Valley educators question how plan would affect their districts

Tax rates and teacher contracts are tough issues that would have to be addressed.
VINDICATOR STAFF REPORT
YOUNGSTOWN -- The president of the Youngstown Board of Education thinks fixing the state funding formula for education should be a priority before any talk about consolidation of school operations.
That doesn't mean the Rev. Michael Write doesn't want to hear what the Regional Chamber is proposing. He said he is willing to talk about consolidation and would urge his fellow board members to do the same.
"I have some concerns," Write said, explaining he's not sure the move would really save significant amounts of money.
Michael Creatore, president of the Austintown Board of Education, said: "In the general sense, it sounds reasonable, but each community is unique and different."
Each district has its own board of education, elected to reflect the wants and needs of that community, Creatore said, adding, "I think each school district wants to keep its identity."
What's in plan
The chamber said districts would retain their own identity under its plan. It said senior administration of districts would be combined, while school districts would remain intact with their own school boards and sports teams.
Creatore said he favors less duplication and believes a county could do with fewer superintendents and treasurers.
"I would definitely like to see what they're talking about," he said, adding that it would be interesting to see if the single school district scenario is working in other areas.
That scenario may not be all that effective elsewhere, said Richard Denamen, superintendent of the Mahoning Valley Educational Service Center.
He pointed out a recent nationwide education report card prepared by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that showed Ohio scored well above other states that have countywide school systems, citing West Virginia, North Carolina and Florida as examples.
Ohio ranked 11th among the 50 states, he said.
Ohio schools were all countywide operations in the early 1900s, but the system evolved into what exists today, Denamen said.
Consolidation is a legislative issue, he said, adding that he doubts anyone can find two local districts willing to do it. The Legislature will have to do it "with a carrot or a stick" approach, Denamen said.
"I guess I have more questions than answers right now," said David Moore, president of the Canfield Board of Education. Each community elects its own board now, he said, questioning how that would be restructured.
Discussion recommended
It's one thing to talk about consolidation, but there are a lot of mechanics that would have to be addressed, Moore said, asking if there is a model the chamber is looking at as an example of what might be done locally.
"There needs to be community discussion on all of this," Moore said.
Edward Bolino, Warren Board of Education president, said he agrees that cutting costs is a good idea, but one has to look at how education will be delivered after those cuts are made.
Each school district has developed a curriculum designed for its specific target groups. Any consolidation would have to preserve the identities of those areas if the system is to work, he said.
Bolino thinks any consolidation plan should exclude the city schools, leaving them as they are. People would likely find the idea more acceptable and it would protect the curriculum of each district, he said.
"There are so many open-ended questions out there," said Anthony D'Ambrosio, superintendent of the Trumbull County Educational Service Center. It would be an extremely complicated process, he said, pointing out several areas of likely contention.
Each school district has its own tax rate, he said, asking if some would get a tax cut while others would have to pay more under a county system.
Other matters
Each district has its own teacher contracts. Would a consolidation mean some would get a raise or some would have to take a pay cut? D'Ambrosio asked.
School consolidation has been talked about for the past 40 years and there was a big push for it in the 1960s and 1970s, he said, adding that a lot of small districts refused to consider it -- preferring to keep their own identities.
That climate apparently hasn't changed.
"I just don't see the political will to do that," he said, pointing out that the state Legislature has actually gone the other way, greatly increasing the number of schools in recent years by creating the charter school system.
Georgia Hopkins of Salem, a former fourth-grade teacher in the Norwalk, Ohio, schools, predicted the plan probably wouldn't work unless the emphasis is on pupils. She suspected the proposal will not go over well.
"What about sports? What will it do to them?" she asked.
Stephen Larcomb, superintendent of Salem Schools, said the plan may save money with fewer superintendents, but there will be increases in spending for staff needed to run large districts.