Costs can be reduced in several ways.

I suggest you request a copy of the teachers union contract which is available to you courtesy of the ohio sunshine law.

Then I suggest you get a copy of each teachers cost to the district itemizing their salary, benefits and the districts contribution to the teachers STRS.

You should know what each teacher is making to make a proper assessment on where the money is going in the district in reference to salary and benefits.

Once you have the exact numbers, you will no longer have to speculate on such matters. This will either make or break an argument especially if you have the documentation from the district or the ODE.

Make sure you get the same itemized salary, benefits and STRS per Administrator in your district.

Salaries and Wages consume a large portion of the general fund. You also need to check to see the total amount of funds that were expended to substitute pay. That may surpise you.

Teachers with 30+ years are expensive to the district no matter what district you are in.

Teachers with 20+ aren't so bad. New teachers are bringing with them new ideas that have been recently discovered and how bad could it be.

What is your percentage of Salaries to Benefits in the district?

What percentage do the teacher have out of that total amount?

What percentage do the administrators have out of that total amount?

If you look at the organization chart of how the school district is to operate, you find the taxpayer at the top of the list, then the school board, then the Treaurer and Superintendent equally then the Administrators then the teachers.

If the taxpayer is at the top, then you have to come together collectively to let the district know of your concerns.

You can work on doing this the next levy or more of you can attend board meetings or get your neighbors to attend whether they have children in the district or not. It is every property owners taxes paying for the funding of the district and every taxpayer should have concern and listened to and they should not be chastised for their input even though it is different from yours. At times they may seem absurd but sometimes they are the correct solution.

Become a part of your district whether you follow their lead or fight against it.

Good decisions are sometimes made by good leaders. Great Decisions are made by Great Leaders when the whole of mankind contributes to the solution.

You may not like what you hear, you may not like what you see, you may be shunned and sneered at for your thoughts and perspectives. If your desire is to help, encourage and contribute to the endeavour of educating, nurturing and building character in a child, then your presence is needed.

No one said you have to agree with the Administration, The Teacher or the School Board. Without your input or contribution, a quality education will be next to impossible to achieve.

Support your district by attending the meeting regularly, giving your opinion, giving your perspective and doing your reseach.

Stay at it and don't give up. Some things will come to you quickly and some will need many pieces of the puzzle to be assembled to get a clear picture.

It takes a lot, a lot of effort.

Be ready to be surprised at times shocked.

Martin Fleming

I'm not belly aching about 3.5%, the teachers are. Do you understand what is going on with the teacchers? Sounds like you should check into this! The current taxpayers dollars cannot afford for pay raises, unfortunately. The fact is that benefits will continue to increase. With inflation it will even get worse. Additonal funds must come from the citizens in the community. Schools in Ohio run this way and the government will not be stepping in anytime soon, maybe never! Our future generations are being formed by the citizens that are not willing to raise children the way your and my parents had. Parents used to put the children first. Now the job, the new car, and the big house are more important than a few extra dollars for the school to educate children. Values are going downhill in this nation. Public Schools are not business as you think. The expenses will only continue to go up. If you have suggestions of cutting costs go to the Board of Education meetings and make suggestions. The administration that brought the school to this point left 1 1/2 years ago. If teachers with 20 = years leave and new fresh teachers come in costs could be reduced drastically. Those teachers wont be leaving!

Passing a levy is just a band aid fix. There are root problems and just throwing money at it is stupid! If you are asking for community support it is best retrieved by planning, goals and meeting those atributes. It sounds like the current administration doesn't have that skill set and the parents are tired of it. If I was a teacher in this type of situation I would fast track it out of there. Do you blame them? They are being asked to take pay cuts and deal with parents and administration. As far as the retirement issue, if you are belly aching over 3.5% you have some real issues to address. That is minor compared to what the district is facing!

Yes my employer does pay into my retirement. But, I NEED to contribute 10% of my salary as part of the plan. My employer then contributes 14%. My employer is not responsible for my 10% and has never offered to contribute 3.5% of my 10% because they are not responsible for that portion. I think if the teachers would have pushed for salary increases in the past instead of having the 3.5% of their 10% picked up they would not be arguing about their low salaries or possible benefit cut. You are correct in what it takes to attract teachers. Unfortunately, the backing of funds by the community is not there and makes pay increases imppossible. We do have talented staff and their salaries are some of the lowest in the county. So maybe your theory on pay and benefits may be a little misguided. Fortunately for or school we have a group of teachers that have cared about educating and have experienced the rewards of helping children grow. I do believe that income and benefits have to be addressed before the teachers decide to move on. How do you get a community to support a levy for additional funding? I think the community should get there heads out of the sand. They're only going to create a less desireable community to live in. It is hard to run a business without income and expenses out the rear end. What income do public schools have other than taxpayers money. A new levy is necessary for our school system to maintain status quo or improve.

so your employer doesn't have a matching 401k fund? Most employers do... If we are going to attract teachers who are skilled it will take pay and benefits. Otherwise, they will go into other professions that do. I worked in corporate america for years and it is all about the pay and benefits. I now own my own company and I make sure my people are taken care of with pay and benefits. The only way you keep talented staff which helps you succeed is by doing this. If you think otherwise, it is time to take your heads out of the sand!

No matter who has there facts straight we still fund schools in Ohio through tax payers dollars. The community will be representitive of the citizens that live there. If you value children in your community you will support the school system so they can offer the children a good life. My tax money has gone toward the 3.5% of the teachers retirement for years past. This is something that the teachers should have never been given in my opinion. I have a very similar retirement and my employer has never offered to pay 3.5% for me. These are your tax dollars that are going to the teachers and not toward our childrens education.

to whoopie,

who says you have ur facts straight? Sounds like you maybe part of the problem?

Like I said before, people please get your facts straight. Attend board meetings, get accurate information. The administration is more than happy to answer your questions. If you are unhappy with the current school board, take the time to vote in Nov. for new candidates. Make sure you know their positions before you vote. We need to get back to the teachers focusing on teaching our children.

My son attends the elementary, and it saddens me to hear how the teachers are being treated. Admin. needs to put their 4% towards the teachers.

This seems to be what goes around many schools. You have board members who think they know how to run a school and have no experience whatsoever. Schools should be run just like businesses and be held to the same fundamentals as a business. The teachers are an asset of the system and need to be given the same (if not more) respect since they are the work horses that teach our children. The administrators are not looking at the whole picture and making sound decisions based on accruate future forecasts of income and expenses. Just my two cents...