New Board of Ed President Ed Favre accepts the challenge
Posted: Tue Jan 08, 2013 2:29 pm
Congratulations to longtime Board of Education Member Ed Favre who became President of the Board last night, for the fourth time.
Here is his speech:
“In partnership with our families and community, Lakewood City Schools will develop responsible citizens, who are critical and creative thinkers, committed to lifelong learning, invested in a diverse society, and prepared for technological and global opportunities.”
This is the mission statement of the Lakewood City Schools and it is what we strive to do each and every day with each and every student.
We have excellent teachers, administrators and support staff, and great kids. Our kids come from all walks of life. We have students that range everywhere from incredibly gifted to greatly challenged. For over 120 years, Lakewood has been a melting pot of people from all over the world. Its schools reflect the city and there are few places where you can experience such an extraordinarily diverse student body.
This does bring with it challenges. So many students from so many backgrounds do not learn at the same rate. Often times the standardized, seemingly cookie-cutter approach of the State Report card system does not adequately reflect the achievement of our students. We know that year in and year out, Lakewood students achieve more than a year’s academic growth. Going forward, we also know our staff will continue to work cooperatively to implement the new core curriculum and revised state standards.
In 2013, we will continue to work within our budget at providing the best service to our students with the dollars we have. The unconstitutional nature of school funding in Ohio makes future operating levies in all Ohio’s school districts inevitable. It’s not a matter of if, but when. That coupled with recent cuts in State budget further stresses our finances and what we can do for our students.
Here is some brief history regarding our finances to keep in mind as we move forward.
• During the years 2005-09, we cut $5 million from our budget in order to control expenditure growth.
• Then, in March of 2009, we took more than a $1 million cut from the State.
• In May 2009, Lakewood passed a 6.9 mill operating levy that raised some $6 million.
• That same school year, the State cut us by $1.6 million more, the next school year an additional $4 million, last school year another $1 million, and this school year we anticipate $800 thousand in cuts from the State.
In essence, by reducing its own funding responsibility, the State of Ohio has taken away a like amount that Lakewood taxpayers dedicated to their schools in 2009. This is a pattern Ohio State government has been following for some time; reducing its funding responsibility to schools and thereby transferring that tax burden to local communities. More recently, it has included local municipalities in this process. However, we will continue to do the best we can on this uneven playing field.
This year we must also be ready to receive the long awaited call from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission to complete the final segment of the reconstruction of our schools. The OFCC is reviewing its waiting list and we have already taken steps to assure our place in line and be ready to proceed when called.
During Superintendent Patterson’s school meetings last year, the question of what to do with our shuttered buildings was raised. How and which buildings will or will not figure into the final construction project needs to be reviewed. We know we will not need all and there is a cost to maintain them. Accordingly, we will continue to assess our options.
In 2013, School Safety will continue to be a priority. We were all shocked and sadden by the tragedy at Newtown. The sobering reality is that we have no reason to believe this was our country’s last such school calamity. We will continue to review and train to ensure our schools’ security and students’ safety. As the Newtown investigation progresses and details are made available to the law enforcement community, we will work with our public safety officials to see what we can learn from that community’s, and Chardon’s, horrendous experience. The need to be attentive and proactive was underscored just this morning by a news report that an alert teacher discovered a student’s notes that he was preparing a bombing at a high school in Alabama. So we will remain vigilant.
Despite all these challenges, there is also great opportunity. We have a dedicated Board, highly qualified administrators, top notch teachers and a very skilled staff. We have students eager to learn, backed by parents who want them to do well, and a supportive community. These connections are vitally important and we must maintain and foster them as they are the reasons Lakewood Schools do and will continue to succeed.
It is an honor and privilege to be Board President and I look forward to working with all for the benefit of our students.
Here is his speech:
“In partnership with our families and community, Lakewood City Schools will develop responsible citizens, who are critical and creative thinkers, committed to lifelong learning, invested in a diverse society, and prepared for technological and global opportunities.”
This is the mission statement of the Lakewood City Schools and it is what we strive to do each and every day with each and every student.
We have excellent teachers, administrators and support staff, and great kids. Our kids come from all walks of life. We have students that range everywhere from incredibly gifted to greatly challenged. For over 120 years, Lakewood has been a melting pot of people from all over the world. Its schools reflect the city and there are few places where you can experience such an extraordinarily diverse student body.
This does bring with it challenges. So many students from so many backgrounds do not learn at the same rate. Often times the standardized, seemingly cookie-cutter approach of the State Report card system does not adequately reflect the achievement of our students. We know that year in and year out, Lakewood students achieve more than a year’s academic growth. Going forward, we also know our staff will continue to work cooperatively to implement the new core curriculum and revised state standards.
In 2013, we will continue to work within our budget at providing the best service to our students with the dollars we have. The unconstitutional nature of school funding in Ohio makes future operating levies in all Ohio’s school districts inevitable. It’s not a matter of if, but when. That coupled with recent cuts in State budget further stresses our finances and what we can do for our students.
Here is some brief history regarding our finances to keep in mind as we move forward.
• During the years 2005-09, we cut $5 million from our budget in order to control expenditure growth.
• Then, in March of 2009, we took more than a $1 million cut from the State.
• In May 2009, Lakewood passed a 6.9 mill operating levy that raised some $6 million.
• That same school year, the State cut us by $1.6 million more, the next school year an additional $4 million, last school year another $1 million, and this school year we anticipate $800 thousand in cuts from the State.
In essence, by reducing its own funding responsibility, the State of Ohio has taken away a like amount that Lakewood taxpayers dedicated to their schools in 2009. This is a pattern Ohio State government has been following for some time; reducing its funding responsibility to schools and thereby transferring that tax burden to local communities. More recently, it has included local municipalities in this process. However, we will continue to do the best we can on this uneven playing field.
This year we must also be ready to receive the long awaited call from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission to complete the final segment of the reconstruction of our schools. The OFCC is reviewing its waiting list and we have already taken steps to assure our place in line and be ready to proceed when called.
During Superintendent Patterson’s school meetings last year, the question of what to do with our shuttered buildings was raised. How and which buildings will or will not figure into the final construction project needs to be reviewed. We know we will not need all and there is a cost to maintain them. Accordingly, we will continue to assess our options.
In 2013, School Safety will continue to be a priority. We were all shocked and sadden by the tragedy at Newtown. The sobering reality is that we have no reason to believe this was our country’s last such school calamity. We will continue to review and train to ensure our schools’ security and students’ safety. As the Newtown investigation progresses and details are made available to the law enforcement community, we will work with our public safety officials to see what we can learn from that community’s, and Chardon’s, horrendous experience. The need to be attentive and proactive was underscored just this morning by a news report that an alert teacher discovered a student’s notes that he was preparing a bombing at a high school in Alabama. So we will remain vigilant.
Despite all these challenges, there is also great opportunity. We have a dedicated Board, highly qualified administrators, top notch teachers and a very skilled staff. We have students eager to learn, backed by parents who want them to do well, and a supportive community. These connections are vitally important and we must maintain and foster them as they are the reasons Lakewood Schools do and will continue to succeed.
It is an honor and privilege to be Board President and I look forward to working with all for the benefit of our students.