Your Hand

Investments

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  Give $10K stipend to your top 15% contributing teachers for increased leadership and responsibility including serving as coaches

  Current compensation systems reward experience and education levels, neither of which is highly correlated to improved performance. Instead compensation can be restructured to leverage your strongest teachers to serve as coaches and improve overall teaching effectiveness.

  Keep in mind this example is illustrative only – comprehensive compensation reform should links rewards to increased performance and contribution at all levels. In addition, adjustment to teacher contracts may involve negotiating with the union.

  WARNING: Research results are mixed on the impact of various “performance- based” teacher pay approaches. Compensation system redesign should be undertaken carefully, motivating contribution and performance at all levels.

  1.0% Why?
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  Invest to implement and build capacity for a teacher evaluation and data system (one time investment)

  A framework for defining high quality teaching, a consistent process for evaluating performance and contribution, easy access to a broad variety of data on individual teachers, and training of central office staff are critical for principals to accurately evaluate their staff and to support their development.

  WARNING:

  0.5% Why?
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  Pay teachers for 60 additional minutes per week to be spent in collaborative planning

  Research shows that teaching effectiveness improves when teams of teachers and expert coaches can collaborate for 90+ minutes per week around ongoing student work and assessment data and use this information to continually adjust instruction.

  Many districts may be able to find this time at no cost by creating new schedules.

  WARNING:

  0.2% Why?
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  Provide a week of professional development for principals on teacher evaluation, using available summer time at no additional cost

  Training principals on clear standards and effective evaluation helps them identify and leverage the strongest performers, while targeting support for struggling teachers.

  WARNING:

  0.0% Why?
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  Restructure the school day to provide 60 additional minutes of collaboration planning

  This will require creativity and in some cases changes to union contracts.

  WARNING:

  0.0% Why?
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  Reduce the length of elective blocks or double core academic blocks to provide more instructional time in English/ language arts, reading and math

  By altering the existing schedule, districts and schools may be able to increase time in critical subjects and grades for the students who need extra support in those areas.

  WARNING:

  0.0% Why?
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  Provide double blocks of English/language arts and math for struggling students and students in transition grades

  Many districts place struggling students into extra sections of math or English/language arts. Scheduling this additional time into a double block with one teacher extends instructional time and reduces the total number of students for whom the teacher is responsible.

  WARNING:

  0.0% Why?
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  Invest in a Response to Intervention (RTI) program

  This type of early intervention targets support for struggling students, keeping them on track within general education. Not only does this promote inclusion and differentiation of instruction for all students, it can limit referrals and placements into more costly and rigidly prescribed programs.

  RTI includes providing at least some 1-1 and up to 1-5 tutoring for struggling students, especially those in the bottom half; this combined with good instruction can reduce the percentage of students who get a label as someone with a disability by 50%, which is a huge cost saving.

  WARNING:

  0.1% Why?
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  Identify your strongest principals and encourage them to move to the 25% lowest performing schools

  A strong leader, who creates a culture of achievement, attracts high quality teaching and staff, and engages the community, is a critical success factor for turning around low performing schools. More flexibility in hiring, staffing, scheduling and instruction can attract strong principals.

  WARNING:

  0.0% Why?
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  Add a social services coordinator in 25% lowest performing schools

  Many districts are having success in improving school readiness and achievement for at risk students through coordinators that work with city, state and community organizations to provide wrap-around services and support.

  WARNING:

  0.4% Why?
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  Offer 20% higher principal salaries at the 25% lowest performing schools to attract top talent

  Offering financial and other incentives (such as more flexibility in hiring, staffing, scheduling and instruction) can make the challenging work conditions in low-performing schools more attractive to the strongest school leaders.

  Salary increases alone are likely not enough to attract the best leaders to the neediest schools. Consider other incentives well such as more flexibility in hiring, staffing, scheduling and instruction.

  WARNING:

  0.1% Why?
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  Provide one-time payment for course work to allow for cross-certification across multiple subjects and specialties for 10% of teachers

  Cross-certification allows more flexible and cost-effective allocation of teachers and provides subject content knowledge, key to better supporting students, especially special populations.

  Please note: This differs from the more typical approach which increases teacher salaries for the rest of their career based on course taken and not on whether they are using the new skills.

  WARNING:

  0.8% Why?
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  Introduce principal residency program to build leadership capacity

  Strong school leaders are a key component of high performing schools. Fellowship programs increase the pipeline for high-capacity principals.

  WARNING:

  0.1% Why?
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  Add school leader staff to double time available for teacher evaluation and support

  High performing schools provide principals with time and support to evaluate staff, provide instructional leadership, and manage resources and operational issues.

  This can be accomplished by adding teacher leaders or school administration to reduce the number of evaluations each is responsible for.

  WARNING:

  0.6% Why?
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  Adjust teacher schedules so that teachers who share course content or students have the same free periods

  Time for teachers to collaborate around instruction and student learning is an important driver of teaching quality and school improvement.

  WARNING:

  0.0% Why?
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  Increase funding to schools that are underfunded on a per pupil basis

  School sizes, class fill rates, and variations in teacher experience/salaries can cause large discrepancies in per pupil funding across schools, even when funding is adjusted based on student need.

  WARNING: Also consider: Reduce funding to schools that are overfunded on a per pupil basis.

  1.0% Why?

Savings

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  Bring special education class sizes from 70% to 75% of target size as mandated in staffing ratios and Individual Education Plans (IEP)

  Special education class sizes that are lower than district targets and Individual Education Plan (IEP) requirements drive up costs and can result in funding inequity across schools without significantly improving student performance.

  WARNING:

  -0.6% Why?
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  Reduce special education aides by 20% by rewriting Individual Education Plans (IEPs) to more flexibly provide 1:1 and small group support

  Research shows that special education students benefit from high-quality, content-based instruction. Special education aides have not demonstrated the same level of benefit. IEPs that identify each student’s needs but provide flexibility in how that support is delivered can serve students more effectively.

  WARNING:

  -0.2% Why?
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  Reduce special education administration and compliance spending at the central office 10% by using technology and by redesigning processes

  Districts devote significant resources to special education compliance and reporting, which often can be significantly reduced by reviewing roles, leveraging technology and streamlining processes.

  WARNING:

  -0.2% Why?
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  Increase average Secondary class size in non-core/elective classes only by 4 (“non-core” subjects are subjects other than English/Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, Science and World Language)

  Benefits from reducing class sizes have only been demonstrated in classes with fewer than 17 students in core academic subjects and in early/transitional grades. Outside of those parameters, increasing class sizes, even by a few students, can free up significant resources without negatively impacting student outcomes.

  Increasing average class size across the district will likely require larger increases in some schools and classes than others, depending on the distribution of classes and class sizes.

  WARNING:

  -0.8% Why?
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  Reduce extra spending on very small schools by 25% by changing staffing models and funding formulas

  Districts can reduce extra costs by enabling more flexibility to combine staff roles, use untraditional providers, and group students creatively. Districts can also support schools by providing example staffing and scheduling models.

  WARNING:

  -0.8% Why?
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  Lease unused and after school space to community groups and other users

  To fully benefit from school closings and consolidations, districts can bring in revenue through building rentals.

  The value of this will vary dramatically across districts depending on space available, local real estate market and demand for space.

  WARNING:

  -0.2% Why?
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  Provide 10% of non-core/elective classes through community partnership resources (“non-core” subjects are subjects other than English/Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, Science and World Language)

  Local and partner expert resources can be used on a part-time basis to provide high quality, low cost non-core instruction. *Non-core refers to subjects other than Math, English/Language Arts, Social Studies, Science and World Language

  WARNING:

  -0.1% Why?
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  Reduce Central Office and non-school management and overhead by 10%

  Revisiting central office functions, restructuring work content and processes, automating clerical tasks, and taking advantage of electronic information and data systems can yield cost savings.

  Consider investing in data systems to streamline functions and access to information.

  WARNING:

  -0.1% Why?
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  Close/Consolidate under-enrolled schools to increase district utilization from 85% to 90%

  Districts with under-enrolled schools likely can free up significant resources by closing some schools and moving students to fill empty spaces in the remaining schools. This savings takes into account the money required to physically close a school.

  Educating parents and the community on the trade-offs between school closures and other investments and ensuring high quality schools in which to enroll displaced students can make the difficult politics of school closings easier.

  WARNING:

  -0.5% Why?
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  Partner with community groups to provide 50% of summer school programs

  Summer school is often one of the first areas to go in times of severe budget pressure. Districts may be able to preserve part or all of their programs by partnering with community organizations that are funded through other channels.

  Although outside of regular instruction, summer school helps struggling students reach the next level without referral to costly special services.

  WARNING:

  -0.1% Why?
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  Replace the top 5% most expensive high school classes with comparable on-line offerings

  Due to low enrollment, many high school electives and upper level advanced courses are expensive. On-line instruction can be a low-cost way of offering valued subjects, either as stand-alone classes or as supplements to larger, consolidated classes.

  WARNING:

  -0.2% Why?
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  Reduce special education placements by 5% by addressing over-identification

  Some districts have classified significantly higher percentages of students as requiring special education services. Early intervention programs and alternative approaches to supporting struggling students in general education settings can reduce such inappropriate placements.

  WARNING: To reduce special education referral rates also consider: “Invest in a Response to Intervention (RTI) program” and “Provide one-time payment for course work to allow for cross-certification across multiple subjects and specialties for 10% of teachers”

  -0.3% Why?
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  Reduce Transportation costs by 10%

  Changing walk zones and routes can result in significant savings. Changing program placement, school choice and assignment policies can reduce net transportation costs.

  Consider program and school access, quality and cost when changing school choice or assignment parameters.

  WARNING:

  -0.3% Why?
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  Remove one section of 4th and 5th grade in big schools and one section of either 4th or 5th grade in small schools, increasing 4th and 5th grade average class size by 4

  Benefits from reducing class sizes have been demonstrated only in classes with fewer than 17 students in early grades. Assuming 8 class sections across 4th and 5th grade, eliminating one or two sections, can free up resources without negatively impacting student outcomes.

  Eliminating one section per 4th and 5th grade may raise class size significantly. Instead consider rethinking student grouping. Combining classes across grades or moving groups of students among teachers during the day for different subjects can improve student learning even with a higher student-teacher ratio. As class sizes rise, you may wish to invest in expert teachers for small group instruction for core subjects and certain student groups.

  WARNING:

  -0.9% Why?
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  Partner with community groups to provide after school programs

  After school programs are often the first areas to go in times of severe budget pressure. Communities may be able to preserve part or all of their programs by partnering with community organizations that are funded through other channels.

  Before eliminating after-school programs consider their role in academically supporting and engaging at-risk students.

  WARNING:

  -0.2% Why?
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  Reduce funding to schools that are overfunded on a per pupil basis

  School sizes, class fill rates, and variations in teacher experience/salaries can cause large discrepancies in per pupil funding across schools, even when funding is adjusted based on student need. Consider shifting these dollars to in underfunded schools.

  WARNING: Also consider: Increase funding to schools that are underfunded on a per pupil basis.

  -1.0% Why?
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  Reduce Facilities and Maintenance costs by 10%

  Outsourcing services, deferring maintenance expense, or consolidating purchasing contracts with other city departments or neighboring districts can reduce F&M costs.

  Deferring maintenance, while yielding short term savings, can result in higher costs later on.

  WARNING:

  -0.7% Why?
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  Increase average Elementary special subject (music, art, Phys. Ed.) class size by 5

  You can redistribute resources to support instruction in critical core subjects by increasing elementary school special subject class size. You might accomplish this by combining three grade level classes into two sections of music, art and Phys. Ed.

  Increasing special subject class size by combining classes may require sharing special subject teachers across schools or using part-time special subject teachers.

  WARNING:

  -0.5% Why?
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  Increase average Secondary School class size by 2

  Benefits from reducing class sizes have only been demonstrated in classes with fewer than 17 students in core academic subjects and early/transitional grades. Outside of those parameters, increasing class sizes, even by a few students, can free up resources without negatively impacting student outcomes.

  Increasing average class size across the district will likely result in larger increases in some schools and classes than others, depending on the distribution of current class sizes. School leaders need to carefully consider the composition of student needs in each class and how this matches teacher expertise. As class sizes rise, you may wish to invest in expert teachers for small group instruction for core subjects and certain student groups.

  WARNING: If you are choosing to free resources by raising class size, consider reinvesting some of those funds to: “Give $15K stipend to your top 10% contributing teachers for increased leadership and responsibility including serving as coaches.”

  -1.4% Why?
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  Reduce the cost of employee benefits by 10%

  Employee benefits account for over 20% of total district expenditures. Replacing expensive and unusually generous one-size-fits-all packages with a menu of benefit options and increasing the employee level of contribution can yield significant savings.

  Adjustment to teacher contracts may involve negotiating with the union.

  WARNING:

  -2.0% Why?