Stow-Munroe Falls board moves to seek five-year levy, adopts state-model AI policy and hears plan to expand gifted services

The Stow-Munroe Falls City School District board voted June 10 to ask voters for roughly $4.735 million a year for five years to replace expiring emergency levy revenue and approved a new artificial-intelligence policy required by the state. The board also heard a detailed presentation from curriculum supervisors on gaps in the district's gifted services and a plan to expand supports for younger students.

The levy motion requests a fixed-sum amount that administration said is equivalent to the revenue the district will lose when a 3.24-mill emergency levy expires later this year. Treasurer Mr. Hammond told trustees the requested revenue would closely replicate current annual collections and that the county auditor would supply the precise millage later. Board members debated whether to pursue a school income tax (which would fluctuate with wages) or the property-based levy; several trustees argued the property-based request preserves near-term service levels for students while giving the district breathing room to continue cost reductions.

"If we ask for the smaller amount, we're going to be back in three years," one trustee said, urging the board to seek the revenue the district currently receives. Another trustee warned the board that asking for new money is politically difficult and noted the differences in how property owners, wage-earners and commercial landlords feel the burden.

On technology policy, the board adopted policy 7540.09 addressing definitions, permitted classroom uses, an AI review committee and student-data protections. The policy follows a model the Ohio Department of Education provided to districts after Senate Bill 29. Trustee Sheen led a lengthy objection, saying the policy would create "checkbox-heavy" bureaucracy and add costs at a time of fiscal strain; Sheen moved to table the policy but the motion failed and the board adopted the policy in a roll-call vote.

Dr. Gold, the district's superintendent, said the policy aligns with the state model and is necessary for legal compliance. "I am not going to put my license on the line that we are not going to adopt this policy," Dr. Gold said, arguing the district must show how it vets third-party vendors and protects student data.

Earlier in the evening, curriculum supervisors Julie Miller and Aisha Cer presented the district's gifted-performance indicators and a service-expansion plan. Miller said the district earned four stars for gifted progress but did not meet the identification-and-services standard, scoring about 65.7% versus an 80% threshold. The presentation identified about 785 students labeled gifted, of whom roughly 587 were receiving formal services, leaving a gap of about 192 students; the large majority of the unserved students (about 147) are in second and third grades.

"We met our goal for gifted progress," Julie Miller said. "That means we were able to grow our gifted kids and make one year's growth in a year's time." She and Aisha explained a pilot begun after Christmas that provided reading services to second graders and reading and math services to third graders and described steps to build in-house capacity by training staff as Gifted Intervention Specialists.

Trustees also approved a list of personnel recommendations and reductions, including the non-renewal of seven curriculum-facilitator supplementals and a plan to use in-house staff for summer curriculum development. The board approved a job description to allow substitute bus-driver trainees to receive CDL training in-house, and approved routine equipment disposals and a contract with K12 Business Consulting for five-year-forecast modeling.

A motion to phase out routine Chromebook use in kindergarten through sixth grade and limit it in 7'12 generated a long debate; trustees agreed on the value of balanced, evidence-based decisions and on continued administrative work to limit home use for the youngest students. The board voted to table two specific policy proposals tied to device-use data for further study.

The meeting recessed into executive session at 9:01 p.m. to discuss the appointment or employment of a public employee; the board said no action would be taken publicly after executive session.

What's next: the board asked administration to confirm technical details with the county auditor for the levy millage conversion and to return with clarified wording (the board requested the resolution be written as a fixed-sum request for $4,735,257 annually for five years). Administrators also were directed to continue work on Chromebook guidelines and to provide additional data for the trustees before further policy action.