How CAS Can Support Your Budgeting Season

​As higher education professionals, we know that budgeting season is more than just crunching numbers — it’s a critical time to align our resources with institutional priorities, student needs, and program effectiveness. It’s also a time when decisions about staffing, services, and future planning come under close scrutiny. That’s where the Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) can be an invaluable resource.

CAS Standards: Grounding Your Budget in Best Practice
The CAS Standards and Guidelines are widely recognized across the field for outlining what is essential to deliver high-quality programs and services. During budgeting season, these standards can help you:

• Design New Programs and Services:
  CAS outlines essential components for functional areas across student affairs and beyond. The "Mission" and "Programs and Services" sections in each standard can help you specify program goals and identify necessary elements. By grounding new initiatives in CAS criteria, you can ensure that proposals are both strategic and credible.
  
• Focus Time, Energy, and Resources:
  With limited budgets and competing priorities, it’s critical to focus on what matters most. CAS helps identify the core functions that must be maintained to meet professional standards — helping you defend essential services while making informed decisions about reallocating resources.
  
• Build an Evidence-Based Case for Funding:
  While CAS Standards can't guarantee additional funding, they can elevate your advocacy efforts. Using the "must" statements within the standards, you can create a clear, evidence-based case that communicates the importance of maintaining or increasing support for critical programs. Citing nationally recognized standards can bolster your credibility during funding requests.
  

Supporting Staff Development and Strategic Planning
Budgeting season is also an opportunity to think beyond line items and consider how we are investing in our teams. CAS can guide staff development efforts by:

• Supporting the (re)visioning of program missions, goals, and learning outcomes.
  
• Serving as a tool to orient new staff and educate campus partners about the work of various functional areas.
  
• Offering a common language for discussions around program strengths, challenges, and areas for growth — conversations that can shape priorities and funding decisions.
  
• Guiding meeting agendas or retreats that can inform strategic planning and resource allocation discussions.
  

A Strategic Partner for Budgeting and Beyond
In a time when every dollar matters, CAS Standards and Guidelines offer higher education leaders a trusted framework for making decisions with confidence. Whether you are designing a new service, reallocating resources, advocating for additional funding, or investing in staff development, CAS provides the criteria and credibility you need to support student success.
Learn More:
Explore the full range of CAS Standards and Self-Assessment Guides to help inform your budgeting and planning process at www.cas.edu.