Operations Institute

Summer project planning is often the “quieter” time to prepare for the upcoming school year. We will cover topics that include school vision & mission, strategic planning directives, compliance/safety, regularly scheduled upkeep, duration of work, time sensitivity, dependencies, risk mitigation, and team member availability.  

Ensure that the school’s staff and leadership performance is compliant, effective, and efficient. We will discuss key components of HR, management of year-round compliance, essential onboarding tools, HR policy, and compliance requirements, performance management, and planning for what’s next on the horizon.  

Planning for school health services and safety and emergency planning is a key role of an operations manager. We will focus on how to be compliant, effective, and efficient when planning for your school.

We will review the registration, enrollment, and admissions processes and how they fit together as well as how they are different.  We will also review the general state compliance as defined by the MN Department of Education including resources for a reporting calendar, guidance on how to organize work and deadlines, and other helpful tools. 

Need help with vendor management? We will discuss the components required for a successful procurement process using federal funds and non-federal funds. Guidance includes how to manage organized, compliant, and economical procurement, purchasing, and vendor contracting. 

Learn how to support the financial process and systems in your schools beyond what a financial services vendor will provide. Topics include defining charter school finance and valuable tools for managing charter school finance. Understand what comprises the role of an operations manager in a charter school.

Learn about how to address common pain points.  The key areas of focus are issues relating to facilities such as copy matching, regulating building temperature, and managing common spaces. 

Learn how to support the technological infrastructure and data systems in your school. The key areas of focus include technology infrastructure for students, staff, curriculum, assessments, data platforms, and student information systems.

Learn key tools to take your school operations systems to a five-star rating. We define the components of an exemplary system and guide you to understanding how to perform a system audit.

We will provide guidance on supporting an effective, efficient, and compliant transportation system for families.  Topics include best practices for school busing, special education transportation, student bus conduct, and lessons learned. 

Learn how to organize, maintain, and manage the records, files, processes, procedures, and data of your charter school. Key objections include defining a vision for the main office, outlining key office management systems, setting goals for key office management systems (while keeping in mind the vision), and understanding how to improve existing office management systems.

A well-planned system is the foundation for any successful operations. Led by Operations Institute Instructor, Sara Griffin, the objective of this session is to understand and use tools to prepare and plan school systems. Equally important is to identify when systems need to be changed or altered to better suit the needs of the organization. Together we will review how to plan and enact a systems approach to operations in a charter school.  

Course Description
The purpose of the session is for operations managers to be able to outline their key buckets of work and establish a division of labor and management structures. Equally important is to maintain management structures. Deliverables include a 1:1 and team check-in template.

Be sure you registered for this event. (If you chose the complete package, you are registered.) Message us if you need to confirm.

Course Description:

You will understand how to organize your school's operations team, processes, and calendar to ensure that the school accounts leverage and comply with state and federal funding and expectations. We will discuss how to set up the roles and responsibilities of the operations team for the following reports:  ADM to the state; food and nutrition, transportation funding, Title, lease aid, food and nutrition, SPED, and more.

Live session on Tuesday, November 14th, 2023 at 10:00 AM CST

Be sure you registered for this event. (If you chose the complete package, you are registered.) Message us if you need to confirm.

Course Description: 
What is a personnel file and what you should (and shouldn't include). Some key practices and tips for file organization including record retention and how to comply with record-keeping requirements.  We will also discuss FAQs (who can access them, how to store them, why are they important, and recommended policies).

Live session on Tuesday, January 23rd, 2024 at 10:00 AM CST

Be sure you registered for this event. (If you chose the complete package, you are registered.) Message us if you need to confirm.

Course Description:

Managing the front office is vital to engaging with the community, families, and students. Also, oversight of the back office - tending to business management needs such as reporting, compliance, budget management, and student enrollment. Structuring this work and organizing responsibilities will determine how efficiently and effectively your school operates. This impacts how educational leaders, teachers, and staff can do what they do best - center the needs of students and families in fulfillment of the mission. During this session, we'll share guidance for structuring your front and back office to support, reinforce, and lift up your school's purpose.

Live session on Tuesday, April 23rd, 2024 at 10:00 AM CST