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E-mail Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2009 > January > 29 > Entry
Dayton schools budget may suddenly look MUCH better
I still have a lot of thoughts about Gov. Ted Strickland’s big education reform plan (see more on his visit to Stivers School for the Arts Thursday here), but it dawned on me today that Dayton schools perpetual financial crisis of the past few years could be greatly eased very soon.
How? Because of four developments:
—Stimulus. This Columbus Dispatch chart estimates Dayton schools will get about $42 million from direct aid to schools that is a part of the federal stimulus just passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.
—State aid. Just a month ago, Ohio was talking about schools taking a 10 percent cut in aid next year to help fill a budget deficit. But the $3.5 billion stimulus the state is slated to receive and cuts in other state departments will help keep school funding stable for the next two years.
—School closings. The rumor that has cropped up on this blog is that at least a couple of schools will close permanently at the end of the school year in Dayton. I’m expecting there will be an announcement about this shortly. There is nothing a school district can do that saves more money than closing a school.
—School levy. Don’t forget that Dayton just began collecting this month on the levy that passed in November. That money has already helped restore some programs that were cut in May, 2007.
What does all this mean? That’s hard to say. But it looks like there is a decent chance Dayton schools can get out of the crisis mode it has been in and possibly begin some degree of rebuilding of the program that, before the 2007 levy defeat, most people in town believed was making at least some progress.
And don’t forget many of the programs Strickland described in the state of the state address would directly help Dayton, such as after school programs for tutoring and enrichment and a longer school day and school year.
So if you’re the optimistic type, this may be a time to look ahead and hope that better days might be around the corner.
Permalink | Comments (3) | Post your comment | Categories: Dayton Public Schools
Comments
By Rick
February 4, 2009 9:42 AM | Link to this
You can pump all the money you want into Dayton but the DPS will continue to fail until they begin to appropriately discipline students. All Disciplinary Expulsions Out of Schoo Other Disci- City Rates suspension plinary actions 50.3 0.8 34.8 14.7 Canton-1 71.2 0 1.7 69.5 Cincinnati-2 135.1 1 62.1 71.9 Columbus-3 13.4 2.7 10.6 0 Dayton-4 34.8 0.4 9 25.5 Kettering-5 30.9 0.1 15.3 15.5 Springfield-6 89.5 1.7 44.3 43.6 Toledo-7 (Scott, I hope my spreadsheet comes out legible.)
By Dee
January 31, 2009 11:53 AM | Link to this
What happened to all the proceeds we are supposed to be getting for our schools from all the lottery tickets sold in this wonderful state we live in. Whose pockets is it filling? Our fellow Ohioans are buying lots of tickets for the pay outs to be so high. So where is all the money really going if not to our schools?
By larry
January 30, 2009 12:39 PM | Link to this
As parent of two DPS graduates who are both succeeding in college and as the spouse of a DPS teacher, my observation is that we will make progress when we commit ourselves to an excellent educational system, not a minimal one. That will require us to not only restore lost funding, but invest in more. Our most effective investment will be in improving early childhood educational readiness. I look forward to seeing more progress in that area.