ASHLAND — Ashland area school districts will lose more than a combined $1.3 million in state funding in the next two months after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine cut more than $300 million in K-12 state foundation aid from the fiscal year 2020.
School districts across Ashland County saw state funding cut by between $180 and $225 per pupil, which in most local districts equates to $180,000 to $200,000 in cuts, according to data released last week from the Ohio Office of Budget and Management.
State cuts were made based on property wealth within school districts, meaning districts with lower property wealth would see their funding cut less on a per-pupil basis.
For the county’s largest district, the reductions are comparatively low per pupil when considered against other local districts. The Ashland City School District will lose $192 per pupil, but the total reduction adds up to $611,590 — the highest by far in Ashland County.
“The governor had been hinting at this for awhile, so I did some quick math, and I thought we’d be cut about $600,000. I was about $12,000 off,” said Ashland City School District Superintendent Doug Marrah. “We had hoped for a longer period to make the cuts, not just two months, but I wouldn’t say I’m surprised.
“It make things tight, but we’ll be okay. We just have to prepare and be aware.”
Other local superintendents said they had also predicted pandemic-related cuts. The only element of surprise for some was how soon the cuts came. The cuts were made within the fiscal year 2020, allowing a mere two months for districts to reduce their own budgets.
Hillsdale School District treasurer Rick Blahnik had been readying for substantial cuts to the 2021 fiscal year’s budget when news of 2020 cuts was announced. He adapted his plans and updated the school’s five-year forecast accordingly.
“Our focus is on tightening things up and trying to forecast ahead. Things won’t get better overnight,” Blahnik said. “But eventually, they will get better, and the district is in a good place for that. If next year gets more dire than we’re anticipating, we have the reserves that we’ll be okay. We can’t obviously can’t rely on that forever, but it’s there.”
His revised five-year forecast predicts cuts across the board — not only in state funding.
“It could impact everything, so we’re anticipating a significant decrease next year,” Blahnik said. “The next two years, things will be fairly tight due to the lack of revenue, but after that, I hope to see the economy recovery.
“We’ll have to tighten things up. We haven’t been loosy, goosy anyways, but we need to make sure we’re being good stewards.”
Hillsdale Local Schools lost $225 per pupil, for a total reduction of $185,747.
“Anytime you lose revenue, you lose opportunities for kids. That’s what’s hard, but the district here isn’t too dependent on state funding,” said Hillsdale Superintendent Steve Dickerson. “We’re only about 30 percent state-funded. That doesn’t help us out generally, but right now, it puts us in a better place.”
The district is amid construction planning for a new K-12 school building, work that will continue, according to Dickerson.
“It’s really not affected. We’re looking to build strictly on the funds the (Rover) Pipeline (provided), and it’s a talk that has nothing to do with the price of gas. It’s about the construction of that pipeline, and we know what that bottom dollar is there.”
In December 2019, the company with approximately 20 miles of duel pipeline and a natural gas compressor station in Hillsdale Local School District appealed the Ohio Department of Taxation’s valuation of tax dollars owed to school districts. The company asked for a uniform 50 percent reduction across the state to its 2019 tax assessment.
For planning purposes, Hillsdale is now using the pipeline’s requested taxation dollars, but the dispute remains unsettled.
Currently, the project is in the design and development phase. Dickerson still hopes to break ground next fall.
Mapleton Local School District will lose $203 per pupil for a total reduction of $183,324.
“Obviously, the announced state budget cuts for education is going to greatly impact the Mapleton Local School District,” said Mapleton Superintendent Scott Smith. “We, like all districts across the state, are also anticipating additional state funding cuts for fiscal year 2021.
“Our administrative team has been working on many different scenarios for the past four to five weeks to address potential state funding cuts and to address the start of the 2020-2021 school year. We are considering multiple scenarios because of the fluid nature of the situation and the decisions that come out of Columbus.”
In Loudonville-Perrysville School District, cuts in state funding were $203 per pupil or $201,017 total, and in Crestview Local School District, cuts were $180 per pupil or $204,943 total.
