APS officials bracing for heavy cuts
Board plans for levy in November
By Jeff Gorman and
Kathleen Collins
DOWNTOWN AKRON — In the wake of the defeat of the Akron Public Schools (APS) District’s 7.9-mill operating levy in the May 2 Primary Election, the Akron Board of Education acknowledged the need for program cuts at the May 8 board meeting.
According to Board President the Rev. Dr. Curtis Walker, between $10 million and $15 million in cuts will have to be made. Walker said they will be included in an updated budget that is due to the state in June. He said the cuts will be implemented for the 2006-07 school year.
A special board meeting to discuss the cuts is scheduled for May 15 at 4 p.m. The meeting will be open to the public.
“The results of the
election will affect us greatly,”
said Walker. “It’s not a very good time
for kids in public education, particularly in Akron,
but it’s not isolated to Akron, Canton or Ohio.
This is a national problem.”
The levy would have generated
approximately $23 million a year. Voters turned down
a smaller, 5.9-mill levy this past November.
In the past four years, the district
has cut $30 million from the budget, including 400 jobs.
APS officials estimate the district
will be facing a $40 million deficit at the end of fiscal
year 2008.
If the APS does not make the
needed cuts to balance the budget, Walker said the district
would be placed in the state’s fiscal emergency
category, which means the state will balance the budget.
“We have to make a few
difficult decisions that may not be received well,”
he added. “We, as a board, work extremely hard,
and whatever decisions
we make will be in the best interest of the community.”
Before the election, the school
board warned that if the levy failed, they might have
to eliminate or make reductions in areas that are above
the state’s minimum requirements. The cuts could
include: personnel from all areas; career education
programs; foreign language (Japanese and Chinese at
middle schools); new textbooks; high school visual and
performing arts programs; sports; library programs;
Advanced Placement classes at high schools; elementary
art and music; math and English intervention classes
at middle and high schools; math, English, science and
social studies electives at high
schools; and extracurricular activities. With those
cuts, the estimated savings would be between $6 million
and $9 million, according to APS officials.
Close to 100 students, parents,
staff and members of the Akron Association of Classified
Personnel attended the meeting, with some addressing
the board. The Akron Association of Classified Personnel,
a secretarial union, has been unable to negotiate a
contract with the district. They picketed along North
Broadway near the Administration Building before the
meeting.
Mike Forfia, a sophomore at Firestone
High School, said he plays music for money and manages
to keep his grades up.
“We need to ask ourselves,
‘Is artistic education valued as a part of the
core curriculum?’” he said. “Music
should not be on a list of things that are optional.”
“Don’t let frustration
allow apathy to set in,” said Firestone parent
Linda Laughlin-Williams. “Keep heart, and don’t
give up.”
Walker said the board will put
another levy on the November General Election ballot.
He said the board and district officials haven’t
decided on an amount yet. The Summit County Board of
Elections filing deadline for issues to be placed on
the November ballot is Aug. 24.
The school board also called
attention to the state’s method of funding
public schools, which has been
ruled unconstitutional in court.
“We need to take our passion
to the state legislature, the governor or anyone who
wants to look for other ways to fund education in Ohio,”
Walker said.
School board member Linda Omobien
said supporters of the Akron schools should hold the
state legislature accountable for the funding situation.
“We need to talk about
the legislators who have a record of not supporting
public education,” she said, “and supporting
charter schools, which take resources away from us.
Let’s talk about who voted for what and let the
voters make their decisions.”
School board member Linda
Kersker agreed.
“We need to change the
legislature, get a new governor and get it right,”
she said. “Still, I’m optimistic that we
will pass a levy. It’s not over until it’s
over.”
In other news, the school board
introduced Julie Mann as the new executive director
of secondary education. In June, she will replace Fred
Schuett, who is retiring after a 37-year career.
Before the meeting, the Joint
Board of Review met to deal with the school reconstruction
project.
The joint board approved three
contracts for the Betty Jane Community Learning Center.
The contracts are with Cardinal Environmental Services
of Barberton ($18,700 for asbestos abatement), Eslich
Wrecking Co. of Louisville, Ohio ($94,000 for demolition),
and Jones & Associates Excavation of Akron ($20,000
for utility work).
The next regular meeting is scheduled
for May 22 at 5:30 p.m. Both the May 15 special meeting
and the May 22 regular meeting will take place at the
Administration Building, 70 N. Broadway.
|
