Why This Workshop is Important

Protecting School District Deposits
During the Recession

Why This Workshop is Important

The banking system is under stress. While the federal government is making efforts to stabilize the economy, crisis still looms in the banking industry. Bank failure, even among what you believe to be your trusted bank institution, is real and possible. What was good (comfortable) banking practices for your school district in July 2008 may not be acceptable or reasonable in 2009. As you enter the 2009-10 school year your district will have tens of millions of dollars to deposit. You want to have reasonable assurances that your policies and procedures are adequate to protect your funds, and reasonable assurances that your bank has adequately protected your district’s deposits.
The responsibility for fiscal integrity, oversight, and the safety of school district money rests with the Board of Education, superintendent, and school business officials. This workshop addresses the complex issue of securing school district deposits in a volatile fiscal climate. District officials must understand what is happening, what is needed, and what can be done, to meet the practical problems of control needed to maintain the fiscal health of his/her school district. District officials must act knowledgeably to protect their district from fiscal instability.

Faculty

James N. Mills, Ph.D.

                 Dr. James Mills is a highly regarded educator and dynamic public speaker. Jim’s areas of professional research and expertise are strategic fiscal management, collective bargaining, and school construction. His expertise in school district fiscal management has considerable depth. He has served as business administrator and chief fiscal strategist in NYS school districts. His workshop presentations on “Fiscal Navigation for Superintendents,” in which he focuses on revenue management, have enjoyed over a decade of popularity. He is a registered NASD/FINRA representative.
                As a result of recent economic realities and the questionable stability of our banks, Jim has focused his immediate attention on the need to protect school district assets. He has researched current market conditions, and studied security agreements and new FDIC regulations. In January 2009 he organized a “Think Tank” at Niagara University on the development of recommendations for securing school district deposits. The group included bank officers (bank president, bank vice president of municipal deposits, and chief investment officer for pooled school investments), an attorney specializing in bonding, and school business administrators with responsibility for over $200 million dollars in public deposits. Having worked within the public school system, and having researched this esoteric topic, Jim can provide solid advice and recommendations to all school officers with responsibility for securing school district funds.
                Jim has over thirty-five years of educational administration experience, which includes eighteen years as a NYS Superintendent of Schools. He is a past president of the New York State Council of School Superintendents and served as chairman of the Council’s Distinguished Service Committee. Currently Jim is the Supervisor of Educational Leadership at Niagara University and chairmen of the College of Education’s accreditation process. He is also a consultant to many school districts and is the Senior Educational Planning Consultant for HUNT Engineers and Architects.

James M. Merrins, Ed.D.
Executive Program Administrator

Dr. James Merrins is executive Program Administrator of the Educational Leadership Institute, SUNY Oswego, School of Education. He administers numerous statewide programs and workshops including Cycles of Success, the statewide Transition to Superintendency Program, and school finance workshops for school administrators. He has sixteen years experience as Superintendent of Schools, twelve in the Fredonia Central Schools and four years as Superintendent and Business Official in the Honeoye Central Schools. Dr. Merrins is New York State certified as a School District Administrator (SDA) and School Business Administrator (SBA), and has taught school law, finance, and personnel at SUNY colleges.

Sponsor

Sponsored and administered by
Educational Leadership Institute
James M. Merrins, Ed.D., Executive Program Administrator
SUNY Oswego - School of Education
Dept of EDucational Administration
Suzanne Gilmore, Ed.D., Chairperson