Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019

Page created by Roberta Hayes
 
CONTINUE READING
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Education Funding for
Alberta School Authorities

William Poon, School Finance Branch
September 27, 2019
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Agenda
• Role of School Finance
• Funding Framework
      - Grant eligibility
      - Grant allocations
• Funding and Data Systems
• Other Financial Information Supports
• Risk Management and Internal Controls
• Key Contacts and Deadlines
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Role of School Finance Branch

• Produce the Funding Manual for School Authorities

• Determine, process, and reconcile funding allocations

• Manage payments and data systems

• Oversee internal controls and risk management process
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Key Activities and Areas of Emphasis
• There will be a concerted effort to improve internal
  controls, accountability, and compliance with funding
  policy. This may be measured through the following key
  activities:

   – Desk Audit enrolment verification

   – Compliance with course prerequisites

   – Adherence to policy relating to the operation of Outreach programs

   – Adherence to policy for Designated Special Education Private Schools
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Key Documents
Education Act
   – Legislation governing education of students
   – Right of access, responsibility to students, residency

Guide to Education
   – Governs program delivery for students

Funding Manual for School Authorities
   – Sets out conditions and details under which funding is
     allocated to school authorities
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Alberta’s Funding Framework

6
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Budget 2019 & 2019-20 Funding Manual

• Budget 2019 will be released later this fall (possibly
  late October).

• 2019-20 Funding Manual for School Authorities will
  be available after the release of Budget 2019.

• Funding Framework and accountability review is
  underway.
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Education Funding Sources
•   The education property tax is pooled into the Alberta School Foundation
    Fund, and then distributed among Alberta's public and separate school
    boards on an equal per-student basis

•   The total amount of education property tax is based on 32 percent of
    Education’s operating cost

•   The balance of education funding is provided for through the General
    Revenue Fund of the Government of Alberta

•   Using two revenue streams provides stability for education funding and
    ensures equitable access of quality education for all students across Alberta
Education Funding for Alberta School Authorities - William Poon, School Finance Branch September 27, 2019
Funding Framework – Three Pillars
      Funding               Flexibility           Accountability
  • Method of             • Majority of           • Measuring
    allocating funds        funding is flexible     achievement and
    equitably                                       improvement
                          • Only a few
  • Approximately 25        targeted grants       • Using results to
    different grants        must be used for        improve programs
                            the purpose             for students
  • Addresses               provided
    common costs as                               • Transparency for
    well as unique        • Supports local          how school boards
    characteristics and     decision making         use their financial
    circumstances of                                resources
    school authorities
Types of Grants
Base Instruction
• Largest component of funding
• Provided for every eligible full-time equivalent student
      –   ECS to Grade 9 – per student basis
      –   Grades 10 to 12 – based on credit enrolment units (CEUs)

Differential Funding                                                                                      Flexible
•   Based on the unique characteristics of each authority                                                 funding
    – Demographic – the types of students served
    – Geographic – area of the province in which students live
    – Economic – economic conditions under which students are served
•   Examples: Inclusive Education, Equity of Opportunity, Transportation, English as a Second Language,
    First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI), Socio-Economic Status

Targeted Funding
•   Provided for specific provincial initiatives
•   Must be used for the initiative for which it was provided
•   Examples: Regional Collaborative Service Delivery, SuperNet, School Nutrition
Funding Eligibility
•   Most grants are per pupil driven
     –   September 30 enrolment

•   Funding claims must be accurate and meet eligibility requirements
     –   Citizenship
     –   Residency
     –   Access to instruction
     –   Coding – ESL, Refugee, FNMI

•   Funding eligibility monitored by Department
     –   System controls, random sampling, desk audits and on-site audits
Funding and Data Systems

12
Funding and Data Systems

 •   Provincial Approach to Student Information (PASI)
      –   Where all student data is entered (enrolments, course enrolments, and marks)

 •   Funding Event System (FES)
      –   Applies the Funding Manual rules to PASI data
      –   Determines funding eligibility

 •   School Authority Funding and Revenue System (SAFRS)
      –   Applies grant rates and payment schedules to FES data
      –   Determines funding allocations

 •   Program Unit Funding System (PUFS)
      –   Used to apply for Program Unit funding for ECS children with severe disabilities
Funding and Data Systems
Provincial Approach to Student Information (PASI)
 •   Jurisdictions submit student data through PASI
 •   Accurate and timely submission is critical for funding
Funding Event System (FES)
•   Applies the Funding Manual rules to PASI data to determine funding eligibility
     –   Age, September 30th enrolment, grant codes, exception codes
Funding Event System (FES)
•   Provides enrolment details
Funding Event System (FES)
•   Provides payment details
Funding Event System (FES)
•   Provides enrolment details for each payment
Funding Event Changes (FES) for 2019-20
Funding Event Changes (FES) for 2019-20

• Resident Board
   – Resident Boards will have the ability to see where their students are
     enrolled in another school authority for DSEP (110) and Home Education
     (600, 610, 612) students.

• Course conflict auto-resolve
   – Within the same school jurisdiction, course conflicts between High school
     redesign schools will be resolved in favor of the resident school.
Program Unit Funding System (PUFS)
•    Funding application for ECS children with severe special needs

                                                    Application
                                                    Due November 29

                                                    Actual Expenditures
                                                    Due November 29
Outside the Funding System
• Education Service Agreements (ESAs)

   – Required to receive funding for resident students attending other institutions or
     schools outside their jurisdiction (i.e., out of province) School Finance approval
     is required.

   – Can be made between school authorities within Alberta (reciprocal agreements
     where each authority would transfer the same amount to the other authority if one
     of their students were to attend in the other authority). School Finance approval is
     not required (as student would be funded at either authority).

   – ESAs between a school authority and a First Nation Band (for First Nation
     students to attend school jurisdictions) and a reciprocal agreement for students
     from school jurisdictions to attend a First Nation school on reserve.
Outside the Funding System
• Institutional Programs
   – Requires application, budget and final costs

• Regional Consortium Funding
   – Funding provided at specified rate per funding manual

• Regional Collaborative Service Delivery Funding
   – Banker boards must provide budget or strategic plan and final costs
Secure SharePoint Site
•   Purpose of the SharePoint Site is to provide a secure mechanism to
    send and receive files that may have confidential information to Alberta
    Education Strategic Financial Services (SFS)
•   Examples include – BOSS enrolment audits, CEU monitoring,
    Transportation audits/applications, School Finance enrolment audits,
    Priority School and Course conflicts supporting documentation
•   PUF forms are now on the School Finance Community Site
•   Addresses OAG requirement for data integrity and security
Access to SharePoint Site
SharePoint Site
Future Systems Development
• A new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system is currently
  being developed to replace IMAGIS for the Government of
  Alberta (GOA).

• 1GX will replace IMAGIS as the primary Financial, HR, and
  Reporting system for the GOA. Pilot ministries will begin using
  the system January 1, 2020, with full implementation for all
  other ministries commencing on April 1, 2020.

• Alberta Education will start using 1GX on April 1, 2020.
Other Financial Information Supports

29
School Jurisdiction Budget Profiles

 •   Funding profiles for all School Jurisdictions are posted on the Alberta
     Education website https://www.alberta.ca/education-projected-
     operational-funding.aspx?utm_source=redirector

 •   Profiles are normally updated once a year after the Provincial Budget
     has been announced

 •   Keep in mind they are estimates only – prepared with the best
     available information at the time
Funding Profiles

On the Alberta
Education website
Grant Calculation Sheets
•   Calculation sheets posted on the Stakeholder File Exchange under
    the School Finance menu
    https://account.education.alberta.ca/Pas.Account/?p=FhQNMkCRoO
    RwADRCRUUl1A2

     –   Inclusive Education
     –   Infrastructure Maintenance and Renewal
     –   Plant Operations and Maintenance
     –   Small Schools By Necessity
     –   High School Flex

•   Calculation sheets are updated if a grant allocation is revised
Inclusive Education

On the Stakeholder
File Exchange under
School Finance
Infrastructure
Maintenance &
Renewal

On the
Stakeholder File
Exchange under
School Finance
2018/2019 Plant Operations and Maintenance (PO&M) Jurisdiction Summary

                                                                                       Battle Riv er Regional Div ision No. 31

                      Enrolment
                           - Regular Enrolment --- 2017/2018 Frozen Funded Head Count
                           - Adjusted Enrolment --- Severe PUF @ 1.5FTE, ECS @ 0.50 FTE, Online @ -1 FTE

                                                                                                        ECS               Gr. 1-6      Gr. 7-9   Gr. 10-12    Total
                               Regular Enrolment                                                        435               2,860        1,294      1,397       5,986

                               Online Enrolment (code 620 students)                                                         9            8          34         51
                               Severe Disabilities

Plant Operations                  ECS: Program Unit Funded (PUF)
                               Enrolment Verification Recovery
                                                                                                        115
                                                                                                         0                  0            0          1
                                                                                                                                                               115
                                                                                                                                                                1

                               Adjusted Enrolment                                                       333               2,851        1,286      1,362       5,832

& Maintenance                  Small School by Necessity Differential                                   107                918          414        439        1,878

                                                                                                                                                             Subtotal
                      1)   Per Pupil Baseline Funding
                           For each grade group: (Adjusted Enrolment)     x   (Rate per Weighted FTE)

On the Stakeholder             Rate per FTE
                                  ECS                                                                $795.30          $      264,437

File Exchange under               Gr.1-6
                                  Gr.7-9
                                  Gr.10-12
                                                                                                     $795.30
                                                                                                     $751.18
                                                                                                     $755.38
                                                                                                                      $
                                                                                                                      $
                                                                                                                      $
                                                                                                                           2,267,400
                                                                                                                             966,017
                                                                                                                           1,028,828
                                                                                                                                                                     $4,526,683   73.6%
School Finance        2)   Distance & Sparsity
                           (Per Pupil Baseline Funding)   x   (Distance & Sparsity Index - 1)

                               Per Pupil baseline Funding                                            $4,526,683
                               Distance & Sparsity Index                                              1.020
                                                                                                                                                                        $90,534   1.5%

                      3)   Travel Time
                           Jurisdiction Travel Time Funding

                               Jurisdictional Travel Time Funding                                        $72,858
                                                                                                                                                                        $72,858   1.2%

                      4)   Small Schools by Necessity Differential
                           For each grade group: (SSBN Differential Enrolment)     x   (Rate per Weighted FTE)

                               Rate per FTE
                                  ECS                                                                $795.30          $       85,160
                                  Gr.1-6                                                             $795.30          $      730,203
                                  Gr.7-9                                                             $751.18          $      311,100
                                  Gr.10-12                                                           $755.38          $      331,328
                                                                                                                                                                     $1,457,791   23.7%

                      5)   Lease Support - in lieu of lease support funding

                               Lease Admin Support                                                               $0
                                                                                                                                                                            $0    0.0%

                           2018/2019 Final PO&M Funding                                                                                                              $6,147,866 100.0%
Small Schools By Necessity (SSBN)
 On the Stakeholder File Exchange under School Finance
         Get Grade Structures              0284 The Southern Francophone Education Region No. 4 2017-2018 Allocation
                                                                                                                                                                                                   Additional Calculations
                                                                                                                         Total Small                                                                                              # Grades in # Grades with                            Enrolment
Juris.                                     School                                    Grade         Base     Variable                                                                               School Peak Enrolment                                    Grade Smoothing Unadjusted
                 Jurisdiction Name                        School Name                                                      School      SS SSBN                        SSBN Reason***                                                 Grade      FTE Funded                               Grade
Code                                        Code                                  Configuration Allocation Allocation                                                                               Rate Enrolment Limit                                    Factor Factor     Rate
                                                                                                                          Allocation                                                                                             Configuration Enrolment                               Structure
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1269 Airdrie Francophone School             K-12        $0            $0            $0                                                                $2,944          80       290           12.5         12.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-9 K-12
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1297 Ecole Beausoleil                        K-9   $88,281      $153,813      $242,094   YES YES No schools within 25km                               $1,885          80       220            9.5          9.5 1.00     13.46    $1,831     K-8 K-9
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      9228 Ecole de la Rose Sauvage               K-12        $0       $58,565       $58,565   YES YES No schools within 6km                                $2,944          80       290           12.5            6 0.48     14.02       $477    7-12 7-12
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1014 Ecole de La Source                     K-12        $0            $0            $0                                                                $2,944          80       290           12.5         12.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-9 K-12
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1365 École La Mosaïque                       K-6        $0            $0            $0                                                                $1,650          80       150            6.5          6.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-6 K-6
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      2539 Ecole La Verendrye                     K-12   $32,525      $255,347      $287,871   YES   YES   No schools within 6km                            $2,944          80       290           12.5         12.5 1.00     14.02    $1,290     K-12 K-12
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1247 Ecole Le Ruisseau                      K-12   $88,281      $172,658      $260,939   YES   YES   No schools within 25km                           $2,944          80       290           12.5         12.5 1.00       0.00   $2,521     K-12 K-12
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re       520 Ecole Les Cypres                       K-12   $88,281      $223,941      $312,222   YES   YES   No schools within 6km                            $2,944          80       290           12.5         11.5 0.92     14.02    $2,881     K-12 K-11
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1060 Ecole Notre-Dame des Monts             K-12   $41,237      $265,702      $306,939   YES   YES   No schools within 25km                           $2,944          80       290           12.5         12.5 1.00     14.02     $1,395    K-12 K-12
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1189 Ecole Notre-Dame des Vallees            K-9   $88,281      $129,716      $217,997   YES   YES   No schools within 25km                           $1,885          80       220            9.5          8.5 0.89     13.46       $990    K-8 K-8
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      2149 École du Nouveau-Monde                  K-6        $0            $0            $0                                                                $1,650          80       150            6.5          6.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-9 K-6
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1364 Ecole Terre des Jeunes                  K-6   $23,813            $0       $23,813   YES YES No schools within 6km                                $1,650          80       150            6.5          6.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-6 K-6
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      1378 Notre-Dame de la Paix                   K-6   $24,974            $0       $24,974   YES YES Schools within 6km do not have available capacity    $1,650          80       150            6.5          6.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-6 K-6
    284 The Southern Franc. Education Re      8707 Sainte Marguerite Bourgeoys            K-12        $0            $0            $0                                                                $2,944          80       290           12.5         12.5 1.00       0.00        $0    K-12 K-12

                                                                                                                          $1,735,414 Total

                                                                                                                                  9 Number of Small Schools
                                                                                                                                  9 Number of Small Schools by Necessity
                                                                                                                             100.0% Percentage

                                                                                                                          $1,735,414 Small School by Necessity Allocation
High School Flex
        On the Stakeholder File Exchange under School Finance

                                                                                                                                                                Base Funding                                                 Clas Size Funding
                                                          Average Per Student                              Enrolment              Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4 Tier 1 ADLC Tier 2 ADLC Tier 3 ADLC Tier 4 ADLC       Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 2 ADLC Tier 3 ADLC
                                          Tier 1                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Total High
Authority                              (Including               Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4                      Total                                                                            Total Base                                            Total Clas Size School Flex
  Code Authority School Code School Block) Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4 ADLC ADLC ADLC ADLC Grade 10 Grade 11 Grade 12 Enrolment $190.85 $190.85 $190.85 $114.50 $83.97 $83.97 $83.97 $50.38 Funding $12.83 $36.18                              $5.65 $15.92 Funding Funding
      1175Pembina Hil 2301Barrhead Co 27.43 0.86 5.86 1.5 2.69 0.08 0.06 0 126 137 111 374 $1,957,895.80 $61,384.99 $418,274.49 $64,234.50 $84,482.88 $2,512.50 $1,884.38 $0.00$2,590,669.55 $4,126.64 $79,293.54                        $169.05 $357.23 $83,946.45 $2,674,616.00
      1175Pembina Hil 2411Richard F Sta 24.61 0.3 6.9 1.65 3.55 0.04 0.02 0 142 134 148 424 $1,991,451.04 $24,276.12 $558,350.76 $80,104.20 $126,397.66 $1,424.20 $712.10 $0.00$2,782,716.09 $1,631.98 $105,848.21                        $95.82 $134.99 $107,711.00 $2,890,427.09
                                                                                            268 271 259 798 $3,949,346.84 $85,661.11 $976,625.25$144,338.70 $210,880.55 $3,936.70 $2,596.48 $0.00$5,373,385.63 $5,758.62 $185,141.74     $264.87 $492.22 $191,657.45 $5,565,043.09
School Finance Risk Management
             and Control Work

38
Control Environment

• Working towards developing and implementing a
  financial/funding accountability and compliance program to
  provide assurance to government, education partners and the
  public that the education system is appropriately funded and
  that education funding is effectively managed.
Control Environment
•   Increasing demand for accountability (only funding what we say we are funding)

•   Increasing scrutiny from the Office of the Auditor General of our monitoring processes

•   Receiving more information that show school authorities may not be following funding
    rules. Sources include:
     –   Analysis of system data
     –   Parents calling to raise a concern or complain
     –   Current review work

•   Authorities have been interpreting rules very liberally and we are finding the
    requirements are not always being met.
Monitoring & Assurance
• Enrolment verification desk audit
   –   Refining sampling process year after year
   –   Focus on higher risk areas for funding errors
   –   Focus on authorities who continue to have difficulty with their processes
   –   CRITICAL – maintain all required supporting documentation for ALL the
       students that you are claiming as September 30th enrolled (even if they
       leave prior to our audit process)

• What we need to validate
   –   Age (is within funded range)
   –   Registration and Attendance
   –   Citizenship requirements are met
   –   Residency requirements are met
Monitoring & Assurance
• Program Unit Funding (PUF)
   – Ensure appropriate application of PUF funding rules and requirements

   – Historically – completed a high level review of compliance as we calculate
     the PUF final payment.

• Course Prerequisites
   – Data may be reviewed annually to ensure funding is only provided for
     courses when their mandatory prerequisites were successfully fulfilled prior
     to taking the course.
Monitoring & Assurance
• Designated Special Education Private Schools (DSEPS)
   – Two levels of mild/moderate funding for DSEPS

   – Parent consultation with the appropriate resident board,
     documentation of the consultation and providing evidence of that
     consultation to Alberta Education are required in order to receive
     funding at the higher rate.

   – Section 3.2 of the Funding Manual for School Authorities has
     recently been updated to clarify the requirements.
Monitoring & Assurance
• It is critical that you meet the deadlines identified in the funding manual

• Less exceptions are being made for authorities who miss deadlines due
  to the impact it has on control monitoring and accountability requirements

•   The Funding Manual for School Authorities outlines the requirements to
    qualify for each type of funding

•   If you are not in compliance with the requirements outlined in the funding
    manual, you are at risk of losing funding relating to that non-compliance
Funding Payments and Deadlines

45
Key Dates and Deadlines
September 30, 2019   Count date – registered and in attendance

October 3, 2019      2019/2020 enrolments in PASI

October 9, 2020      Submit 2019/2020 course marks for Terms 2, 3, 4

November 29, 2019    PUF actual costs for 2018/2019

November 15, 2019    PUF application and Final Budget for 2019/2020 (Private ECS, Private Schools and Charters)

November 29, 2019    PUF application for 2019/2020
                     (School Jurisdictions)
Feb 03, 2020         Changes to enrolment data in PASI

Feb 14, 2020         Resolve priority school conflicts

May 13, 2020         Submit 2019/2020 course marks for Term 1
Funding Payments
•   Funding Schedule
     –   8.33% of school year allocation each month with exception of:
           • January, August – 8.35%

•   March payment has two installments
     –   Early March – 5%
           • March 31 – remainder

•   Payments adjusted when current year data is available

•   When funding or enrolment/CEU data is adjusted during the year, funding system
    recalculates the total school year allocation, the amount paid to date and the
    balance owing to determine future payments
Things to Remember
• Always check PASI data to FES data to see if
  funding rules were applied the way you expected
• Check the enrolment count page to see why
  students are in the unfunded category
• Reconcile your enrolments regularly to those in FES
• Reconcile your payments regularly
• Call your Funding Administrator if you have
  questions
Questions and Contacts - Funding
Funding questions should be directed to your assigned
Funding Administrator:

• Rena Sharma       780-422-0287
• Marilyn Hanson    780-422-0103
• Jackie Hryniw     780-427-2977

• Front Desk        780-427-2055
Questions and Contacts – Information
Systems and Grant Calculations
Questions about our Funding Information Systems:
•   Carmen Boyer/Atif Alam (FES)    780-422-6918/780-422-5236
•   Atif Alam (PUFS)                780-422-5236
•   Carmen Boyer (SFS SharePoint)   780-422-6918

Questions about grant calculations (SSBN, POM, IMR,
HSF):
•   Hardeep Toore                   780-644-5673
•   Atif Alam                       780-422-5236
Training Sessions
• Funding Event System (FES)
  – Training docs and video presentations to be uploaded to
    SFS SharePoint site

• Program Unit Funding (PUFS)
  – PUF eligibility training and information sessions were
    recently held on these dates:
    Edmonton – September 19, 2019
    Calgary – September 16, 2019
    Lethbridge – September 23, 2019
Training Sessions
• Why are we changing training delivery methods
   – Need to be more accessible to more school authorities and
     a wider audience within the authorities
   – Need to be more cost effective both for Alberta Education
     and School Authorities
   – Reduce time lost due to travel requirements
   – Consider making training available on a more frequent
     basis (new people start mid year)
Training Sessions
• What we have tried so far
   – Face-to-Face training (PUF and FES)
   – Training documents posted to AB Education website
   – Copies of training presentations posted to AB Education
     website
   – Recorded walkthrough presentations posted to AB
     Education website

• Benefit of posted presentation formats is that they
  can be accessed throughout the year by anyone
  who has access to the system.
Training Sessions
• What training could be offered through on-line
  materials
   – Funding Event System (FES)
   – Enrolment verification
   – PUF application walkthroughs
Other Resources – Check Links
• Alberta Education Website:
  https://www.alberta.ca/education.aspx

• Funding Manual for School Authorities:
  https://open.alberta.ca/publications/1485-5542

• School Jurisdiction Funding Profiles: https://www.alberta.ca/education-projected-operational-
  funding.aspx?utm_source=redirector

• School Jurisdiction Audited Financial Statements:
  https://open.alberta.ca/publications/2828632-2017-2018

• Online Tools and Resources:
  https://education.alberta.ca/topic-search/?language=English
Alberta Education Website
https://www.alberta.ca/education.aspx
Questions?
You can also read