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At Work At School

An Afton Partners Blog

All Posts

If you’re going to close schools, do it this way

By Katie Morrison-Reed, Partner Over the past couple of years, whisperings of a potential wave of school consolidations turned into a regular chatter, and that chatter has since turned into announcements. Across the country, many school districts have seen continuous declining enrollment trends, with a steep loss during COVID that doesn’t show signs of fully… Continued

The Impact of ‘the Six Es’ on District Budgets

School districts across the country have experienced massive systemic changes over the past few years. However, much of this disruption has been masked by one-time pandemic relief funds in the national conversation – and in budgets. As those funds end, states and districts will need to tackle the resulting challenges head on. At Afton, we’ve… Continued

FOX Fellowship’s Support for Strong Charter School Management

Introduction One of our greatest pleasures at Afton is the occasional opportunity to step back and have reflective conversations about the meaning and impact of our work with partners. Afton’s co-founder and Managing Partner, Carrie Stewart, has been a coach for all three cohorts of the FOX Fellowship, a program for Chief Operating and Financial Officers of public… Continued

Summer Charter School Enrollment Scenario Budgeting Advice

Student enrollment is the engine that powers both mission and sustainability. However, with national birth rates at an all-time low and families increasingly migrating out of urban areas, that task is more difficult and uncertain than any time in recent history. Now is a critical moment to push to recruit new students and plan ahead… Continued

Navigating Uncertainty and Preparing for the Education Fiscal Cliff

Some public school systems, including several who Afton is currently supporting, are already charting their path to navigating their fiscal cliff. While each circumstance is different, we offer guidance to navigate the challenge, co-developed in partnership with the Charter School Growth Fund. Our guidance includes: Understand and confront the reality Engage and empower stakeholders Identify,… Continued

ESSER: Our Latest Window to Unjust Public Education Funding

School systems across the nation are continuing to face a unique challenge: effectively distributing the influx of education funding that came with the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER). Yet headline after headline places much of the blame on schools themselves for their spending struggles, arguing that they are too slow to distribute… Continued

Iron Sharpens Iron: Collaboration Amongst Memphis Charter School CFOs

When I think of Memphis, Tenn., I think of resiliency. The vote to disband Memphis City Schools, seceding into six separate school districts, proved to be an egregious example of intentional segregation. That choice deepened existing opportunity gaps facing Tennessee’s highest-need students, while allowing school funding inequities to persist. But Memphis Shelby County Schools and… Continued

Finance for Equity & Outcomes: Afton’s Discussion with the Broad Academy Fellows

In September 2019, Afton’s Carrie Stewart and Katie Reed had the opportunity to discuss resource allocation as a lever for equity and driving student outcomes with fellows in the Broad Academy and their finance leads through The Broad Center. This group of highly motivated, accomplished education sector professionals are driving excellence and equity on a daily… Continued

Defining Financial BOLDNESS in Innovative School Plans

School teams around the country are creating and implementing innovative academic models, bringing a personalized approach to student learning. Afton has engaged with hundreds of schools as they build these plans, encouraging innovative financial thinking alongside. In many competitive public and philanthropic grant programs, one of the rubric components that Afton has used is for… Continued

The School System Financial “Playbook”

Afton’s work with public schools around the country has allowed us to surface simple best practices to help school system leaders confidently lead and oversee the fiscal aspects of running a school system. Now, we are sharing what we have learned by developing a diagnostic tool and providing actionable recommendations for each part of the… Continued