Austintown schools looking at cutting open enrollment, reviews report card results

AUSTINTOWN

The school board will “more than likely” move to reduce the number of open enrollment students it accepts, board President Kathy Mock told The Vindicator.

Her comments followed a board meeting Wednesday night at which open enrollment was discussed during public comment.

“We do hear the comments and the concerns community members have made over the last few weeks,” Mock told those in attendance. “We’re reviewing policies.”

“We’re doing our due diligence and we are going to be getting back to the community to make things more transparent,” Mock said. She expects the board will have something to present in January.

The district currently has 773 open enrollment students, Mock said. Total district enrollment is about 5,000 students.

“We’re looking at not just the numbers, but the financial impact, because with monies that come in from open enrollment we’re allowed to offer programming and resources for our students in the district,” she explained.

A recent performance audit of the district by the state auditor’s office found that the district lost money last year due to open enrollment, and could save more than $766,000 by reducing open-enrollment admission to 125 students and realigning staff.

Representatives of the Mahoning County Educational Service Center also gave a presentation on the district’s 2016 state report card results.

Read more about the matters in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.