Poudre School District, Fort Collis, Colorado Program Name: Implemeted: Program Type: Legal authorizatio: Studet-Based Budgetig 2007-2008 School Year District-Wide School Board Policy School Empowermet Bechmarks 1. School budgets based o studets ot staffig yes 2. Charge schools actual versus average salaries o 3. School choice ad ope erollmet policies yes 4. Pricipal autoomy over budgets yes 5. Pricipal autoomy over hirig o 6. Pricipal traiig ad school-level maagemet support o 7. Published trasparet school-level budgets yes 8. Published trasparet school level outcomes yes 9. Explicit accoutability goals yes 10. Collective bargaiig relief-flat cotracts, etc. o Poudre school district met 6 out of 10 school empowermet bechmarks. Reaso Foudatio reaso.org 115
Weighted Studet Formula Yearbook 2009 I. Program Overview The Poudre School District is located i Fort Collis, Colorado ad has a studet erollmet of 25,610 studets with district studet demographics of 78 percet White, 16 percet Hispaic, 3.5 percet Asia, 1.9 percet Africa-America ad 22 percet of studets participatig i the free ad reduced luch program. Followig a year-log district study i 2006-2007 ad a i-depth discussio with pricipals, Superitedet Jerry Wilso implemeted a ew fudig allocatio system called studet-based budgetig (SBB). The district had multiple characteristics that fit well with the studetbased budgetig desig: about oe-third of studets choose their school, the district has practiced site-based maagemet for over 13 years ad the various sites have icreasigly differet programs based o the eeds ad characteristics of the studets they serve. PSD s school board adopted this more equitable, trasparet, flexible, studetcetered model i February 2007 to allocate fuds to schools begiig with fiscal year 2007-08. SBB replaces a traditioal staffig model that allocated full-time equivalet staff (FTEs) to schools. Accordig to the Poudre School District, the ew model will: 1 Icrease equity i the way fuds are allocated to schools through idetifyig factors or studet weights related to the cost of educatig studets, Icrease flexibility for budgetig durig chagig coditios, such as decreases or icreases i erollmet, Make the budgetig process easier to uderstad ad more trasparet, Simplify ad decetralize the aual budgetig process ad Focus fuds o specific studet eeds. I additio, accordig to Jim Sarchet, assistat superitedet of busiess services, PSD adopted studet-based budgetig as a way to cope with decliig erollmet i a more flexible maer. 2 For the Poudre School District, studet-based budgetig allowed schools to alig expeditures with reveue. Erollmet i the district had bee flat over the past five years. The traditioal district staffig model that gave schools positios based o umbers of studets worked with cosistet growth i studet umbers, but that method was ot sustaiable with decliig erollmet. For example, before SBB budgetig, if three schools lost five studets each, it was very difficult to reduce reveue at each school because the oly way to reduce reveue was to cut oe FTE positio. Therefore, the district had to maitai a larger umber of staff positios tha was supported by studet erollmet. I fact, accordig to Jim Sarchet, before implemetatio of SBB, the district was maitaiig 10 more staffig uits based o the rigid staffig model over ad above what was justified by district erollmet. However, with studet-based budgetig the district ca ow alig resources with erollmet ad make fiacial adjustmets at the school level because the school receives dollars istead of staff positios. The bottom lie is that pricipals have more flexibility to adjust class sizes to alig fudig but they caot make adjustmets whe they receive a predetermied umber of staff positios. The Poudre School District followed several steps to implemet SBB. 3 First, PSD admiistrators appoited teams to 116 Reaso Foudatio reaso.org
develop a district fudig model usig SBB. Two committees studied umerous formula optios durig 2006-2007 year. These desig ad implemetatio teams of admiistrators, pricipals ad parets studied successful models used aroud the coutry, studied may formula optios ad made the recommedatio to adopt SBB. The district fiace staff met with PSD pricipals over five moths to explai SBB ad ask for iput o formula optios. Each pricipal received a budget preview o February 19, 2007 comparig what his school would receive uder the SBB formula with the staffig formula model previously used to allocate fuds. Schools received their fial budget allocatios o March 9, 2007. School allocatios icluded fuds they received based o projected erollmet for fall 2007: a per-pupil base amout ad additioal per-pupil fuds for weighted studet eed factors such as at-risk, Eglish laguage learers, grades K-3, gifted/taleted, geographic locatio ad school size. II. Studet-Based Budgetig Process The theory of studet-based budgetig is to allocate fuds accordig to the eeds of each studet erolled i a school. Each studet allocatio starts with $3,276. From there, additioal dollars are added based o factors such as Eglish laguage learers, gifted ad taleted, icome qualificatio for free luch, size of the school ad geographic locatio. With the geographic factor, each studet i the moutai schools of Stove Prairie, Livermore ad Red Feather Lakes is allocated a additioal $2,637. SBB distributes dollars, rather tha staff, to schools usig a studet-cetric formula, weightig studets fudig to reflect their idividual educatioal eeds ad the cost to serve them. SBB is based o the idea that dollars follow studets. Ulike the past formula, schools will have more predictable, cosistet parameters for their budgets, alog with more autoomy for targetig fuds. The followig studet weight or educatioal eed factors are ow a part of Poudre Uified School District 2007-2008 Factors ad Weights Dollar-Weights Equivalet Per Studet Base Fudig for Each Child 1.00 $3,276 * Gifted ad Taleted 0.100 $328 * Eglish Laguage Learers 0.200 $655 * At-Risk 0.200 $655 * Both - Eglish Laguage Learers ad At-Risk 0.250 $819 Primary Level (K-3) 0.140 $459 Juior High School Level 0.005 $16 Geographic (or Moutai Schools) 0.805 $2,637 School Size - Tier 1 0.225 $737 School Size - Tier 2 0.140 $459 School Size - Tier 3 0.065 $213 School Size - Tier 4 0.045 $147 School Size - Tier 5 0.040 $131 School Size - Tier 6 0.030 $98 Reaso Foudatio reaso.org 117
Weighted Studet Formula Yearbook 2009 the PSD formula: At-risk based o studets who qualify for the federal free luch program, a idicator of poverty Eglish Laguage Learers (ELL) studets whose primary laguage is ot Eglish At-risk ad ELL studets idetified as beig both at-risk ad ELL Grade K-3 cotiues PSD philosophy of reducig primary grade class sizes Gifted/Taleted for accelerated studet academic opportuities Geographic factor for isolated areas, such as PSD s three moutai schools Size fuds smaller schools that typically caot ejoy efficiecies realized from larger erollmets For 2008-2009 PSD chaged the method for allocatig the small school subsidy. The origial size factor reflected a stairstep approach. Schools withi erollmet rages received a specific cost factor for each studet. There were five factors for each level of school. The elemetary school factor raged from a added cost of 22.5 percet for schools from 0-100 studets, to 4 percet for schools betwee 401 ad 500 studets. The juior high school factor raged from a high of 22.5 percet for schools with erollmets betwee 0 ad 450 studets, to a low of 3 percet for schools with erollmets betwee 801 ad 900 studets. High schools oly had oe factor of 3 percet for schools with erollmet betwee 1000 ad 1500 studets. A school that was right o the edge of the erollmet rage could receive a very differet factor depedig o chages of oly a few studets. A example would be a elemetary school with 100 studets. Uder the 2007-2008 factor, the school would receive a 22.5% cost factor for each of its 100 studets, for a total icrease of fudig of $76,300. If the school was to add just oe studet for a erollmet of 101, the cost factor would decrease to 14.0 percet for each studet ad the total school fudig would decrease to $47,975. The result would be a decrease of $288 per pupil i the school due to a sigle studet added. I 2008 the district appoited a small schools committee to examie issues related to school size. The committee determied that this aspect of the SBB system pealized schools for icremetal erollmet icreases. Thus, the committee suggested revisios be made to elimiate stair steps ad create a smooth, icremetal cost per studet withi the size factor. 4 Poudre School District also recogized that movig all schools closer to equity produces actual gais ad losses. The shift from staffig-based allocatio to SBB will cause some schools to gai ad others to lose resources. To ease the trasitio, PSD has established a safety et so that o school will lose more tha 20 percet of its curret budget. To offset that cost, o school will gai more tha 80 percet. III. Autoomy I 2007-2008 the ew fudig formula distributed approximately $83 millio of the district s $170 millio geeral fud budget. The remaiig $87 millio goes to areas excluded from PSD s SBB formula, such as such as special educatio, alterative programs, textbooks, athletics, utilities, 118 Reaso Foudatio reaso.org
trasportatio, district service budgets, grats ad custodial services. The Poudre School District gives pricipals discretio over approximately 49 percet of the district s geeral operatig budget. I terms of autoomy over hirig, pricipals are boud by the collective bargaiig agreemet that restricts hirig based o seiority ad other staffig rules. IV. School-Level Maagemet Support Poudre Uified did ot have a specific pricipal support system beyod the ormal supports that the cetral office provides pricipals through the busiess service office. V. School Site Coucils Poudre School District uses site-based maagemet to help pricipals make effective budget decisios. The school board policy states that a site-based, shared decisio-makig group be established at each school to hold ope, publicized public meetigs o a quarterly basis throughout the school year. This group will act at the discretio ad directio of the pricipal or site leader. The site-based shared decisio-makig group is composed of three to five parets ad/or commuity members, classified staff, teachers, admiistrators ad (whe appropriate) studets. The pricipal is accoutable for both the implemetatio ad results of his or her site-based decisios. This icludes the school site s compliace with all applicable federal, state ad local laws; district policies, regulatios ad admiistrative guidelies, district cotracts (icludig employee agreemets) ad district budgetary restrictios. VI. School Choice Compoet Poudre School District s school choice program allows families to select the school that best meets their child s educatioal eeds. Parets may register their child to atted a school outside their eighborhood attedace area o a space-available basis. Roud-trip trasportatio is the resposibility of parets. Approximately oe-third of studets choose to atted a school other tha their eighborhood school. Poudre School District implemeted a olie process for the 2009-10 school choice applicatios. The ew process provides parets the opportuity to complete ad submit their applicatio from the comfort of their ow home ad elimiates the eed to take the applicatio to the school ad/or schools where they are applyig. Other beefits of the olie system iclude providig parets the opportuity to apply for multiple schools with oe applicatio. Parets will receive a automatic cofirmatio umber that ca be prited ad kept o file for referece ad the first cosideratio lottery process will ow be automated. PSD s aual school choice deadlie is geerally the last Friday i Jauary for grades 6-12 ad the secod Friday i February for grades K-5 for the followig school year. Families ca still submit applicatios after the above deadlies durig the secod cosideratio applicatio period, durig Reaso Foudatio reaso.org 119
Weighted Studet Formula Yearbook 2009 which applicatios will be cosidered at the time they are received. VII. Accoutability Poudre School District has several district-wide accoutability goals: Goal 1: Studets achieve 3rd grade readig proficiecy. 81 percet of studets scored proficiet/ advaced. 63 percet of studets i poverty scored proficiet/advaced. 57 percet of Hispaic studets scored proficiet/advaced. Improvemet target: Icrease proficiecy at least 2 percet aually util studets reach 90 percet proficiecy withi 5 years. Goal 2: Studets achieve aual academic growth. The Colorado Growth Model shows curret results. For the past three years, PSD studets have met or exceeded the state orm for academic growth i writig ad math i grades 4-10. I readig, PSD studets scored oe percetage poit below the state orm for academic growth i grades 4-10. School improvemet plas will idetify itervetios ad strategies to meet targets. Schools will assure cosistecy of academic rigor through commo assessmet results. Improvemet targets: PSD is i the process of idetifyig specific improvemet targets for this goal. Goal 3: Studets prepare to become postsecodary ready. 55 percet of studets achieved the target of takig at least oe advaced course by graduatio i 2008; 33 percet of Hispaic studets achieved the target by graduatio i 2008. Advaced coursework icludes advaced placemet (AP), Iteratioal Baccalaureate (IB) or uiversity ad commuity college course credit. Improvemet target: Icrease the umber of studets takig advaced courses by at least 2.5 percet aually to reach 62 percet i three years. Goal 4: Studets experiece successful trasitios betwee grades. Poudre uses dropout rates, graduatio rates ad post-secodary course erollmet to measure successful trasitios. Curret (2006 07) dropout rate 2.5 percet for grades 7-12. Improvemet target: Decrease overall dropout rate by 1.5 percet over the ext three years to rak PSD i the lowest five of Colorado s 25 largest districts. Curret graduatio rate 82 percet for PSD compared to 75 percet for top 10 Colorado districts. 5 Improvemet target: Icrease Hispaic graduatio rate by 3 percet aually to rak i top five of Colorado s 25 largest districts. Improvemet target: Icrease overall graduatio rates by at least 2 percet aually for ext three years to rak i top five Colorado districts. 120 Reaso Foudatio reaso.org
VIII. Performace Outcomes Overall, Poudre Uified School District is a above average district i the state of Colorado. Accordig to the PSD 2008 aual report: 6 O the 2008 Colorado Studet Assessmet Program studets cotiued to perform higher tha studets statewide i all 27 areas tested; District-wide averages remai well ahead of state averages, from 4 to 16 percet higher i all subjects, at all grade levels, as it has i the 12-year history of CSAP tests; ad Proficiecy scores improved or remaied the same o 13 of 24 tests for which results ca be compared to previous years. 81 percet of PSD s third graders are readig at or above proficiecy accordig to the 2008 Colorado Studet Assessmet Program (CSAP) readig test. Of the 1,734 third graders tested i sprig 2008, 10 percet scored advaced, 71 percet scored proficiet, 13 percet scored partially proficiet ad 6 percet scored usatisfactory. Over the 11 years the tests have bee give, PSD third graders have surpassed the overall performace of studets state-wide by 9-12 percetage poits each year i the proficiet ad advaced categories. I additio, 81 percet of PSD third graders scored at or above proficiet o the 2008 CSAP math test. Durig the 2007-08 school year 2,077 studets (or 33 percet), participated i advaced courses. This umber icreased by 19 studets from the 2006 07 school year whe 2,058 studets of PSD s 10th, 11th ad 12th graders took oe or more AP ad/or IB classes. Poudre School District also rus a successful Iteratioal Baccalaureate program for high school studets. I 2008, 73 of 77 studets who took the IB diploma exams i May received a IB diploma, givig the PHS program a 95 percet diploma rate, well above the 82 percet iteratioal average. Studets who complete a IB degree automatically receive 24 credits at ay Colorado public college or uiversity. Sevety-six May 2008 IB graduates have goe o to uiversities ad oe to the Culiary Arts School i Dever. IX. Lessos Leared 1. Ulike the majority of districts that have tured to studet-based budgetig as a policy tool to icrease equity withi school districts ad as a tool to help hold schools more accoutable for school performace, PSD demostrates that studet-based budgetig ca be a flexible ad trasparet tool for budgetig eve i school districts with a cosistet record of high performace. PSD demostrates how studet-based budgetig ca be a flexible fiacial tool that is more effective at aligig erollmet with resources. I Poudre School District, studet-based budgetig is better at allocatig resources to idividual schools tha the previous staffig model. 2. Poudre School District s studetbased budgetig program offers a trasparet method to examie the cost Reaso Foudatio reaso.org 121
Weighted Studet Formula Yearbook 2009 of maitaiig small schools. PSD used studet-based budgetig to determie the costs of schools of differet sizes. Studet-based budgetig makes it trasparet how much small schools may eed to be subsidized ad the additioal resources ecessary for a district to support small schools. 3. Poudre School District demostrates that the school choice process ca be maaged with olie customer-orieted techology that allows families to apply to multiple schools without havig to visit a district office or idividual school sites to tur i multiple applicatios. The olie choice process offers parets ad the district a more efficiet method to maage school erollmet. Resources Aual Accoutability Report 2007-2008, Poudre School District, http:// www.psdschools.org/documetlibrary/ dowloads/board_of_educatio/aual_ Report_2007-2008.pdf Backgroud ad Ratioale for Studet Based Budgetig, Poudre School District, https://www.psdschools. org/documetlibrary/dowloads/ Superitedet_Office/Iitiatives_06-07/ Iitiative_2-New_SE_Elemetary_School/ Backgroud_ad_Ratioale_for_Studet- Based_Budgetig.pdf New PSD Budgetig Process Icreases Equity, Trasparecy, Poudre School District, http://www.psdschools. org/documetlibrary/dowloads/ Superitedet_Office/Iitiatives_07-08/ Small_Schools_Study/Studet_Based_ Budgetig_Descriptio.pdf Small Schools Study, Poudre School District, Prepared by the Small Schools Committee, May 2008, http://www. psdschools.org/documetlibrary/dowloads/ Superitedet_Office/Iitiatives_07-08/ Small_Schools_Study/Small_Schools_Study_ Fial_Report.pdf Cotact Iformatio Dave Motoya PSD Budget Maager Poudre School District 2407 LaPorte Ave. Fort Collis, CO 80521 (970)490-3355 davem@psdschools.org. Edotes 1. New PSD Budgetig Process Icreases Equity, Trasparecy, Poudre School District, http://www.psdschools. org/documetlibrary/dowloads/ Superitedet_Office/Iitiatives_07-08/ Small_Schools_Study/Studet_Based_ Budgetig_Descriptio.pdf 2. JoA Bjarko, School Budgets Chagig, North Forty News, March 2007, http://www.orthfortyews.com/ Archive/A200703schoolBudgets.htm. 3. Backgroud ad Ratioale for Studet Based Budgetig, Poudre School District, https://www.psdschools. org/documetlibrary/dowloads/ Superitedet_Office/Iitiatives_06-07/ Iitiative_2-New_SE_Elemetary_ School/Backgroud_ad_Ratioale_for_ Studet-Based_Budgetig.pdf 4. Small Schools Study, Poudre School District, Prepared by the Small Schools 122 Reaso Foudatio reaso.org
Committee, May 2008, http://www. psdschools.org/documetlibrary/ dowloads/superitedet_office/ Iitiatives_07-08/Small_Schools_Study/ Small_Schools_Study_Fial_Report.pdf 5. The discrepacy betwee the graduatio rate ad the drop-out rate is based o studets who take loger tha four years to graduate ad studets who complete GED s as a alterative to diplomas. 6. Aual Accoutability Report 2007-2008, Poudre School District, http:// www.psdschools.org/documetlibrary/ dowloads/board_of_educatio/ Aual_Report_2007-2008.pdf Reaso Foudatio reaso.org 123