NEAT - info about SPPS budget: http://tinyurl.com/3gt66 _________________________________________
Tim correctly points out that a budget reflects the mission and priorities of an organization. My problem with what I've seen of the SPSS budget, and there may be a more detailed version that I haven't see, is that these priorities have to be divined out of columns of numbers like reading tea leaves. To me, the starting place has to be the state funding formulae, and the amounts of money that SPPS gets for various things like ESL, etc. And those need to be matched up with actual spending in those ares, along with local contributions. Additional categories can be added to reflect priorities not covered by the state. The extra dimension for each of these is direct classroom costs vs support, but that's another table. By showing in stark relief what the District has as its priorities, and what it gets from the state (reflecting the state's priorities) we would be able to see exactly what's in the crossfire. A one-page summary reflecting on the major discrepancies (and why the state funding is wrong) would illuminate it. That's what I want. Now, to be fair, I've read the Saint Paul and Ramsey County budgets, and they don't do a good job of this, either. OK, they're pretty lousy. But since SPPS will always get more scrutiny than either (which really is only fair, given the seriousness of their charge) I think they have to be more careful. My two cents (added to Column 5, "Miscellaneous"). Erik Hare [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://home.comcast.net/~wabbitoid/ Irvine Park, West End, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA, North America, Earth Fine Amish furniture, cedar chests, and crafts http://www.harmonycedar.com _____________________________________________ SPPS Budget Reduction Forum - Feb. 23-27 Co-Sponsored By NEAT: http://www.stpaulneat.org/ _____________________________________________ NEW ADDRESS FOR LIST: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, modify subscription, or get your password - visit: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/stpaul Archive Address: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/private/stpaul/
