| STATE OF THE DISTRICT ADDRESS September 21, 2011
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Diane Adamec, President, Sycamore Board of Education
My name is Diane Adamec and I have the honor and privilege to serve as the President of the Board of Education this year.
Thank you for coming to the 6th annual state of the schools address tonight. I greatly appreciate the time you have taken to spend a part of your evening with us. My time on the Board has given me a unique window into seeing just what makes Sycamore tick. We know are very fortunate. We’re fortunate to live in a community that is so supportive of education with supportive parents and residents. We are fortunate to have our children educated–by nearly all measures– in one of the very best districts in the entire state of Ohio. I am fortunate to serve on an extremely professional, compassionate, competent, and yes, demanding Board of Education. And finally, we are fortunate to have the Sycamore team of teachers, staff, and leaders that expect nothing less than the very best from everyone and won’t settle for anything less than excellence. Yes, we are indeed fortunate to be Aviators.
Tonight, we are going to take a look back at the past year and celebrate some of the many accomplishments. I don’t want to take away any thunder from Dr. James or Mrs. Weber, so you are going to have to wait to hear the details of those accomplishments, but suffice to say that I could not be more proud of the academic achievement and the financial results that the Sycamore team is delivering. I say “team”, because the only way this all happens is teamwork. From keeping children safe as they make their way to school on the bus, making sure our facilities are clean and properly maintained, making and serving lunch for our students and staff, teaching a wide variety of subjects and life lessons to more than 5,000 young people, assisting students in every aspect of their education and in many aspects of their lives, and building systems and programs to help each and every student be prepared for the future that awaits them– everyone here touches the lives of the children of our community and comes together to create the foundation of this fine district. I can tell you that the Sycamore tradition of excellence is most certainly alive and well.
Also tonight, we are going to look forward to the strategic district priorities, plans, and challenges that are ahead for the district in the coming school year. And now, before I spill the beans and start telling you all everything there is to be excited and proud of in Sycamore, I will introduce our district treasurer, Mrs. Beth Weber.
Beth Weber, Treasurer
Tonight, you will hear that the 2010-11 school year was one of continued academic excellence for our schools. As Sycamore’s fiscal officer, it is my commitment to use our district’s financial resources to best support our students’ needs and achievements. It is my responsibility to provide stewardship of our taxpayers’ investment. It is my honor to be part of a great asset built by and for our community.
There are three areas that I will highlight this evening. First, the Board of Education continued its commitment to control costs by meeting its financial parameters. Second, steps were taken to implement the district’s 10-year capital plan, including community approval of a bond issue for Maple Dale. Finally, the Board and administration responded to Ohio’s budget issues with involvement in the legislative process in Columbus and with budget cutting at home.
In these continued tough economic times, our district is fortunate to have sound budget practices in place. They have allowed stability: continuing academically excellent opportunities for our students without asking our community for additional financial support for operations since 2004.
Since 2005, the Board of Education has utilized financial parameters to monitor and contain expenditure growth. Originally enacted in 2005 then updated and extended through 2012, they provide a mandate to the administration:
- · To target growth in the general operating fund budget at no more than an average of 2.5% for fiscal years 2006-2012.
- · To cap the general operating fund budget excluding other financing uses at seventy-six and a half million dollars for fiscal year 2012
- · End fiscal year 2012 with a general operating fund cash balance greater than sixteen and a half million dollars.
These parameters encourage budgeting practices that balance effective, efficient, and controlled use of financial resources while maintaining and promoting high academic achievement. I am pleased to report that Sycamore Community Schools continue to meet the goals set by this resolution. The chart that follows shows general fund operating expenditure levels beginning with the year before the 2004 levy, 2003-04, through last school year. In this time frame, operating expenses have increased at an average annual rate of approximately one half of one percent. For the period monitored by the parameters this increase is approximately 1.4%, well below the 2.5% parameter set by the Board. As a result of the district’s budgeting practices, staffing levels were reviewed and 24 full-time equivalent positions were reduced for 2011-12. Additionally, teachers and administrators salaries were frozen.
CHART
To meet the expectations of our community, we must continue to control costs while preserving our outstanding school system. The Board and administration will continue to provide schools that add value to our community.
Last year during this address, I reviewed the process undertaken to evaluate the district’s one million square feet of facilities and other capital improvement needs, including our bus fleet and technology infrastructure. As a result of this process, a 10-year capital plan was created. The funding component of the plan was refined with an eye toward cost-effective solutions and projects were added that will improve energy efficiency and reduce operating costs. Many steps were taken this year to implement the plan.
The first and most important step was taken by you, our community. Passage of the $17.5 million bond issue to replace Maple Dale Elementary was a key part of the plan. I am humbled by your support in these tough economic times. Your tax dollars will be used for bond payments for this school.
A second component was the installation of energy conservation improvements, including lighting retrofits, energy efficient HVAC systems, and plumbing improvements in many of our buildings. Installation began last spring and should be complete by year end. These improvements, valued at $9 million, were funded with energy conservation bonds that will be retired using energy and operational savings. We estimate the district will save an additional $100,000 per year from reduced energy costs beyond the debt payment. In addition, Duke Energy has approved more than $500,000 in rebates for this project. The new Maple Dale Elementary School and district offices will also include many energy efficient systems, including geothermal heating and cooling.Finally, the district is utilizing its cash reserve to fund other capital investments. These include district offices that will allow district-wide staff to be housed in one building. In 2010, the Board and administration reviewed options to construct, renovate, buy, or lease a facility to replace the district offices and the decision was made to build a new facility on the Maple Dale Elementary site. Timing of the decision was critical to save on both construction and borrowing costs. By building the district offices at the same time and on the same site as Maple Dale, significant dollars, estimated at 4% of the 2 projects, will be saved by reduced contractor mobilization costs and lower bids on construction. This time frame was also crucial to take advantage of low cost borrowing. The $2.1 million project was funded at a net interest rate of 1.3% by utilizing Qualified School Construction Bonds, a program that ended in 2010. This issue will be repaid over the next 15 years using the district’s cash reserve and proceeds from the sale of the offices on Cooper Road.
The district also utilized its cash reserve for facility maintenance projects such as roof replacement and parking lot repairs. Funds were used to support technology infrastructure and equipment. Dr. James will provide examples of how technology is used to support instruction in her remarks.
The current economic climate along with the district’s financial standing provided an excellent environment for financing these projects. The district utilized federal programs including Qualified School Construction Bonds and Build America Bonds, significantly lowering the cost of borrowing. The district also benefitted from receiving a Aaa bond rating from both Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s rating agencies. Only 10 of Ohio’s 613 public school districts have attained this highest rating. I noted that the borrowing costs for the district offices were 1.3%. A second example are the bonds for Maple Dale issued at a net interest rate of less than two-tenths of one percent (0.2%) compared to an estimate of 4% included in on the ballot. This change shortened the term of the bonds from 25 to 18 years, and therefore, the length of time that taxes will be collected on this issue. The property tax rate for 2011 collections is 0.61 mills or $18.18 per $100,000 in home market value, but may be reduced in future years due to the lower interest cost.
I’ve said much about protecting our community’s investment and want to thank our residents again for their continued support by approving a bond issue for Maple Dale. Given that, I’d like to review the investment our residents make for the operations and capital assets of our schools. Currently, the district’s residential property tax rate is 31.21 mills. The chart that follows exhibits tax rates paid in 2011 by residents in other Hamilton County Schools and our neighboring communities in Warren County. These are shown in black. Sycamore’s rate shown in green and yellow ranks 19th of the districts included. The highest rate is approximately 70% greater than Sycamore’s. Last year, I noted that we will not ask the community to provide additional funds for our operations before 2012, at least an 8 year span between requests for additional taxes for the day-to-day operations of our schools. This commitment has not changed. In fact, we will work this year to delay a request for additional taxes even longer.
In last year’s address, I noted that Ohio’s budget woes would present one of our greatest challenges in 2011. Last spring, we informed the community of the Governor’s plan for deep budget cuts. By working with our legislators, almost $4 million in cuts were reinstated from the Governor’s original plan. More importantly, the legislature suspended phase out of Tangible Personal Property Tax reimbursement after 2013. The district should maintain $9 million annually in on-going reimbursement instead of a $12 million loss per year by 2019. The Board and administration will remain vigilant in their work with the legislature to maintain this change in law and preserve this funding source in the long run. New to the state budget, the district will receive financial recognition for academic achievement. Sycamore’s ranking of “Excellent with Distinction” earns the district approximately $88,000 per year.
Still, the state budget cuts mean revenue loss of approximately $2.4 million or 3.3% of the district’s total general fund operating budget for 2011-12. In 2012-13, it is approximately $3.9 million or 5.3% less than current.
As noted previously, the district’s budget practices have provided stability in these uncertain times. The district will not request an additional operating levy prior to 2012, and hopes to delay a request even longer. The state’s budget reductions did not be force us to make the immediate, drastic cuts in educational programming that we hear about in other districts.
While financial challenges are critical, there is no greater mission for us than to ensure our students are ready for what awaits them when they walk out of our doors. Dr. James will review many of the challenges to meeting this commitment and will share a few of the many accomplishments of our students and staff members. I know she will say, and I wholeheartedly agree, that our community’s long-term support of education allows Sycamore to live its vision. Our students say thank you for the generosity of the community and pay us all back with results that can only make Sycamore a better place for all of us to live.
Adrienne C. James, Ed.D., Superintendent
Thank you for your opening remarks, Mrs. Adamec. The leadership and dedication of our board members has had a significant and positive impact on Sycamore Community Schools and the community at-large. We greatly appreciate the Board’s enthusiasm, responsiveness, and thoughtful decision-making on behalf of the students, staff, and residents of this district.
I also applaud my colleague, Beth Weber, for her outstanding financial leadership, and proudly echo- that Sycamore Community Schools continues to maintain strong academic programs while practicing good financial stewardship.
Before I share some of the areas that we will focus on this school year, I want to take a few moments to highlight some achievements that occurred last year.
Last year, our students participated in local, state, national, and international events and competitions.
Seventeen Sycamore High School seniors were named National Merit finalists and one was named a National Achievement finalist.
Sixteen 7th- and 8th grade students particatated in the Model United Nations simulatio, assumimg the roles of delegates from Germany, France, and Spain on the UN Economic Social Council.
Sycamore High School student, Erik Bao, was one of 10 United States National finalists who joined students from Canada and Australia to compete in the International BioGENEius Challenge, one of the most prestigious high school science competitions in the world.
The junior high MathCounts team continued its annual success, winning 3rd-place in state competition.
Student athletes continued to excel in a variety of sports, including soccer, swimming, and chess. The high school chess team won the GMC Championship after an undefeated season.
For the 2nd year in a row, Sycamore was named one of the Best Communities for Music Education, and “School Band and Orchestra” magazine recognized staff member, David Smarelli, as one of “50 Directors Who Make a Difference”.
The Ohio Department of Education selected Edwin H. Greene Intermediate School as one of”Ohio’s Schools to Watch” – one of only 18 schools in the state to win recognition as an exemplary model for other middle schools.
Sycamore students expanded their understanding of the importance of giving to others and demonstrated their care and concern as they helped hurricane victims, shared activities and resources with inner city students, brought joy to senior citizens, coordinated fundraisers to combat disease, and sponsored children and schools a million miles away in places like Uganda and Ghana.
And, we were pleased that our 2011 graduates were accepted at 110 different colleges and universities in the United States, Canada, Japan, Israel, and the Netherlands.
These were only a handful of numerous accomplishments last year. To cap off a year of many accolades, the district received the highest rating on the state report card for the 12th consecutive year. This year, that rating was “Excellent with Distinction“. The combined performance index score and ranking designation placed Sycamore Community Schools among the top 10 school districts in the state of Ohio for the 2010-11 school year.
To support this level of student achievement, our staff collaborated with one another, discussed the progress of individual students, and exchanged strategies to enrich the delivery and course content for students at all levels. The Response to Intervention process enhanced our ability to respond quickly and effectively to individual learning needs. A customized online tool was designed to provide historical and current data on each student, enabling teachers to observe trends and patterns from year to year.
We studied the future needs of our students and held two community forums facilitated by KnowledgeWorks to engage the community in this dialogue. We collaborated with professors, college admissions officers, and local business advisors to understand future expectations of universities and employers in order to better prepare our students for their future.
And in response to last year’s district priority regarding safety, the Sycamore staff received additional intruder response training. Students in grades 7 through 12 were also trained how to protect themselves in hostile situations.
Several cost-effective construction projects were initiated in accordance with the district’s 10-year capital improvement plan. This past summer, two of six buildings at Maple Dale Elementary were demolished in preparation for constructing a new school. A new district office building is being built concurrently with the elementary school, resulting in a cost savings for the district. Maple Dale Elementary School and the new district offices, which are financed by two different debt issues, are expected to open in 2013.Energy conservation projects began in late spring at the other buildings. Upgrades to the lighting, heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and plumbing systems occurred where needed. Solar panels were installed at the high school and skylights will be installed to reduce electricity usage. These improvements will greatly enhance the learning environment for our students, will protect the taxpayers’ investments in our facilities, will allow the district to be more energy efficient, and will lower operational costs.
Recognizing that there are many learning styles and preferences for learning, and recognizing that our universities offer numerous courses online, we want our students to have experiences with digital learning before they graduate. We will develop parameters and expectations for blended and online courses. These parameters will include course design, course content, and delivery methods.
New safety measures will be added at the junior high and high school and new cameras will be installed on our school buses. These projects are partially funded by a grant partnership with the City of Montgomery Police Department. Staff and student training sessions will also be held to address the prevention of bullying and drug and alcohol abuse.We understand our responsibility to meet the needs of our students while being good stewards of our finances. We will continue to review and consolidate internal operations where possible and will continue to engage with other school districts and city officials to identify shared services to lower the cost of doing business. Short and long term budget plans will be created in order to delay the levy request which we previously forecasted for 2012.
With so many educational choices available to our residents, we strive to be the school district of choice for the families in our community. Keeping our competitive edge, maintaining rigorous programming, and providing an array of options for students requires careful planning and cost containment. This year, we will sponsor several community engagement opportunities as we continue to examine and react to the future needs of our students.
Our staff has worked tirelessly to teach, coach, revise curriculum, research, and collaborate around new and innovative ideas, engage in professional development, and design best practices in order to provide the very best for our students. I applaud the dedication of our staff and the countless hours they spend in and outside of the classroom. In a year where educators and education have been harshly criticized, it is comforting to know that this community supports our efforts. Such positive support helps to strengthen and motivate us.
I conclude this evening by saying that we are focused on providing the very best education possible for our students and I am proud to say that the state of Sycamore Community Schools is alive and thriving.
I appreciate this opportunity to share some past and future highlights for this district and invite you to stay for our Board meeting which will begin at 7 pm.
Thank you!
Included in the 10-year capital improvement plan are plans to keep our bus fleet and technology updated. A technology consortium, started by our school district three years ago, has continued to help us contain costs. As a result of shared training and services, and lower cost of software through shared purchasing, Sycamore has realized close to $64,000 in savings over those 3 years. We will continue to realize savings as membership increases. The consortium currently has 10 district members from around the state.
Much has been accomplished this past year, and with the ever-changing needs of our diverse student population, we are challenged every day to remain a viable, highly competitive, and well-respected school district. We intend to do that as we focus this year on priorities in our strategic plan regarding increased academic performance, financial stewardship, community engagement, and safety issues.
This year, we will continue to prepare our students for competition in their future world, increasing their ability to think, reason, communicate, and problem-solve. Helping our students thrive as productive citizens in this new century requires that we take a strategic look at not only what students need to know, but also at how individuals learn these skills.
For our students who have fallen short of their potential, the staff continues to work diligently to identify what is interfering with progress and to provide a variety of strategies and best practices for increased success. Staff will refine the Response to Intervention process in the elementary grades and new structures designed to implement the process will be developed in the upper grades.
The Board of Education adopted new standards for science and social studies and new common core standards for language arts and math. Teams of teachers have already begun the mapping process using an online curriculum tool created by our technology department. The revised curriculum will include a focus on 21st century skills and technology will be integrated appropriately at all grade levels.
As part of a pilot project, iPads have been placed in kindergarten classrooms and in special education programming this year. A district plan addressing the integration of technology in the instructional process will be presented to the Board of Education at the end of this school year.
TO HILITE