Accompanying the education finance reform approved by the Legislature in 1995 were provisions for both financial and academic accountability.
Financial Accountability
Alabama implemented a local school budgeting system in 1939 that has remained virtually unchanged today. The major change in 1995 was in financial
accounting, from a system-centered program to a site- or school-based program.
The 1995 reform legislation stipulated that local boards of education must be financially accountable just as they are accountable for student achievement.
Local boards of education are required to provide annual financial budgets and financial statements which are cost-center-based (by school site and by area vocational/technical education center), which are program based (by regular, special, and vocational education), and which are resource based (by source of funds - federal, state, and local).
The State Board of Education is directed to require and approve budgets and financial statements and any other such report that is deemed necessary to assess the financial stability of each local board of education. Any budget deemed fiscally unsound will be resubmitted with the assistance of the State Department of Education. Any determination of an unsound fiscal condition in any local board of education will lead to an appointee of the State Superintendent of
Education advising the local board on the day-to-day financial operations. Should the unsound fiscal condition persist, the State Superintendent of Education, with the approval of the State Board of Education, will assume direct control of the fiscal operation of the local board of education through the appointment of a chief fiscal officer. Such appointees would be required to give bond with a surety company authorized to do business in Alabama. This direct control shall be for the period of time deemed necessary to bring the local board into fiscal
compliance as determined by the State Board of Education (ALA. CODE § 16-6B-4, 1975).
In the case of a school in academic assistance, the legislation requires that local boards make the effort and commit the resources necessary to improve the
instructional program for a school in need of assistance. Such a school in need of academic assistance must have budgeted to be spent in that school all of the funds earned in the cost calculations of the 1995 Foundation Program (ALA. CODE § 16-6B-3, 1975). In addition, each local board of education shall prepare annually for each school and area vocational/technical center and for itself an accountability report to be provided to the public. This consists of a Funding and Expenditure Report which shall include the amount of foundation program funds or
vocational/technical education funds, or both, earned and of all funds expended, and any other data deemed necessary by the local board of education or the State Board of Education to inform the public about the financial status of each school (ALA. CODE § 16-6B-7, 1975).
Public hearings were made mandatory for the first time for local budgets in 1997.
The State Department of Education is required to prepare annual budget forms for each local board of education and make the forms available to each local
superintendent of education for use with public hearings. Each local board of education shall hold at least two open public hearings pertaining to its proposed annual budget. Copies of the proposed budget shall be provided to the public at each hearing on forms provided by the State Department of Education. Each board shall seek input from the public concerning the proposed budget and the allocation of resources. Each hearing shall be held during a scheduled board meeting in a place and at a time convenient for the public to attend. The chair of each board shall publicize the date and time of each hearing in the local media in advance of the hearing. In addition, notice of each hearing shall be posted in a conspicuous place at the offices of the local board of education, the county courthouse, the main municipal building, and at each affected school. The proposed budget shall reflect the total amount of resources available to the board from all funding and revenue sources. The projected enrollment and the total proposed expenditures by each board and for each school shall be available at the public hearings. The proposed budget shall clearly delineate the number of teachers, librarians, counselors, administrators and other support personnel projected to be employed at each school. The proposed budget shall clearly list the operating costs by category or function at each school. The proposed budget shall delineate by school those operating resources earned, including, but not necessarily limited to, those items contained in the Instructional Support Program of the Foundation Program, designating the amount of funds earned at each school per item based on average daily membership. After at least two public hearings have been held, the local board and superintendent shall cause a final budget to be developed consistent with the laws of this state, and shall make copies of the final budget available to the public upon request (ALA. CODE § 16-13-140, 1975).
Academic Accountability
The State Board of Education shall determine a school in need of academic assistance when that school has a majority of its students scoring one or more grade levels below the national norm on the state adopted achievement test.
Alabama has chosen the Stanford Achievement Test, Version 9. If a majority of students score in Stanines 1, 2, and 3 in a school, that school is placed on
Academic Alert and is required to develop a self-improvement plan. Failure to make satisfactory progress after two years will require the State Superintendent of Education to appoint a person or persons to run the day-to-day operations of the
school. Satisfactory progress is defined as an annual 5% decrease in the number of students scoring in Stanines 1, 2, and 3.
All local school systems not on Alert status but with a majority of its students scoring in Stanines 1, 2, 3, and 4 are placed on Academic Caution status. These schools must show at least a 2% decrease in the number of students scoring in Stanines 1, 2, 3, or 4 to be considered as making satisfactory progress. Failure to make satisfactory progress will experience the same sanctions specified for Academic Alert schools.
Should a local school system have a majority of its schools in need of assistance as determined by the State Board of Education, then the same steps for
intervention are followed. Intervention after the third year of insufficient improvement means that the State Superintendent of education shall assume the direct management and day-to-day operation of the local board of education for such period of time as may be necessary for student achievement to improve (ALA. CODE § 16-6B-3, 1975).