Little is known about the characteristics and perspectives of school business officers, those who have the ear of superintendents and who help make key decisions about the spending of millions of dollars of public funds in school districts. Due to equity concerns and the paucity of research regarding this key group of individuals, this research…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the work that school business leaders perform in four different school districts in New York State, and to find what the impact of this work is on instruction. The research is titled, "How Do the Functions That School Business Officials Perform Affect Teaching and Learning, and Do School Business…

Drawing on data from 116 survey responses by School Business Managers, and 7 semi-structured interviews with education professionals carried out between October 2017 and February 2018, this article reports on findings from a research project focussing on the opportunities and constraints for career progression into leadership roles for School…

This article explores the increasing professionalisation of school business practitioners in the state school system in England. Often referred to a 'school business managers' or 'school business leaders', this cohort of the school workforce have been increasingly tasked with leading crucial site-based management functions in schools, such as…

In this highly disruptive and uncertain period for higher education, while governing boards and the senior leadership of colleges and universities may be fulfilling their roles conscientiously, their efforts may not be enough to ensure the long-term viability of their institution's business model. Pre-COVID-19 market forces presented significant…

Purpose: Public education is an important institution in any democracy, and the significant resources invested form a critical pillar in its provision. The evidence used to manage said resources is, therefore, an important issue for education leaders and a matter public interest. The purpose of this paper is to consider the role education finance…

Policy changes to school governance have led to Governing Bodies (GBs) increasingly appointing skilled professionals from the business community. Research into these GBs views governors from business as a threat to lay governors and the stakeholder model. Whilst there has been exploration of the contributions of business governors, the ways in…

Districts around the country have been forced to reduce personnel and programs because sufficient funds are unavailable to maintain what are commonly referred to in education as "level service budgets." Perhaps it is time for school business officials (SBOs) to engage in serious conversations about whether K-12 public schools should place greater…

One important effect of increasing localized autonomy, authority, responsibility, and accountability has been a growing yet understated recognition that effective business management is an essential component of educational leadership. The education business is expanding and becoming more complex and requires propitious oversight. As a result,…

In order to best prepare the U.S. workforce, schools need to focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. However, given the current educational climate of reduced school funding, high teacher turnover, and increasing student diversity, the public school system simply cannot do this alone. This is where businesses…

Available data indicate that colleges and universities have experienced an unexpected rise in occupational fraud over the past two decades. In order to mitigate the risk of fraud, these institutions must be proactive and have strong internal controls and policies. The purpose of this study was to examine the current controls in place at Midwest…

Using grid and group theory (Douglas 1982, 2011), the study described in this article examined the intersections of technology and school finance in four schools located in districts differing in size, wealth, and commitment to technology integration. In grid and group theory, grid refers to the degree to which policies and role prescriptions…

If one speaks, writes, or otherwise communicates with an audience that does not hear, read, or understand, it is as if he/she did not communicate at all. Worse, members of the audience might take away a message that one never intended. Knowing and using the tools of communication effectively will help school business administrators keep themselves…

This article is primarily methodological but has dual aims. First, it makes a case for Q methodology as an effective and so far little exploited means of capturing, comparing and contrasting individual perspectives on a specific question in the field of educational leadership. In common with other research approaches designed to uncover the…

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…