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| | n Special Edition - June 26, 2012 E-News Special Report In November of 2008, we thanked the Columbus community for their support in passing a combination operating levy and bond issue that allowed Columbus City Schools to further our improvement efforts, increase high-quality educational options for our students, and to construct and renovate additional schools. We took your trust in us very seriously and worked hard to reduce budget growth and use the resources you provided us in the most efficient and effective manner possible. At that time we promised the community that we would do everything we could to avoid asking for any additional financial support until 2012. In January, 2012 I brought together a group of knowledgeable, respected, and forward-thinking individuals from throughout the Columbus community to help me determine an appropriate direction with respect to a potential levy request. The group has operated as the Superintendent's "Millage Committee," and members of the group include:
Over the course of the past five months, these committed volunteers met nine times, carefully assessing the District's financial condition, operational plans, academic status and goals, and our capital improvement (school facilities) program. Insightful, thought-provoking, and exciting conversations ensued. And as a result of this robust discussion, I believe we have come to a different place than when we first began the journey together at our first meeting on February 21. Our conversations moved from a "what is needed to improve?" mentality, to a "what can we do to make substantial, transformative improvements?" mentality. Through these intense and motivating discussions, the committee challenged me to bring back to them a plan that will have a lasting, positive impact on the District for years to come. As a result, I came back to the table with a four-component proposal that includes: 1. A CCS Preschool Program serving at least 50% of eligible CCS students ages three to four. National research studies clearly illustrate that children who have a high-quality, educationally-based preschool experience are far more likely to be academically successful in their early-education years. After several years of operating a small number of school-based preschool classes within the District, our data shows that CCS preschool students are performing markedly higher on the National Kindergarten Readiness assessment than their counterparts who are not attending comparable programs. Getting these early learners into a quality program as early possible exponentially increases their success as a maturing learner. The plan would provide for up to four regional centers as well as the expansion of school-based preschool programs (where possible) across the city, to serve approximately 1,500 additional children. 2. Principal Development Leadership Academy The ongoing development of key leadership positions is essential in any organizational improvement model. With school principals being the foundation of our improvement efforts, we want to ensure that they have and develop practices and strategies that result in improvements in student learning, organizational management, and leadership development for a changing environment. Over the course of the past year, CCS has been working with The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business and the John Glen School of Public Policy to develop a leadership academy. Currently there are grant funds available to sustain a small class of 40 principal leaders. By including funding for programs of this nature in our levy request, I see this as incredible opportunity to further enhance our organizational and academic improvement efforts on an indefinite basis. 3. School Improvement Partnership Innovation Funds This unique approach to school improvement seeks to identify exceptional, high-quality, high-achieving schools from throughout central Ohio to partner with CCS schools that are struggling with academic performance issues. The high-performing schools could be from within CCS or from within the charter and non-public school community. High-performing schools would go through a rigorous application process as they seek to partner with low-performing schools to help them identify and address areas for improvement. Funds could be used for expanded services, extra time, mentoring opportunities, etc. 4. Continued Facility (School Building) Upgrades All students need and deserve high-quality learning environments. My recommendation seeks to continue the school construction and renovation program that we began together as a community back in 2002. To date, this effort has invested nearly $592 million in the construction or renovation of 40 schools across the city. By modifying Segment Four of the Facilities Master Plan, we would construct an additional 10 new schools and renovate four additional schools. While this would not satisfy the entire plan, it gets us closer to the goal that we set together more than a decade ago. The exciting news was that the Committee overwhelmingly supported my proposal, and felt that with the implementation of the above plan, we could truly see some of the "transformational improvement" we had hoped to provide through our rigorous review and evaluation process. In mid-June the Millage Committee began to narrow its focus and asked that I develop operating levy and bond issue options by which we could potentially achieve our aforementioned goals. On June 26, I presented the Committee with three options for their consideration: 1. A 7.5 mil combination levy/bond issue that would be placed on the November 2012 ballot, with the collection of the additional taxes beginning in January, 2013. 2. A 7.5 mil combination levy/bond issue that would be placed on the November 2012 ballot, with the collection of the additional taxes beginning in January 2014. 3. A combination levy/bond issue (millage amount to be determined) to be placed on the May 2013 ballot. In the ensuing discussion, the Committee offered overwhelming, unanimous support for pursuing a combination levy/bond issue. In considering the options, the Committee acknowledged the District's exemplary budgeting and fiscal practices which have enabled us to maintain a solid financial position (in the black) through the 2013 school year. Furthermore, believing it would be prudent to develop additional detail regarding our "transformational improvement plan" before going before the voters, the committee chose option three as their preference – to place a combination levy/bond issue on a ballot during the 2013 calendar year. The Committee reaffirmed their support of our direction and agreed to remain seated as a body to assist us in the further development, refinement, and communication of our proposal. On June 26, I presented the Millage Committee's recommendation to the Board of Education. By law, the Board of Education is the only entity entrusted with the decision as to when and how much to seek in a ballot referendum (vote) and they will carefully and thoughtfully consider the Committee's recommendation. No action was taken on this subject at the June 26 meeting. The Board is scheduled to meet again on Monday, July 2 and potentially on Tuesday, July 17 (5:30PM, at the Columbus Education Center, 270 E. State Street, Lower Level Assembly Room) for further discussion and deliberation. A decision as to whether to accept the Committee's recommendation could be acted upon at that time. Because of the dedication and commitment of people such as the members of the Millage Committee, the future for Columbus City Schools is bright. Through this process we have all learned a great deal and have a new, shared vision that will benefit our students for years to come. Please know that I will keep you apprised of the discussions and decisions as we move forward on this and other important issues. Thank you for continued support and encouragement.  Gene T. Harris, Ph.D. Superintendent/CEO Are you receiving a pass-along copy of CCS eNews?
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