Centerville Board of Education President Allison Durnbaugh and Superintendent Jon Wesney said they credited the levy win to the volunteers who worked to inform the community about this particular levy, about how school funding works in Ohio and about the district’s strategic plan.
“We really had a lot of a lot of boots on the ground, as far as our volunteers, our citizens committee out there, really trying to offset a lot of the misinformation, to fill in the gaps, so to speak,” Durnbaugh told this news outlet.
Centerville school district voters had rejected the two previous tax levy requests — shooting down a larger levy by a 57-43 ratio in November 2023 and nixing a smaller tax by a 53-47 ratio in March. Levy opponents had suggested the district asks for local taxes too often, and pointed to comparatively high pay for district employees.
After the previous levy rejections, Centerville cut some budgeted expenses, including cutting staff positions through a mix of layoffs and not replacing employees who left the district. It also approved a new two-year contract with teachers, limiting them to a one-time stipend and small adjustments, with no base salary raise those two years.
Centerville City Schools leaders in September said they would implement another round of budget reductions if voters had rejected the Nov. 5 levy. The list of proposed cuts ran the gamut from staffing to busing and arts to school safety officers, with class sizes increasing.
Durnbaugh said the additional revenue raised by this levy strengthens Centerville’s financial position for the next five or six years. She said the district’s need for levy funding was not about mismanagement of funds or a lack of future focus.
“It’s about this is the situation that we are in because of the way schools are funded, and we need the community support to continue,” Durnbaugh said.
District spokeswoman Sarah Swan said the new levy funding will preserve the supports, services and programs the district has in place now.
“The additional funding allows us to maintain our current operations, keep up with inflation and also gives us the flexibility to look at future programs that could be necessary based on students’ needs,” Swan said.
Wesney said district officials are excited to keep moving ahead with “a forward-thinking and fiscally responsible plan.”
“We appreciate the community support in providing these funds to help us continue to provide comprehensive supports, services, and programming, pursue further implementation of the strategic plan, and keep up with rising costs related to our day-to-day operating expenses,” Wesney said. “We’re focused on creating a supportive environment that helps us respond to the needs of each learner, and we will continue to include our community as we plan for the future.”
Durnbaugh said now that the levy has been approved, the biggest thing the district can do is to look past it.
“This has been sort of looming over us for so long as far as getting in, securing future funding,’ she said. “It isn’t anything exciting or extravagant. It’s getting back to the day-to-day business of running the school district, doing what’s best for our students and doing what’s best for our community at large.”
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