Youngstown school board approves measure challenging state law putting CEO in place

YOUNGSTOWN

Youngstown Board of Education approved a resolution of “objection and concern” to challenge the constitutionality of House Bill 70 due to the board’s worry about spending and the five-year financial forecast.

HB 70 puts a CEO in control of a failing school district under the auspices of an academic distress commission.

“We are concerned not about how the district is operated, but concerned about the funding,” said Brenda Kimble, board president.

The five-year forecast assumes that by 2021, without making changes to current spending trends and without approval of a renewal levy, the district will be in a deficit spending of $6.9 million.

CEO Krish Mohip said he thinks the board doesn’t understand the deficit number is more or less a worse-case scenario.

“We should be able to make changes to end up being in fine shape,” he said. “We are not in the red now, and I have no plans of running this district into it.”

At a July 11 meeting, Sanderson presented a similar resolution that would result in the board no longer recognizing Mohip’s authority.

Read more about the situation in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.