Master school AP/AR: from requisitions and POs to invoices, payments, receivables, and 1099s. Learn fraud prevention, strong controls, compliance, and reporting practices to ensure accurate, transparent, and efficient financial operations.
Stay audit-ready by mastering fiscal year tasks: booking receivables/payables, managing taxes, handling contracts, and preparing letters. Learn to align activities, address findings, prep for audits, and apply GASB standards for accurate reporting.
Explore reconciling school district bank accounts with the general ledger. Learn best practices to spot discrepancies, stay audit-ready, and strengthen internal controls for effective cash management and accurate financial reporting.
Learn K-12 employee compensation and benefits: salaried vs. hourly, exempt vs. non-exempt, and best practices for health insurance, WRS, and 403(b). Gain understanding of leave types including sick leave, vacation, PTO, and FMLA.
Focus on accuracy, accountability, and funding integrity while managing data for audits, budgets, and reporting. Learn DPI systems and WISE tools, interpret mandates, align practices to timelines, and avoid compliance errors.
Build skills to manage K-12 grants. Learn to write, administer, and report on federal and state funds like Title and IDEA. Explore compliance, allowable costs, reporting, accountability, and documentation systems to ensure audit readiness.
Explore Wisconsin and federal laws guiding school finance. Learn compliance in budgeting, reporting, and fund stewardship. Key topics: open records, public meetings, procurement, audits, residency, and contract management with vendors and agencies.
Navigate special education accounting with funding sources, coding, and reporting. Learn Transfer of Service, Medicaid billing, High Cost Aid, Act 220, IDEA, WUFAR codes, CCIS, licensure, and strategies for tracking substitute costs and staffing.
Learn payroll essentials for K-12: calendars, cycles, summer pay, tax withholding, and benefit deductions. Cover FLSA, reporting timelines, and employer duties. Explore W-2s, common errors, and best practices for compliance, controls, and efficiency.
Advance payroll skills: set calendars, manage taxes, and handle multiple employee groups. Learn to determine taxable income, apply deductions, and ensure compliance with 941 filings, unemployment reports, and Medicaid wage reporting.
Align payroll with academic calendars while managing contracts, stipends, workers' comp, and summer pay. Learn benefits reconciliation, risk mitigation, and strategies to ensure accurate, timely, and compliant payroll processes.
Examine legal and financial issues of exceeding revenue limits. Learn referendum history, recurring vs. non-recurring types, planning timelines, board actions, forecasting, ballot questions, campaigns, and insights from legal and district experts.
Explore WUFAR, the language of Wisconsin school district accounting. Learn chart of accounts design, fund purposes, and applications through real-world district examples, gaining a clear, practical understanding of financial reporting requirements.
Learn the basics of school district budgeting: developing, presenting, publishing, and adopting budgets and tax levies. Explore methods to monitor and report throughout the year. Designed for those seeking a general overview of budget development.
Understand how Wisconsin public schools are funded by examining local, state, and federal revenue sources and their interaction through the Revenue Limit Worksheet, shared costs, and aid formulas at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels.
Examine why, how, and when districts borrow through notes or bonds. Learn when referendums are required, legal steps, roles of advisors, underwriters, and counsel, plus the full cost and components of issuing school debt.
Learn school expenditure budgeting: set calendars, roles, and board input. Gain skills in forecasting, salary and benefits modeling, staffing alignment, documenting assumptions, managing timelines, and incorporating the tax levy.
Manage budgets year-round: give monthly updates, conduct quarterly reviews, and use tools like WASB resources. Track spending, spot variances, and support leaders to keep finances transparent, accountable, and aligned with priorities.
Learn to forecast and manage cash flow, assess financial risk, and make informed short-term borrowing decisions. This course covers the role of fund balance in liquidity, the use of letters of credit, and strategies for identifying red flags early.
Explore payment tools and timing strategies for efficient, accountable purchasing. Learn secure use of P-cards, checks, EFT, ACH, year-end cutoffs, e-commerce, and safe, compliant cash handling procedures.
Examine rules for investing debt proceeds, arbitrage, and managing annual debt service. Learn reporting requirements, refinancing strategies, and how debt obligations affect shared costs in school district finance.
Learn to prepare, interpret, and manage balance sheets in school finance. Cover debits, credits, assets, liabilities, revenues, expenditures, and fund balance. Explore deposits, interfund activities, and controls for accurate year-end statements.
Master school payroll: tax withholding, wage classification, FLSA, W-2s, unemployment, WRS, FMLA, leave, garnishments, LTD, vacation payouts, and key differences between budgeting and payroll posting dates.
Learn procurement strategies balancing fiscal responsibility and education. Cover bidding rules, vendor management, RFP use, P-cards, online purchasing, and cooperative options through State, CESAs, and UW System agreements.
Gain a practical grasp of district budgets: enrollment counts, revenue limits, and funding streams like property taxes, categorical and equalization aids. Learn to plan for personnel, wages, benefits, non-personnel costs, and understand fund balance.
Learn internal controls for school business offices: what they are, why they matter, and how to keep them effective. Protect against theft, fraud, or misuse, ensure reliable financials, and build taxpayer trust in district resources.