 Lecture, question 4, paragraph 2)

If the district was to grant a 5% increase in salary for all personnel, it would mean an additional $1,436,863, would be allocated. In the current economic times, any positive impact the increase would have would be overshadowed by the negative impact it would have on the district’s financial health as a whole. To meet the upcoming school year’s budgetary needs, Lockhart ISD is going to have to take money from its fund balance to make sure the budget is balanced. Any increase would be adversely reflected in the district’s financial rating.