I was a member of the Stow-Munroe Falls School Board when Russ Jones was hired as superintendent. Early in his employ, we conducted a board retreat. The main focus of this retreat was to review and enhance the Strategic Five-Year Plan. To our surprise, one of Dr. Jones’ first presentations included a film expounding on the merits of the IB Programme (International Baccalaureate). We were puzzled that the newly hired superintendent, with little knowledge of the district and its finances, was proposing a new direction of instruction.

After a brief discussion of the IB Programme, the board members had several questions. First, would this curriculum be available to all students? Dr. Jones replied affirmatively. Second, what would he estimate initial costs to be? Jones replied that start-up costs would be about $20,000. Finally, at what level would this instruction begin? Jones stated that it would be initially offered at the high school level, and if funds became available, it would expand to lower levels.

The board felt that the costs incurred in implementing a new course of study were prohibitive. We also agreed that the district offered many advantages to gifted students (Advanced Placement and Honors courses, the OASIS program, etc.), and even though the superintendent maintained that the curriculum was suited to all students, further examination did not bear that out.

The board members cited these concerns and the matter was dismissed. Further research validated our position. For my remaining tenure on the board, IB was not a topic of discussion.

I was very concerned, therefore, that the IB Programme was being quietly implemented at Indian Trail Elementary, with little if any public discussion and no board vote. I wrote to the Stow Sentry in October 2010 expressing those concerns. Questions regarding the curriculum during board meetings have gone unanswered and controversy has continued to grow.

Contrary to the superintendent’s initial presentation, IB start-up costs are significant. In addition to application fees, teachers must be trained, with the costs of food, transportation, lodging and conferences included. Dr. Jones has publicly stated in a board meeting that these expenses would be covered utilizing ARRA (American Recovery & Reinvestment Act) and Title I funds. But, as many other area school districts understood, those funds could be used more prudently to maintain staff levels, improve student achievement and many other supportive measures. According to ARRA guidelines, “These funds should be invested in ways that do not result in unsustainable continuing commitments after the funding expires.” As a former board member, I continue to see no way this program can be sustained and expanded without additional funding from the community.

Unfortunately, the objections raised concerning IB have resulted because there has been no communication with the public. Costs have been understated/hidden and concerns have been ignored.

Keep in mind our biggest objection to the International Baccalaureate Progam(one section of which is referred to as “PYP” (Primary Years Program) is the high costs of bringing it into SMF Schools.  We cannot see blowing the many dollars for this program when we have to charge pay-to-play fees and can’t bus our highschoolers.

Here are some websites to visit to learn more about the costs to the taxpayers and some of the shady behaviors noticed at the Echo Hills meeting to explain I.B. to parents.

http://stow.patch.com/articles/ib-school-program-discussed-at-echo-hills

http://ibo.org/events/slcpyp12311/

http://www.ibo.org/iba/become/newprocess/documents/DPAug-SeptEng_001.pdf

John Eppolito

1:36am on Thursday, September 1, 2011

SCRG requested  detailed information on how much money was saved by the Superintendent.  We received the following chart indicating that $15,141,271.90 was cut from the budget since 2006.  The chart does not answer the question as we presented it.  We asked:  “Please list the names of persons reduced in the enclosed flyer as of February 17, 2011 and the individual savings to the district in salary and/or benefits which they would have received as board paid.”

In the district treasurer’s letter in response to the public information request it was stated:  “Our office researched district records and determined there are no records responsive to your request.”

Frankly, we are confused.  How can you save money but have no record of it?

We are still waiting on a study to show the results of the installation of the Honeywell heating equipment that is listed under “Honeywell Energy Savings Project”.  The chart shows that over half a million dollars was saved by using the equipment but we are unable to see any results of any study verifying that amount (or any amount for that matter).

There are other issues with the chart.  See if you can spot them.  Have fun!

Get your volunteers, and WE ARE KEEPING SCORE!

THANKS!!

Cyle Feldman, AD

From: CRAIG JOANNA 

Sent: Wednesday, July 06,2011   12:10pm

To:Milford,Deb; Feldman, Cyle;Moore,Karen;

Subject: Volunteer recruiting

 The major event in our levy campaign is fast approaching: the door-to-door canvassing of the Stow and Munroe Falls neighborhoods.  We need more volunteers to go either July 23 or July 30 to distribute informational postcards and engage the voters in a brief positive exchange that will remind them to VOTE YES on August 2.  Research shows that the single –most-effective approach in a campaign is the direct approach—where a candidate or issue supporter greets the prospective voter and talks about the issue.

AGAIN, importantly, we’re only visiting the “friendly” voters, those Stow and Munroe Falls registered voters who are likely to vote yes and have a record of supporting our schools.

I’m asking you to help me recruit volunteers to give 2-3 hours of their time on one of those days, either July 23 or July 30. The pairing-up we’re looking for is one adult (principal, coach, teacher, parent, grandparent…) accompanied by a SMF student or student-to-be (of your choice).

Each walker will receive a clearly marked and manageable walking route, postcards to leave, and “crib notes ”with  talking points and common questions/answers in case there are any questions.  AGAIN, these are school supporters we’re calling on, so we don’t expect slammed doors or confrontation.

So please consider lending a couple of hours of your time—or signing on a spouse or friend or neighbor—to get out the vote for this very important issue.  Contact me at —-with any volunteers or if anyone has questions or would like to volunteer in some other way.

Thanks,

Joanna

 

Head Coaches & Boosters & Leaders

We need volunteers to canvass for just a few hours on July 23 and July 30. We NEED YOU TO GET INVOLVED, and please send the below email to your parents and URGE  them to participate.  Your recruited volunteers should contact Joanna Craig, Canvassing Chairperson, at the following email:———— This is more than just a drop, but a drop and a few positive comments about our schools to only our supporters. Therefore, we really need adults plus students, and we will pair you up with a friend or a neighborhood you might want to canvass.  Please forward this onto any of your team email lists, social media, and utilize your parent representatives to get the word out.  Personal contact is the #1 predictor in getting a yes vote.  If you care about the direction of our school district, we need you to get involved.

We have 95 volunteers signed up, and we need an additional 105!  If everyone (27 sports teams) is able to actively recruit 4 parents/student/volunteers, then we can reach our goal of 200 plus volunteers to spread the positive new, and get out the vote!

At the 8/8/11 Stow-Munroe Falls School District Board meeting, the Board refused to answer several questions concerning the International Baccalaureate program being instituted in the school district.  After virtually ignoring questions such as “When will the Board hold open discussions about I.B.?”, the Board president continued to dance around many other questions.

Other questions were answered in a stock pattern:  “You are welcome to come to the Board office to discuss it”.   One person asked about her verbal Public Information Request from March, 2011, at a meeting held at Indian Trail School and was given no answer as to when the request would be fulfilled.
The following video shows only the portion of the meeting set aside for public questions/answers. You may watch the entire Board meeting by calling 330.688.8297. We will gladly make an appointment with you to view the entire video. 

The speaker at the beginning of the clip is hard to hear.  The board’s response is normal volume, as is the rest of the video.

 

THE COSTS OF THE

INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE PROGRAM

Although we doubt that the following information reflects a total amount spent on IB, we have this information gleaned from records of the School District.  We also  know that this is not the final funds to be spent on the IB program.  Around Sept. 29, 2011, team 8 will be traveling to Salt Lake City, Utah for their training.  This also means that like the other training sessions, we are paying for substitute teachers and who knows what else.

ADMINISTRATIVE TRIP – Superintendent and Board members to Chicago, Illinois, Feb. 5-8, 2010

                We have not determined the costs involved with this trip

 TEAM 1 – 10 people, May 8-11, 2010, Tampa, Florida

                $7650.00 IB Registration

                $2351.00 air fare to Tampa

                $310.00 shuttle from Tampa airport

                $5006.40 hotel rooms

                $938.75 food

*TOTAL:  $16,256.15 for team

 

TEAM 2 – 8 people,  June  22-24, 2010, Atlanta, Georgia

                $6,200.00 IB registration fee

                $1,923.20 air fare to Atlanta

                $355.00 air fare for Superintendent

                $105.00 shuttle from airport

                $20.50 shuttle from airport for Superintendent

                $2,640.45 hotel rooms

                $501.40 hotel room for Superintendent

                $997.53 food

*TOTAL:  $12,172.88 for team

 

TEAM 3 – 8 people, Sept. 22-24, 2010, Orlando, Florida

                $6,200.00 IB registration fee

                $2,115.20 air fare to Orlando

                $238.00 excess baggage

                $264.00 shuttle from airport

                $4,293.12 hotel rooms

                 $1037.61 food

*TOTAL:  $14,147.93

 

TEAM 4 – 8 people, Oct. 29-Nov. 1, 2010, Miami, Florida

                $5,400.00 IB registration fee

                $2,936.80 air fare to Miami

                $120.50 baggage claim

                $125.00 baggage fee

                $48.00 parking fee

                $5,453.49 hotel rooms

                $966,52  food

*TOTAL:   $15,050.31

 

 TEAM 5 – 12 people, Dec. 10-13, 2010, Cincinnati, Ohio

                $8,100.00 IB registration fee

                $160.00 shuttle to Cleveland airport

                $2,015.30 air fare to Cincinnati (7 people flew -5 drove their own cars and dined on their own (reimbursement fees are not shown here)

                $175.00 baggage fee

                $160.00 shuttle from Cincinnati airport to hotel

                $5,202.74 hotel rooms

                $956.69 food

*TOTAL:  $16,769.73

 

TEAM 6 – 4 people, Feb. 10-13, 2011, New Orleans, Louisiana

                $2,900.00 IB registration fee

                $3,583.20 air fare to New Orleans

                $100.00 baggage fee

                $152.00 shuttle to hotel

                $1,913.27 hotel rooms (only two charges are shown, nothing is shown for the two other participants)

                $421.64 food

*TOTAL:  $9,070,08

 

TEAM 7 – 10 people,  May  8-10, 2011, Tampa, Florida

                $8,745.00 IB registration fee

                $3,146.10 air fare to Tampa

                $500.00 baggage fee

                $570 shuttle to hotel

                $5,006.40 hotel rooms

                $2,099.48 food

*TOTAL:  $20,066.98

 *Totals are approximate since we are not aware of such things as reimbursements for those traveling and dining on their own, costs of substitute teachers to cover the trainee’s absences and accuracy of receipts requested under the Ohio Open Records Act.

Several requests have been received concerning the insurance premiums paid by school employees.  Please note that this chart is marked “Stark County” because the school district is a member of a consortium operated out of Stark County.  Several school districts in various counties around Northeast Ohio are members of this group. 

Please note that the chart is arranged to show what the medical policy costs (Medical), what the School Board pays (Board) and what the employee pays (Employee).  The figures preceded by (1/2) indicate employees that are employed part time and do not qualify for full time benefits.  The bottom row indicates the life insurance costs.  All premiums are payable monthly.

Below are one of seven training events held in various localities around the country.  Generally speaking, you would possibly have to multiply these expenses by seven to approach a total expenditure for the training.  This does not include future training sessions nor more of the various fees the IB program likes to charge.

Please note the cost of the hotel rooms (individually) and the nifty dinners at the taxpayer’s expense.  And after all this, the school still had to ask for a waiver on the late fees from the credit card company.   Would that work for you?

 

If you have never taken a look at Stow Patch’s web site here is a link that will take you directly too it:

http://stow.patch.com/announcements/school-levy-aug-2-2011