Budgeting | Christian and Private Schools

Budgeting for Success

Mission first. What are the next three most important things your parochial school should focus on for next year? […]

Each year, new parochial schools open their doors. Most of them come into existence because their leader and their board believe there is an unmet or under-met need in their community. Many times the new school must be able to demonstrate or articulate how their services will be different (innovative) from the existing schools (yours for instance). […]

Budgeting for Collaboration

Collaboration is a way to gain ‘free’ access to the resources necessary to solve the social problems of your community. […]

It Is Budget Time

For most parochial schools, it is time or nearly time to draft the next fiscal budget. Good stewardship implies finding ways to reduce expenses without cost cutting. […]

Setting Tuition

“Is our tuition too high?”, is a frequent question. The easy answer is, “That depends on many things.” There are parochial schools that are free (no tuition, book fees, registration fees, etc.). Some Christian schools have a tuition that reflects the cost per student (tuition, book fees, transportation, and everything else). Most schools are somewhere in between. Some of the in-between schools are successful. […]

A Leader is Never Helpless

After a number of setbacks, it is easy to develop a feeling of helplessness. A sad example is the northern gulf coast. There were the major hurricanes of a few years ago, the recent economic downturn and the accompanying unemployment, and the BP oil spill all created a pile of problems. The next season of hurricanes is upon us. It is easy to understand why many of the residents are beginning to feel helpless. Some residents expect someone to bail them out. Some feel like it is impossible to help themselves. The world and fate are against them. They feel like victims. […]

Effective Budgeting

A budget is your plans for the next year expressed in numbers. Is it really? By default it is. Passing the budget limits spending and forces a plan on the school. Does your budgeting process create what is best for the school? […]

Smart Budgeting

Budgeting, planning, and avoiding cost reductions are key elements of sustainability. Now is the time to finalize next year’s budget. Here are a few thoughts to help the process. […]