Planning For Summer in the Business Office

Today's Guest Writer is Jeff Weiler, Chief Financial Officer/Asst Head of School

Most kids look forward to summer vacation. For some it’s a time for travel, others look forward to summer programs. Middle school kids in particular relish the thought of sleeping in, no homework, and the virtually unfettered opportunity to text friends and “hang.”

But it’s still March. Other than parents contemplating summer programs, most summer thoughts are daydreams that don’t entail serious planning. Most, but not all.

The Business Office does more than pay bills and collect tuition. We also take care of the physical campus. And with 360 kids and 70 adults active in 50,000 square feet of space on nearly four acres of land, there’s a lot to take care of.

Our summer planning starts about a week before school opens. That’s when we realize that, once again, we’re not going to get through our entire list of projects. Sure, the big items got checked off, but there are always more “nice to do’s” than time to do them. For example, last summer we wanted to repaint the locker rooms, but time ran out. Like the Brooklyn Dodgers of old, our battle cry is “Wait until next year!”

March is when serious planning begins. There’s the routine stuff, like scheduling fire sprinkler testing and fire marshal inspections. Assigning rooms for summer programs is always tough, because we typically paint about half the rooms every summer and won’t know which ones will really need work until later.

And there’s the less routine stuff. Painting and general maintenance just keep things going. Capital projects are permanent improvements, and every summer we aim to start at least one project that will produce lasting benefits. They can be grand and impressive, like new buildings, subtle, like landscaping, or almost invisible, like energy-efficient lighting or upgraded boiler controls.

So what lies ahead for this summer? We’re assembling suggestions now, and the final list won’t be locked in until the Board approves the list in May, but we’re mindful that the economy is rocky and that grandiose schemes are going to have to wait for another time. Thrift is in, so we’re going to continue our focus on smaller projects that can save energy and water, or that help kids do a better job recycling.

Small things can make a big difference in a teacher’s life, and no teacher has ever had enough storage. Especially in the lower grades, many teachers end up shuttling boxes of materials from home to school to home, all year long. Building teacher storage isn’t a glamorous project, but it’s one that may be appreciated more than many larger projects.

So if you’re ready to start thinking about summer, think about Redwood. It’s not just teachers and administrators who have brilliant ideas. The old saying is that sometimes you can’t see the forest because of all the trees in the way. When it comes to improvements, sometimes folks working in schools can’t see the trees because of all the darned leaves.

Shoot me an e-mail if you have an idea, or if there’s a facilities question you’ve been itching to ask. It may only be March, but it’s time to start thinking about summer.

Sincerely,

Jeff Wieler