This editorial represents the opinions of 13 out of 14 Outlook editors.
No matter how many members of the Aragon community come forward about an initiative, it has no backing if there is no money available to execute them. There are thousands of dollars available from the district for school projects, yet the process of accessing and understanding this large budget is often confusing, causing issues for any student, parent or staff member not already involved in budget allocation and funds.
Existing ways to gain insight about the budget exist, but are limited. Contacting Yancy Hawkins, the SMUHSD head of Business, Maintenance and Operations, provides for a quick and informational answer to questions about budget allocation. District meetings and presentations are available to interested students, though it does require a little digging.
Reading the current 150-page-long annual district budget report is a painful task — both long and convoluted. While this is not a fault of the district itself, as state laws require certain formatting for budget breakdowns, a more digestible version for the public would aid students and families as they attempt to understand what their school’s money is used for. A summarized version of general initiatives along with bold and easily understandable graphics would aid in bolstering community awareness and allow SMUHSD families to be more involved in financial aspects.
A more digestible budget would also hold the district accountable for representing stakeholders. For example, the gender-neutral locker room proposed two years ago faced numerous constructional challenges that were never communicated to the Aragon community.
While Aragon can put forth proposals for how the budget should be spent, final approval and construction are controlled by the district, primarily the Board of Trustees. From the solar panels to moving the school’s electrical components, Aragon is constantly left in the dark regarding construction completion. Our school deserves to know about projects happening on our campus.
Increased transparency also helps to support community–district relations. The recent signage used to label rooms across campus was required for emergency safety standards, but the lack of communication from the district about this need for update made the change seem like a waste of resources.
To better incorporate student, family and staff input in determining where funding should be allocated at Aragon, the Outlook suggests there should be a survey specific to funding allocation. The school or district could put forward an open form for budget allocation and projects, sectioning off different responses based on necessity, interest and cost. Feasible projects could then be put through a petition system, with the proposer or related interest holders garnering a certain amount of support for the project itself.
Many students in particular have opinions about the aspects of school that the budget would go towards changing and yet have no clue about how to begin the process of raising the initiative. Students are already somewhat involved in budget allocation through the student representative system but they are limited in numbers. Direct communication between students and district members would be both more accessible and understandable, opening the field of suggestion to the whole student body instead of a select few.
Another possible solution would be to resurrect the School Site Council. Composed of students, parents, an administrator, teachers and staff, the School Site Council was in charge of advising the principal on funding expenditures. By including a School Site Council in Parent Teacher Student Organization decisions, whose voices already hold weight in Board of Trustee discussions, the larger Aragon community can be heard.
Almost every member of the Aragon community, from staff to parents to even students, has something to say about budget spending. Though interest ranges in specificity, it is clear that people care about how their school’s money is divided up. With changes in involvement opportunities at both a school and, more importantly, district level, funding allocation will become more community-driven and understandable
