The board of education at Barberton City Schools voted this week to send a request to the state to place the district under fiscal oversight, a status known as "fiscal emergency."
Barberton's financial forecast shared with the state this week suggests it could run out of money entirely by the end of the school year, with expenses eating away all of its cash reserves and leaving it $2 million in the red.
Superintendent Jason Ondrus said Friday the district needs the state’s help after it already slashed its budget by $7 million dollars. Budget measures approved earlier this year include 80 job cuts, moving to a pay-to-participate system for sports and pay freezes for administrators.
"We have a very good school district. We are certainly in a tough situation at this point in time, but we're going work our way out of this," he said.
Despite the budget cuts, Barberton's outlook has gone from bad to worse over the last year. Ondrus said the district is in a tough spot because it previously relied on several "inaccurate" financial forecasts. Meanwhile, state funding for the district — which receives 50% of its revenue from state appropriations — has remained relatively flat. Expenses for goods and services have continued to rise for schools across the country, while enrollment has slid due to declining birth rates. Still, he said he was optimistic about the district's outlook under state oversight.
"The board over this past year has worked very closely with the state of Ohio, our employee groups and as well as the Shared Service Alliance out of the ESC (Educational Service Center) of Northeast Ohio. So we are on a pathway, the right pathway. And we're going to do all that we can to work our way out of this," he said.
If the state of fiscal emergency is approved, Ohio will appoint a commission that will have power to make decisions about finances and operations, assuming some of the local school board's powers. That could mean additional significant cuts for the district. But it will also allow the district access to borrow money through a state fund administered by the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce.
Many districts across the state and the country are making cuts, including laying off staff and closing schools amid a tough financial climate for public schools. The state did not fully fund the Fair School Funding Plan in the current two-year budget cycle. The state has also implemented several property tax relief measures that will impact schools' bottom lines.
Some public school advocates like the nonprofit Honesty for Ohio Education are calling for the state to direct its $536 million budget surplus from the last fiscal year toward public schools to avert more cuts.
