To the editor:

We write today to voice our immense support for the City of Salem, Salem City Schools, and the proposed new K-8 building.

We are proud Quakers: alumni, parents, educators, business owners, and community servants. We have worked closely with the great leaders from across our city, parents of every school age, recent and remote graduates, current students, teachers, coaches, boosters, the school board, the school and city administration, and many service organizations locally.

Although our school buildings served us well over the past decades, the consensus is clear: now is the time to use $38 million of awarded money from Ohio to build a new K-8 central campus to replace our deteriorating, outdated buildings.

The levy is an investment opportunity that cannot be missed

Ohio will cover 67% of the building cost, awarding us approximately $38 million dollars. Governor DeWine declared this “will create safe and supportive learning environments that will benefit students for generations to come”. The national average for state support of new buildings is 18%. Canfield’s proposed school would get 16% state support. Salem’s new building would get 67%!

The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission conducted a feasibility study where they assessed our buildings specifically and decided the safest and most cost-effective way to educate our children moving forward is demolition of our current buildings and new construction of a K-8 campus.

The school board and administration have shared the game plan: use this state money to build a new campus, dismantle Buckeye (built in 1948) and Reilly (built in 1928), and repurpose Southeast for other district needs.

The location of the proposed new building would be the expansive 68-acre farmland across from the current Southeast School, which boasts more than twice the acreage than all the three current schools combined.

With state support, this is an affordable upgrade

The levy includes operating/maintenance expenses for the new building, a contingency for inflation, and demolition costs. Once approved, we “lock in” the 67% state support for future projects that may need constructed for the next 37 years. The high school is in great shape today, but if we need to replace it through 2050, two-thirds would be covered by the state. If we miss this chance, it’s entirely up to us to fund locally without state support.

Even after the levy passes, Salem’s taxes would still be lower than 2/3 of our neighboring school districts.

The cost for an average homeowner in Salem is 33 cents a day… less than $10 a month.

The administration guaranteed no existing school employees would lose their job with the upgrade.

Not only will the school construction give a temporary boost to local tax revenue and area businesses, but a longer term benefit is expected to the district’s bottom line by attracting open enrollment students to what will be the most modern and advanced school in the area.

Child safety is our #1 priority

The new campus will be safer for our children. Improved roadway access designed to prevent the traffic blockages of current buildings’ school drop-off and pick-ups. Fire sprinklers in each classroom. Secure entrances with better defensibility to best protect our children.

The buildings will be more efficient and modernized. No more groundwater or plumbing issues. Larger classroom sizes. No asbestos. A full kitchen to prepare meals, instead of shipping them all in from the high school. Two new full-sized gymnasiums. Better technology and internet access. Backup generators for power losses.

With the facts in mind, please answer for yourself: what are we waiting for? This is our one chance. 2023 is our year — if we do not pass a levy, we forfeit the $38 million state support. Another district will get the funds and we start back at the end of the line. In another 15+ years, the cost to build a new school building would only further increase, and the promise of support from the state would in no way be guaranteed. If we lock in this rate of 67% state support now, we retain it for 37 years. Should we ever need to build again through 2050, we have the immense benefit of a guaranteed 67% support. We would go from teaching in old, outdated schools to the most modern facilities amongst all neighboring districts.

We value our history, but the safety of our children and cost effective operation of the school buildings are the primary issues at hand. The school administration is fiscally responsible for funding the best education possible and cannot sacrifice the safety of our children nor the quality of their education to finance the preservation of historic buildings. We can no longer pour money into deteriorating old buildings–those repairs must be funded 100% ourselves and eventually the cost outweighs the benefits. It is more prudent to replace them than to continue to sink ever-decreasing resources into buildings that are past their intended life cycles.

Like all improvements, this requires an investment and an investment in our physical buildings is also an investment in the future of our community. We can leave Salem better for our kids, grandkids, and neighbors now and for generations to come. We’re a strong community and always come together when it matters most. Now is when it matters most, not just for our children but for everyone. So please–on Election Day, boldly stand with us and support Salem Schools when it counts. Please VOTE YES for our children and for our future. Thank you for your support!

Salem Schools First PAC Executive Committee:

Marshall and Sami Bahr (SHS ’05), Amy Black,

Jock Buta, Jeremy Corbisello, Ryan Crowell (’07), Austin and Liz Fredrickson (’08), Will Madison (’24), Denny Niederhiser (’71), Audrey Null (’76),

Dan Moore (’95), Anthony Shivers (’13),

George Spack (’69), Brad Stephens (’91),

Eloise Traina, Gregg Warner (’82),

Frank Zamarelli (’82)