She took a school district ‘in crisis’ from $5 million to $50 million. How did she do it?
A large calculator sits on top of Bang Parkinson’s desk.
In her office there is a sign that reads: “I’M NOT HERE TO BE AVERAGE I’M HERE TO BE AWESOME.”
To the left of her desk is a board hanging on the wall, adorned with photos, maps and other paperwork. Four photos show her nieces and nephews — two were taken in 2007 during Chinese Lunar New Year.
“I love them,” she said about her nieces and nephews. “Children can produce a lot for the future ... our responsibility is to [help them] grow and make them smarter than us.”
Parkinson is the chief finance and operations officer for the Sumner-Bonney Lake School District. Her job is to monitor the district’s finances with a team of 13.
She received the distinguished school business official award this year from the Washington Association of School Business Officials (WASBO).
The school board celebrated her accomplishment during the May 17 board meeting.
“[Parkinson] brought our district from being in crisis to now being in a very great position,” Sherrie Wilcox, the school district’s payroll and benefits manager, said. Wilcox nominated Parkinson for the WASBO award.
Parkinson joined the school district in late 2018. At the time, the district’s fund balance was about $4.9 million. This year, the balance is about $49.8 million.
Superintendent Laurie Dent said she hired Parkinson because her reputation is “stellar.” Parkinson has the ability to take a school district’s resources, create a plan and produce results, Dent said.
The school district’s budget in 2018 was tight, Dent said. Parkinson rolled up her sleeves, got to work, and was intentional with the changes she made to the budget, Dent said.
Parkinson cut $4 million from the budget that year. The cut included positions such as a floater — an employee who fills in when someone is out.
About 85 percent of the budget supports personnel pay, Parkinson said. Hiring more than what is needed can create “a lot of problems,” she said.
There are many ways Parkinson replenished the school district’s balance. One way was ensuring the number of staff kept up with the number of students enrolled in the district. This helped prevent overstaffing, she said.
She also said she avoided hiring people who would need to be let go later. It’s not her philosophy, she said. It was important to her to hire and retain qualified staff.
Wilcox said she nominated Parkinson for the WASBO award because she takes the school district’s budget seriously. Parkinson won’t spend the district’s money on things that won’t benefit students, Wilcox said.
She started overseeing finances for her family’s business
Parkinson, 62, lives in Kent. She was born and raised in South Vietnam. She has five siblings — three brothers and two sisters. All but one sibling lives in Kent.
Parkinson’s brother, Steven Tran, said her nurturing qualities were apparent starting when they were young. She would often take care of him when he got hurt playing or wandering around the neighborhood.
Parkinson said she wasn’t able to finish high school in South Vietnam. The curriculum changed drastically, and her classroom size dwindled as people fled the country toward the end of the Vietnam War, around 1975.
“It was tough,” she said about her time living in South Vietnam.
Her father used to have a manufacturing company at the time. The company produced laundry brushes. The company needed someone to handle the finances, so she decided to study accounting a few years after she left high school.
She realized she was good at it, and felt motivated to continue doing it for the long run.
Parkinson moved to the United States in 1992 when she was in her 30s. She has lived in Los Angeles, Seattle and Renton.
She wanted to continue pursuing accounting in the U.S., so she took English language classes upon moving to Washington state. Later, she got her master’s degree in business administration from the University of Washington, and she became a certified public accountant.
Parkinson has worked in finance since 1998. She used to work at the Renton School District, city of Renton, Highline School District and Bethel School District.
Asked if she ever imagined herself as a chief finance and operations officer, Parkinson said it was her goal to become one.
“It’s a dream come true,” she said.
Dent said Parkinson is a compassionate person. Parkinson knows the value of education and what it can provide to students, the superintendent said.
“When you see her with kids, you see her heart,” Dent said.
Correction: This story has been updated to correct when Parkinson said people fled South Vietnam. She said they fled toward the end of the Vietnam War, around 1975.
This story was originally published October 2, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
