ABOUT US
The Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) is one of the leading school systems in Maryland and the nation. To learn more about us and our 2024 -2029 Strategic Plan, please visit our website and our careers page. Join our award-winning workforce and make a difference in the lives of our students!
ABOUT THE APPLICATION PROCESS
Before you begin, please read the job posting below carefully including the Application Requirements specific to this position. Be sure your application reflects experience and education required to meet the minimum and any preferred qualifications listed. Our application guide includes detailed instructions to assist you. Once your application has been submitted, you will not be able to add documentation or make any changes.
Please note that application submission will be available only through 11:59 PM on the date prior to the indicated end date. If no end date is indicated, the posting will remain open indefinitely.
Job Posting End Date:
08-10-2026Reminder: Current permanent and temporary employees must apply through the Jobs Hub in Workday, not the external career site.
DESCRIPTION
This budget analyst position will specialize in personnel cost budgeting and labor cost modeling. The position is responsible for developing, maintaining, and analyzing personnel cost projections that support the school system’s annual operating budget and long-range financial planning. Supporting the development and management of the budget and working collaboratively with the aligning work done by other budget analysts, this position specializes in salary and benefit forecasting, staffing cost analysis, labor agreement financial modeling, and position control. The analyst collaborates with Human Resources, Payroll, and instructional staffing teams to ensure accurate personnel budgeting and provide strategic financial analysis for staffing decisions and minimum school funding.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
A combination of education and experience may be considered.
Education:
Possession of a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university in Public Administration, Business Administration, Finance or a related degree.
Experience:
Four years of budget development, budget analysis, or other relevant financial management experience in a government agency.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
The ideal candidate for this role will also possess a combination of the additional qualifications below. If you don’t meet every one of the preferred qualifications, we still encourage you to apply, as we welcome applications from candidates with diverse backgrounds and experiences.
Education:
Master’s degree in Public Administration, Business Administration, Finance or related field.
Experience:
Experience in personnel cost budgeting and labor cost modeling.
Experience with K-12 public school budgeting and finance, Maryland state education funding formulas (Blueprint for Maryland’s Future), and position control systems.
Experience using Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems such as Workday, Oracle, SAP, PeopleSoft, PowerSchools or similar financial management systems.
Experience with advanced Excel functionality, business intelligence, and data tools such as Power BI.
ESSENTIAL POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES
The below list is a summary of the functions of the job, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all possible job responsibilities, tasks, and duties.
Develop and maintain the school system’s personnel budget, including salaries, wages, allowances, stipends, and employee benefits.
Prepare and update annual personnel cost projections based on approved staffing plans and projected enrollment.
Assist with and track the calculation and monitoring of the fiscal impact of new positions, position eliminations, reorganizations, and staffing changes.
Ensure personnel budgets align with approved staffing allocations and minimum school funding reporting requirements.
Analyze workforce trends, vacancies, turnover, retirements, and hiring assumptions to improve forecast accuracy.
Build and maintain labor cost models for each bargaining unit.
Model the budgetary impact of collective bargaining proposals, salary schedule adjustments, step and grade movements, cost-of-living adjustments, and benefit changes.
Conduct multi-year financial forecasts to support contract negotiations and long-term fiscal sustainability.
Maintains strict confidentiality of all work done to support labor negotiations, ensuring sensitive information and related work remain secure.
Responsible for working with Program Managers to develop and manage program budgets including budget development, monthly budget reporting, budget amendments, and tracking approved staffing levels.
Maintain budget office position control records to ensure authorized positions are accurately reflected in budget systems.
Reconcile staffing records between Human Resources, Payroll, and Finance systems.
Coordinate with Payroll to validate salary and benefit expenditures.
Verify funding sources for positions across operating, grant, and special revenue funds.
Support position management and organizational restructuring initiatives.
Collaborate with Human Resources and instructional staffing teams in other divisions on the development and managing of staffing plans.
Support department leaders during budget development and monitoring.
Provide technical guidance on personnel budgeting and labor cost analysis.
Analyze enrollment trends and staffing ratios to project macro-level staffing needs.
Develop scenario analyses to support strategic staffing decisions.
ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES
The below list is a summary of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for success in this position, not an exhaustive or comprehensive list.
Knowledge
Public School Finance & Personnel Budgeting: Deep understanding of school system budgeting, including salary structures, stipends, allowances, benefit rates, and staffing ratios based on student enrollment.
Position Control & Systems Integration: Comprehensive knowledge of how authorized positions are tracked, managed, and reconciled across disparate HRIS, Payroll, and Finance/ERP databases.
Labor Relations & Collective Bargaining: Familiarity with union bargaining units, collective bargaining agreements (CBAs), salary schedules, step/grade movements, and the mechanics of cost-of-living adjustments (COLA).
Governmental Budgeting and Fund Accounting .
Workforce Demographics & Analytics: Understanding of workforce dynamics, including vacancy rates, turnover trends, retirement patterns, and hiring velocity, and how they impact budget forecasting.
Skills
Advanced Financial Modeling & Scenario Analysis: Advanced-level skill in Excel or other financial modeling tools to build multi-year projection models, labor cost impact analyses, and "what-if" strategic scenarios.
Data Reconciliation & Auditing: High proficiency in comparing complex datasets from HR, Payroll, and Finance systems to identify, investigate, and correct discrepancies in staffing records and funding codes.
Strategic Enrollment Analysis: Ability to analyze enrollment trends and apply staffing ratios to project macro-level personnel and instructional needs.
Technical Consulting & Guidance: Skill in translating highly complex financial and personnel budget data into clear, actionable technical guidance for department heads, program managers, and instructional teams.
Abilities
Maintain Absolute Confidentiality: Demonstrated ability to exercise extreme discretion and maintain strict security over highly sensitive information related to labor negotiations, reorganizations, and personnel actions.
Collaborate Across Key Divisions: Ability to build strong, collaborative partnerships with Human Resources, Payroll, instructional leadership, and department heads to align staffing plans with fiscal limits.
Manage Program Budgets Dynamically: Ability to partner with program managers to develop, monitor, and adjust budgets mid-year, including processing budget amendments and tracking staffing changes.
Work Under High-Pressure Deadlines: Ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously, particularly during active union negotiations and the peak annual budget development cycle, without compromising accuracy.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
Working Hours
The duty day for this position is 8 hours including a one-hour duty-free lunch.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
Complete applications must be submitted, and once your application has been submitted, you will not be able to add documentation or make any changes. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Resumes will not be accepted in lieu of a completed application.
Supplemental Application Questions
This position requires applicants to provide responses to the below supplemental application questions to determine whether you meet the minimum and preferred qualifications. Please upload your responses in a separate file to the supplemental application questions section of the application.
1. Describe your experience developing and maintaining personnel cost budgets and labor cost models. In your response, please detail your experience with forecasting, staffing cost analysis, or position control. In your response, cite the employers and date range(s) for each experience. If you do not have this experience, please respond N/A.
2. Please describe your professional experience with public school finance, focusing specifically on K-12 budgeting and resource allocation. In your response, please detail your direct experience navigating complex state education funding models, with specific emphasis on your familiarity or work with Maryland state education funding formulas, such as the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. In your response, cite the employers and date range(s) for each experience. If you do not have this experience, please respond N/A.
3. Discuss your technical proficiency with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) or financial management systems. Please list the specific platforms you have utilized such as Workday, Oracle, SAP, PeopleSoft, PowerSchools, or similar systems. In your response, cite the employers and date range(s) for each experience. If you do not have this experience, please respond N/A.
4. Describe your experience utilizing advanced Excel functionality including database design and modeling (such as macros, data modeling, complex formulas, and pivot tables) to manage and interpret financial datasets. Please cite examples in your response. In your response, cite the employers and date range(s) for each experience. If you do not have this experience, please respond N/A.
SELECTION CRITERIA
Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications will be included in further evaluation. Interviews will be limited to those applicants who, in addition to meeting the basic requirements, have experience and education which most closely match the position qualifications and the needs of the school system.
Applicants may be required to complete a skills assessment prior to or during the interview process.
EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION
Compensation
This is a 12-month per year position in the Howard County Education Association, Educational Support Professionals (HCEA-ESP) employee unit. The current salary range for this position is Grade 26 on the Technical Central Office and School Based salary scale, $104,417 - $157,345. Step placement will be in accordance with the salary procedures of the Howard County Public School System and the HCEA-ESP Master Agreement which considers relevant prior experience. Under the Fair Labor Standards Act, this position is exempt from overtime.
Retirement
Membership in the Maryland State Retirement Agency (MSRA) pension plan is a mandatory condition of employment for all employees who meet the eligibility and membership criteria defined in the State Personnel and Pensions Article and the Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR). A qualifying employee cannot reject membership, nor can an ineligible employee elect membership. The annual contribution to the pension plan will be 7% of an employee’s annual salary.
Benefits
HCPSS offers a comprehensive benefits package for eligible employees. Information about additional benefits such as paid time off can be found in the negotiated agreement for employees in this bargaining unit.
Pre-Employment Requirements
Professional references will be contacted prior to any offer of employment. Recommended candidates will be required to provide references from current and recent supervisors.
All employees, regular and temporary, must be fingerprinted, have a criminal background investigation completed, and successfully complete the Maryland Employment History Review, pursuant to Section 6-113.2 of the Education Article, Annotated Code of Maryland. In addition, some positions will require completion of a physical examination and/or drug testing.
Anyone offered employment is required to provide proper identification and documentation of eligibility for employment in the United States. HCPSS participates in E-Verify and does not offer employee sponsorship.
For questions regarding this posting, please contact (Insert Recruiter Name and Email) OR [email protected].
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
To request an accommodation during the application or interview process due to a documented disability, please email [email protected].
HCPSS celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees and applicants and prohibits discrimination, harassment, and retaliation of any kind. HCPSS is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all employees in providing them with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment. All employment decisions at HCPSS are based on organizational needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion or belief, national, social or ethnic origin, sex (including pregnancy), age, physical, mental or sensory disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital, civil union or domestic partnership status, veteran status or present military service, family medical history or genetic information, family or parental status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.