Local Schools Receiving Millions for Jobs

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland and Ohio Department of Education Superintendent of Public Instruction Deborah Delisle today announced the planned distribution of federal education jobs resources to rehire, retain, create and invest in teachers’ and other school building-related service jobs. Local schools will receive over $3.3 million.

Schools in Marion County and their estimated grant amounts include:

Elgin - 361,961
Marion City - 1,486,998
Marion City Digital Academy - 49,297
Pleasant Community Digital - 19,632
Pleasant Education Academy - 4,438
Pleasant - 238,349
Ridgedale Community School - 13,224
Ridgedale - 170,313
River Valley - 366,783
Rushmore Academy - 32,688
Treca Digital Academy - 582,817

Local school officials say they are waiting for complete information from the State on exactly how they can spend the money and the exact amount they will receive. The information is expected to be provided by the end of November and, at that point, officials say they will make plans on how to proceed.

"We are certainly glad the State has awarded our district the money," stated James Barney, superintendent of Marion City Schools. He says the ability for the district to spend the money over the next couple of years instead of immediately will help the district weather the economy in the near future.

“One of the reasons I believe in Ohio is because of the strength of our teachers.  Nothing is more central to the success of our students than the quality of teachers in the classroom,” Strickland said. “That's why we have enacted the most rigorous teacher training program in the country, and why we are utilizing these federal resources to keep our teachers doing what they do best.”

Ohio will be utilizing the state’s primary funding formula, which includes the Ohio Evidence-Based Model, as the method for allocating funds to community schools and school districts. This is the same method used to distribute State Fiscal Stabilization Funds for Education provided to states as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

“Funding from the Ed Jobs program will enable Ohio schools to retain our most valuable educational resource, our teachers, in the classroom and preserve other education jobs that support our students,” Delisle said. “ODE will ensure these funds flow quickly to enable school leaders to make the best decisions for their schools. The flexibility of the program allows schools to carryover funds into next year, providing additional stability and security.”

According to the U.S. Department of Education, Ohio will be joining the 20 states that have submitted applications – all of which are planning to distribute these resources based on its state school funding formula.

The Strickland Administration will be submitting its application to the U.S. Department of Education soon, and funds will be awarded to the state approximately two weeks after an approvable application is submitted.

The State must “pass through” these resources in the current fiscal year, but officials say local schools have the ability to decide for themselves when the resources are used as long as the funds are budgeted for by September 2012. The federal law specifies that the money be used for salaries and benefits for hiring, rehiring, retaining teachers and others supporting the daily education of Ohio’s students. The statute prohibits using funds for general administration.

Ohio will receive $361,179,690 from this $10 billion national investment in education.