Letter: Maintaining good, quality schools depends on all of us

 

To the Editor:

I can't be as pessimistic as board member Marc Schare, whose attributed statement that the Worthington City School District is about to "fall off a cliff" has sparked controversy. However, the future for education in Ohio -- and therefore in Worthington, too -- is certainly less than bright.

Schare is right in that serious challenges present themselves to the district. He is equally right in pointing out that, since salaries and benefits are the largest (by far) expenditures of the district, no real savings can be achieved without looking at those expenditures.

I also believe that board member Charlie Wilson, who described the reality of Worthington's salary schedule in relation to those of competing districts, was echoing Woody Hayes' reportedly saying, "You win with people." This is true for any organization, especially one that is so people-dependent as a school district.

Although I do not wish to pass judgment on the issues relating to the Perry to McCord transfer, it seems to me that all board members are right when they point out that all options have to be considered when trying to preserve and improve the educational program within the economic and other constraints. Among the constraints mentioned by Schare is that some parents will always object to this or that strategic move.

Finally, listening to the audio file of the last board meeting, I found that it was left to board member David Bressman to mention the 500-pound gorilla in the room: the dismal fiscal situation of Ohio. A projected deficit of $7-8 billion can't but negatively affect the state's contribution to education. Couple that deficit with the elimination of the tangible property tax that supplied the district with a large part of its income, and the outcome becomes evident. Because of the national recession and poor economic growth in Ohio, the commercial activities tax, which supposedly was to replace the repealed tax, came in at a much lower rate than projected.

Wilson is right when he says that, for all our sakes, we should be interested in keeping the Worthington school district a "District of Choice." A district where young parents want to move for the education of their children, a district where those of us whose children are gone choose to stay, and finally, a district where good teachers, both young and experienced, choose to come to work. It will not be easy and it will take all of us to make it happen.

Abramo Ottolenghi