Empowered principals are key to improved schools
print
email
10/16/2012
Maia Janelidze, Principal of #4 Khoni Public School: “Now we can actually plan our real school budget, which is very useful for the school’s financial management.”
When Maia Janelidze became principal of Public School #44 in Khoni, Georgia she quickly realized that she had a lot of authority but didn’t have the resources or training to run her small, rural school effectively.
Funding for the school was often inadequate and arrived weeks after it had been requested from the Ministry of Education. “Only heating costs were covered by the Ministry on time,” she said. “The Ministry would approve only utilities and salary costs, and only around 100 GEL ($60) for other school expenses.”
Maia didn’t understand how the funding for her school was allocated and why her school was operating at such a deficit. Like most other principals in Georgia, she was in the dark when it came to her role in financial planning for her school.
Over the past two years, USAID’s Education Management Project has worked with the Teacher Professional Development Center and the Ministry of Education to help principals like Maia by developing guidelines for principals, implementing a needs-based, flexible per-student funding mechanism, and delivering customized financial management trainings to every school principal in Georgia. The support helps principals better plan their budgets, manage funds, and adhere to national standards.
When Georgia decentralized its educational system in 2005, schools were given some autonomy over their management and financial planning. Principals were appointed by school boards of trustees to ensure the quality of instruction and sound financial management and provide leadership both within schools and the broader community. That same year, the Ministry introduced a new funding scheme, but it soon became obvious that 80% of schools were facing budget shortages. To address this deficit, the ministry created a reserve to provide additional funds to schools based on monthly school requests. Unfortunately, this system, combined with a lack of financial planning on the part of schools, led to constant delays in payments and severely underfunded schools.
With the help of the Education Management Program, the situation has greatly improved. “With the new financial formula, we are much better off,” says Maia, “Now we can make timely salary and utility payments and use extra funds to address school needs.”
She has used the skills she gained from financial management training and the daily indicators provided by the standards for principals to create a realistic budget for the school. Now that funding for her school is adequate, the school has been able to renovate several classrooms and plans to equip a library to improve students’ IT skills.
