Friday, May 11, 2001

School board adopts budget goals

Working to align the 2001-02 budget with Fulton County School System goals, the Board of Education has identified four "strategic imperatives" to guide decision making during its FY2002 budget development.

Early in the budgeting process, system leaders presented to the board those items with the greatest potential for significant and immediate impact on student achievement and significant room for improvement. The board selected four as the most critical areas for the FY2002 budget:

Mastery of curriculum by low-performing students and schools;

Teacher recruitment and retention;

Data-based decision making;

Learning-conducive facilities and campuses.

These "strategic imperatives" emerged from the Balanced Scorecard earlier approved by the board. The scorecard lays out the school system's long-term objectives and performance measures in the five goal areas of student achievement, student and stakeholder involvement and satisfaction, improved instructional and administrative processes, staff learning and growth, and financial accountability.

Although the budget will include items that maintain existing programs and services, the four imperatives will receive primary consideration for new or redirected funding.

All system schools and operations are guided by strategic plans focused on improving results and increasing efficiency.

Fulton schools Superintendent Stephen Dolinger said this strategic approach to budgeting focuses resources on the most critical areas affecting student achievement, while encouraging greater efficiency.

The board has since reviewed expected revenue and budget requests for the 2001-2002 school year. After receiving an estimated tax digest and the accompanying revenue projections from the Fulton County tax assessor's office, the board will set a millage rate and adopt a salary schedule and tentative balanced budget in May. Final budget adoption takes place in June.

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