Published by the Association of School Business Officials International Presentation of Lisa Bracken, Director of Budget Services at Fulton County Schools on two key analysis tools used by FCS to monitor Budget Activity within the District.

1.
Budget Monitoring: Raising the BAR
Talking Points
Fulton County Schools in Georgia comprises 102
schools serving 96,300 students and employing
12,300 teachers, administrators, and support staff.
Its $1.4 billion annual budget includes $878 million in
general funds, which are managed by its eight-person
budget office. School business staff members have
created and implemented tools that are used at the
school level, including a Budget Accountability Report,
launched in FY2011, and a Spending Trend Analysis
Tool, introduced in the 2014–2015 school year.
“Schools need autonomy
to make good site-based
decisions.”
Establishing the BAR
Sent to principals and their bookkeepers each month,
the Budget Accountability Report (BAR) is a snapshot
of the school’s current budget that reflects any
deficits, their causes (including exceeded budget
amounts, timekeeping errors, or departmental
mistakes), and the remaining budget percentage.
Using a two-tiered weighted system that measures
and scores each school based on deficits within a
single month as well as improvement from month to
month, the finance office provides each school with a
year-end rating ranging from “exceeds standards” and
“meets standards” to “does not meet standards” and
“additional support required.”
Did It Work?
Fulton County Schools began the BAR program in
FY2011. At year’s end, 51 of their 95 schools met or
exceeded established standards. For schools that
didn’t meet standards and needed guidance, several
steps were taken, including one or more of the
following: individual training in identified areas of
weakness; establishment of a mentor relationship
between new and experienced bookkeepers;
participation in periodic targeted professional
development classes; and weekly calls between
budget services, principals, and bookkeepers.
In addition, for each of three months, draft BARs were
sent in advance—with decreasing levels of budget
office guidance—allowing the bookkeeper to take
gradual ownership of correcting issues. This was
In This Minute
School districts benefit from well-run business offices
in many ways, but good financial management
practices should trickle down from the central office
to the school level to keep budgets more effective
and on an even keel. School business officials are
encouraged to incorporate mechanisms to measure
financial management and accountability at the
school level.

2.
Budget Monitoring: Raising the BAR (continued)
followed by periodic emails over the next three
months, reminding them to review budgets prior to
the BAR. Just one year later, 84 schools met or
exceeded standards—a 65% increase.
Challenges
When the BAR was first introduced, some regarded
the program as punitive. However, through careful
and consistent communication, the budget services
team conveyed that at its core, the BAR’s end goal of
supporting schools through a collaborative effort that
results in “clean” accounting books was certainly an
end that justified the means.
BAR Stats Develop STAT
In addition to its other positive outcomes, the BAR
program led to the creation of the Spending Trend
Analysis Tool (STAT), a resource that helps schools
meet purchasing goals. Once the BAR was
established, the Fulton County Schools finance office
staff looked at each school’s monthly spending history
and realized they needed to help schools better plan
how to spend their budgeted money—the need for a
tool like STAT was clear.
General spending followed this pattern: From the start
of the fiscal year in July, there were virtually no
expenditures until the first day of school, when
schools learned their actual student numbers. There
was a big spike in spending, followed by a gradual
decline from October through December.
The new calendar year showed a small increase in
spending with the start of a new semester, but
spending was largely flat until late spring. At that time,
many schools received notices that they had
significant budget percentages remaining, and they
spent as heavily as they did at the beginning of the
school year.
Ideal Spending Trends
The finance office introduced ideal spending trends
through STAT, which provides a graph chart that
demonstrates the school’s ideal monthly spending
percentages. Spending should start in earnest in July
to purchase items from which students can benefit on
day one and throughout the school year. Spending
should decline in the second quarter, with a small
increase at the beginning of the second semester,
followed by continued steady decline, devoid of major
year-end purchases.
As purchases are entered, STAT shows the school’s
actual spending compared to its ideal trend to help
plan for future spending. If schools are
underspending, the program continually encourages
users to align strategic spending with the ideal trend
rather than waiting until late in the school year.
What’s Next?
Change is often met with resistance—even when it’s
meant to help employees do their jobs better. If you’re
looking to implement new financial management tools
in your school system, an open line of communication
is the first step to positive change.
© Copyright 2015 Association of School Business Officials International
Content for this School Business Minute came from ASBO International’s 2014 Annual Meeting & Expo session, “Budget
Monitoring: Raising the BAR.”
Speaker: Lisa Bracken, director of budget services,
Fulton County Schools, Fulton County, Georgia