Glossary of Terms/Concepts/Programs |
|
| Acronym/Term | Definition |
| Catigorical Aid | State or Federal aid which is intended to finance or reimburse some specific category of instructional or supporting program or to aid a particular target group of pupils. The district may use The aid only for The purpose for which it is paid. B16 |
| CESA | Cooperative Educational Service Agency - A grouping of school districts headed by a board of control, charged with implementing and operating cooperative programs amoung members districts and insuring proper school district organization. Each school district in Wisconsin except Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha is in a CESA area. |
| CII | Consortum for Interactive Instruction - A user-directed, user-funded activity managed by WHRO, the C.I.I. is committed to leading the transformation of education by advocating the most appropriate uses of technology. |
| DLTCL | Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning |
| DPI | Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction - The state agency, headed by an elected state superintendent charged with the supervision and guidance of elementary and secondary education in Wisconsin |
| ESEA | Elementary & Secondary Education Act |
| FTE | Full Time Equivalency - a position filled full time, may include a combination of employees working less than full time to fill a full time position. |
| Fund Balance | (AKA fund equity) - the difference between total assets and total liabilities on a specific dates. Used to meet cash flow needs because a district's revenue is not received uniformaly throughout the year despite the fact that cash is needed on a regular basis to pay bills and meet payrolls. The fund balance is used to avoid borrowing for normal expenses. |
| ISES | Individual Student Enrollment System |
| Levy | (verb) To impose taxes or special assessments. (noun) The total of taxes or special assessments imposed by a governmental unit. |
| No child Left Behind | No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) passed overwhelmingly with support from Republicans and Democrats in Congress. NCLB has led to higher standards and greater accountability throughout the Nation's school systems. |
| Open Enrollment | Wisconsin's inter-district public school open enrollment program allows parents to apply for their children to attend school districts other than the one in which they reside. Scroll down to the bottom of this page for a list of topics |
| PAC | In the
US, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name
commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect or
defeat government officials or to promote legislation. Legally, what
constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a matter of state and
federal law. Under the
Federal Election Campaign Act, an organization becomes a "political
committee" by receiving contributions or making expenditures in excess of
$1000 for the purpose of influencing a federal election. Federal PACs are limited in the amount of money that they can contribute to other organizations:
Under federal law, PACs are not limited in their ability to spend money independently of a candidate campaign. This information is copied from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_action_committee |
| QZAB | The federal Qualified Zone Academy Bond program provides tax credits on school district bonds issued to carry our school renovations and repairs as well as other improvements. QZAB proceeds may not be used on new construction. QZAB proceeds may be used to rehabilitate or repair school facilitie, obtain equipment, develop curricula, and/or train teachers and other school personnel. The federal government covers all of the interest on these bonds, resulting an savings up to 50% of the cost of these renovation/improvement projects. |
| Revenue Caps | Wisconsin Act 16 implemented revenue limits beginning with the 1993-94 school year. A district's revenue limit is the maximum amount of revenue it may raise through state general aid and property tax for the General, Non-Referendum Dept (authorized after August 12, 1993), and Capitol Expansion Funds, also referred to as Funds 10, 38, and 41 respectively. The maximum limit is based upon enrollemtnh changes, the Consumer Price Index, and each district may increase its maximum limit by the amount of specific exemptions. A district then determines the maximum allowable levy for Funds 10, 38, and 41 by subtracting the October 15 general aid certification provided by the department from the revenue limit. |
| WAA | Wisconsin Alternate Assessment for students with disabilities. |
| WINSS | Wisconsin Information Network for Successful Schools |
| WKCE | Wisconsin Knowledge and Concepts Examinations |
| WRPS | Wisconsin Rapids Public Schools |
| WSAS | Wisconsin Student Assessment System |
| WSLS | Wisconsin Student Number Locator System |
| WSNs | Wisconsin Student Numbers in lieu of student names. |