Roer leads school board race
Incumbent Centerville school board members Dr. David Roer and Bradley Evers were winning re-election, and Clara Osterhage was third in a four-way race for three board seats Tuesday.
With 93 percent of the precincts reporting, Roer had 29.34 percent of the vote, Evers had 25.62 percent and Osterhage had 24.72 percent. Erin Reichert had 20.32 percent, according to the Montgomery County Board of Elections.
CENTERVILLE CITY SCHOOLS
Year-end enrollment: 7,837.
State report card indicators met for 2012-13: 24 of 24.
Previous state report card ratings: “Excellent with Distinction” for 2011-12, 2010-11, 2008-9 and 2007-8; “Excellent” for 2009-10.
Administrators’ average salary: $95, 526. (State average $76,037)
Classroom teachers’ average salary: $63,420. (State average: $57,904)
Expenditure per pupil: $11,527.
Revenue per pupil: $10,860.
Source: Ohio Department of Education (FY 2012), Centerville City Schools.
Voters in the Centerville school district, after narrowly rejecting two tax levy proposals in the past year, on Tuesday approved a 5.9-mill, 10-year operating levy, averting threatened cuts to the teaching staff, academic programming, transportation and athletics.
“We’re thrilled,” said Dr. David Roer, the school board president. “Despite this passing, we’re still going to be very conservative with the money. We’re not going to be reinstating a lot of programs, but we’re not going to be cutting programs, either.”
With 100 percent of the precincts reporting, the levy was winning 57 percent to 43 percent.
“It was a great team effort and a great win for the Centerville-Washington Twp. community,” said Superintendent Tom Henderson.
The levy will raise $9.55 million, according to a Montgomery County Auditor’s estimate, and cost the owner of a $100,000 home $206.50 per year. Because of reductions in bond issue costs, district officials say the net cost to the owner of a $100,000 home is less than $13 per month.
Henderson has said the levy was needed to maintain current service levels. The base pay of faculty and staff has been frozen for three years, and since 2009 the district has eliminated more than 75 teaching, administrative and support staff positions.
Officials said had the levy failed the district would have had to cut at least 20 more teachers; eliminate high school busing; reduce advanced placement, honors, career and fine arts programming; and reduce or eliminate athletics and other co-curricular activities.
Roer said no additional cuts are imminent, but he said officials will be monitoring the budget carefully and “we may still possibly have to make some cuts going forward, depending on what the state does” with funding.
The 5.9-mill levy that was voted down 17,189 to 17,029 in November 2012 would have been permanent. That outcome was so close it triggered a mandatory recount. In May, an issue that failed 6,726 to 6,587 was for 6.9 mills. Voters in 20 precincts approved it. Voters in the other 20 rejected it.
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