Requirements for Certified School Business Administrator (CSBA) Certification

Requirements for Certified School Business Administrator (CSBA) Certification

An individual seeking Certified School Business Administrator (CSBA) certification must be a member in good standing of ASBO MD & DC for the past 5 years.

A Candidate must be currently working in a public or non-public school or qualifying organization (see Policies and Procedures) at the time application for certification is filed and approved.

For all Candidates a combination of education and years of school business experience equaling 5 years is required to apply for Certified School Business Official(CSBA) certification. The position must be full-time, paid experience. The definition of school business official experience is an individual whose primary job responsibility occurs in school businessoperations. The individual’s job must relate to the ASBO MD & DC components and competencies, and must have a minimum of 7 hours per day for 90 working days (or at least 630 hours during a fiscal year) spent in school business and/or operations area of responsibility. If the applicant has any questions or needs any clarifications related to the definition, they may be submittedto the Professional Development Committee for review and action.

The Candidate also must be able to document experience by supplying an official position description for each position they would like considered towards meeting the experience requirement. Positions submitted without an official job description will not be considered.The following activities, for example, do not meet the school business management experience requirement:general administrative, secretarial/clerical, office management and data input positions involved with the school business management cycle.

There is an additional type of experience required for candidates for the CSBA certification. CSBA candidates also must have a number of years of experience in a school business management function. The school business manager experience must include responsibility for overall school business management activities that include supervision of personnel and/or the display of executive abilities involving economic/financial, technical, statistical, legal, and administrative attributes for multiple units/departments within the organization.

At the time of application for certification, a Candidate must submit a letter of recommendation from the applicant’s Superintendent, Chief School Business Administrator, Board President, or equivalent supervising administrator regarding the applicant’s: Integrity, Character, Ethical Behavior, Efficiency and Competency on the Job.

A Candidate must complete the required Foundations of School Business Management curriculum coursework available at the time of application. Each level of certification requires that a minimum number of coursesbe taken in a classroom setting; certification may not be earned through online courses only.Substitute courses must be approved in advance by the Professional Development Committee (no more than two substitutions will be allowed for all certification levels combined).Course credit earned under any certification level may be credited toward any higher certification level; an individual does not have to take a course twice.

A Candidate must submit a completed Official Letter of Transmittal and an Application for Certification Status on forms provided by ASBO MD & DC, including a signed Code of Ethics statement.Each application will be evaluated on its own merits.

A Candidate may apply for a Provisional Certificate for certificationas a CSBAif all requirements for full certification are met with the exception of years of experience. The applicant shall submit a completed Official Letter of Transmittal and an Application for Certification Status on forms provided by ASBO MD & DC, in addition to a written request for provisional certification. The holder of a Provisional Certificate may not use the letter designation after their signature.

To receive full certification, a person holding a Provisional Certificate must complete the school business and/or operations experience as stated under the requirements for a certificate. Full certification will be granted when documentation is provided showing that the years of experience requirement has been met.

Unlike many other certification programs, ASBO MD & DC requires substantial work experience in school business management. This work experience must be complemented by formal training courses specific to school business management, as well as by formal education. Some college work is preferred for a CSBS designation and a four-year college degree or post-graduate work is required for CSBO and CSBA candidates.

The requirements for work experience and formal coursework are dependent upon the amount of formal college education achieved by the Candidate at the time of application. For example, candidates that have a four-year or advanced college degree will reduce the coursework and experience requirements for certification. If a candidate for CSBA certification has the following, they must meet therequirements below:

Bachelor's degree: a minimum of 54 contact hours in school business management

seminars/courses and a total of 3 years of school business management experience which must

include2 years in a school business management position.

Advanced degree (Master or PhD):a minimum of 36 contact hours in school business management seminars/courses and a total of 3 years of school business management experience which must include 2 years in a school business management position.

In addition to educational sources available through professional associations, a Candidate may also use school business management or school business management-related coursework that the candidate has taken at an accredited community college, college or university. These courses may or may not be a requirement of the Candidate’s formal degree program. The following is a list of college courses that have been approved to fulfill the school business management coursework requirements. Since the coursework requirement is measured in contact hours, the applicant must perform a simple calculation to translate college credit hours into contact hours. To convert credit hours into contact hours, simply multiply the total number of credit hours by 8 to determine contact hours. For example, a 3 credit hour college course would equal 24 contact hours (3 credit hours x 8 = 24 contact hours). Note: An Official, Sealed College Transcript must be provided by the educational institution that indicates the number of credit hours earned and grade earned for approved college courses. Only those courses that received a passing mark are acceptable.

Accounting (general accounting, cost accounting, managerial accounting)
Contracts (contract administration, negotiations and/or management, cost/price analysis)
Economics (managerial, macro, micro)
Ethics (business or professional ethics)
Finance (business or governmental)
Law (business law, contract law, government contract law, legal environment of business management, organizational theory and behavior, public administration, project management)
Personnel (personnel management, performance appraisal, employee development)
School Business Management and Materials Management (school business management, materials management, inventory control, operations research)
Transportation (physical distribution, traffic management, logistics)

ASBO MD & DC recognizes that there are numerous opportunities for applicants to receive quality school business management or school business management-related coursework. Documentation is required for all coursework submitted for consideration. Acceptable forms of documentation of coursework taken through an industry association include: copies of certificates of attendance, or certificates of completion. This documentation must include the name of the course, the date and location of the course, the organization that provided the course, the duration of the course (contact hours) and must be in the name of the applicant.

The Candidate must:

Meet all general requirements for certification.
Complete the minimum number of contact hours in school business management seminars/courses, or attain a formal degree from an accredited community college, college or university in any field of study is required. An official, sealed transcript from the college or university is required and must be sent directly to ASBO MD & DC. ASBO MD & DC will not accept a student copy of the transcript; nor will it accept a copy of the college diploma.
Have five years of school business and/or operations experience, with at least two consecutive years in one district or qualifying organization. All experience must be obtained within the previous 10 years of submitting an application for certification.
Attend a minimum of 10 ASBO MD & DC certification courses.
Take at least 3 credit hours of school business management coursework or 6 credit hours of school business management-related coursework. Coursework taken as part of a formal degree program may be applicable toward meeting this requirement. All coursework must be obtained from an accredited college/university and completed within the previous 10 years of submitting an application for certification.
Meet the requirement of 60 contact hours of school business training. Training includes attendance and participation at regional and national school business management conferences, seminars, webinars and classroom training events. All school business management training must be completed within the previous 10 years of submitting an application for certification.
Only coursework and training completed and experience obtained within the previous 10 years of submitting an application for certification will be applicable toward meeting the minimum eligibility requirements. This ten year limitation does not apply to degrees earned by the applicant. Formal degrees are applicable toward meeting the minimum requirements for certification, regardless of the year in which they were earned.
Publish one article in ASBO Matters News Journal, ASBO Connects, or other suitable professional publication.
Complete a minimum of 10Foundation courses or all of the current existing foundation courses at the time of application. One course must be taken from each of the core areas of school business in the ASBO MD & DC curriculum. A project may be substituted for three courses in one area of specialization. A fee will be assessed for this substitution.

Project Guidelines and Requirements

A project is not required for any certification. However, a project may be used to substitute for three courses in one area of specialization for the CSBA. A project is only required if an individual wishes to add an endorsement to a CSBA certificate. See Endorsements Requirements below for more information.

Purpose of the Project:

A Candidate for certification should be able to solve a problem in school business administration through individual study. The purpose of the project is to demonstrate the applicant’s problem solving and analytical abilities.

The project should benefit the individual, the school district, or the school business profession.
The project should demonstrate the candidate’s ability to study and analyze a particular problem.
The project should add to the body of knowledge in school business administration.

Guidelines:

The Candidate shall declare in writing the intention to begin a project and include the certification desired and the area of specialization, if applicable.
If the Candidate previously developed a work-related project, it may be submitted for review but it must have been completed within the 3 year period prior to the date of submission for review.
The ASBO MD & DC certification unit identifies, selects, and assigns a review panel made up of practitioners in the area of specialization. ASBO MD & DC then notifies each candidate in writing of the review panel members. This letter will also include information on formatting, purpose of the project, and suggested methodologies that may be used.
The Candidate is responsible for contacting the review panel lead person to arrange for submission of the general description of the project for approval. The panel has 45 days from the receipt of the general description to approve, disapprove or suggest modifications.
Review panel members are responsible for maintaining a copy of the changes the candidate is being asked to make.
Once the review panel has authorized the project, the Candidate may begin the project. The candidate has 24 months from the time of project authorization to complete the project. Time extensions may be granted by a review panel on a case by case basis.
Upon final approval, two copies of the project shall be sent to the ASBO MD & DC certification unit.

The final project report must be suitable for publishing in the ASBO Matters News Journal or ASBO Connects.

There are three primary approaches the Candidate may take for studying a topic or problem. They are as follows:

Historical Perspective - A historical perspective might approach a topic from the standpoint of what has occurred over a period of time. For example, a candidate might study and document the history of educational funding in Maryland, beginning with the pre-Civil War era to present. A detailed history of the various structures of the funding system and its evolution from its origins to its current complex structure would be educational and informative to any school business official in this state.
Issue Analysis - An issue analysis approach consists of identifying the issue(s) and analyzing and evaluating alternatives. It would not be mandatory to make a recommendation of one alternative over the other. An example would be to address the alternative of a compensating balance versus fee for service depository banking contracts.
Statistical Survey - This method would involve conducting a survey on a specific issue in school business and discussing the findings of the responses. An objective, unbiased and well-developed survey form would be developed. For example, conduct a salary survey of several districts to determine external competitiveness.

Other - Various other methods and approaches are available for use by a candidate. Candidates should discuss with their review panel the methodology to be used.

Endorsement Requirements: (Optional)

Definition:

An endorsement is a special designation on the CSBA/CSBO certificate that signifies that an individual has sufficient experience and training in an area of specialization, so that a prospective employer could reasonably be assured that the person has the potential to serve in a supervisory capacity in that area of specialization.

Requirements:

Four courses must be taken in one area of specialization. These courses can be part of theseven non-management courses required for the CSBA/CSBO.
The applicant must have at least three years of work experience in the area of endorsement.
A project is required for each endorsement. (See Project Guidelines and Requirements). A project completed for the CSBO may also satisfy the endorsement requirement for the CSBA, but only in the area of specialization related to the project and only if completed within the 3-year period prior to the date of the endorsement request. A fee will be assessed for each project.

Certification Renewal Requirements

All certificates shall be valid for 5 years from the date granted. All CSBO certificates will be renewed upon completion of 60 contact hours of continuing education every 5 years.

ASBO MD & DC awards 1 contact hour for each classroom hour of education or training and each full day of classroom training earns a maximum of 8 contact hours. Major school business industry events such as international/national/regional conferences and meetings are also recognized by ASBO MD & DC and are eligible for coursework/training credit. Specifically, applicants may receive 24 contact hours for full attendance at the ASBO International Annual Conference & Products Exposition and 16 contact hours for attending the ASBO MD & DC Annual Spring Conference and other international/national conferences. Chapter and regional meetings are also eligible for coursework/training credit. However, applicants may not include chapter business meetings, social luncheons, vendor presentations, reverse tradeshows and chapter networking/entertainment events as these types of events are not considered to be educational in content. Applicants may also earn credit for on-line and web-based education/training. On-line training programs earn 1 contact hour for each hour but if the on-line training requires self-study and reading assignments in addition to on-line instruction, those additional hours may not be included in the total contact hours earned for the on-line training. Interagency training is also applicable for credit as long as the training is on a school business-specific topic and can be properly documented by an agency transcript or completion certificate.