MASA President
Superintendent
Saint Paul Public Schools
The narrative arc surrounding public education funding in Minnesota has never been more complicated. Phrases like historic investment, record inflation, workforce shortages, declining enrollment, funding cliff are just a few pieces of the complex school finance puzzle that we must put together while showing our stakeholders where they fit and what pieces are still missing.
Thanks to your collective tenacity and persistence engaging with state legislators, we should all feel proud that we secured more than $2 billion in education funding in the last session. A total of 65 referendums were on the ballot this month to increase local funding for buildings, safety/security and increased operational funds. Congratulations to those of you successful in your efforts. Those districts that were unable to secure voter support will certainly face challenges in meeting the demands of your stakeholders.
The increased funding for special education and English learner services are long overdue in a state whose Department of Education lists “allocate resources to learners who need them most” as one of its 10 commitments to equity. From the very beginning of the session, Governor Walz and legislators on both sides of the aisle also showed their support for tying an inflationary increase to the state general education per pupil formula. You can see why this was so important in the following document shared by AMSD: Education Funding, AMSD, 9/20/23. The graph clearly shows the gap between the funding we receive from the state and the actual cost with annual inflationary increases.
In Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS), we are approaching our fiscal year 2025 budget with the following figures in mind:
- Our FY24 budget was approved at just over $1 billion
- We are projecting $53.8 million in new state funding for FY24
- With the expiration of American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding, we must reduce our spending by $114 million next year
SPPS Achieves, our strategic plan, played a crucial role in shaping the strategies we formulated and funded with the support of ARP. There are numerous initiatives that have been successful for students and embraced by staff. I have been clear since we received these funds that SPPS would develop strategies that, if successful, could be sustained after the funding expires.
One of the tools our team is using to shape our FY25 budget is our Start, Stop, Sustain decision-making framework:
We define “start, stop, sustain” as follows:
- Start: Begin, add to
- Stop: Sunset, discontinue
- Sustain: Continue at the current level
Our framework is built on: values, constraints, outcomes and sound financials.
Understanding our community’s values is essential as we begin determining what we must start, stop or sustain. Values speak to our intentional efforts over the past year to better understand what our students, staff and families value in their experiences in SPPS. Our engagement efforts included surveys and dozens of focus groups with our stakeholders. Our Research, Evaluation and Assessment team takes all of this information and looks for themes and patterns.
Each of us have constraints in our work. These include things we must do; for example, we must have a balanced budget approved by our boards prior to July 1 each year. Other constraints are things we cannot do. For example, our district fund balance policies typically state the percentage we are mandated to maintain when developing our annual budgets. Identifying your constraints and explaining them to your stakeholders is a critical step in budget engagement.
SPPS has more than 50 ARP-funded strategies that are aligned with our strategic plan. Strategy teams met regularly over the past several months with our Innovation Office to provide progress monitoring support. This vital work allowed department leaders to identify changes that were informed by data. This work also led to the immediate sunsetting of unsuccessful strategies so we could redirect funds to areas making an impact. Strategy outcomes offer a degree of accountability, enabling stakeholders to witness their values being reflected in our initiatives.
The complex narrative surrounding Minnesota’s public education funding highlights the intricate challenges we face as school districts. Engaging stakeholders, understanding community values, and navigating constraints contribute to informed decision-making. Strategic initiatives that are aligned with strategic plans, monitored for progress, demonstrate accountability and reflect stakeholders’ values are key. An ongoing commitment to intentional engagement, responsive adjustments and transparent communication positions SPPS to implement sound financials.
As we all approach the FY25 budget year, it is crucial to stay connected with your community’s stakeholders. This includes new and veteran staff in your schools and residents with young children. Establishing a shared understanding of your fiscal realities and a forward-looking plan is more important than ever. Learn the values of your organization and community. Center your communication around how those values are present in the difficult decisions you have to make.
I wish you all the best as we near the end of 2023 with a new year ahead. Please take time to make meaningful moments with those who are special to you over this holiday and winter break season.
