Schools

Woodridge Braces for Budget Cuts, Possible Levy

Amid teacher contract talks and budget cuts, the school board prepares for an initial vote for a new levy in the spring.

The Woodridge Local Schools board of education tonight will consider placing a levy on the May ballot to stave off an almost $5 million budget deficit projected for the 2013-14 school year.

Board President Cheryl Hoover said she was unsure how large a levy the district administration would request. The board will meet at 7 p.m. tonight in the library at the high school, 4440 Quick Road.

 "Everything's now catching up with us," Hoover said. "We are at that cycle where we need to ask for new money and we also are faced with potential budget cuts from the state of Ohio."

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Hoover expects to see a 15 to 20 percent cut in state funding.

Earlier this month, Superintendent Walter Davis proposed about $800,000 in cuts to the general fund budget for the 2011-2012 school year.

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 The cuts included elimination of one middle school teacher, the at-risk coordinator, a part-time technology specialist and six instructional assistants, while also limiting hours for secretaries, restricting overtime and cutting back on maintenance expenses.

"Every public school district in Ohio goes through these cycles of ups and downs and right now it's just our turn," he said.

With more money going out than coming in, Davis said he wants to keep the cuts as far away from the classroom as possible.

The last time the district passed a new levy was in 2004, when voters approved a 6.8-mill levy, which generates close to $3.1 million annually. The district went to the ballot three times before the measure passed.

The district expects it will need several attempts to pass a new levy and so is getting started now even though the deficit is not expected to happen right away.

"We know we'll have multiple opportunities to get it passed before the bottom falls out," Davis said. "If we're not fortunate enough to get it passed we have to start dismantling what has made us excellent, which none of us want to do."

The district earned an Excellent rating from the Ohio Department of Education in 2010.

In the meantime, the district is in contract negotiations with unions representing the teachers and support staff, who have been working without contracts since July 2009.

"We're getting close to an agreement, but we're not quite there yet, so we have some homework to do," explained Davis. "It all comes down to the economic issues."

Davis said the main focus of talks have been salaries and benefits packages.


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