Parish ministry staff offered budgeting basics

By DAWN PROSSER
Director of Communications
 
Parish ministry leaders including faith formation directors and directors of religious education (DREs) often collaborate with the diocesan Faith Formation Office regarding upcoming programming, ministry resources and current topics such as OCIA.

Through a series of webinars from the Faith Formation Office dubbed, “The Conversation,” ministry leaders receive training without leaving their offices.
 
“With our conversation webinars, we tried to hit a variety of topics to reach different audiences within the DRE community,” said Karmen Bower, diocesan faith formation director. “We are always wanting to give them the tools.”
 
Bower pointed out that after numerous parish visits and communication with ministry leaders, the faith formation staff received questions about budgeting and she considered offering a webinar on the basics.
 
“I look back at my own experience and realize I was ill-equipped for that part of my job,” Bower said. “I thought what would have been really helpful was just to have an overview of how to name the categories and areas of your budget, how to estimate numbers and that you should request how to monitor your budget for the year.”
 
She reached out to Deb Conley, diocesan director of parish accounting, who also works directly with parish staff offering accounting assistance to help offer a Basics of Budgeting for Faith Formation webinar on March 3.
 
“I thought I might ask her and she was very excited and very open to doing it,” Bower said, noting the ministry leaders were enthusiastic about the budgeting webinar. 
Conley stressed that webinar participants don’t have to be accountants or be concerned that they won’t grasp the topic.
 
“I’m gearing it towards those not knowing anything about it. They don’t have to have an accounting understanding by any means,” Conley explained. “I feel they have to have some say in the process. How can you plan if you don’t have a budget?”
 
The parish accounting director said she can help them start by estimating the income generated by enrolling religious education students as well as capturing expenses associated with the enrollment including books and any other programming materials. She received a number of submitted questions ahead of time to help her tailor the webinar for their needs.
 
“We invited the bookkeepers also,” Bower added. “They will know the information, but sometimes it’s good as a staff to sit down and attend something together and know that everybody’s on the same page, everybody’s using the right approach and the same approach.”
 
“We will let them know and the bookkeepers also to encourage them to ask, ‘Where am I at for the year?’ Ask for a report. We call it a breakout budget,” Conley said. “They might only get an income and expense line from the books, but they can get the detail behind that to see how it all played into the budget lines.”
 
For ministry leaders to become more proactive in budgeting, Conley will advise that it’sConley helpful to have budget figures in software or even handwritten information to start. As they understand the process and the basics, they can have a bigger role in preparing a budget to submit for approval. “It’s easier to see on paper what the ins and outs look like,” she said, noting it’s very easy to forget expenditures without having the financial information.
 
Bower said Conley’s budgeting presentation will last about 30-40 minutes with time for questions and discussions to follow.
 
Conley encourages webinar participants not to be afraid to ask questions. If they are not comfortable asking questions in front of the webinar group, they are encouraged to send them ahead. Those wishing to register for The Basics of Budgeting for Faith Formation should contact Bower at [email protected].
 
“I’m looking forward to it because I used to be that person – I didn’t understand it. I wish I would have had (this information) back when I was learning,” Conley said.