Our annual budget is a picture of all the school district’s
duties and responsibilities which, by extension, is ours individually – for we
are the school district. We, you and I, exist in the district context for a
sole purpose – the education of our young people. The annual budget provides,
in many and various ways, the resources for that purpose.
Our district’s largest resource is people. People who teach
and support our children. People who
provide good nutrition and safe transportation for those children. People who lead and people who follow that
leadership for the benefit of children. So you should not be surprised to learn
that 83% of our budget is dedicated to personnel salaries and benefits. Three
quarters of that total provides for the wonderful people who have direct
interaction with our students. We can
conclude from the allocation of these precious resources that our district’s
lifeblood is our people.
But our lifeblood must be protected, sustained and furnished
with an environment in which to flourish. That’s where the “operations” portion
of your budget comes in. Operations as people resource support provides
buildings, climate control, technology, security, transportation, payroll and a
host of other functions on a daily basis. It is the goal of operations to
provide a safe, comfortable and effective environment to facilitate the magic
of the classroom. A large and complicated tack indeed! Think of it - our
campuses daily become the largest population center in Pike County. A
population which must be housed, moved and protected moment by moment.
For the Finance office staff, our ongoing involvement in
budget management is the core of our tasks. We strive to manage processes which
enable good stewardship of all our citizens have entrusted to us. Thanks for
allowing us to work for you – our best and most precious resource!
