Why Engage Stakeholders in Local Financial Transparency Efforts?

As of 2018, each state and school district is required¹ to report per-pupil expenditures at the school level on its annual report card. Families should be able to understand and use these data to make the best choices for their children. For community members, these data can help build the understanding and engagement needed to support local investment in school systems.

The following profile and audio clip describe how Community Unit School District 300 approaches and prioritizes stakeholder engagement in their financial transparency efforts.

Community Unit School District 300
Community Unit School District 300 is in Algonquin, Illinois (about an hour west of Chicago) and serves just over 20,000 students. To see Community Unity School District’s local report card (including per-pupil expenditures), please download the at-a-glance report from the Illinois State Report Card site here. Superintendent Fred Heid of Community Unit School District 300 observes the importance of communicating the potential return on investment (ROI) of school funding. School systems can play a critical role in the economic health of a community in many ways, such as attracting potential homebuyers with families or supporting the development of a robust local workforce. Superintendent Heid notes that by articulating the benefit of successful schools to the entire community, it is possible to build strong engagement around school finances. To listen to Superintendent Heid’s perspective on the importance of communicating the ROI of successful schools, click the play button below. For a transcript of this audio, click here.

Community Unit School District 300

Community Unit School District 300 is in Algonquin, Illinois (about an hour west of Chicago) and serves just over 20,000 students. To see Community Unity School District’s local report card (including per-pupil expenditures), please download the at-a-glance report from the Illinois State Report Card site here.

Superintendent Fred Heid of Community Unit School District 300 observes the importance of communicating the potential return on investment (ROI) of school funding. School systems can play a critical role in the economic health of a community in many ways, such as attracting potential homebuyers with families or supporting the development of a robust local workforce. Superintendent Heid notes that by articulating the benefit of successful schools to the entire community, it is possible to build strong engagement around school finances.

To listen to Superintendent Heid’s perspective on the importance of communicating the ROI of successful schools, click the play button below.

For a transcript of this audio, click here.

For more resources on engaging stakeholders in financial transparency issues, please see:

Edunomics’ resources related to communicating with stakeholders about financial transparency
Education Resource Strategies’ Three Action Steps to Build Equity
Colorado Association of School Business Officials, the Education Trust, and Children Now’s Best Practices for Engaging Stakeholders in the Budget
Government Finance Officers Association’s Best Practices in School Budgeting (note: while there are many documents linked through this resource, resource 1D: Identify Communications Strategy most directly aligns with engaging stakeholders in financial transparency issues.

Check out the next blog in the series: How Can School Districts Engage Stakeholders in Financial Transparency?

¹ Under ESEA section 1111(h)(1)(C)(x) and (h)(2)(C), state and school district annual report cards must include “the per-pupil expenditures of federal, state, and local funds, including actual personnel expenditures and actual nonpersonnel expenditures of federal, state, and local funds, disaggregated by source of funds, for each local educational agency and each school in the state for the preceding fiscal year.”[Back]

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