Frequently Asked Questions

What is the issue on the ballot?

A RENEWAL LEVY that will NOT raise taxes.

On Nov. 3rd, the Marysville Exempted Village School District (MEVSD) will have a Renewal Levy on the ballot. This Levy will not raise taxes. This Renewal Levy was first put on the ballot in 1989 and the community has passed it 3 times since then (1994, 1999, 2004).

When this levy originally passed in 1989 it was for 6.56 mills. This is how the renewal will once again be on the ballot. However, due to state law, which reduces the levy rate of collection, it will be collected at only 3.02 mills. This levy is currently collected at approximately $8.00 per month for a $10

If the District is looking at all expenses then why do the lights at East seem to always be on?Some hallway lights are on at East at recommended by Fire/Police for emergency purposes and the District's liability insurance company to discourage break-ins.

I heard that the cafeteria made money this year. I'm a little annoyed that they are making money. Is this just another way for the District to make money?

Last year the cafeteria was in the black for the first time in several years but only by a little. They don't try to make a lot of money but they need to break even so that the District does not have to support the lunch program. It is not a "cash cow" but if they don't break even the District has to take money from the general fund to support the program and every dollar that comes from the general fund is tax money.

Put another way, they actually must make money or break even because they are an "Enterprise" fund as determined by the State. They must make enough to sustain themselves like any other business or a District should close them up and let the kids brown bag it. That's always an option.

Are there other things that affected the District's budget in a negative way?

For example, State budget cuts, the pay out to Honda?Negative impacts on the district budget are primarily things like folks not paying their taxes, State cut backs, loss of the Tangible Property Tax, limited growth of the state funding formula and cost increases of paper/fuel/utilities, etc.

North Union offers a full day all day kindergarten program. Why does the MEVSD charge for theirs?

North Union qualifies for poverty based assistance as a district so that qualifies them to get funding for all day kindergarten. The Marysville community does not, so the schools don't qualify. Basically, income is too high here.

While I congratulate the District on their Excellent rating, I would like to know what they are going to do about the scores in the two areas in which they did not meet the State standard.

The areas are 5th grade and 8th grade Social Studies. The District scored in 5th a 69.4, the state average was 61.6; in 8th, the District scored 59, the state average was 51.1. These tests have been reviewed by the State for a couple years and they have decided to throw out the tests currently given because they do not match the curriculum very closely. When the state consistently sees very low scores in an area and sees districts that consistently score much higher in all areas, they know there is a problem and it causes the review of the tests and the curriculum. After this review, they will be getting rid of the tests that have been used.The district, however, is still internally reviewing those areas closely because there is a range in scores within the district. They will review and determine what changes need to be made internally in order to improve performance in Social Studies.

Where can I see specific budget information?

There is budget information athttp://www.marysville.k12.oh.us/site/departments/treasurer/

How many students go to Marysville Schools?

The numbers fluctuate, but there are approximately 5220 students in Marysville Schools.

Does the District know how much it will grow this year? 

The district continues to watch the growth of Marysville, not only new homes but the number of rentals that are available. It appears that rentals are where there is the most growth. It appears the District is up in enrollment but it is hard to tell just by how many students because they are still trying to track down people who have not inrormed the District if they moved or not. It appears the District has grown by about 50 students this year.

When does the District expect to reopen East and the old Middle School?

The district continues to monitor when the old Middle School and east will come back on line. At this point they are not sure if the community really wants that to happen because when they do reopen,more expense will be incurred: Principals for each building, office staff and custodial staff for each, a few more teachers, etc. At the moment the District is in "hunker down" mode, trying to avoid those costs. With that said, the buildings will be used as growth returns to Marysville. The Middle School will be needed first because Bunsold isgetting full (but designed for some flexibility to accommodate growth), with East returning to use later. It really depends on growth within the community as to when this will happen, but it is good that these buildings will be ready when they are needed.

WithEast especially, the District is examining uses for that building if it is not needed as an elementary school for a few more years. For instance, it could bea great location for an alternative all-day kindergarten program and an all-day preschool. The District is looking at that need. This is one area which may make sense to best serve the community, though the district is looking at other ideas such as adult educatiionn or serving an expanded High School need for alternativeprograms.

Since property reevaluations were just completed, shouldn't the schools be receiving more money?

Originally Posted by http://www.marysville.k12.oh.us/site/about/levy/

Each millage value goes through a reduction each year to adjust for rising home values. The credit comes as a result of House Bill 920, passed by the Ohio legislature and in effect since 1976, effectively freezing all voted dollars at the dollar amount collected the first year it went into effect. In essence, as your personal property value grows, the actual dollars collected by that levy are sustained at the original level, therefore the millage actually collected is lower. If you were scheduled to pay $100 per year for the levy when it originally passed, you only pay $100 as long as the levy remains on the books as it's renewed.

Do our administrators get paid too much?

The Board of Education does salary comparisons on a regular basis. The salaries in our district are lower than most in Central Ohio. Our website gives a host of comparisons, for both teacher salaries and administrative costs.

What does the pay-to-participate fee cover and what is done with "leftover" money?

The fee covers part of the salaries of the advisors/coaches. The district continues to fund the remainder. For example, the high school band program supplemental salaries equal approximately $30,000. With 165 students in marching band, that generates $24,750 through pay-to-participates. There are others costs associated with the marching band, in addition to salaries and transportation (that is passed on to the students) that are still not covered in the $30,000. Remember that the number of advisors/coaches is proportionate to the number of participants, so as the income from pay-to-participate fees increase, the number of leaders increases proportionately, so there is no left over money.

Why can't volunteers drive the kids to events in order to save on the transportation fees?

LEGAL AND INSURANCE PERSPECTIVES ON ALLOWING VOLUNTEERS TO TRANSPORT STUDENTS

From the District's Attorneys:

The legal opinion received was that the district would be at "risk" of legal actions if the district did not properly monitor and control how students were transported to events. The attorneys said the length of trip made no difference, proper safety and care was required if the event was school sponsored. The current practice in place put the district and community at the "least" legal risk. So great was the risk of allowing students or parents to drive to events that the legal advisors said "cancel any trip instead of compromising the district's legal responsibility and overall safety of the students". The district has a legal responsibility which can not be "given away" to others even if the cost is less. Less cost does not equal legal, responsible actions.

From the District's Insurance Provider:

Allowing "private" transportation of athletic teams and band members to school sponsored events is a practice that for many reasons should be discouraged. In addition to several auto issues - vehicle maintenance, driver training, lack of coverage under personal auto policies, and the possible need for advanced driver licenses due to the public livery aspect, there is a serious question of sexual misconduct exposures and whether the school ran criminal background checks on these "volunteer" drivers. The school runs the risk of being sued for inadequately discharging its duties through a lack of checks that are typical to a school-owned vehicle (bus) and school-employed driver.

Even with parental waivers, situations could easily arise where we had a parent who was busy and delegated the driving task to another party (neighbor/relative/friend), who maybe unknown to the parent, was impaired or uninsured. It is difficult to screen parents let alone the possibility that they could further delegate the task.

You probably should ask the school's attorney check for an intra-family exclusion for auto liability in Ohio. Our concern is even with such an exclusion, an injured child might conceivably still sue the school, alleging that the school improperly delegated its duty to transport the child to individual(s) who, for example, had an inadequate vehicle (e.g., bald tires on a wet or snowy day). Even if we are able to prevail in a summary judgment or at trial, we would still likely incur the cost of defense expense if the school were named in litigation. In addition, there could be limited or no coverage under our policy for the "private/volunteer" drivers themselves in the event of an accident on the way to an event, making their personal auto insurance the sole remedy and putting their assets at risk. Coverage is dependent upon the individual facts of each claim.

It sounds as though the school is taking the preferred position in my opinion. As unpopular as it may be, the increased "pay to play charges" to cover transportation in school operated vehicles seems to expose the school and its students to the least risk.

Why does it seem like we're always on the ballot?

Marysville has several 5 year renewable levies on the books. Those levies are "up for vote" every 5 years. We also have approved some bond issues in recent years. With the combination of bonds and operating levies, and our inability to pass this most recent levy, it may seem as though we are on the ballot frequently. Marysville has a history of defeating permanent levies, which would prevent us from going back to the voters every five years.There are 49.36 total voted mills in the district (bond, operating, & permanent improvement).

Of those are 39.16 are voted operating mills (18.7 mill passed in 1968 - continuing, 6.56 mills passed in 1989 (renewed 3 times), 8.9 mills passed in 1993 (renewed twice), and 5.00 mills passed in 2003 (expiring this year).

What's the big deal having large class sizes?

 I had 30 students in my elementary class.Schools are vastly different today than when we were in school. State testing of all children has created a greater need for documentation and assessment that require more time. Students also come to school from different types of homes than when we were in school. Many are from single parent homes, many with both parents working, many with other "issues" that didn't exist when we were in school, often with little or no support from home. Lastly, all children have access to public school education, meaning more diversity among students in a classroom. Teachers are moving every child forward within a year, including the child identified as gifted, as well, as the child identified with learning disabilities. When we were in school, children with extreme needs were educated in separate classrooms and often separate schools from other children.

What about the money from the State Lottery? Doesn't the District get money from that?

State lottery income goes into the state educational budget. But for every lottery dollar going into the education budget, the state takes a dollar out of the budget to move somewhere else. That was not the way it was originally designed, but that is the way it works now. Lottery income just supplants dollars.