Perrysburg district says redistricting savings will restore elementary staff and fund extracurricular access program

Perrysburg Exempted Village staff told the Board of Education on March 5 that money projected to be saved from recent elementary redistricting could be used to restore several school-level positions and activities and to seed a new districtwide fund to keep extracurriculars accessible.

The presentation from district staff said the redistricting option the board approved last month freed an estimated $500,000 to $630,000 and reduced elementary staff by four teachers; those savings are the source of the proposed restorations. “This is being generated by those actions that the board took last month,” said Mr. Hosler, a staff member who presented the financial summary.

District leaders said the first priority for reinvestment is elementary-level supports. The proposal would restore a fourth librarian for the district’s elementary schools, add intervention tutors (17.5-hour positions) focused on reading or math, reinstate safety-patrol coordinators, restore field-trip funding and transportation, and pay stipends for student council, yearbook and other activity coordinators. A slide shown to the board listed the combined cost of junior-high and elementary activity stipends at about $24,000.

At the junior high and high school levels, the district proposed restoring a mix of stipends and clubs — including Pep Band, Power of the Pen, MathCounts and activity coordinator positions — and adding a Wilson reading teacher (50 percent funded from Title I) to support early literacy and dyslexia requirements.

The district also proposed a new Sustain Access Fund, or SAFE, to create a more stable funding model for extracurriculars if booster or parent groups step in to support specific programs. Under the SAFE plan, the district would collect participation fees centrally and accept donor contributions earmarked for the fund; the Schools Foundation would be the first referral for families needing financial aid.

To cover restored freshman sports and theater, the district proposed raising participation fees at the high school. Presentations estimated freshman teams would cost roughly $70,000 annually; with 1,088 athletes districtwide, that calculation produced an additional $64 per participant (bringing the season cost to about $214 per participant from the $150 level the district projected after October reductions). Winter musical participation was estimated at about $9,500 for the program (207 students; roughly $46 per participant) and would be the first activity to have a new fee where none exists today.

Board members asked how permanent the restored positions would be if future levies fail and whether donations would create recurring obligations. “If donations are designated for a specific program and the levy fails, now we’ve collected funds and made commitments from groups to offer programs at a certain way when we may have to make wholesale changes,” Mr. Hosler said. He told the board the SAFE design seeks to provide a predictable district-managed funding stream while preserving a pathway for families who cannot pay to participate.

The board discussed mechanics for administering the SAFE fund and whether increased fees could be mitigated by ticket revenue or other internal offsets; staff said more number-crunching would follow before any final fee action. The proposal as presented would require board approval of new fee levels and any stipend changes.

Why it matters: The board is using one-time and recurring savings from boundary changes to restore student-facing services and activities while creating a mechanism intended to preserve access for low-income families. Board members emphasized the plan is contingent on levy outcomes and on further details from staff about the size and source of the savings.

The district asked for board feedback and signaled it would share the SAFE proposal with booster groups and community stakeholders if the board indicates support.

Ending: Staff did not ask the board to take immediate final action on fees or SAFE at the March 5 meeting; they requested feedback and said they would return with refined numbers and an implementation plan for board approval.