District Holds Education Conversations

Education Talks (Added: July 20, 2009)

Westerville City Schools gives residents a chance to ask about education and the future. (more)

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It's no secret, many Central Ohio school districts are facing tough times these days financially. As districts try to figure out how to stay afloat, one district is going straight to the residents.

By: Tom Brockman | NBC4i.com
Published: July 20, 2009

WESTERVILLE, Ohio -- It's no secret, many Central Ohio school districts are facing tough times and tough decisions.

As districts try to figure out how to stay afloat, one district is going straight to the residents.

Westerville City Schools officials held a "Coffee and Conversation" with residents Monday to discuss where education is headed.

Allison Denijs, a parent of two, brought up a big issue: the state budget and its impending cuts.

"Quite a complicated budget, a lot of concerns and there's still a lot of unknown," she says.

Westerville City Schools Treasurer Scott Gooding says they've been preparing for this and actually presented a 9.9-mill levy proposal to the board of education in January.

"It's not as bad as it could have been," he says. "We had talked in January that we were projecting 10 percent cuts in 2010 and 2011 because we didn't know what was going to happen, so kind of our theme was plan for the worst, hope for the best, and I think that's kind of played out."

Gooding says without additional funding, they face an $18 million deficit by end of the 2011 fiscal year and says a levy in November will likely happen.

The millage is unclear as is what will happen if it fails, but officials hope opening these lines of communication will keep the district headed in the right direction.

"This is not my district. It's not the board of education's district. This district belongs to the community," said Superintendent Daniel Good. "They set the expectations."

District officials will present their recommendations to the board of education Monday night.

For a list of future coffee and conversations where residents can have their say, visit http://www.westerville.k12.oh.us/program_page.aspx?pid=2.

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