Goshen Local School District remains committed to providing an EXCELLENT education at an affordable price for taxpayers and their children. Due to the current economic conditions and the reduction of funding from the state and federal governments, the Goshen Board of Education voted in April to implement a plan to reduce the operating budget of the Goshen Local School District for the 2011-12 school year by $679,248.
The proof is in the numbers: Of the 11 school districts in Clermont County, Goshen Local Schools has the lowest residential full tax rates of all. Along with that, GLSD examines our budget on a daily basis to make sure all possible steps have been taken to carry a balanced budget. In total, actual planned expenditure reductions for the school year 2011-2012 exceed $1,000,000. Here are some of the proactive steps taken as we plan for the future:
- The Goshen Board of Education unanimously approved a two-year contract extension with our teacher association (GEA), our support staff (GEA-SSP) and our administrators, which includes a zero percent increase to the base salary during 2012-2015 school years and frozen steps during the 2014 and 2015 school years. These new contracts will allow the district to avoid approximately $1, 457, 514 in potential wage increase costs over the next 4 years.
- The implementation of an energy savings plan that includes temperature adjustment and a change in the board adopted Energy Use Policy. The district has actually saved $80,102.01 since June, compared to the same time last year. GLSD is also investigating other energy savings opportunities.
Goshen Local schools has also made it a point to seek out alternative ways of funding some of our educational practices, whether it be through grant writing or securing donations from local resources. Here are just a few of those examples:
- GLSD continues its participation in Ohio’s Race to the Top grant. This grant alone will provide GLSD with approximately $226,000 over the next three years. This money will be used to fund the implementation of state ordered educational changes, professional development and most importantly to raise the level of education for all GLS students.
- Excellence equals $$$$$! HB 153 currently provides $17 per student of additional funding for those Ohio districts that receive an “Excellent” rating. The result is that the Goshen Local School District will receive an additional $43,822 in revenue for the district by reaching “Excellent” status. A special thank you goes out to our students, staff and parents for their collective efforts to make Excellence possible.
- GLSD joined forces with the Clermont CAN to participate in a $25,000 grant through the Hamilton County Health District to make improvements to the O’Bannon Creek Nature Trail. This trail has been a great addition to our outdoor education opportunities.
We will continue to explore cost savings while providing the “Excellent” education our students need for success in a changing world. Thank you for the support of our students!