November 2023

ALASBO

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Welcome to the Alaska Association of School Business Officials e-newsletter!

ALASBO's Mission: To promote the highest standards in school business practices.

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ALASBO Annual Conference 2023

We look forward to seeing you at our Annual Conference in Anchorage!

Registration is still open.

Dec. 3: Pre-Conference & School Business Academy
Dec. 4-6: Annual Conference
Click here to view the 2023 Program
Members click here to register.
Sponsors contact darcy.carter@alasbo.org

ALASBO President Message- Yodean Armour

Happy Holidays ALASBO!

As we are nearing Fall Break, I hope we can all take a moment to reflect on this past year and all that we’re grateful for. With all the ups and downs in Education, I’m grateful for the support ALASBO has provided: ACSA Fly-In, Summer Leadership Conference, AASB/ALASBO Maintenance Training, Power Lunches, HR Workshop, New Business Manager Institute, and the Annual Conference in Anchorage.

This year I had the opportunity to attend my first ASBO International Conference in National Harbor, MD. The professional development was timely, relevant, and incredibly helpful. Travel to an International conference can be out of budget, but ALASBO has the Lowell “Tom” Freeman Professional Development Grant. The Lowell Freeman grant is an award of $2,500 to attend the ASBO International Conference, and it is open to all ALASBO members. If you haven’t attended the International Conference due to budget constraints, please consider applying for this grant. The conference is well worth the time and expense.

Speaking of conferences, if you haven’t already, please consider registering for ALASBO’s upcoming Annual Conference. The conference starts with Pre-Conference sessions on December 3^rd, and the regular conference is scheduled for December 4-6, 2023. The Board, ALASBO staff and Professional Development committee have put in many hours to provide professional development covering a wide variety of topics and time for networking. This year the Ugly Sweater Contest/Casino Night will also feature a silent auction fundraiser for ALASBO scholarships. If you or your District have any items to donate, please email Darcy Carter with a description of the item along with an estimate of value. Hope to see you at the Annual Conference!

Executive Director Message- Darcy Carter

Fund Balance is just one of many Education Funding topics that will need to be addressed this coming legislative session, and it is expected that some legislators will again have questions about it. Below are some links to papers written by ALASBO that will help you talk about this topic. As you can see from the dates of these papers, this has been ongoing education. Please familiarize yourself with this topic so you will be able talk about it or refer legislators to the information.

If you have not done so already, I suggest creating a Legislative Folder where you can accumulate information that will help you advocate for public education. As you receive information from ACSA, AASB, ALASBO and other groups, place everything in one place so you can locate it easily.

The ALASBO theme for 2023 is Continued Dedication to Alaska's Children. Readiness for the legislative session will be needed to protect public education in Alaska. Thank you for all you do in the interest of Alaska’s children.

These papers are located on ALASBO’s website, alasbo.org

ALASBO Education Director- Cindy Reilly

This is my favorite time of the year. In Alaska you are deep in snow and already into winter. Here in Wisconsin, we have had the most amazing fall. The leaves just kept changing colors and even the oak leaves, that often are just brown, shimmered with a golden outline around reds and oranges. The mornings are crisp, the afternoons are warm, and the evenings are cool and starry. Then suddenly…the wind blows the leaves down, and instead of being a blessing, they become a curse of backbreaking raking and hauling them off the lawn far enough away to keep them from blowing back onto the yard again.

Our work-life can sometimes be like that. We love what we do. It’s challenging and exciting much of the time. We feel proud of our accomplishments, and a strange (psychotic??) sense of pride when the checkbook balances. It’s so satisfying to help a new employee get their benefits set up as they need them and when the Board President gives us an “attaboy!” for a good audit report. Then suddenly there is a disgruntled employee on the phone questioning how we missed his coaching pay on his paycheck. And an officemate comes to work with a very bad cold and attitude to match making sure you know to stay out of her way. And the basketball team is stranded because the bus broke down and “What are you going to do to get us home???” The leaves are piling up and you wonder how you will ever find the answer to all the issues. Is this really what I signed up for? Read more here.

ALASBO Good Alaska School Maintenance Professional Training

This one-day training was held at Wendler Middle School, located in Anchorage. Thirty-two facility operations staff, including management, maintenance and custodial attended this training that included maintenance best practices, operational staff roles in design, custodial management principles and compliance, CMS and other key aspects of facility operations in Alaska. This training also included some hands-on visits to operational facility spaces such as mechanical rooms and roofs.

The training was in conjunction with the AASB 10th annual Maintenance Employees Conference. Next year the trainings will be held October 2-4, 2024 in Anchorage.

ASBO International Welcomes New Executive Director

Ashburn, VA – November 20, 2023 – The Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) Board of Directors is pleased to announce the selection of James M. Rowan, CAE, SFO, as the association’s new executive director. Rowan will join the headquarters team on January 2, 2024.

“Jim brings an extensive background in association management and membership development, public relations, advocacy, and strategic communications,” ASBO chief operations officer Siobhán McMahon says. “His commitment to education, to ASBO, and to the school business profession is clear, and we look forward to his leadership as we continue to move the association and the school business profession forward.” Read more here.

ALASBO Annual Conference and Door Prizes

There are fabulous items available for the drawings to be held after the ALASBO annual business meeting scheduled for December 6, 2023.

ASBO Past President, Melody Douglas, won a complimentary registration to the 2024 ASBO Conference & Expo by (AC&E) by winning a paper, scissors, rock competition at the end of the 2023 conference. This complimentary conference registration, valued at approximately $800, will be available to an ALASBO member who has not attended an ASBO conference. The 2024 AC&E will be held in Nashville, TN September 18-21, 2024. Look for a basket at the conference registration desk in which to drop your name to be selected during the drawings.

Drawings will also include gift cards, 10K Alaska Airlines miles, a gift basket, and other items including five $1,000 Donors Choose gift cards for recipients to use to choose a classroom activity in their district to support.

ALASBO’s Inaugural Silent Auction

ALASBO has several scholarship opportunities for high school students and members including:

Dave Jones Student Scholarship - $1000
Mack Eason Student Scholarship - $1000
Lowell Thomas Freeman scholarship – awarded to a member to attend the ASBO AC&E- $2500
Richard Swarner Shaping the Future scholarship – awarded to a member who has not attended a Summer Leadership Conference. Two awards are available at $750 each.

All these scholarships are awarded based on applications submitted to the ALASBO Awards Committee. The inaugural silent auction items include these donated auction items: a digital camera, a gift basket of Wisconsin cheese, a mini chainsaw, a silver fox pelt, and other items. Please email darcy.carter@alasbo.org if you have items you would like to donate for the silent action. The ALASBO Scholarship Silent Auction will be held Tuesday, December 5 during the Casino & Karaoke Event.

It is Our Time to Advocate Locally

Dr. Lisa Parady, Executive Director, ACSA

In our schools across the state, student-athletes often prepare themselves for the upcoming season with extra workouts and two-a-day practices. It’s not glamorous or something most look forward to, but their work ahead of the season helps them reach peak performance for regular season competitions. Similarly, my daughter is a pianist. She practices one hand, then the other, then together, then increased speed until the recital performance, where all her hard work over the months pays off.

We are three months out from the Alaska legislative session. Like our student-athletes and musicians, it is time we pull out our playbook, the ACSA Joint Position Statements, and prepare our talking points for the upcoming session. You all feel the firsthand effects of the shortfall of education funding, and it is time to share them with your legislators from your lens on the ground. To help prepare you for January, ACSA is scheduling constituent meetings with the legislators representing your schools. We are organizing these meetings to help you break the ice, so your first conversation with them won’t be in the middle of the session. For those of you who have already done a legislative constituent meeting – BRAVO! Read the rest of Lisa's article here.

Thank You, Power Lunch Presenters!

The New Fund Balance Reporting Requirements

October 26, November 6, and November 21: The New Fund Balance Reporting Requirements- ALASBO hosted three Power Lunches to help Districts develop the statutorily required Fund Balance Reporting. David Means developed a spreadsheet that will help in arriving at the midyear fund balance figures and DEED was available to help with questions.

Remembering past ASBO Executive Director, John Musso

It is with great sadness ASBO International shares that John Musso, CAE, RSBA, and past Executive Director, passed away Tuesday, November 7, 2023, after a brave battle with cancer. John was an exceptional and dedicated servant of the education community. Read more about John Musso here.

Thank You!

Summer Leadership,

Conference Gold Level

and

SBO of the Year