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Per-pupil costs draw campaign criticism
(by Sue Hoffman - October 14, 2009)
Per-pupil costs draw campaign criticism
By SUE HOFFMAN
The Nov. 3 election will include a five-way race for three seats on the Orange School Board. School board members serve four-year terms.
Newcomers are Pippa Carter and Alvin Fulton. Dagmar Fellowes and Stanley Morganstern are finishing their first four-year terms and Samuel Steinhouse was appointed in August 2008 to fill the seat vacated by Vincent Carbone.
Mrs. Carter and Mr. Fulton both addressed the issue of cost per pupil.
"Our district spends almost $20,000 per pupil to achieve a state rating of 'excellent with distinction,'" said Mrs. Carter, a former teacher working as an educational consultant. "The Solon district achieves the same rating and spends half what we do per pupil."
"I want to make sure that the district is run as efficiently and as effectively as possible," said Mr. Fulton, who has over 40 years' experience in education. "Many surrounding districts spend less per student than Orange does but achieve better results. The board should do a thorough analysis of why this is so."
Mrs. Carter also addressed issues involving board meetings and athletics. "Current board meetings are attended by fewer than five people who are not employed by the board." She said the district should broadcast meetings on the school public access channel so that more people can view them. Athletic facilities need to be upgraded, she said.
If elected, Mr. Fulton said he would spend time during the first few months analyzing the basic structure of the district. Using his experience as a parent, educator and community member, he would determine the policies "most appropriate for the maintenance and enhancement" of the district. "All students must be challenged to the highest degree of their potential."
Mr. Steinhouse, an Orange High School alumnus who was selected for his seat from 16 candidates, said he visited the principals at all of the district's schools and central office administrators within his first three months "to get up to speed as quickly as possible."
He also addressed academic excellence and fiscal challenges, a recurring theme among the candidates.
Mr. Steinhouse said his goal for the district is "continuous improvement in how we teach." He said the board's aim is teaching beyond the state tests and providing students with "21st-century skills." His other goal is to "maintain fiscal soundness of our finances." He said the governor's changes in education have negligible impact on the district this year. "We're looking forward," he said. "We're trying to be very judicious on how we spend money before we go back to the voters again."
The board "must maintain the Orange tradition of educational excellence while exercising close financial oversight to assure cost-effective operation of the district," said Mrs. Fellowes, a corporate attorney with Progressive Insurance. "Orange has consistently earned top notch" state-report card ratings, she said.
"To sustain these outstanding programs, we must provide financial means in a time of revenue uncertainty," said Mrs. Fellowes, who was board president in 2007 and 2008. The board extended the operating levy twice from the planned November 2008 date, she said. "A top priority will be to determine the details for our next operating levy and to support its passage."
In addition to providing the best possible education for students, the board's challenge is "to deal with the realities of economics," said Mr. Morganstern, an attorney and current school board president.
"The district is faced with a deficit budget caused by changes in state funding, reappraisal of real estate, declining real estate tax collection rates, lower investment rate of returns and ever increasing costs of providing quality education to students and services to district residents. The issue will be dealt with through continued critical analysis of both income and cost-management opportunities," Mr. Morganstern said.
A six-year resident of Orange, Mrs. Carter previously worked as an attorney for the City of Maple Heights and the Ohio Attorney General's Office. She is vice president of the boosters club, was a mock trial adviser for the high school and member of Orange Patronairs. She has a daughter who just graduated from the high school, a son who is a freshman and a daughter who is a sophomore.
Mr. Fulton, of Pepper Pike, served as principal of Shaw High School in East Cleveland, director of pupil services in Warrensville and associate professor at South Carolina State University. He is an adjunct professor at Cleveland State University.
Mrs. Fellowes lives in Pepper Pike with her husband, Ted, and their three children, all of whom attend or graduated from the Orange schools. She actively volunteers with PTA, Orange Patronaires and the high school swim team parent group. She volunteered on the 2004 Orange schools levy committee.
Mr. Morganstern is managing partner for Morganstern, MacAdams and DeVito Co. and an adjunct professor for the University of Phoenix. He resides in Pepper Pike with his wife, Paulette. Their three children all graduated from Orange High School. He is a past trustee and officer for the Orange Schools Boosters.
Mr. Steinhouse, the president of SPS Partners, and his wife, Susan, live in Moreland Hills and have two sons who graduated in 2002 and 2007 from Orange High School. Mr. Steinhouse has served on the Orange Schools Foundation board since 2005 and was a 2008 inductee into its Hall of Fame.
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