2 districts to share schools chiefs Collaboration is cost-cutting move

Rittman’s mayor believes the plan will gain popularity throughout the Ohio.

ORRVILLE, Ohio (AP) — Two school districts in Northeast Ohio will begin sharing a superintendent next week, offering a cost-cutting model for districts throughout the state trying to save money.

Effective Tuesday, Orrville Superintendent Jon Ritchie will take on the additional role as Rittman schools superintendent. The districts, located in a rural corner of Wayne County south of Akron, already share a treasurer.

“This is not a consolidation,” said Ritchie, who is a product of Rittman schools. “We’ll have two budgets, two boards of education, two distinct school districts. We’re just trying to streamline services so we can save some money and give additional services to the kids.”

The deal calls for Orrville to pay 80 percent of Ritchie’s $98,700 annual salary in the first year and Rittman to pick up the other 20 percent. The arrangement calls for that split to evolve to 60-40 over the next five years, with the proportional share reflecting enrollment.

Neither Ritchie nor schools treasurer Mark Dickerhoof received a pay raise as a result of the sharing plan.

Scott Ebright, spokesman for the Ohio School Boards Association in Columbus, said Wednesday there may be a few shared superintendents in small districts in the western U.S., but he knew of no others in Ohio. “I think that’s kind of a unique situation up there,” he said.

Through attrition and reallocation, eight positions in the two districts will be consolidated into six jobs, including Ritchie’s and Dickerhoof’s, Ritchie said. The Rittman superintendent has retired.

Combined first-year savings for the districts could reach $200,000, Ritchie said.

Ritchie, 39, will be directing an Orrville district with about 1,750 pupils and Rittman district with about 1,050.

Ritchie said the Orrville-Rittman collaboration could be expanded as attrition creates more sharing opportunities.

Some Ohio school districts, including Cardinal and Berkshire in Geauga County east of Cleveland, already share a treasurer. Other districts have joint teacher training or special-education services.

“We’re not saying this is a model for everybody,” Ritchie said. “But we have every confidence it will work for us.”

Ohio, with 613 public school districts, has the sixth-highest number of districts in the nation. With an average of fewer than 3,000 pupils per district, the state ranks 29th in the nation for district size.

Rittman Mayor Bill Robertson, who has also served on the town’s school board for 16 years, said that most folks he has talked to are supportive of the effort to save money and that he believes the idea might gain traction across the state.

He said the model the two districts settled on could allow other districts to share services ranging from transportation to data processing.

“I call it a cafeteria model,” he said. “It can take on pieces and parts from other districts.”