On May 14, the Columbus Municipal School District Board of Trustees and Superintendent Stanley Ellis will ask voters to approve a $36 million bond to add, improve and renovate facilities in the district. Unfortunately, just two weeks prior to the election, voters aren’t sure exactly what they are being asked to fund. To date, district officials, primarily Ellis, have said the money will be used to install student safety equipment and build a gym at Stokes-Beard Elementary, but have offered few other details and certainly nothing approaching an itemized list of projects that money be used for.
That ambiguity is compounded by mixed messages about the fate of some of the district’s schools. There have been discussions of moving away from the magnet school system to a grade scale system where all students in a grade attend a particular school. For example, Kindergarten and 1st grade at one school, 2nd and 3rd at another, etc.
Under that plan, the could fit all their elementary students into just three of its five campuses.
Shuttering underutilized schools would greatly reduce costs for administration, faculty, staff, transportation and maintenance, but there has been no formal discussion of adopting that plan. Making the school closing decision easier is the fact that most of the district’s five elementary schools are operating at a capacity of 50% or less.
Officially, the district isn’t considering any school closures, but informally CMSD has had those discussions.
At town hall meetings in the run-up to the May 14 vote, Ellis has said no schools are on the chopping block. But at a recent Rotary and Exchange Club meeting, Ellis and the district’s CFO, Holly Rogers, both said none of the bond funds would be used for improvements at schools that would no longer be in operation when the bond reaches maturity in 15 years, suggesting the district does have plans to reduce facilities.
Voters should have some clarity on that point, as well as a clear understanding of what these tax dollars will be spent for.
Until that happens, It feels very much as though the district is asking voters to sign a blank check.
Generally speaking, voters are supportive of bond issues to support their public schools. But asking citizens to vote for this bond issue on blind faith is a step too far, we believe.
The good news is that, even at this late hour, the district still has an opportunity to come clean and give voters the information they need to make an informed decision.
We urge the district to do exactly that.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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