Given the current economic constraints facing the country, school districts in the U.S. have been pushed to develop annual budgets through a new lens and to accept the reality that budget adoption is a complex, political process. Whether a school district is rich or poor, growing or declining in enrollment, serving a specialized population or relying primarily on state or local revenue, there seems to be general public dissatisfaction with the school district budget process. During the past budget year, the School District of Cheltenham Township ventured down a different path to final budget adoption. Of utmost importance was what Stephen Covey, in his book "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People," labeled "Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind." For the School District of Cheltenham Township, the "end" was to develop a budget that supported a school system according to the district motto--Where Excellence Begins with Education--and valued the unique programs in academics, arts, and athletics. The end also needed to be accomplished through community collaboration. In this article, the authors describe how the school district designed the budgeting process. (Contains 1 figure.)