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The Canton Repository
Published: Sunday, February 19, 2006

Taxpayers, schools agree: The system is not working
By FELLICIA SMITH
REPOSITORY STAFF WRITER

JACKSON TWP. A school district doesn’t have to be poor, or poorly run, to have financial problems.

In fact, it can be among the wealthiest.

Jackson Local Schools Superintendent Cheryl Haschak says she has streamlined expenses, but if voters don’t approve a 12.7-mill, five-year emergency levy in May, the district will go into debt.

The current emergency levy expires at the end of the year. The new levy would generate $15.5 million annually, almost double the current receipts.

Haschak said asking residents to support another levy isn’t what she wants to do, but because of the way schools are funded in Ohio, it’s the only option.

“The system is not working for anyone,” said William Phillis, executive director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity & Adequacy of School Funding. “With just a quick look at the data, I can see why they (Jackson Local) need to go to the voters and why they think the system is not working for them, and it isn’t.”

In 1997, the Ohio Supreme Court ordered the General Assembly to find an equitable funding method. The court issued the same edict three more times in response to lawsuits filed by the coalition. But little has changed in the central way — local property taxes — that Ohio schools are funded.

Though Jackson Local did not join the coalition to support the lawsuits, “the bottom line, it has gone to the state Supreme Court on several occasions and nothing has changed,” Haschak said.

And now, “to tell you the truth, probably more burden is on the taxpayer,” she added.

WHO pays

Ohio’s schools are funded by local, state and federal governments. The state’s share is based primarily on how much financial support a district can afford to provide itself. As a wealthy district, the state has said Jackson Local must contribute almost 80 percent of its own funding. Those funds come through levies (for operations) and bonds (for construction).

The percentage of money going toward school districts from the state’s wallet is shrinking.

“It’s a national trend,” said Molly Hunter, director of the National Access Network, which promotes better education through research and litigation. “The federal government and states are decreasing their contributions. It’s hard for people in even the affluent areas. People do feel the pinch.”

Phillis said Jackson Local isn’t overspending. He noted that, according to records from the Ohio Department of Education, administrators’ and teachers’ salaries are at the state average, the school’s teacher-to-student ratio is higher than average and the school district’s per-pupil cost is more than $1,000 under the state average.

“I can see where they feel they aren’t getting an equitable shake,” Phillis said.

In May, school districts across the state will ask taxpayers to approve new levies. If none passes, Phillis said, a study by the coalition based on the five-year forecasts schools provide shows the school districts could be $500 million in debt in three years.

“We’re looking for a solution for everyone,” Phillis said. “The state has a responsibility to secure not just an education, but to provide a thorough and equitable funding method.”

SHARING THE COST

Jackson Local Schools’ budget eclipsed $47 million in the 2005 fiscal year. According to the district’s five-year forecast, that will increase to $56 million by 2011.

It’s too high a price for Earl Rodd, who plans to vote “no” for the school district’s emergency levy.

Rodd, a Malone College assistant computer science professor, said the district hasn’t done enough to cut unnecessary expenses before turning to taxpayers.

“It’s poor planning,” he said of the district’s financial crunch. “Rather than setting money aside, they’re spending it.”

Currently, the owner of a $175,000 home in Jackson Township would pay $2,881 in total taxes per year, according to the Stark County auditor’s office. That includes money for police, fire, roads and schools.

Of the total, $1,768 is marked for the school district. If the new emergency levy passes, that homeowner would pay an additional $316 annually.

Dick Arnold, a resident of the township for 44 years, said he backs the levy.

“I hope it passes,” Arnold said. “For what we get, it’s a real bargain.”

But Rodd maintains the school district should be run like a business, cutting jobs if that’s what it takes to get expenses down.

“They need to control costs,” Rodd said.

Treasurer Linda Paris said the school district refinanced two of its bond issues this year to save taxpayers roughly $2 million.

“We’re delivering a good product, a product people want,” Haschak said. “We’re one of the top 25 schools in the state. We’re one of the top 1,000 in the nation. That’s a pretty good product. You can’t do that for nickels and dimes. I wish it was that easy.”

IT HAS TO BE DONE

Haschak has repeatedly said she doesn’t want to burden the taxpayers, but she must.

“They don’t get much state money, and so they have to go back to the local people to survive,” Phillis said.

Haschak said Jackson Local Schools is growing substantially. She expects the district to grow by 1,000 students in the next 10 years.

At the same time, parents expect their children to receive a high-quality education. To meet those standards, Haschak said, local levies are necessary.

“Locally, we have to support ourselves,” Haschak said. “It’s really frustrating that the state doesn’t step up to the plate.”

Rodd said it’s time for school administrators to stop complaining and to find alternatives.

“They can solve it, beginning by attacking expenses and looking at what other schools — charter and private — are doing,” Rodd said. “I know they’re not the same, but they can start looking.”

Since asking for an emergency levy in 1991, Jackson residents have passed one levy every five years.

“Maybe this time it won’t (pass), and it’ll break the camel’s back,” Rodd said.

Despite his displeasure at how the district manages money, Rodd predicted the levy will likely pass.

All around the state

Trying to balance funding “is something a lot of people are dealing with,” said Hunter, who wrote “Trying to Bridge the Gap: Ohio’s Search for an Education Finance Remedy” for the Journal of Education Finance in 2000.

But “I can say history shows people are willing to pay the money for excellent schools.”

Phillis said if local taxpayers want to complain about being asked to approve more levies, they should look to the state’s leaders.

“Their anger should be directed to state representatives,” Phillis said. “The fact is the governor and state leadership — those people collectively — have not fixed the unconstitutional system.”