Mohip halts funding for Youngstown school board appeals of Youngstown Plan

YOUNGSTOWN

Youngstown Board of Education will not make another appeal of House Bill 70 on the district’s dime, says school district CEO Krish Mohip.

Mohip said today he will not approve the funding for another appeal.

HB 70, commonly referred to as the Youngstown Plan, was signed into law by Gov. John Kasich in July 2015. It enabled a state-appointed academic distress commission to hire a CEO to lead the district. The bill gives Mohip complete operational, managerial and instructional control. He refers to the elected school board as an advisory board.

Since July 2015, the district has paid Roth, Blair, Roberts, Strasfeld and Lodge $323,363. That amount includes spending before Mohip’s arrival in the district. Of that, the district paid the same firm about $70,000 in fiscal year 2017. The spending cannot be broken down by case; therefore, it cannot be determined how much money went specifically to fighting HB 70, said district spokeswoman Denise Dick.

Mohip’s edict to stop legal funds to the school board comes after Franklin County Common Pleas Court’s denial of a board appeal Oct. 11. The appeal was about the denial of an injunction to stop HB 70.

Other parties to the original injunction include the Ohio Education Association, Youngstown Education Association, city schools teacher Jane Haggerty, AFSCME Ohio Council 8 and the AFL-CIO.

School board President Brenda Kimble already has said the board of education would file another appeal.

Mohip, however, signed a resolution Friday halting district funding of these types of lawsuits, or any legal services that will “hinder the success of” his strategic plan for the district.

If the school board wants to continue to be a part of an appeal, it will need another source of funding, not from the district itself.

Read more about the matter in Saturday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.