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NILES -- The students who will be Niles McKinley High School seniors this year were in kindergarten the last time the school district passed a new operating levy, School Superintendent Ann Marie Thigpen said during Thursday's levy committee and Board of Education meeting.
Thigpen told a group of more than 20 residents and board members the importance of conveying to voters the need for passage of a 9.25-mill, 10-year emergency operating levy on the Nov. 7 general election ballot.
If passed, the levy would generate $2 million per year for technology improvements, resources for students and daily needs of the district and cost the owner of a $100,000 home an additional $320 a year in taxes.
Thigpen said the last new operating levy in the district was in 2005. She said the district has done what it can to cut costs and save money, such as eliminating two administrator positions, eliminating busing for non-public and charter schools and increasing costs to employees for health insurance.
Officials said the levy is necessary because of less funding from the state and federal governments for school programs and decreased enrollment.
Thigpen said some of what the district could do if the levy is approved is maintain small class sizes at the primary and intermediate grades; eliminate classroom fees for parents; add security, which could include an additional school resource officer; maintain staff levels; buy new textbooks and E-books for high school and middle school; and keep the bus routes as is and update the fleet.
A levy campaign committee has been formed that will focus on voter recruitment and registration.
Richard Limongi, a committee member, said large levy signs will be placed at busy intersections and information will be placed on Facebook and other websites.
In other business, the board:
• Heard from seventh-grade science teacher Gaye Breegle that accelerated Niles Middle School seventh-grade science students Katie Buttar, Josh Kibby, AJ Sposetta and Marisa Sullivan took part in the 3-D compost project. Breegle said the middle school was one of 11 pilot schools to which Inventor Cloud Printing Company in Youngstown gave 3-D equipment to do compost testing;
• Appointed Carmen Vivolo to the McKinley Memorial Library Board of Trustees to fill a vacancy on the board for an unexpired term through December 2022;
• Employed Michael Shargo to assist the technology department on an ''as needed basis'' at $30 per hour for the upcoming school year not to exceed 30 days;
• Increased the technology supervisor position from 223 to 260 days per year. Eric Ulrich was hired last month as district technology coordinator;
• Announced an open house 9 to 11 a.m Thursday at the primary school and 1 to 3 p.m. Thursday for third graders at the intermediate school.
bcoupland@tribtoday.com