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Federal funds allowing district to reverse some reductions



Also, board OKs contract extensions for three principals

LAKEMORE — Springfield Local Schools will use a one-time funding influx to save some positions and programs originally slated to be eliminated for the 2021-22 school year due to financial difficulties.
At the March 16 Springfield Local Schools Board of Education meeting, Business Manager Dustin Boswell presented an amended recovery plan, outlining how Springfield Schools will use $1.8 million in federal aid being received to combat the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the district.
“We are getting a temporary reprieve and are using it the best we can for our students to provide them with the best possible education experience,” said Board President Neal Hess.
With a federal reimbursement — provided through the COVID-19 relief bill signed Dec. 27, 2020 — the district will maintain current busing, as opposed to going to state minimum transportation, and retain two music teachers, two art teachers, two technology teachers, a physical education teacher and language teacher, he said.
Additionally, the money will allow the district to offer combined junior high sports, with a pay-to-play fee, and use a portion of the funding to address the learning gap that occurred during the pandemic, said Boswell.
“The funding is timely, but it does not solve our financial situation. It maintains services we otherwise would not have been able to maintain,” he said. “This is great news, but there still were a lot of reductions made and will be made. The district still is in a dire situation.”
In response to a looming deficit of about $4 million, the district began implementing reductions in 2020, significantly decreasing district staffing, and attempted to secure new operating money for the first time in 20 years to fund increased expenses.
Voters failed to approve two attempts to pass a new levy to provide about $3 million annually in additional operating funds.
Despite future planned reductions, including the closure of Young Elementary School at the end of the current school year, district officials say more revenue is needed to keep the district fiscally afloat.
In January, the board approved placing a 0.75-percent traditional income tax issue on the May 4 Primary/Special Election ballot. The income tax would raise about $2.72 million annually when fully collected after April 2023, Treasurer Chris Adams has said.
“I have to stress the income tax is still critical to the long-term health of the district,” Boswell said at the meeting. “We still will be losing a lot without the passage of the income tax.”
If the income tax is approved by voters, the district will eventually be able to bring back an English teacher, a social studies teacher and a math teacher at Springfield High School and Junior High; two physical education teachers, a music teacher, an art teacher, the family and consumer science program and an extended athletic program district wide; and reduce the pay-to-play athletic fee, said Boswell.
The district continues to closely monitor all expenses, justifying every purchase made to keep costs down, Adams said.
Following the meeting, Boswell confirmed the district has “not heard anything at this time” regarding the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, including how much additional financial aid the district could receive from the federal government.
At the meeting, the board unanimously approved a three-year administrative contract for Spring Hill Elementary School Principal Jennifer Ganzer, Springfield High School and Junior High Principal Shaun Morgan and Schrop Intermediate School Principal Lisa Vardon, and a three-year contract for maintenance supervisor Michael Smith.
Hess said the contracts are continuations of their existing contracts and do not include raises.
It is important to keep the current administrators in place for the good of the district, he said.
The board also approved a lease agreement with Education Alternatives from March 1 through June 30, 2023, for $7,000 per month, for the district’s property located at 2141 Pickle Road.
The board additionally accepted financial contributions to fund the Life Unleashed Leadership Program, with the district receiving $500 donations from attorney Dean Young, Forever Fitness 24 LLC, John Frola and Mock Property Services; a $900 donation from Lababidi Inc.; and a $100 donation from Justice Co. LLC.
At the start of the meeting, Director of Curriculum Mary Meadows discussed the schedule the district will follow to safely administer the 2020-21 state assessments to students in-person, bringing in the current remote students to take the tests on days the current in-person students will learn remotely. She said the district building principals will provide parents with testing information soon.
Those with questions concerning the district’s income tax issue can discuss them with some board members March 22 from 6 to 7 p.m. in the cafeteria at Springfield High School and Junior High, 1880 Canton Road.
The board will hold a school income tax presentation and community discussion March 30 at 6 p.m. in the cafeteria at Springfield High School and Junior High and a regular meeting April 20 at 6 p.m. at the same location.