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SALEM -- The board of education discussed the status of ongoing legal challenges surrounding the state's tuition voucher program.
During the board's October meeting, Treasurer Mike Douglas told the board that the state of Ohio's Ed-Choice Scholarship Program had been ruled unconstitutional by the state's Tenth District Court of Appeals.
The program provides scholarship funding for eligible students to attend participating private and parochial schools and has faced criticism for diverting funding from public schools and using taxpayer dollars to fund schools which do not have publicly elected boards of education and are not subject to public audits like public schools. It was on those grounds that the appellate court deemed the program unconstitutional.
Douglas said that while the ruling was "a positive step" for public schools, nothing was set in stone as the state intends to appeal the decision.
"The voucher choice program was ruled unconstitutional, just recently, within the last week. That doesn't mean that parochial and private schools are going to stop receiving funding, as the state of Ohio plans on appealing. So, there won't be anything that's happening during the appeal process, but it is a positive thing for public schools," Douglas said.
Douglas said that the program's diversion of school funding came in concert with recent reductions in the state's overall share of funding for public education. A shift which Douglas said foots local taxpayers with more of the bill.
"Over the last few years, the state has really made a push for, for lack of a better word, private and parochial schools receiving additional money up to about $3 billion this year their receiving, as well as public schooling taking a decrease in the funding formula. Our state decreased what they put into public education, so it used to be about 46% state funded. It's now at about 32% state funded," Douglas said. "So, as they pull money out of public education, their responsibility as a state has gone down, which has put a lot more of the burden back on our taxpayers and is part of the issue that we're seeing right now. So, it will be interesting to keep an eye on some of that as we go through the next few months and that appeal process."
Other financial matters discussed included a $100,000 school support grant that the district was awarded for the Junior High School. Superintendent Jamie Kemats said that the grant would be used to cover the costs of a certified math tutor. The hire of David Andres as a math tutor was unanimously approved as part of the board's consent agenda.
"We are taking advantage of that to provide additional math tutoring by a certified math teacher who is retired. He's going to be helping us out full-time at the Junior High," Kemats said.
The board of education also approved several personnel and administrative matters.
Personnel items approved included: the resignations of Custodian Sarah Horton and Duty Aide Jennifer Burbick; staff for the High School and Junior High School OPTIONS program for the 2026-2027 school year; the hire of Custodian Jeffrey Harriger; cafeteria worker Brad Skidmore, and Duty Aide Laura Schmidt; athletic supplementals for the 2026-2027 school year; the resignation of a non-athletic supplemental for Assistant Band Director by Grace Shockey; and a non-athletic supplemental for Michael Hileman.
Administrative items approved included: an agreement with LLA Therapy effective July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027.
The board of education will meet next at 7 p.m. on Nov. 9.