We don’t plan a budget; we budget a plan. How do you translate your district’s priorities into a budget that supports student success? Where do you begin, what questions should you ask, and when do key decisions need to happen?

Designed for superintendents in their first three years in the role, this practical session offered jointly by TASA and TASBO will connect school finance fundamentals with the leadership needed to align resources and make informed decisions. Whether you perform the financial work yourself or oversee a business office, you’ll strengthen your ability to lead the budget-development process with confidence.

This session works in tandem with the School Finance Template Boot Camp presented by TASBO on the morning of January 24 prior to the 2027 TASA Midwinter Conference. Participants are encouraged to attend both the morning boot camp, which focuses on understanding and calculating state revenue, and this afternoon session, which builds on that foundation to connect anticipated resources with district priorities and a purposeful budget-development process.

• Connect district goals and priorities to campus, department, and staffing budgets.
• Understand how revenue estimates inform budget assumptions and spending decisions.
• Establish criteria for evaluating new requests and determining what to continue, redesign, or discontinue.
• Begin building a district-specific budget calendar that sequences key decisions, board discussions, and adoption milestones.

You’ll leave with an initial budget calendar and a framework for documenting the assumptions that will guide your district’s budget. The session will address both July 1 and September 1 fiscal years.

When and Where

1–4 p.m.
Sunday, January 24, 2027
Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas
prior to the TASA Midwinter Conference 

Registration Fee

Fee TBA

How to Register

Registration will open soon.

Future Sessions

This session is the first in a new series focused on school finance leadership. Details about additional sessions in February and April 2027 to come!