Columbus school officials outline jobs saved, capital improvements with new levy money

Columbus City School officials say Tuesday's voter approval of the 7.7-mill levy for Columbus City Schools that will raise close to $100 million a year preserved close to 300 positions that would have been lost if it had failed.

That's because those positions were funded by federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds from different COVID pandemic relief programs. The district received more than $455 million in that money, which expires in September 2024.

That federal money funded 647 positions. But Superintendent Angela Chapman said just 294 will be saved.

During Wednesday's Board of Education meeting, Chapman presented a chart showing the positions that will now be funded with the district's general fund money because of the levy's passage. They include:

● 90 counselors

● 68 custodians

● 56 substitute teachers

● 30 safety and security people

● 18 social workers

● 11 English as a Second Language (ESL) translators

● 10 attendance specialists

● 6 regional family engagment coordinators

● 5 vulnerable youth liaisons

"We will maintain positions due to new investments," Chapman said.

School board President Jennifer Adair said she hopes the district can find other jobs for those in positions that will be eliminated.

"We are being fiscally responsible in the way we're approaching this," Adair said.

"They knew this was a time-limited amount of money," she said of the employees whose positions were funded by COVID funds.

Chapman also presented a list of capital improvements the levy will fund. They include $26.8 million a year for roofing, heating and cooling systems, electrical and plumbing work, and security for schools; $23.4 million a year for classroom, auditorium and gymnasium renovations, as well as furnishings and playgrounds; and $6.75 million a year to go toward stadiums, tracks, fields, tennis courts and other capital needs for athletic programs.

"This is the first time our district and community made a long-term investment to maintain facilities across the district," Chapman said.

But Chapman also said district officials will be discussing plans to consolidate schools and trim bus routes, including high school routes. She said that's why it's important to have the city build sidewalks near schools so students have a safe place to walk.

Of the money the newly approved levy will raise, 3 mills, or $38.6 million of the annual revenue will go for operating expenses, while 4.7 mills, or $60.5 million per year, will be used for capital needs. With the levy's passage, $20 million that was slated for building and other capital improvements can go back to the operating budget.

Before Wednesday's meeting, Chapman and school board members talked to the media about the levy.

Adair said she knows many people voted no, and that the district will link residents with financial needs with groups that can help them. Voters passed the levy 55% to 45%, and the new tax is expected to cost property owners about $269.50 per $100,000 of current 2023 appraised property value, which would first be assessed in 2024 under the new valuations.

The NAACP and a coalition of Black religious leaders as well as the Equity Now Coalition, representing more than 75 Black leaders in Columbus, opposed the levy, citing among other reasons that many people can't afford it.

Nana Watson, president of the NAACP's Columbus branch, said before Wednesday's meeting that her group will continue to be a watchdog as to how the district spends its money.

"The NAACP has shined a flashlight on the board. Now we're going to shine a spotlight," Watson said.

mferenchik@dispatch.com

@MarkFerenchik

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus school officials outline jobs and improvement levy will fund