Beavercreek schools to hold forums on levy

Renewal will keep 134 jobs; rejection will cut jobs, busing, raise fees.

— Beavercreek schools will hold community forums on Tuesday and April 13 to discuss the levy on the May ballot.

The school district has held two other forums earlier in March and February. The forums start at 7 p.m. in the Beavercreek High School auditorium.

Beavercreek is on the May 4 ballot for an 8.7 mill 5-year renewal levy. The school district has been hosting community forums to explain and answer any questions about funding to tax payer.

“Beavercreek City Schools believes in financial transparency and that includes informing our community about the current state of district finances,” said district spokesman Ryan Gilding. “Using sound financial practices, our district has stretched taxpayer dollars while providing quality education to our students.”

The levy generates $18.5 million, which is about 18% of the district’s operating budget. The district said if the levy is renewed it will continue to pay for day-today operations. If the levy is not renewed, the district has determined that it would make cuts as soon as this next school year.

The district will implement a roughly $8.5 million cuts package in summer 2021 if the renewal levy does not pass in May. The cuts would include eliminating about 134 school employee jobs, plus eliminating busing for the high school and raising participation fees for sports and extracurriculars.

Other changes would include making kindergarten half day, eliminating honors or scholarship courses at the middle and high school levels and increasing preschool tuition.

Last year, Beavercreek put this same expiring levy on the ballot twice, but those times they were trying to convert it to a substitute levy and make it permanent. Voters said no both times. This year, it will be a pure renewal levy (no change in style or tax rate), and will only be for five years.