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2019-20 Operating Budget
Planning for 2020-21
The first step in planning a budget is to think about what our priorities are - as a district, city, and community.
So let's talk about it.
We have lots of areas that we can invest in, like districtwide technology, professional development, and afterschool programming, just to name a few.
Join us at an upcoming forum to tell us what you think the district’s priorities should be:
- November 13, 4 to 5:30 p.m.
Impact Hub (10 E. North Ave.)
This session will be for youth, to give current students an opportunity to talk about what they'd like to see the district focus on. - Date November 18, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Reach! Partnership School (2555 Harford Rd.)
This session will be for faith-based and community-based organizations. - November 21, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Edmondson-Westside High School (501 N. Athol Ave.)
All are welcome! - December 11, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Moravia Park Elementary (6001 Frankford Ave)
This session will be for multilingual families.
Can't make it to a meeting? Fill out this survey and tell us what you think the district's priorities should be as we begin budget planning for next year.
Every school will be hosting similar meetings, focused on what the school's priorities should be. Check with your school for dates and times.
Looking to the future
The state's Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education (the "Kirwan Commission") is charged with making recommendations on what would be needed for Maryland's schools to perform at the level of the world's top education systems and on needed changes to state funding of schools serving students from pre-k to 12th grade.
What would a world-class education system look like in Baltimore? What approach to funding would ensure equity for Baltimore's students? With input from stakeholders and advocates and reflecting research-based best practices in urban education, City Schools has drafted its vision for Baltimore's schools under a new state funding formula.
View "Investing in Our Future" in Spanish
School spending
City Schools allocates the maximum possible funding to schools, both directly for flexible spending and indirectly through district-provided services, and works to ensure that distribution is equitable across all schools, so that all students' needs can be met. Different priorities, needs, and schools means that school budgeting can be complex, and the formulas used for charter and traditional schools have not been easy to understand.
In 2018, the district convened a group of stakeholders representing charter schools, traditional schools, and the district office to look at how schools are funded and to work toward recommendations to make funding methods more transparent and easily understood, while also ensuring equity across school types. Below are presentations from a series of work sessions held by the stakeholder group.
- Introduction and overview (September 2018)
- Federal programs and restricted grants (October 2018)
- Central administrative costs (October 2018)
- Specialized services: presentation | additional notes (October 2018)
- Central services to schools (November 2018)
- Debt obligations, formula review, attribution review (December 2018)
- Review: presentation | additional notes (January 2019)
Additional resources
Past year budget and financial statements
2018-19
- Operating budget: English | Spanish
- Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)
2017-18
- Operating budget: English | Spanish
- Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR)
2016-17
For more information or other past years' budget documents, contact the Finance Office.
Financial recovery plan
At the outset of developing the FY18 operating budget, City Schools identified a structural budget gap exceeding $100 million. The gap was closed through cost-cutting and provision of additional resources from the city and state.
As part of House Bill 684 passed during the 2017 General Session, the Maryland General Assembly required the Board of School Commissioners to prepare a financial recovery plan for the district, which was submitted to the city and state on August 1, 2017.