Coventry Local Board ratifies three-year OPC contract after closed negotiations; residents press treasurer pay and staffing questions

Coventry Local Board of Education members voted to approve a contract between the Ohio Association of Public School Employees (OPC) Local 131 and the district, effective Sept. 1, 2025, through June 30, 2028, concluding closed bargaining the board said had limited public comment during negotiations. The chair announced the motion passed after roll call.

The vote capped a meeting in which the board and the superintendent advanced routine personnel actions and multiple service contracts. Superintendent recommendations included certified and classified personnel changes, a Republic Waste trash contract for $17,456.88 annually, and a short-term contract with Stark County ESC to provide speech services at $90 per hour to fill a long-term absence.

The board heard public comment before the approvals. "It's kind of the same old thing," Amanda, a resident who asked to speak during citizen participation, said. "We never get any answers, and we pay our taxes." Amanda asked why the treasurer received paid sick days and a 3.5% raise while teachers received a 3% raise and why support staff were not notified about a pay decrease she said resulted from a clerical error in the treasurer's office.

Board members described limits on what they could say while bargaining was under way. "We were actively negotiating a new contract with our OPC union and to maintain good-faith negotiations there are many things we cannot discuss until negotiations are finalized," one board member said, adding that legal counsel had advised limiting public comments during talks. After the contract was finalized, the board invited more public discussion.

One trustee detailed the district's recent fiscal history to provide context for the administration's decisions. The trustee said Coventry had exited fiscal emergency and repaid a roughly $3.3 million loan, refinanced legacy debt that it said saved taxpayers $9 million, and currently holds more than $11 million in operational and rainy-day funds. "We've paid off that $3,300,000," the trustee said.

That fiscal defense did not end the public concerns. Several residents questioned the need for a proposed new position in the treasurer's office, saying the district should prioritize classroom staff rather than add administrative roles. A resident who identified themselves as a parent asked whether the district could instead use funds to hire teachers, citing declining enrollment. Board members responded that the new position is designed to address unresolved auxiliary-accounting issues and to help audit, reconcile accounts and reduce workload in the treasurer's office.

Separately, the superintendent said the district will pursue a "bus driver blitz" once a new OPC contract is approved, including consideration of reimbursing or paying licensing and testing costs for new bus drivers (temporary license $30; background check $75; testing-center fees about $150; license $43.50, roughly $300 total) to help recruitment.

The meeting concluded after the board approved the superintendent's recommendations and financial items and after a motion to adjourn received a second and affirmative votes.