ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Nepotism: A Policy of Convenience?
Author: Ruder, Robert
Date: 2010-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: School Districts,Power Structure,Social Justice,Employees,Employment,Boards of Education,Apprenticeships,Family Relationship,Family School Relationship,Family Work Relationship

Nepotism is one of those words that makes people cringe. The hint of such behavior within an organization immediately raises suspicions of unethical behavior despite well-written, comprehensive policies and procedures. School districts are not immune to the damage that can be done to even the most highly regarded and well-respected organizations. With or without official board policy, nepotism exists in various shades of gray in school districts. Districts eager to develop comprehensive policies that encompass every possible scenario to avoid charges of nepotism may feel as if their mission is akin to herding cats. Other districts committed to easing or eliminating policies designed to address nepotism will find their goal just as difficult but a bit more precarious and potentially expensive as employees or candidates for positions seek legal recourse for not being promoted or not being hired. There appears to be no one-size-fits-all answer for all school districts as they address this issue, which can be unifying or divisive. Regardless of a district's thinking, the author suggests that a review of case law is a wise place for prudent district policy makers to begin the decision-making process.
You've Been Served: Surviving a Deposition
Author: Wodarz, Nan
Date: 2010-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Legal Problems,Court Litigation,School Business Officials,Questioning Techniques,Lawyers

School business managers are in the unique position of supervising the areas of the operation that present the greatest opportunities for legal issues to arise. New construction and renovation projects are strewn with legal land mines. The possibility of lawsuits hovers like a black cloud over personnel issues. Opportunities for transportation or food service issues to crop up are continuous. And school business officials often are called on to weigh in on issues involving equal education and unhappy parents. Attorneys handle most of the issues related to any litigation pending against schools or districts; yet there is one area in which school business managers are on their own: depositions. During a deposition, the district's attorney can offer advice and moral support, but little else. It is a stressful process and the best preparation is to learn a little bit about this portion of the legal process. In this article, the author talks about deposition and offers tips in surviving a deposition.
Automated Employee Training: Efficiency and Effectiveness
Author: Boedicker, Laurie
Date: 2010-10-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Inservice Education,Training,Online Courses,Web Based Instruction,Automation,Compliance (Legal),School Personnel,School Districts,School Safety,Violence,Prevention

New legislation or modifications to existing federal and state education legislation often mandate more training for district staff and more documentation to prove compliance. These regulations come with heavy penalties for noncompliance; yet these initiatives are usually unfunded, thus making it difficult to ensure that staff members receive the training they need. In this article, the author discusses how Highland Local Schools in Ohio faced these challenges and introduced online training to faculty and staff. Using the capabilities of its new training system, Highland Local Schools achieved 100% compliance with its training requirements in the 2009-10 school year. Highland has realized the benefits of automated online training, which frees up administrators' time and resources so the district can continue to focus on improving student achievement.
Tips for School Districts: GASB's New Fund Balance Standards
Author: Mead, Dean Michael
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: School Districts,Accounting,Educational Finance,Classification,School Funds,National Standards,Expenditures,Budgets

In March 2009, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) issued Statement No. 54, "Fund Balance Reporting and Governmental Fund Type Definitions." School districts that prepare financial reports based on generally accepted accounting principles are required to implement this standard no later than the first fiscal year that starts after July 15, 2010. Statement 54 sets out reporting requirements in two areas: (1) how the fund balance should be classified; and (2) which funds may be reported in the government funds financial statements. Statement 54 replaces the current fund balance classifications--reserved, unreserved-designated, and unreserved-undesignated--because school districts and other government entities vary considerably in how they interpret the meaning of those classifications. The intention is to improve the usefulness and comparability of fund balance information by grouping it more intuitively and into more meaningful classes. The new fund balance classification model is based primarily on the extent to which a school district is bound to follow constraints on resources. The five new fund balance classifications are (1) nonspendable; (2) committed; (3) restricted; (4) assigned; and (5) unassigned. In this article, the author offers tips for implementing Statement 54. (Contains 2 figures.)
Under Pressure: Tackling Pension and Health Care Costs
Author: Friery, John
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Retirement Benefits,Health Care Costs,Unions,Financial Problems,State Government,School Districts,Government Employees,Teachers

Fueled by declining revenue from the housing crisis, skyrocketing energy costs, and an economy in general disarray, the public is pressuring school administrators to make broader and deeper cuts in their operating budgets. As the baby boomers retire, put their houses on the market, and downsize, one will see more downward price pressure on home values. This decline in home values will affect the revenues that districts take into the system in the form of real estate taxes. Pension and health care costs are creating revenue pressure for school districts as well. Pension obligations are bankrupting states and increasing the districts' challenge to keep pension plans solvent. Health care obligations are also of increasing concern. In this article, the author discusses strategies and solutions in tackling pension and health care costs. He stresses that it is time for teachers unions and districts to support responsible and sustainable pension and benefit packages for teachers and public-sector employees.
To Terminate or Not to Terminate? Discipline and Support Personnel
Author: Safransky, Robert
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Discipline,Dismissal (Personnel),Personnel Management,School Personnel,Personnel Policy

School business administrators and other education leaders do not have the luxury of simply uttering words like &quot;You're fired!&quot; to employees whom they believe should no longer work for the district--especially in states with tenure and collective-bargaining agreements. Rather, administrators must follow appropriate personnel procedures before recommending that a staff member be dismissed. The appropriate procedures for handling employee discipline cases ordinarily are found in the school board policy manual and union contracts, and it's well worth the time and effort for administrators to learn the policies, understand their application, and recognize the potentially expensive consequences of ignoring them. In this article, the author describes some actions that may guide district administrators toward appropriate personnel decisions.
Connecting the Dots: Keys to a Successful Special-Needs Transportation Program
Author: Bluth, Linda F.
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: School Buses,Student Transportation,Special Needs Students,Bus Transportation,Educational Finance,Retrenchment,Budgeting,Inservice Education,School Personnel,Student Behavior,Computer Software,Equipment

Since transportation expenses constitute 7% to 10% of a typical school budget, it is not surprising that transportation departments have been under a microscope lately. Everyone on the district's decision-making team, from the school board and school superintendent to the managers who oversee each component of the transportation department, is searching for cost-effective ways to address the daily challenges of getting thousands, if not tens of thousands of children to and from school safely. One of the most expensive aspects of school transportation is that of transporting children with special needs. Unfortunately, there is no best, most efficient way to provide transportation to these children. There are, however, a few essential elements and key components of every cost-effective, efficient, and successful special-needs transportation operation. Transporting children with special needs is a complex undertaking, but it is also manageable, especially when there is a focus on the essential elements and key components of the infrastructure, including professional development. Successful school bus operations use best practices and teamwork to help these vulnerable children access the learning opportunities that prepare them for adulthood.
Private Placement Debt Financing for Public Entities
Author: Holman, Lance S.
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Debt (Financial),Educational Finance,Investment,Loan Repayment

Private placement financing is a debt or capital lease obligation arranged between a municipality or a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization and a single sophisticated institutional investor. The investor can be a bank, insurance company, finance company, hedge fund, or high-net worth individual. Private placement financing is similar to municipal bonds and notes because it is used to finance a public agency's capital equipment, real property, infrastructure, technology, and working capital needs. Private placement obligations offer an efficient solution for borrowers who want additional payment and prepayment flexibility and a quick funding solution, and who will accept a slightly higher rate. Traditional municipal bonds allow borrowers access to the capital markets for small and large transactions with extended financing terms, and some prepayment restrictions, in exchange for a slightly lower rate. (Contains 1 table.)
Nothing's Free: Calculating the Cost of Volunteers
Author: Ingle, W. Kyle
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Volunteers,Costs,School Districts,School Community Relationship,Political Campaigns

Most school district administrators recognize the benefits of using parent and community volunteers, including improved school-community relations. But volunteers are not cost free. At their best, volunteers can be a valuable resource for schools and districts. At their worst, volunteers can consume already limited resources. However, their use minimizes the opportunity costs of school district personnel and they can energize public support for levy campaigns. School district personnel will continue to be involved with school levy campaigns; however, their opportunity costs can be minimized by heavily engaging the community and allowing school district personnel to focus on what they are paid to do: teach and lead. The author cites a study of levy campaign volunteer costs in five districts which serves as the basis of this article. Four of the five districts in the sample used volunteers and reported acknowledging the value of their services at public events, such as school board meetings or campaign committee meetings. The sources of data included district and campaign budgets, state reports, district Websites, and interviews with key stakeholders. (Contains 3 tables.)
Finding New Space in Old Places: Repurposing Auxiliary Gyms
Author: Havens, Kevin
Date: 2010-11-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Facilities Improvement,School Buildings,Recreational Facilities,Physical Education Facilities,Elementary Schools,Middle Schools,High Schools

Some parts of a school building do not age gracefully. At many elementary and middle schools--particularly those built in the 1960s or 1970s--old gyms are as useful (and attractive) as a worn-out pair of sneakers. To save money 20 years ago, school districts often used one space as a combination gym/lunch room/auditorium. Old gymnasiums offer hidden opportunities for schools to take advantage of newfound space. Instead of abandoning them, schools should view these gyms as blank canvasses for creating new rooms or areas for specialized programs and activities. Virtually every combination gym/lunch room or underutilized auxiliary gym is a viable candidate for re-purposing. The key in planning for the adaptive reuse of gyms is to think outside the box and outside the classroom.
Planning Schools for 2050? First, Let's Get "Now" Right
Author: Hill, Franklin
Date: 2010-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Facilities Planning,Educational Trends,School Districts,School Construction,Global Approach,Problem Solving,Academic Achievement,Educational Facilities Design

For 20 years, the author has promoted constructing today's schools with the future in mind, yet as many school districts begin planning for the year 2050, he is starting to think this foresight/forethought might actually be a distracting course of action. Some districts may try to plan so far into the future that they neglect the present. But, there is an option to do both: plan for today and appropriately and practically plan for tomorrow. An effective master planning process addresses educational trends, curriculum issues, and facility concepts across a continuum of applications and time periods for implementation. This process allows for immediate no-cost/low-cost applications and higher-order opportunities based on cost-effectiveness and funding availability. In this article, the author discusses four levels of a master planning process: (1) the fundamentals; (2) curriculum; (3) creativity; and (4) the global glow. The planning process may provide a helpful framework for prioritizing one's immediate goals and those further into the future. (Contains 1 figure.)
Green Energy in New Construction: Maximize Energy Savings and Minimize Cost
Author: Ventresca, Joseph
Date: 2010-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Energy Conservation,School Construction,Costs,Educational Facilities Design,Energy Management,Consultants

People often use the term "green energy" to refer to alternative energy technologies. But green energy doesn't guarantee maximum energy savings at a minimum cost--a common misconception. For school business officials, green energy means getting the lowest energy bills for the lowest construction cost, which translates into maximizing green energy savings while minimizing its cost. To achieve maximum energy efficiency at the lowest cost, energy efficiency must be optimized. The only way to achieve energy efficiency in a car or in a building is to diligently optimize the energy efficiency of every aspect of the design, from start to finish. To accomplish this goal, one must follow a rigorous procedure proven to achieve results. In this article, the author offers four steps to follow when considering energy efficiency: (1) Define green energy as achieving maximum energy efficiency at minimum cost; (2) Set an aggressive goal to achieve 50% energy reduction beyond the energy code for every area of building energy use; (3) Perform energy simulations at the outset of the conceptual design phase to assess all energy-efficiency options with paybacks of 15 years or fewer; and (4) Select an experienced design team that includes an independent energy consultant who represents the owner for achieving optimal energy efficiency. By following this procedure, one will realize the maximum energy savings at the minimum cost; hence, one will achieve green energy for the next building project.
Seeing Public Engagement Differently
Author: Willis, Jason
Date: 2010-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Educational Finance,School Districts,School Business Officials,Public Education,Change Strategies,Institutional Advancement,Administrator Role,School Community Relationship,Accountability,Resource Allocation

The economic recession has had a profound effect on the ability of state and local governments to provide essential services to their communities--especially education. Stories about increased class sizes, personnel layoffs, and dwindling support for programs outside core classroom instruction have flooded newspapers around the country. Despite monumental investments in education by local, state, and federal sources, the public does not understand or recognize efforts to preserve as many education services as possible. As stewards of the public's financial investment in education it is the school business officer's responsibility to ensure the local community is aware of how school districts are expending resources, how and what circumstances of the school district are changing, and how it affects services. School business officials play a vital role in building public trust, engagement, and support for making the critical decisions that affect public education locally and nationally. How can school business officials engage and inform the public about the challenges school districts face? Further, how can they leverage public engagement to help the public rethink and reinvest in solutions that benefit the students in schools? The author presents and discusses a few strategies: (1) make data public and easily accessible; (2) relate the data to the audience; and (3) talk about priorities. The author suggests that by helping stakeholders better understand the complexity of school finance and by promoting transparency and accountability, school business officials can better ensure more effective use of education resources.
School Tax Elections: Testing Messages and Targeting Voters
Author: Senden, J. Bradford
Date: 2010-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: School Taxes,Elections,Voting,Management Information Systems,Audience Analysis,Public Relations,Benchmarking,Communication Strategies,Community Study,Politics of Education,Educational Finance,Publicity

Anticipating a substantially larger voter turnout in the upcoming election, district officials needed to probe--more precisely than in past tax elections--exactly what demographic groups would most likely go to the polls and support the tax proposal. Message testing and voter targeting became critical components in building a foundation for success. Message-testing and voter-targeting strategies have been paramount in consumer research and marketing for decades. Traditional direct-mail marketing strategies--transformed in recent years by exponential advancements in technology--now slice and dice with the precision of an executive chef, measuring their ingredients with such exotic tools as "neural networking" and "regression analysis." These new technologies allow marketers to predict with greater accuracy than ever who will buy their products and services and what messages will resonate with consumers. In this article, the authors describe analytical tools that were part of the foundation for moving forward with data-driven planning and effective campaign strategies. (Contains 4 figures.)
Ensuring Ethical Behavior of School District Leaders
Author: Ruder, Robert
Date: 2010-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Ethics,School Districts,Public Schools,Trust (Psychology),Administrators,Administrator Behavior

When employees of public school entities retire after 35 or 40 years of service, they usually take with them a reputation built on goodwill and trust within the community in which they worked. While their physical departure is immediate, their legacy continues. But what happens if months later, evidence emerges that the educator behaved in a manner that brings into question his or her ethical, moral, and professional standards and casts the organization in a negative light? Such a scenario recently eroded the public's trust in education in northeastern Pennsylvania. While this scenario brought to the forefront the shortcomings of an established education agency, other school districts can learn valuable lessons related to the ever-present need for ethical and responsible operations. Education entities must have safeguards in place that prevent unethical behaviors and internal monitoring systems that assure that those in positions of leadership and authority do not break the sacred trust they have with their constituents.
School Boundaries: Finding Solutions While Gaining Community Support
Author: Lazarus, William
Date: 2010-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Community Support,Resource Allocation,School District Reorganization,Student Placement,Change Strategies,Organizational Change,Student Diversity,Partnerships in Education

Some of the most complicated issues facing school districts across the country revolve around resource allocation and student assignment planning. Determining school attendance boundaries, selecting sites for new schools, closing existing ones, balancing seat utilization while minimizing travel costs, and achieving socioeconomic diversity are all daunting challenges with enormous political, economic, and emotional stakes. How can district administrators gain parent and community support for decisions that are intrinsically multidimensional, complex, and fraught with emotion? How can they evaluate and communicate the difficult policy trade-offs and win broad-based support and community consensus? One school district in Tampa, Florida, has found answers to some of these questions. Hillsborough County Public Schools, the nation's eighth-largest school district, partnered with a research firm to pioneer a new methodology for creating school attendance boundaries--a process that engages the community, optimizes efficiency, and increases school diversity. By engaging the community throughout the process, the district obtained buy-in and won support for the new boundaries. At the final adoption meeting, not a single parent or community member addressed the board to dispute the proposed boundaries.
Creating a Web-Based Employee Orientation and Induction Program
Author: Covert, Stephen P.
Date: 2011-01-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Staff Orientation,Web Based Instruction,School Districts,Personnel Management,School Personnel

Even in the best of economic conditions, school district leaders look for ways to operate more efficiently and provide enhanced or improved services to employees. In today's economy, this search has become a necessity, and providing services to existing employees, as well as prospective employees and retirees, can be a challenge. Technology can help school business officials and human resource personnel meet and exceed expectations by tailoring orientation and induction programs to provide a more personalized and unique experience. In the fall of 2009, Spotsylvania County (Virginia) Schools implemented a Web-based online orientation and induction program to provide better, more efficient services to newly hired employees and to provide a more cost-effective method of sharing resources, information, and answers to frequently asked questions. In creating a unique user experience that accomplishes the many diverse goals of a Web-based online orientation and induction program, Spotsylvania County Schools not only provides newly approved employees a fast, convenient way to complete the required documentation to join the organization, but also ensures a more cost-effectiveness approach to service delivery. Such personalized and customizable user experiences represent an exciting opportunity to rethink how school districts consistently meet employees' needs.