SCHOOLS District to raise ranking

The 90 additional pupils were absorbed with no additional staff.
By MARY R. SMITH
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
McDONALD -- Schools Superintendent Michael Wasser wants to elevate the district to the ranking of & quot;excellent & quot; under the state report card system, which is based on state proficiency tests.
& quot;I think the potential is great, & quot; the superintendent told a crowd of 50 parents at an open forum on the district Monday.
Wasser said the district is planning new course offerings next school year and increased open enrollment, both of which will help the district move up from an & quot;effective & quot; rating, with 18 of 22 state indicators met in the 2002-03 report card, to 21 or 22.
Community interest and parental support of pupils will help boost the district's score, just like Berlin Center's, Lowellville's and South Range's, Wasser said.
Reports at the forum were given by schools treasurer Thomas Radabaugh, high school principal John Larroca and elementary school principal Anthony Russo.
Radabaugh said the district is running out of operating funds and, although school boards usually turn to the community for a tax levy when that happens, the local board did not want to do that.
What worked
Instead, the board tried open enrollment, he said. The district has 94 pupils enrolled in the open enrollment program this year, and Radabaugh said 90 of those bring in revenue for the district. The first 30 pupils replaced the revenue the district needed; the other 60 created additional revenue, he said.
The district estimates revenue has increased $450,000 due to open enrollment. That enabled the purchase of 90 new computers for the high school library to replace outdated computers. The district is also hooking up to the state Internet library.
New textbooks will also be ordered this summer for a readings series for children in grades one to six, to bring the district into compliance with requirements of the & quot;No Child Left Behind & quot; federal initiative.
Radabaugh also noted that the district's staff has absorbed the 90 new pupils with no staffing additions.
& quot;This was not a pot of gold, but it's like a pot of gold for us. There are no guarantees we will have 90 kids next year, so we have to be very careful. Our finances are stable, and the reason is open enrollment," Radabaugh said.
He added that if the state doesn't make any more changes, the district should be OK for the next couple of years.
Larroca said curriculum next year will include new subjects: history of the 21st century, jazz ensemble for grades nine and 10, physical geology and geography, and a technology class to include robotics and 3-D modeling.
The technology class will be for all eighth-graders, and the district has obtained an estimated $80,000 in materials for the course. Five of the 3-D milling machines to be used were given to the district, he said, at a value of $50,000.
A prep class for junior and seniors for the ACT college entrance exam will also be offered, with math and English sessions for nine weeks for both grade levels.