JOB DESCRIPTION OF ACCOUNTANT DESCRIPTION OF BASIC FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

JOB DESCRIPTION OF ACCOUNTANT

DESCRIPTION OF BASIC FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

General: To perform professional accounting, budget analysis and reviews, and provide comprehensive fiscal knowledge, accounting/fiscal support, and technical assistance for departments, sites, and/or programs of the School ; to monitor fiscal solvency and ensure funding compliance; to develop, prepare, audit, revise, and/or maintain a variety of accounting, budget, and financial reports, statements, transactions, and records in accordance with applicable laws, codes, statues, rules, regulations and ordinances; and to perform related duties as assigned. The Accountant is responsible for accurate and timely accounting, budget, and fiscal production work under stringent timelines.

EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS

Knowledge of:

In depth understanding of general principles and procedures accounting, auditing, budgeting, bookkeeping, and fiscal record keeping as related to public agencies, school districts, and COE financial transactions

Principles of fiscal administration including development and maintenance of sound internal fiscal controls and policies, and financial and statistical analysis

Appropriate laws, codes, standards, and fiscal reporting requirements applicable to COE financial transactions, program development and control, school district fiscal solvency, and attendance procedures

Budget development, monitoring, and analysis and controls for educational programs and services, including grant development and administration

Microcomputer operations, software, and hardware used in the performance of accounting, budget analysis, fiscal analysis, and fiscal reporting responsibilities

Proper English usage including, grammar, punctuation, spelling, and sentence structure.

Ability to:

Perform a variety of complex accounting, budget development, analysis, monitoring, and expenditure work as well as fiscal analysis and monitoring work related to financial and accounting transactions

Gather, organize, analyze, and present varied finance data, including the performance of statistical analysis

           Provide guidance, training, and work reviews for technical accounting and fiscal support
           staff, as well as advice and consultation to management and staff in COE programs
           and/or school districts

Prepare, audit, and analyze a variety of financial statements, ADA data, and fiscal reports and analysis and evaluations

Develop, maintain, and make revisions to accounting systems, program budgets, and appropriate internal fiscal controls

Skillfully use computerized accounting, financial management, and management information systems

Plan, organize, and prioritize work assignments to meet requirements and facilitate workflow

Analyze, interpret, and apply pertinent codes, laws, rules, and regulations to professional accounting work, attendance accounting, budget analysis work, fiscal solvency, and financial transactions

Identify problem areas or situations, evaluate problem causes, and take appropriate action to resolve identified problems

Make arithmetical calculations quickly and accurately and identify and correct errors in arithmetical calculations made by others

Effectively represent the COE in working with internal/external clients

Establish and maintain a cooperative working relationship with those contacted in the course of assigned responsibilities

Typical Duties: The following duties are examples of assignments performed by incumbent Accountant. It is not a totally comprehensive list of duties, nor is it restrictive regarding job assignments.
1.  Prepares journal entries, account work papers, complex bank reconciliation, ADA reports for COE programs, schedules, charts, complex spreadsheets, and database work papers in the performance of complex accounting, budget, and financial analysis work
2.  Designs, recommends, and/or implements changes in accounting systems, accounting policies, and information storage and retrieval systems, working with other fiscal and program staff as necessary
3.  Monitors, analyzes, and/or reviews financial summary and detailed reports, internal/external reports, mandated reports, program budgets, documents, studies, or records for accuracy, proper account and charges, coding, and compliance, implementing corrections and fund transfers, resolving discrepancies as necessary, and/or processing documents for input into automated systems
4.  Develops, prepares, audits, reviews, and/or corrects a wide variety of routine and specialized Federal, State, COE program budgets, attendance reports, and/or school district financial reports on a regular, monthly, interim, and/or annual basis
5.  Analyzes, reconciles, and/or evaluates the accuracy of general ledger, accounting details, revenues, expenditures, accounting/budget/financial reports, and district cash balances, ensuring proper amounts, receipt, and classification, processing documents for input, and/or posting year end deferred revenue and accounts receivable as necessary
6.  Monitors and ensures compliance with COE fiscal policies, budget formulas, guidelines, internal fiscal controls, and applicable Federal and State regulations, codes, rules, ordinances, and/or statutes
7.  Works with, provides advice, direction, and consultation to, and participates in training for COE program managers, district management, and staff regarding accounting/attendance/budget/financial matters, budget preparation, revision and reporting, accounting corrections, appropriateness of transactions, and/or automated accounting/financial systems
8.  Contacts and works with State, County, and other local agencies regarding the dissemination of tax revenue, interest allocations, revenue anticipation notes, bonds, and outside investments
9.  Prepares fund balance projections and/or year end budget closing and journal entries, monitoring and reporting on the status of revenues and balances, and/or bringing ending balances forward to the next fiscal year
10.  Performs purchasing activities for sites and programs, maintaining ledgers, receiving items, verifying invoices and monitoring/maintaining contracts
11.  Participates in contract development for staff and services, providing bid specifications to Purchasing Services, securing and scheduling service contractors, and/or monitoring, reviewing, and/or overseeing contract compliance and services
12.  Operates internal accounting information systems, microcomputer hardware and software, including word processing, spreadsheets, and others, maintaining and creating spreadsheets as needed
13.  May develop, implement, and maintain database and networking systems in accordance with funding needs, program mandates, and reporting requirements
14.  Performs related duties as assigned by the Director/CEO of the School.