School districts should develop a risk management program with policies and procedures that demonstrate reasonable care and that include regular inspection of all buildings and grounds. Highlights areas of potential legal difficulty. (MLF)

Several experts in the field of college financial administration offer their insights into the emerging relationship between high technology and financial management, focusing on the role of the institution's chief business officer. Topics include efficiency, cost effectiveness, organizational communication, homegrown vs. packaged software…

A discussion of the relationship between the university and industry in research looks at the challenge of balancing the academic institution's pursuit of entrepreneurial and sometimes precedent-setting industry relationships with its responsibility for ensuring the integrity of its scientific enterprise. Development of reasonable policy for…

Voluntary severance plans for college employees offer a possible solution to the problem of limiting labor costs in an inflationary economy, particularly when mandatory retirement is eliminated. The severance package must be carefully budgeted, constructed, and communicated to the employees, and the institution must be disciplined in carrying it…

Gina Kranitz, the new chair of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) board of directors, the first from the community college sector, is profiled, and her plans for the next year, including several major initiatives for the association, are discussed. (MSE)

Introduces the concept of college and university campus master planning, describes factors and actors in the process, discusses the relationship to capital budgeting, and offers a typical master planning and capital-budgeting process as illustration. Developing a comprehensive institutional master plan can profoundly affect the institution's…

A National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) task force has developed a process guide, list of policy issues and unsolved questions, and recommendations for colleges and universities to use in complying with the reporting requirements of the Tax Relief Act of 1997, which provides parents of college students with tax…

School districts are subject to many audits each year. Offers a guide to school district business officials on managing their various audits effectively to maximize the benefits of each audit and minimize public-image damage and disruption. (MLF)

This manual covers cost accounting applications and techniques as they apply to institutions of higher education, focusing mainly on the different methods of allocating costs. The manual covers four major costing topics: aggregate institution and systemwide costs; major academic and administrative program costs; academic and administrative…

Before school districts and administrators' associations begin negotiations, seven proposals that provide the basis upon which adversaries can discuss the proposal's merits must be considered. (1) Establish language that would permit an administrator to teach one period a day (month or week). This proposal allows substitution in the event of…

A comprehensive introduction to all phases of college fund-raising is presented in 14 chapters. Attention is directed to the philosophy behind development, development's role in institutional advancement, and the personal qualities that lead to success in fund-raising. Basic principles also are covered for the following: annual giving, the capital…

The salary paid school business officials is generally related to (1) the region of the country, (2) the district enrollment size, and (3) the expenditure per pupil of the district. Text, charts, and tables illustrate responses from 1,031 reporting school systems. A profile of fringe benefits is presented. (MLF)

Explores where in the school-budgeting process decentralized decision making could be used. People at the building site should be evaluating the programs and making decisions about their effectiveness and continued funding. (MLF)

The role of a school business administrator has changed over the years. Fred McCarthy shares the thoughts of an experienced school business official at the "crossroads" of life and work. Don Lussier imparts his own wry visions of what the Canadian secretary-treasurer's role will become. (MLF)

An annual national survey of college and university salaries found chief business officers' salaries rose 4.5 percent in 1996-97, less than the previous year. Salaries of women and minority CBOs continued to gain equity with that of men. Rates of increase varied by institution type. Salary gains for all administrative job types were less than in…