Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

Supporting Staff with Title 1 Funds

Andrea Gonzalez
University of St. Thomas
EDUC 5390 Educational Leadership
Dr. Nicole Walters
October 9, 2014

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

What are the best methods and ideas for staffing while distributing
funds in the most cost effective manner to maintain an adequate amount of
teachers, aids, and other staff members? Is it more practical to have smaller
class sizes in some grades or additional aids and paraprofessionals to work
across grade levels? These are the burning questions principals are faced
with each year when allocating their budget. The principal is the sole
proprietor of their campuss budget and staffing is a major item on the
annual agenda. This is a crucial element because it builds a strong
educational foundation for students.
The Houston Independent School District (HISD) focuses on teaching
with data driven instruction. Should principals not staff their schools using
data driven techniques? According to the Tennessee Student-Teacher
Achievement Ratio (STAR) study, ethnic and minority students benefit from
smaller class sizes in kindergarten through third grade. These students show
greater success, higher achievement scores, higher attendance ratings, and
lower dropout rate statistics in tenth grade when compared to their
counterparts in regular class sizes (Wilson, 2002, p. 34). The study began in
1985 and lasted for about ten years. It compared approximately 6,500
students from 330 classrooms in about 80 schools in the subjects of reading
and math. In just four years, there was a considerable enhancement in
learning and the results were transparent (Mosteller, 1995, p. 113).
Preceding the STAR study was the Indiana Prime Time project in 1981.
Its results were analogous even though the study was smaller and not as

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

extensive (Wilson, 2002, p. 11). Comparable studies began to arise amid the
1990s and early 2000s. In 1996, Wisconsin followed suit with the Student
Achievement Guarantee in Education (SAGE) project. During the same year,
California was provided $1.5 billion annually to support the Class Size
Reduction programme. Roughly 1.6 million pupils were being serviced in
small classroom by 1998 and standardized achievement tests generated
positive results. Parallel outcomes were produced in in 2001 by the
University of Alberta. They worked in accordance with the city of Edmonton,
Canada to study the impact of small classes on its elementary students
(Wilson, 2002, p. 12).
Based on the research above, one might think a majority of teachers
would advocate to hire an additional educator to alleviate overcrowding in
classrooms, even if it would not directly benefit themselves. On the contrary,
a miniature survey showed otherwise. Sixteen teachers from Seguin
Elementary were surveyed on October 3, 2014 to get a thorough prospective
of teachers staffing opinions. A hypothetical situation was posed and their
answers were recorded.
Question:
It is the beginning of the year and you teach first grade. Your campus is
overcrowded, in the lower grades, with approximately 25-33 students in each
room. The principal has $60,000 to spend on staffing. She will either hire
another teacher, for first grade, or two paraprofessionals to assist all the lower
grades. She requests you to vote and state if your opinion would change if the
grade level was unknown for the extra teacher.

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

The results were: 8 teachers wanted the aids, 8 teachers wanted the extra
teacher, and three of those would change their minds if they did not know
what grade the teacher would be placed in. All 16 teachers from this survey
expressed they would do what they deemed best for the children as a whole.
Many stated if it was only one grade level who needed extra support they
would have voted for that position to be filled.
Juan Seguin Elementary School in HISD is a Title 1 school with about
664 students. Approximately 80% of their student population is at-risk, 96%
receive free or reduced lunch, and about 90% of students are Hispanic, 8%
African American, and 2% other. For the 2013 2014 school year at Seguin,
staffing was a hot-button topic for grades 3 and 5. Pre-Kinder and
kindergarten had no more than 22 students per classroom, first through
second grade had between 19 and 23, third grade had 27, fourth grade had
about 23, and fifth grade 32 to 33 students in each classroom. A literacy
coach, two paraprofessionals, and an aid were hired to preform interventions
with these grade levels. The literacy coach was fired after two months and
the space was left unfilled, the two paraprofessionals assisted in math only,
and the aid assisted with minimal tasks like copying, decorating, and
organizing. In May of 2014, the standardized test scores for grades 3 and 5
were; exceeds expectations in math and average in reading (A. Miranda,
personal communication, May 22, 2014). The third and fifth grade reading
teachers were disappointed in themselves and felt the class sizes and

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

attendance issues were key factors affecting their scores (E. Sanchez,
personal communications, October 8, 2014).
During the 2013 2014 school year, the average daily attendance was
at 96.77%. Seguin lost over $64,000 and, after summer school was paid for,
the budget was overspent (A. Miranda, personal communication, May 6,
2014). As the administrator that year, a good question to pose would have
been; does class size have a direct effect on student attendance? According
to Mostellers (1995) results from the STAR study, it does. Instead of hiring
the extra staff, the school could have hired two additional teachers for
grades 3 and 5. This could have potentially raised the reading scores to
Exceeds Expectations and helped with the attendance issue. According to
research, Juan Seguin Elementary would have been, and still could be, a
quintessential campus for the implementation of smaller classes because of
its population (Wilson, 2002).

Seguin Elementary: 2013 2014 Attendance Loss

MONTH

August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
TOTAL LOSS

PERCENTA
GE

LOSS IN
DOLLARS

0.85%
2.30%
2.28%
3.92%
3.23%
3.47%
3.23%
3.81%
4.43%
3.23%

$511.45
$5278.55
$6,330.40
$8,443.75
$5,857.55
$6,726.05
$11,830.90
$7,372.60
$11,898.45
$64,249.70

The contents of this chart was

provide
by
the
former
principal, Dr. Angie Miranda. It
shows the total percent of
students absences for each
month and a total amount of
dollars lost due to absences.
(A.
Miranda,
personal
communication, May 6, 2014)

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

In the Houston Independent School District (HISD), a schools budget is
mainly determined by the Average Daily Attendance (ADA). The ADA is
calculated in October by taking a snapshot of the daily percentage. The
percentage used to project for the following years budget. In addition to the
ADA, campuses receive a capital allocation of $10 a day per student for extra
expenses, such as materials for a specific extracurricular activity. Schools
also collect supplementary funds to assist students who are considered atrisk, low income, bilingual, gifted and talented, or special education.
Campuses who have low enrollment or are naturally smaller receive small
school subsidies to help offer the same level of education a student would
get from a larger campus (HISD Budget Basics).
A schools budget is provided by four sources; property taxes, the state,
other local taxes and subsidies, and the federal government. Property taxes
account for about 72.6% of the entire budget. These taxes come from
homeowners and local businesses. The state provides about 23.4% of the
budget. The states proceeds are calculated by the Texas Education Agencys
(TEA) elaborate method of determining how much each school is allotted in
accordance with their ADA. As the years pass, this number continues to
dwindle. Other local resources come from monetary gifts, fees, and other
proceeds. This accounts for about 4%. Monies provided by the federal
government make up less than 0.5%. These funds are compensations for
ROTC educators salaries (HISD Budget Basics).

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

The budget fiscal year is from July 1 st until June 30th. During this time
principals must utilize their funds wisely and in a timely manner because
most funds have deadlines attached to them. If the General Funds (GF) are
not completely consumed, only 75% will roll over to the next year (Budgeting
& Financial Planning, p. 5). According to Mr. Cahuasqui, principal of Briscoe
Elementary, the small portion of monies from the GF 101 may be kept in its
entirety from year to year (F. Cahuasqui, personal communications, October
3, 2014). Title 1 funds should be disbursed throughout the school year in the
order they were obtained following the first in, first out rule. For instance, a
principal may not use funds from the 2014-2015 Title 1 budget until the
funds from the previous year have been exhausted (Ellerson). According to
Section 421(b) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA), Title 1 funds
are bound by a Tydings period. This period last 27 months and once this
time passes the funds are retracted (Ellerson). One area of the budget that
does not expire is the schools debt. 100% of the previous years unpaid
balance must be carried over and used to counterbalance the new years
distributions (N. Sada, personal communications, October 2, 2014).
According to Ms. Sada, principal at Seguin Elementary, she and the
secretary monitor the budget. At the beginning of the year they sit down and
look over the numbers and categories to decide what needs to be added,
deleted, or changed. SAP software is used to manage Seguins budget data.
A simple spread sheet is manipulated to disperse and keep track of activity

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

funds and other minor items (N. Sada, personal communications, October 2,
2014).
A campuss budget is arranged into numerous lines. Each line has a
specific title. The money allotted to the line can only be used for what it is
specified. A budget analyst is assigned to oversee the campus. They are in
charge of opening new budget lines and overseeing transfers between the
lines. If an unexpected expense arises, the principal can request money to be
shifted from one line to another. Procurement is another department that
supervises purchases made with money from the budget. The principal and
secretary have a credit card that is used to make these purchases. At the
end of each month they must submit an electronic itemized report outlining
their spending. Procurement will either approve or reject their report (F.
Cahuasqui, personal communications, October 3, 2014).
Data collected from several districts in the United States and Canada
support the benefits of small class sizes are remarkable and undeniable.
Increasing the number of teachers in the lower grades at campuses with high
minority populations and students with low socioeconomic backgrounds will
have positive effects on their future achievement (Mosteller, 1995, p. 113).
As a future administrator faced with decisions on staffing and budget
allocation this data will have a direct effect on staffing decisions. Going
forward, teacher and other staff members input will be encouraged. The
distribution and decisions regarding the budget do not have to weigh solely

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

upon the principal. Schools are communities striving to fulfill one common
goal; the success of its students.
References
Budgeting & Financial Planning: 2014-2015 School Resource Allocation
Handbook. (n.d.). Retrieved October 1, 2014, from
http://www.houstonisd.org/Page/31988
Ellerson, N. (n.d.). School Budgets 101. Retrieved Oct. 1, 2014, from
http://www.aasa.org/uploadedFiles/Policy_and_Advocacy/files/SchoolBu
dgetBriefFINAL.pdf
Gavin, M. (2012, October 1). Overweight and Obesity. Retrieved Oct. 3, 2014,
from http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/body/overweight_obesity.html
HISD Budget Basics. (n.d.). Retrieved Oct. 3, 2014, from
www.houstonisd.org/cms/.../Budget_BasicsRd2_rev022113b.pdf
Lunenburg, F., & Ornstein, A. (2012). In Educational administration: Concepts
and practices (Sixth ed.). Belmont: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Mosteller, F. (1995). The Tennessee Study of Class Size in the Early School
Grades. Critical Issues for Children and Youths, 5(2), 113-127.
Retrieved October 5, 2014, from

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

http://futureofchildren.org/futureofchildren/publications/docs/05_02_08.
pdf
Wilson, V. (2002, June 1). Does Small Really Make a Difference? Retrieved
Oct. 1, 2014, from
http://www.classsizematters.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/107.pdf
2013-2014 PEIMS Budget Financial Data by Campus. (n.d.) Retrieved Oct. 8,
2014, from http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/cgi/sas/broker?
_service=marykay&_program=sfadhoc.Campus_Budget14.sas&_servic
e=appserv&_debug=0&which_camp=101912373

Running Head: SUPPORTING STAFF WITH TITLE 1 FUNDS

Reflection:
Reflecting on this research paper opened my eyes to a more nave me.
During my first couple of years of teaching my blood would boil when the
word data was said. I could never understand why administrators and the
higher-ups from HISD would always preach about data yet when smaller
class sizes or hiring additional teachers would arise they would avoid it like
the plague. Issues within a large district like HISD are not black and white
and decisions within a school are easier said than done.

As I have

participated in more staff development meetings regarding the budget,

attended more graduate classes about education and all its branches, and
experienced more as a teacher, I have learned to empathize with principals
and evaluate the different perspectives of a situation. Reviewing this paper
has forced me to realize and accept that although research says one thing,
underlying issues within a districts, or a schools, foundation may cause the
leader to choose otherwise.