Tiffin superintendent outlines attendance, curriculum and fiscal priorities ahead of November levy

Tiffin City Schools Superintendent Jerry Nudo briefed Tiffin City Council on the district's priorities, academic changes and finances during the Aug. 4 meeting. Nudo said the district's strategy rests on four pillars: teaching and learning, school culture, graduate success and fiscal responsibility. He said the district is in the third year of a three-year cohort to rewrite district goals and that current goals prioritize raising student attendance and implementing high-quality instruction. "We have to eliminate and minimize barriers for students so they get to school," Nudo said. Why it matters: The district faces projected long-term deficits and is seeking to balance investments in updated curricular materials and extracurricular programs while reducing administrative costs. Nudo said the district is "deficit spending" but has reduced personnel costs through attrition, saving about $650,000 over the last 18 months and projecting another $350,000 in savings this year by not filling certain administrative roles. He said those savings are intended to preserve classroom resources and student programming. Curriculum and instruction: Nudo told council the district has replaced K-8 English/language arts and math materials and plans a six-year cycle to review all curricular resources. He said the district was tasked by the Department of Education and Workforce to implement the science of reading and emphasized explicit, direct instruction with frequent assessment. Attendance and supports: Nudo said the district finished the prior year with a 93.3 percent attendance rate, up 0.3 percentage points, and that the district's goal is 95 percent. He cited post-pandemic return-to-school issues, transitory and homeless student populations, and social-emotional barriers among students as attendance challenges. Facilities and funding timeline: Nudo outlined several local funding items: an operating levy on the November ballot to raise new revenue, a possible permanent-improvement (PI) renewal in 2027 to sustain existing improvements, and in 2029 a potential facility project focused on K-5 elementary capacity. He said the Ohio Facilities Commission awards greater funding for districts that consolidate buildings. Following the presentation, council members asked about the durability of savings from attrition and the district's plans to avoid placing added burdens on remaining staff. Nudo said most attrition savings came from high-level administrative positions and that the district is "pretty much at the point where any decision we make moving forward could impact our students and our staff." He invited residents to review the district's one-plan and to contact the administration with questions. (Ending) Nudo said the district's PowerPoint will be posted on the district website and encouraged residents to reach out to the administration for details; no council action was requested on school business during the session.