1. Education Spending
a. Calculate the Per Student dollar amount for CMS Operating funding (Row 8).
b. For FY15, the average daily enrollment numbers are not yet available. You will need to forecast what that figure will be. Explain here how you arrived at your projection:
c. Using the CPI figures in Row 12, calculate the inflation-adjusted per student operating spending in each year from FY2002 to FY2015.
d. For FY15, you will need to either look up the CPI (for July 2014) or make a forecast. Explain here how you arrived at your projection:
e. Insert a column chart displaying the adjusted per capita operating expense for the years FY02 through FY15. Be sure to make the graph visually appealing. Describe the trend (or pattern) that you observe.
f. What is the percent change from FY02 to FY15? Be sure to use the inflation adjusted values.
2. Spending on County services
a. Row 14 shows the spending for County services for the same years. The population (or estimates) of the County is shown in Row 16. Use the existing data to estimate the population for FY14 and FY15 (N16 and O16). Explain here how you arrived at your projection:
b. Calculate the Per Capita County Funding (Row 18).
c. Adjust the Per Capita County Spending for inflation (Row 20).
d. Insert a column chart displaying the adjusted per capita County spending for the years FY02 through FY15. Be sure to make the graph visually appealing. Describe the trend (or pattern) that you observe.
e. What is the percent change from FY02 to FY15? Be sure to use the inflation adjusted values.
3. Analysis: Compare and contrast the spending patterns for education and County services. Be sure to compare the adjusted expenditures themselves, as well as any trends you observe. Take note of any outside forces that could have influenced spending during the years observed.
4. Evaluation: What are the most important things you have learned in this class? Is there anything you were hoping to learn or do that we did not cover?
5. Extra Credit: According to Dennis Covington, Executive Director of Budget Development for Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, charter school funding (which comes directly out of the CMS instructional budget) was approximately $2 million in 1998. It is projected to be about $39 million this year (2014-2015 school year). What would that $2 million be today (adjusted for inflation)? What is the percent change after adjusting for CPI? What are the primary implications of charter school funding?