Schools to cut 13 posts

By Harold Gwin

The cuts affect five central office posts and eight positions in the schools.

YOUNGSTOWN — The Youngstown Board of Education voted to cut 13 administrative posts next school year, but a debate over whether those cuts go deep enough resulted in the board’s delaying the granting of new contracts to 40 other administrators.

The cuts imposed will save the district about $1.1 million in salary and fringe benefit costs and are part of a proposed 140-job, $7.1 million overall reduction plan being proposed by the school administration in the 2008-09 school year.

One school board member, Dominic Modarelli, voiced concerns that the administrative cuts presented for board action Tuesday dealt with lower-level people, not those at the top of the central office.

“I’m not happy with them,” Modarelli said in a personnel committee meeting before the board vote. “I’m looking at central office. I’m looking at the heavy hitters down here.”

Of the 13 position cuts approved by the board, five were central office personnel and eight were site-based people in the schools. As part of this, the board voted to notify four administrators that they won’t be renewed for next school year, and approved the retirements of four others currently filling posts slated to be cut.

Modarelli also said he would support a suggestion made earlier by Michael Murphy, business committee chairman, that top administrators be asked to take a 10 percent pay cut to help the district in its efforts to recover from a $15 million budget deficit last year.

Modarelli took his protest to the regular board meeting, making a motion to table the awarding of renewal contracts to 40 other administrators for next school year, something the state requires school districts to do by the end of March each year.

Modarelli said he wants the superintendent to take a closer look at the cut list to determine if more central office jobs might go.

Three other school board members — Murphy, Lock P. Beachum Sr. and Anthony Catale — supported his motion and the issue was tabled. That list includes both central office and site-based people, including 10 principals and six assistant principals.

Board President Shelley Murray immediately scheduled a special meeting for 4:30 p.m. Thursday to act on the renewals. She and Richard Atkinson and Jacqueline Taylor opposed the tabling motion.

Murray said she didn’t understand why the majority voted to table the issue, pointing out that they’ve had the list of positions — although not with names attached — for three weeks. That should have been sufficient time for board members to voice any concerns, she said.

If the board fails to act by March 31, all of those contracts will automatically roll over to the next school year, according to Dr. Wendy Webb, district superintendent.

The board had 14 cuts recommended by Webb, but pulled one position from the list, voting unanimously not to eliminate the job of Holly Airhart, assistant treasurer, at this time.

Before voting, the board went into executive session to meet with some of those on the reduction list, and Murray, without offering any specifics, said later that the board decided it needs to consult with its attorney in the Airhart case.

gwin@vindy.com