A neighborhood-level audit, in the open.
Park Hill School District operates on a $162M budget funded by local property taxes. As residents and taxpayers, we have a right — and a responsibility — to understand how that money is spent. This site is our attempt to make that easy.
Why we built it.
In the last five years, the district's spending has grown by more than $23 million while enrollment has declined by nearly 900 students. Each new bond issue and operating levy is presented to voters with a thick stack of materials that few people have the time — or the patience — to read. We did. And the numbers raised more questions than they answered.
phbudget.com exists to put those numbers in plain sight, in plain English. We don't tell you how to vote. We don't tell you what to think. We just read the documents, summarize what's there, and flag the items we think deserve a closer look.
How this site works.
We start with the source.
Every figure on this site comes from a public document: the district's adopted budget, monthly treasurer's reports, board meeting minutes, and the Annual Secretary of the Board Report (ASBR) filed with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. We link the source on every page.
We translate, we don't editorialize.
The original documents are technically accurate and almost completely unreadable. We restate the numbers in plain language, add context (per-student, year-over-year, percent of total), and let the data speak.
We flag what's worth a second look.
When a line item grows much faster than its peers, when payments cluster around a single vendor, when a category exceeds its trailing run-rate by double digits — we mark it as a "watch" item. We don't allege wrongdoing. We invite questions.
What this site is not.
- Not affiliated with Park Hill School District, the Park Hill Board of Education, any candidate for office, or any political committee.
- Not an attack on teachers, staff, or schools. We support good public education — which is exactly why we want the money spent well.
- Not a substitute for the official record. If you're using these numbers in a public comment or a news story, verify them in the original documents we link.
- Not finished. This is a working project. If you spot an error or want to contribute, get in touch.
The sources we read.
Spotted something we missed?
We rely on residents who know what to look for. If you've seen something in a board packet, a public records request, or a school-level invoice that's worth a closer look — tell us.