Bellevue School District will redesign its budgeting practices with a citizen-driven process. The school district has announced the formation of a Superintendent Community Advisory Council (S-CAC). Committee members represent a broad cross-section of district stakeholders, including students, parents, educators, administrators, local business leaders, and non-profit leaders. The 20-member Committee will initially make recommendations to Superintendent Ivan Duran on budgeting. Subsequent work will focus on bond spending and other issues identified by the Superintendent. Randy Eng and Tony Williams will serve as 2020 – 2021 Committee Co-Chairs.
“The global pandemic caused by COVID-19, coupled with the racial reckoning in the U.S., affords our district a unique opportunity to think differently and to design better solutions for all students. Our budget is our value statement. Bellevue School District is pursuing this course to bring new ideas to the forefront; to embrace the innovation, creativity, and passion for public education that exists in our community, and to include community members as thought partners in making upcoming budget decision made more complex by the pandemic,” said Superintendent Duran.
The Committee’s work will build on the districts’ community information gathering and continuous improvement practices, all of which have been expanded since school resumed this fall in a remote setting. “I’m pleased to see Bellevue School District meeting the moment,” said Randy Eng, Committee Co-Chair and Executive Director of Jubilee REACH. “It’s tempting for districts to focus their attention on merely surviving this challenging time. BSD is seizing the opportunity to think differently, and to make sure district spending and investment truly match student need.”
To see a list of Committee members and to learn more, visit Superintendent Community Advisory Council webite.