In recent weeks, Alonso has been trying to determine how much money can be freed up for principals to spend as they see fit. His proposed budget will contain a new per-student dollar amount that will go directly to principals.
Alonso hasn't made the amount public yet but says it will be much more than $90. His proposal is subject to the approval of the school board and the City Council.
Once the budget is adopted, principals will be able to determine how many teachers they can hire, how much to spend on materials and which extracurricular activities to fund.
If a school community wants smaller class sizes, or an art teacher, or a social worker, it will be up to the principal to figure out how to accomplish that. This spring, principals will tell Alonso what they plan to do with the money they will control.
Alonso must cut $50 million from the system's $1.1 billion budget because of an expected reduction in state funding. He has vowed to cut from the central administration and other places that don't directly affect classrooms.
Meanwhile, a committee composed of system staff members and union representatives is hashing out details for a pilot merit pay program, which would be voluntary for 10 percent of the city's 190 principals. The committee is proposing bonuses of up to $20,000 for principals, plus rewards for an entire school, based on factors including student achievement and school culture.
But in light of the budget shortfall, officials said merit pay for the next academic year probably would have to be funded by private donations.
In an interview, Alonso called merit pay for principals a "jump start" for accountability systemwide, indicating that he will advocate for teacher merit pay down the line.
Unions often oppose pay based on performance, but Baltimore's administrators union is endorsing the concept as long as no principal ends up with reduced pay.
Jimmy Gittings, president of the Public School Administrators and Supervisors Association, said he doesn't want the system to give principals bonuses while central office administrators lose their jobs.
Gittings said he backs giving principals more autonomy if there is enough support and training.
"It's literally making a principal a mini-superintendent," he said. "It's a lot more responsibility, and I don't want them to be given full autonomy and then the next year face the possibility of being removed."
