ACES Tool: Attribute Central Expenditures to Schools

We are excited to share a new experiment intended to help even more district, school, and state leaders transform how they use resources - people, time, and money - to create strategic school systems: ACES (which stands for Attribute Central Expenditures to Schools), is an easy-to-use financial reporting and analysis tool, created in partnership with the educational technology company Allovue.

This venture is new for us because ACES is a paid tool – unlike any other online ERS resource. We saw this partnership as an opportunity to incorporate ERS’ insight and expertise into highly action-oriented software that could reach hundreds of districts. We hope that in the age of ESSA, ACES will enable more districts to cost-effectively and efficiently generate a complete and accurate per pupil expenditure at each school that will ultimately lead to increased equity and excellence for all students, no matter their race or income.

What is ACES?

ACES is a cloud-based tool used to calculate and analyze expenditures at and across district schools, enabling districts to accurately attribute centrally-reported funds to schools. This attribution helps districts better understand their financial data – including correlations between spending and school-level performance, program effectiveness, and more. Importantly, ACES allows districts to identify areas of resource inequity as well as opportunities to better distribute resources to their highest need students - so they get what they need to succeed.

School districts that adhere to state mandated reporting rules can use ACES to apply the methodology to their financial data. If your state has open-ended methodology requirements, ACES can help you create a variety of ESSA friendly reports.

How do I get help?

For questions or concerns, reach out to the ACES team at aces@allovue.com.

ERS will receive a small portion of the revenues from this tool, which we will use to reinvest in our nonprofit mission. We also continue to offer a large suite of free tools on our website, including calculators, checklists and interactive games to support strategic resource decisions in school districts. They are available in Tools and Publications as well as Get Started