Chalkboard/OASBO launch school business operations review
Contact:
Chalkboard Project
(503) 542-4325
info@chalkboardproject.org
Shannon Priem, OSBA/OASBO (503) 588-2800
Maureen Wheeler, Beaverton School District (503) 591-4360
Beaverton School District volunteers for first evaluation
SALEM – June 11, 2007 – Oregon school districts will learn more about “best practices” in business operations through an innovative pilot project funded by an $87,500 grant from the Chalkboard Project.
The Oregon Association of School Business Officials will use the Chalkboard grant to bring together a team of experts to conduct business operations reviews in volunteer school districts. Findings from the reviews of five districts of varying sizes, areas of the state and socioeconomic factors will be used to develop a database of best practices to be shared with districts statewide.
Beaverton School District will be the first to undergo review this summer.
"I'm excited about what we’ll learn," said Janice Essenberg, chief financial officer for Beaverton School District, which is among the larger districts in the state and currently in the process of hiring a half-time auditor. "I volunteered as soon as I heard about the pilot, and our superintendent was all for it. We believe we do a very good job, but we know there is always room for improvement."
A 10- to 12-member team of business experts, including representatives of OASBO and ASBO International, as well as the Oregon School Boards Association and other education-related agencies and associations, will conduct business operations reviews over the next school year.
The team will then compile best practices in school business operations such as processing payroll; purchasing services and supplies; providing food service, transportation and custodial services; and forecasting budgets.
“The goal is to promote practices that all districts can use and that will encourage continuous improvement in efficiency,” said Angie Peterman, director of administrative support services for the Oregon School Boards Association and executive director of OASBO. “We’re very pleased to partner with Chalkboard and grateful for funding to help get this pilot rolling. OASBO members are Oregon’s experts in school business operations and they have a vested interest in this project’s success, as do all Oregon taxpayers.”
Chalkboard’s interest in funding the pilot grew out of research about how Oregon K-12 schools can improve. An analysis of Oregon school spending indicated that statewide average spending on district business operations is higher than the national average. That finding was coupled with public opinion research showing more than half of Oregonians believe schools can do more to eliminate unnecessary spending.
“We learned in our school outreach that many districts are doing innovative things to keep operating costs down, but other districts don’t know about them,” said Sue Hildick, Chalkboard Project president. “We think this pilot project is a wonderful way to begin sharing information among school districts about the practices that will make the best use of school support dollars. It will provide the public with the kind of visible accountability for school spending they’ve been seeking, and it will nicely augment our Open Book$ online tool, which shows how school districts allocate money in key areas.”
About OASBO
The Oregon Association of School Business Officials (OASBO) is a professional organization affiliated with the Association of School Business Officials International. OASBO's mission is to support public education by providing resources, programs, activities and training for school business officials.
About Chalkboard Project
Launched in early 2004, Chalkboard Project exists to inspire Oregonians to do what it takes to make the state’s K-12 public schools among the nation’s best, while strengthening our school system’s financial accountability to taxpayers. Chalkboard aims to help create a more informed and engaged public who understand and address the tough choices and trade-offs required to build strong schools, and to enable statewide programs that can be applied at the local level to improve school quality, accountability, and funding. To date, Chalkboard has connected with about 100,000 Oregonians, asking for their best ideas to strengthen the state’s K-12 public schools. It also has partnered with other education organizations to create the Open Book$ Web site www.openbooksproject.org to track school district spending.
Chalkboard – an initiative of Foundations For A Better Oregon – is sponsored by a growing list of independent foundations. The founding five foundations are: The Collins Foundation, The Ford Family Foundation, Jeld-Wen Foundation, Meyer Memorial Trust, and The Oregon Community Foundation. For more information about Chalkboard and to learn how to get involved, call (877) YOUR-K12 or visit www.chalkboardproject.org.
