Kelli Houston

EDAD 590
October 5, 2015

The Role of the Instructional Leader and the Budget

All Saints Catholic School provides faith-based education to pre-kindergarten through

eighth grade. It is located in Davenport, Iowa and is part of the Diocese of Davenport. The
school welcomes all children and works in cooperation with four parishes: Holy Family, Sacred
Heart, St. Alphonsus, and St. Mary. In order to better understand the role our instructional leader
plays in the school budget, I interviewed Jeanne Von Feldt, principal and Rose Miller, business
manager. Through their interviews, I was able to gain knowledge about the planning, reporting,
and approving of the budget process. I also gained a better understanding about each persons
responsibilities and part they play when it comes to the budget.
The most important piece of information I learned about the budget is that the right
person needs to be in charge of it. Jeanne said that she has full trust in Rose when it comes to the
budget, which is why she has the most responsibilities with planning and reporting the budget.
Jeanne also stated that if her and Roses relationship was not as strong and the trust was not
there, then she would have a much harder time sharing the leadership of the budget with her.
Rose feels comfortable handling the budget because she has been with the school a long time,
has grown to know the families and culture of the school, and has the necessary knowledge about
income and expenses.
In order to keep track of the money the school has, everything has to be documented and
written in detail. The schools income is recorded each month. The biggest contributors to the
schools income are: tuition (which also includes our Embracing the Future tuition assistance),
gifts and donations, fundraisers, and subsidies from our four parishes. The school, more
specifically Rose, must also keep track of grants and state money our school receives and must
make sure that money is spent for its designated purpose. All of the schools expenses must also
be recorded each month. These expenses include: salaries, staff development, technology,
insurance, educational materials and supplies, and building utilities and maintenance.
All Saints also has a financial committee that plans and reviews the budget by meeting
periodically throughout the year. Rose Miller serves on the financial committee along with
Father Harness, the priest at Holy Family and school board president, Trish Rolfstad, an attorney
and parent, and either Jeanne or David Sowells, our assistant principal, attends as well. The
financial committee meets to review the budget from the previous year and set the budget for the
following school year. They also look at the income the school makes and the expenses the
school has to see what areas may need adjustments, improvements, and/or cuts. The budget is
also reviewed and approved by the school board each month.
Jeanne and Rose have stated that there are usually minor adjustments that are made with
the budget each year. If we have an increased enrollment, then our income may increase.
However, if we are making more money, then there is usually something that is costing us more
money. So, in the end, it usually all evens out. One major area that can have a huge impact on the
schools budget, and is constantly changing, is insurance. Jeanne mentioned that since a lot of
companies are now requiring spouses to use the insurance offered by their place of work, there
has been a significant increase in the schools insurance expense.
Jeanne does feel like the one major area she has the most influence with is the amount of
money our fundraisers can add to the budget. Since we are a private school and do have a lot of
low-income families, we really reach out to the community and ask for their support through our
various fundraisers. Jeanne is constantly building relationships with various businesses and
community members and realizes that every little bit can help. The schools annual Gala is our
biggest fundraiser and is an event that takes all year to plan. Since Jeanne knows this is a huge
contributor to our income, she spends a lot of time on finding sponsors and donors, and making
sure the night is a huge success. She also takes it upon herself to continue to think of new
fundraising ideas, such as our scrap metal sale and Irish music nights.
After speaking with Jeanne and Rose, the most important thing I learned about the role of
our administrator in our schools budget is this could be an opportunity to share leadership if you
feel there is a person you are able to trust and is better suited to be in charge of the budget.
Jeanne has no problem admitting that Rose is in charge of the budget and that if anyone,
including Jeanne, wants to spend money you need to go to Rose. When a knowledgeable and
trusting person is put in charge of the schools planning and reporting of the budget, the principal
can trust it is taken care of while focusing her efforts on other instructional efforts.