www.strongspringboro.org
Kudos to those working hard to put our kids and our community first.
Speaking as someone who personally has been adversely affected by the economic downturn in a serious way, I am still voting yes, because it's that important.
The reasons to vote no are wearing very thin. The time for Springboro to UNITE is now. Vote YES! Hell Yes!
Friday, October 1, 2010
Editorial : Levy Offers Springboro A Frash Start
2010 Election
Springboro’s school district has new leaders and is seeking a fresh start. A 6.83-mill emergency levy would put the district on solid financial footing as a new superintendent and treasurer join a mostly new school board in charting a different path.
Voters should give the new crew that opportunity.
Whoever was at fault, a breakdown in trust between the district and the community was a big reason for four consecutive levy defeats in Springboro. The most recent came in May of 2009. Too many voters lost faith in the board and former Superintendent David Baker.
Critics of the district’s spending focused on administrative costs they argued needed scaling back. They bristled when district leaders, in their view, prioritized cuts like bus service and closing an elementary school.
Interim Superintendent Gene Lolli (a finalist for the permanent post) and new Treasurer Eric Beavers have put fresh eyes on Springboro’s problems. Their verdict is instructive.
Overall, they report not finding anything in the district’s budget that was extraordinarily out of line. They believe teacher and administrator salaries, for example, are solidly competitive with similar districts and reasonable. The total cost reductions over the past 18 months have amounted to $6.5 million. Administrators took the brunt of the most recent round of cuts.
The central office, long cited by the district’s critics as bloated, was cut by about 30 percent, down 10 positions to 24. At the same time, the district used federal stimulus funds to restore busing service reductions that had rankled some parents.
All the while, Springboro has maintained solid performance on state tests. The district is rated “excellent” on its state report card. Its “performance index score,” Ohio’s measure of test performance across all grades, ranks in the top 10 among 79 districts in the 10 counties surrounding Dayton.
Of course, a lot of competing districts have also made cuts. Springboro can’t keep cutting forever and maintain a quality program.
Even after all the recent reductions, Mr. Beavers projects a deficit of $1.7 million by 2012. Springboro is a relatively well-off district (No. 1 in the area for median income, higher than Oakwood), and it is treated as such by the state funding formula. The district can’t expect any help from the state.
Meanwhile, enrollment continues to grow (although not quite at the intense pace of recent years). That requires more teachers, pushing costs higher. If Springboro wants to maintain top-quality schools, the burden will fall on the local taxpayer.
Today that burden is not terribly heavy. Property taxes for schools in Springboro are actually lower than other suburban districts like Centerville, Oakwood, Kettering, Huber Heights and West Carrollton.
Supporting a 6.83-mill levy won’t be easy for some Springboro residents. The recession has hit just about everywhere. But the district has done everything it can to earn voter support — changing leadership, cutting spending and maintaining excellent results.
A “yes” vote would get the district on solid financial footing.
Springboro’s school district has new leaders and is seeking a fresh start. A 6.83-mill emergency levy would put the district on solid financial footing as a new superintendent and treasurer join a mostly new school board in charting a different path.
Voters should give the new crew that opportunity.
Whoever was at fault, a breakdown in trust between the district and the community was a big reason for four consecutive levy defeats in Springboro. The most recent came in May of 2009. Too many voters lost faith in the board and former Superintendent David Baker.
Critics of the district’s spending focused on administrative costs they argued needed scaling back. They bristled when district leaders, in their view, prioritized cuts like bus service and closing an elementary school.
Interim Superintendent Gene Lolli (a finalist for the permanent post) and new Treasurer Eric Beavers have put fresh eyes on Springboro’s problems. Their verdict is instructive.
Overall, they report not finding anything in the district’s budget that was extraordinarily out of line. They believe teacher and administrator salaries, for example, are solidly competitive with similar districts and reasonable. The total cost reductions over the past 18 months have amounted to $6.5 million. Administrators took the brunt of the most recent round of cuts.
The central office, long cited by the district’s critics as bloated, was cut by about 30 percent, down 10 positions to 24. At the same time, the district used federal stimulus funds to restore busing service reductions that had rankled some parents.
All the while, Springboro has maintained solid performance on state tests. The district is rated “excellent” on its state report card. Its “performance index score,” Ohio’s measure of test performance across all grades, ranks in the top 10 among 79 districts in the 10 counties surrounding Dayton.
Of course, a lot of competing districts have also made cuts. Springboro can’t keep cutting forever and maintain a quality program.
Even after all the recent reductions, Mr. Beavers projects a deficit of $1.7 million by 2012. Springboro is a relatively well-off district (No. 1 in the area for median income, higher than Oakwood), and it is treated as such by the state funding formula. The district can’t expect any help from the state.
Meanwhile, enrollment continues to grow (although not quite at the intense pace of recent years). That requires more teachers, pushing costs higher. If Springboro wants to maintain top-quality schools, the burden will fall on the local taxpayer.
Today that burden is not terribly heavy. Property taxes for schools in Springboro are actually lower than other suburban districts like Centerville, Oakwood, Kettering, Huber Heights and West Carrollton.
Supporting a 6.83-mill levy won’t be easy for some Springboro residents. The recession has hit just about everywhere. But the district has done everything it can to earn voter support — changing leadership, cutting spending and maintaining excellent results.
A “yes” vote would get the district on solid financial footing.
Springboro Narrows Superintendent Search Down to Four
By Lawrence Budd, Staff Writer Updated 12:40 AM Friday, October 1, 2010
SPRINGBORO — Four Ohio school administrators remain in the running for the Springboro school superintendent’s job, officials said Thursday.
Joel Anderson, director of curriculum and instruction for the Warren County Joint Vocational Schools; Matthew Dill, superintendent for the Fort Frye Local Schools; Clinton Moore, superintendent for National Trail Local Schools, and interim Springboro Superintendent Gene Lolli, formerly an assistant principal at Springboro High School, survived an executive session Wednesday night by the board.
The board expects to hire a new superintendent within two weeks, said board President Mike Kruse said.
In the meantime, the board will talk with references, conduct follow-up interviews and negotiate a contract with the new superintendent, Kruse said.
Administrators from five states applied for the job to replace 10-year veteran David Baker, who resigned in July to take a part-time job with the Warren County Educational Service Center.
Before Wednesday, the field had been narrowed to eight candidates.
Kruse noted the process is complicated by commitments related to the Nov. 2 election, when districts voters will consider a 6.83 mill emergency levy expected to raise $5.9 million a year for five years. Voters have rejected four consecutive levies for new money, most recently by 111 votes in May 2009.
The board is to meet Friday with a consultant from the Ohio School Boards Association about the next step, including whether to offer the public a chance to meet some of the candidates.
“I’ll know a bit more tomorrow,” Kruse said Thursday.
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