Representative Gerald L. Stebelton Recognizes the Bloom Carroll Local School Distrcit for achieving the Ohio Department of Education Excellent with Distinction Rating

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Published on Monday, 19 December 2011 13:21

Written by Jan Broughton

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Representative Gerald L. Stebelton attended the Bloom-Carroll Board of Education Meeting of November 14, 2011 to present a certificate from the Ohio House of Representatives in recognition of the Bloom-Carroll Local School District achieving an Excellent with Distinction rating on the Local Report Card.

Pictured from Left to Right:  Mr. Ronald Fowler, Board Member;  Representative Gerald L. Stebelton;  Monica Hatfield Price, Board President; Mrs. Sam Chapman, Board Member; Mr. Michael Allen, Board Vice-President, and Mr. Rob Jackson, Board Member.

Planning for School Delays, Early Dismissals, and Closures due to Inclement Weather

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Published on Friday, 16 December 2011 11:18

Written by Jan Broughton

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With old man winter just around the corner, I would like to encourage our parents to have plans mapped out for school early dismissals, delays, and closures due to inclement weather.

Parents, now is the time to begin making appropriate child care arrangements and alternative plans should the district be forced to dismiss early, delay or close school due to inclement weather.  Also, make sure you have provided the schools with accurate telephone numbers and contact information in regards to emergencies.  This is especially critical if we must close school early.

 I would also urge you to speak to your teenage driver or your child who may be riding with a teenage driver about safety precautions.

We hope you understand closing school due to inclement weather is taken very seriously.  Safety is first and foremost, but it is our intent to make decisions as soon as possible and to announce our decision to the public immediately using a host of media platforms including our new automatic messaging system called School Messenger. Remember you can login to your School Messenger account to keep your contact information current and to set your contact preferences for a phone call, e-mail and TXT messages. If you didn't setup your School Messenger account at the beginning of the school year and would still like to do so e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Financial Update

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Published on Tuesday, 01 November 2011 13:35

Written by Travis Bigam

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Financial Update                                          

The District’s most recent five-year forecast revealed deficit spending during the current year and continuing throughout the forecast.  In an effort to fully investigate the cause of the current deficit spending, the Board and Administration, during the Board Planning Session on November 3^rd,  reviewed historical financial data and comparisons with our neighboring districts in the areas of per pupil rankings, salaries, tax rates and total revenues and expenditures.  The comparisons with neighboring school districts revealed the following:

1.       We have the lowest per pupil expenditures in Fairfield County (FY 2010)

2.      Our property and income tax rates together are 5^th among the nine schools in Fairfield County.

3.      Salaries for the majority of our positions are either close to the average or below average when compared to surrounding Districts.

Total revenues have grown by an average of 1.02% over the past 3 years, while total expenditures have grown by an average of 4.17%.  I believe the data presented above reveals the reason why Bloom-Carroll is currently in deficit spending and that reason is stagnant tax revenues.  It is no secret that all school districts in Ohio are experiencing significant reductions in State funding.  With that being said, the key to sustainable education funding becomes tax revenues.  Until the tax revenues return to pre-recession levels, all school districts, including Bloom-Carroll, will struggle to maintain a balanced budget. 

The second part of the discussion during the November 3^rd planning session centered on options going forward in an effort to build a foundation for financial stability.

These options include:  1.) reducing current expenditures 2.) capping future expenditure growth 3.) generating additional revenue through increased fees 4.) generating additional revenue with an operating levy.

The Administration will be looking at all current expenditures in an effort to reduce expenditures by $ 300,000 by fiscal year 2013.  We believe this can be achieved with reductions to supply budgets, capital improvements, contracted services and staff attrition.  We will always attempt to first make budget reductions which do not affect current programming.  The real question becomes what financial decisions will be made going into  fiscal year 2014.  If we do not pass an operating levy within the next 12  - 18 months, the District will not be able to sustain current programming beyond the 2012-2013 school year. An additional $ 700,000 - $ 900,000 would need to be reduced from the budget, which would entail staff reductions.

At this time, we are just entering the discussion phase relating to the reductions and potential operating levy request shown above.  The main decision will be whether to ask for an operating levy in order to maintain our excellent educational programming or make additional reductions, thus eliminating some of the current programs we are able to offer.

Please contact me at 614-834-6707 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you would like to discuss the District’s finances in greater detail. 

Travis Bigam, Treasurer