Sept. 23, 2022

Following each Board of Education meeting, the Office of District Communications recaps the board meeting in the Board Digest.

The Board of Education #OPSProud spotlight recognized Edison Elementary, which won the 2022 Omaha Public Schools Summer Reading Challenge. Throughout the summer, students across our district read millions of minutes. 

The Board of Education approved the budget requests for Douglas County School District 001 and Educational Service Unit No. 19. This includes:

• Approval of the 2022-2023 Property Tax Request - Douglas County School District 0001
• Approval of the 2022-2023 Property Tax Request - Educational Service Unit No. 19
• Approval of the 2022-2023 General Fund - Douglas County School District 0001
• Approval of the Douglas County School District 0001 2022-2023 Budgets Which Require a Levy - Excluding General Fund
• Approval of the Douglas County School District 0001 2022-2023 Budgets Which Do Not Require a Tax Levy
• Approval of the 2022-2023 Budget - Educational Service Unit No. 19

The budget focuses resources on key initiatives in the Strategic Plan of Action, investing in the future of our students and staff, and ensuring technology, materials and facilities needed to learn and grow are available to all students.

Revenue and expenses for the general fund are both budgeted at $710 million for the 2022-23 school year. Benefits and salaries make up 78% of the budgeted expenses. The total property tax levy is $1.231091, a decrease of ($0.002007) from the previous year.



A breakdown of the general fund budget is as follows:

General Fund Revenues: 

• Property Taxes: $285.1 million 
• Other Local Receipts (motor vehicle taxes, interest on investments, court fees, fines, licenses, etc.): $42.9 million 
• Other State Receipts: $41 million 
• Federal Receipts: $6 million 
• State Aid: $286.5 million 
• General Fund Reserves $46.3 million

General Fund Expenditures: 

• Salaries and Benefits: $554.9 million
• Contracted or Purchased Services: $97.8 million
• Supplies and Materials: $53 million
• Equipment and Other Costs: $4.4 million

Salaries and benefits include the Annual Required Contribution (ARC) for our district’s pension plan. The budgeted ARC is based on an actuarial study completed in January each year. Twenty-four and a half ($24.5) million is included in the 2022-23 budget, across all funds, for next year’s ARC.

The complete budget information can be found on our district website. 

Approval of Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Logan's Goals for the 2022-2023 School Year

The Board of Education approved three goals for Superintendent Cheryl Logan, Ed.D. The goals were developed with one goal identified by the Board, one determined by Superintendent Logan and one joint goal. The goals and indicators are:

Goal 1: Academics (Strategic Priority1) – Ninth Grade Academies (NGAs)

Implementation of NGAs in all high schools to reflect effective year-one implementation, course correction and monitoring of progress of implementation.

Indicators:

1. Gains during students’ first year of high school in attendance, academic course credits earned, and promotion rates.
2. Personalize and improve learning for the diverse population of ninth graders in all Omaha Public Schools high schools.

Goal 2: Ethic of Care (Strategic Priority 4) – Parent Engagement

Creation of a plan for district-level parental involvement in decision-making with evidence-based strategies for data-driven initiatives and projects

Indicators:

1. Presentation of how and by whom the critical district decisions will be vetted with evidence of implementation provided.
2. Creation and distribution of personal success stories of diverse members of our student body around diverse definitions of success from classical academic lenses (e.g., grades, test scores, and graduation), creative lenses (e.g., becoming multilingual, creation of a piece of artwork, or special recognitions for accomplishment), or affiliative lenses (e.g., success in extracurriculars, programs, clubs, or organizations, and career preparation) based on recommendations from student’s parent(s) or guardian(s).
3. Creation of a parental support communication campaign aligned to parents supporting parents where parents share how they have overcome challenges with or how they obtained supports for their child’s/children’s specific needs.

Goal 3: Ethic of Care (Strategic Priority 4) – Equity

Improve equitable alignment of district funds to district priorities and increase utilization of customer experience data by collecting a more representative and robust sample of parent and student perceptions.

Indicators:

1. Facilitate a participatory budget process aligning District priorities to student needs.
2. Increase outcomes with improving equitable interactions with students and families on the climate survey.

Update to Policies 8273 and 8346

The Policy Committee recommended changes to the following policies. The policies will come before the Board for a first reading.

Policy adjustments:

• 8273 - Vacancies
• 8346 - Public Participation at Board Meetings

Next Omaha Public Schools Board of Education Meeting

The next regularly scheduled Board Meeting is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 3, 2022. It is tentatively scheduled to start at 6 p.m.

Board of Education Agenda

To review previous Board of Education agendas, click here. If you have trouble accessing direct links, please access the entire Board of Education Agenda to view presentations and other documents.

How Can I Watch a Previous Board of Education Meeting?

The video from the meeting will be available by Wednesday at noon following the meeting. The video can be viewed by clicking here.