As AASA’s Noelle Ellerson wrote, “The school budget—and accompanying process—provides school districts and their leaders with an opportunity to justify the collection and expenditure of public funds. In its most simple definition, a school budget describes a district’s plan for the upcoming year as related to anticipated revenues and expenditures. School budgets allow districts to translate sometimes intangible missions, operations, and objectives into reality by outlining and providing specific programs and funding/financial terms.” It is that turning of the intangible into reality that is at the heart of an effective, student-focused budget, one that details priorities and outlines strategies that will improve student performance and serve as a guide for making changes.

When developing a budget, resource allocation decisions can be improved when desired outcomes are articulated, with both associated costs and benefits understood and measured. It can be a much more involved process than past budgeting practices, and so takes more time and more involvement of others. It can, however, lead to varied positive outcomes, such as constituent involvement, increased transparency, and ideally improved student achievement. To successfully reallocate a budget that aligns with standards, learning objectives, and priority areas of improvement, schools need to examine disaggregated data on student performance outcomes, embracing those programs and activities that will be most beneficial for their students. Effective schools also consider environmental and contextual circumstances of the school or district. They also continuously track where money is allocated, assess which resources are available, and align spending with goals, with academic performance improvement at the top of the list.