This is the 18th edition of the Mackinac Center's annual school privatization survey. The Center asks every school district in the state if they outsource one of the three main noninstructional services -- custodial, transportation and food services. Responses from officials in all 539 public school districts between June 2 and September 24 were…

The purpose of this Action Research study was to investigate and improve teacher retention at Southside Public Schools, an urban public school district in Massachusetts. Participants and data collected in Cycle 1 consisted of an interview with the school district's superintendent, a focus group that included Southside's director of human…

This case provides a summary of a situation in which a newly appointed superintendent and his new chief financial officer of a midsized urban school district uncover a massive set of fiscal problems which had been previously hidden from the Board and most other stakeholders. How do the district's top leaders make decisions about how to address the…

Effective school business managers regularly assess themselves to ensure that they are "on top of their game" in the many facets of their jobs. One area they should not lose sight of, especially in the current economic situation, is their ability to communicate with their colleagues in the district. They may feel overwhelmed by the number of…

Due to a diminishing level of available funds, school leaders are faced with difficult decisions associated with reducing budget expenditures. The only way to prevent losing more programs and services is to reduce spending. An area which is quickly gaining popularity in reducing expenditures is outsourcing. Many schools have turned to outside…

The number of children (ages 3-21) in the United States designated as having a specific learning disability is over seven (7) million. Providing the programs, services and funding necessary to deliver appropriate programs and services to this special population is a challenge in virtually all school districts across the country. The role of school…

Professional development has become so valuable that even Boston Public Schools has created its own in-house professional development institutions to develop management skills among staff. And the Association of School Business Officers International will launch a new certification program for school business officials next fall. It is designed in…

Over the last 18 months, school district purchasing offices across the country have been tightening the reins like never before while more top-level administrators get involved in the budget process. "When the economy really hit the skids, states got hit hard, so a lot of school districts were forced to make severe budget cuts," says John Musso,…

The transformative powers of digital technology to improve student learning and the resulting effect of that technology to make the business of education more cost-effective are two of the more exciting dynamics in schooling today. Before the current school year ends, new products and upgrades will be available to replace much of the technology.…

Describes how superintendents and business managers work together during periods of limited financial resources and tight budgets. Provides examples from several states. (PKP)

Lists salaries and fringe benefits paid to school business officials and other administrators based on data from approximately 1,000 local school systems that comprise a stratified sample of large, medium, small, and very small school systems. Chief business officials' salaries are generally related to three variables: region of the country;…

A small sample of Ohio school board members, superintendents, principal-supervisors, and school business managers suprisingly agreed in their perceptions of real and idealized leadership behavior of the business managers. All four groups indicated very large differences between real and ideal perspectives. (SB)

Discusses issues surrounding superintendents' efforts to establish effective working relationships with their school boards. Includes topics such as role confusion, dealing with conflict, and responding to micromanaging board members. Other topics include elected versus appointed boards, good board members, and new board members. (Contains 14…

The Institute for Business Officials, established in 1988 through a partnership of Lewis and Clark College's educational administration program and the Oregon Association of School Business Officials, is a series of topical workshops designed to address the continuing education needs of school business officials and small district superintendents.…

The Educational Research Service's 1996-97 National Survey of Wages and Salaries in Public Schools reports average salaries of $80,176 paid to assistant superintendents, $65,797 paid to directors of business and finance, and $39,580 paid to classroom teachers. Salaries for chief business officials have kept pace with those of classroom teachers.…