I think we all agree what a huge blessing it has been to have all of our students back together again on the same campus! It has been a great year so far, filled with great memories, challenges, and even some changes. Through it all, the Lord has provided for all of our needs and we are excited to see what other plans He has for Banner Christian School.
In my last message from the Business Office, I encouraged all of our families to review their accounts and any outstanding balances and then reach out if assistance was required. I also mentioned some of the new financial guidelines that the Board of Trustees has adopted for next year. In this message, I would like to give a brief overview of the school’s financial situation just to make our families aware and put the pieces together about why some of the financial policies are being updated.
One of the main goals for Banner’s Board of Trustees is to provide a quality Christian education at an affordable cost. Banner, unlike many other Christian schools, is committed to a zero based annual budget. This simply means that at the end of the year, the goal is for tuition and other income to pay all expenses without the need to fundraise to break even. Therefore, the annual budget is based on the number of students and tuition dollars paid to the school. It is always a challenge to create a budget that accomplishes all of the school’s objectives with the available resources through tuition. Fundraising objectives are based on capital projects, both large and small, that are complementary and supplementary to the annual budget. A major part of the fundraising effort is to help pay off the current construction loans. The land and building project to get Banner onto the property has totaled close to $9 million with a remaining debt of $2.5 million.
The end of the school year is always the most challenging time as Banner is attempting to finalize all outstanding bills, make sure payroll is secured, and planning for the next school year. Because Banner’s budget is based on tuition payments and other sources of funding, it is critical to the success of the school to make sure all contracted tuition payments are received each school year. We understand there are things that happen during the year that may cause someone to get a little behind, so please contact me at any point, if something has occurred that has created a financial hardship so we can work through it together. The goal is to provide the very best in Christian education to all of our families, and it is important that we are able to collect all of the budgeted payments in order for the school to meet all of our financial obligations.
The future is looking bright as we are contemplating a new building campaign to allow Banner to continue to grow. While I have enjoyed being a parent at Banner for a number of years now, I am so excited to now be working for Banner and with all of our wonderful families. If you have any questions about your tuition payments, other school bills, or the FACTS system, please feel free to contact me and I am happy to help. If I have not had the privilege of meeting or speaking with you yet, please come by my office and say hello. I am anxious to get to know all of our families.
In His service,
Andy Johansen
