I believe this will be the 7th levy I have voted on since moving to Stow 6 years ago. Enough already

The teachers are in need of raises and as soon as this new tax money from property owners gets collected (if passed) they will have their needed raises. At least they've never had to agree to salary cuts among the union represented staff, only some pay freezes. At least they haven't had to endure what many workers in Stow have had to endure; cuts in their take home pays and cuts in their benefits and pensions. Some have lost their jobs so companies could stay afloat. Isn't it good that our school systems can ask voters for more money and force all property owners to pay even if they aren't a user of the system. Companies can't do that. Of course, any new school tax levy that was ever passed by city voters was followed by raises. I think that's wonderful, because without those nice contracts our children would suffer since the tenured teachers might leave and then we'd have to have new teachers, albeit eager, teaching our children for less money. We need to keep our teachers that are making over $70,000 plus benefits and pensions. We need even those that make $80,000/9 months. Currently, only the property owners of Stow/Munroe Falls carry the school tax burden of 45.49 Total Mills according to http://www.smfschools.org/assets/attachments/file/tax_report_08.pdf .
That is not enough so the schools are asking all voters, including those who are not representative of the property tax payer, to increase the total millage to 52.24 mills regardless of their ability to pay.

I gladly support this levy. We have an excellent district, superb academic programs, and caring teachers. This is a small price to pay in order to keep these benefits while maintaining proprty values. Nothing scares off new business and jobs more than a community that doesn't support their schools.

We've been supporting the teacher/administrator salaries and benefits for years and yet our property values are in the tank. Remember, 84% of the tax revenue toward schools goes toward staff salaries. This is strictly about them not willing to take salary cuts like the rest of us have had to do in the private sector. They expect us to pay them, but we can't hardly support ourselves. I know families that are moving south because the property taxes are too high. There's nothing that scares off businesses and jobs more than a high tax burden! Why do you think so many jobs have left Ohio? Businesses don't care how much their employee's home is worth. What they care about is finding locations that have low taxes overall. Most people I know would actually LOVE to see the county lower their property value so they can afford the taxes. I wish the teachers were willing to accept cuts in their salaries so that the families of Stow can get thru this tough economic time without additional tax burden - come on school teachers and administrators, do it for the kids. That's caring! My family is struggling. There are 130 teachers and administrators making over $70,000 per 10 months in this district. Average days worked per year = 184 days. I think that's great for them, they deserve it. But, my family works hard too and we deserve more, but we've made sacrifices so others don't lose their jobs. I can't support any tax increase right now. See: http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/teacher-salary

The average home owner in Stow will see an increase of between $300 to $600 in their property taxes annually if this new property tax levy passes based on the fact most homes in Stow are valued way above the $100,000 value used as a quick calculation base example of how much a levy costs. I suggest that if the levy doesn't pass, those who felt they could afford that tax increase and voted for the levy should then donate the amount of money they woud have paid to the school district. That donation would be tax deductible and would help the staff salaries. If the levy fails by a close margin then those who voted for the levy (those that feel they can afford the tax increase) could actually donate almost half of the 6.7 million annual tax increase the levy calls for. And, surely some of those who use the system more (those with students enrolled) feel an obligation to carry more of the burden so that senior citizens and those who can't afford to have children aren't hit with this tax increase at this economically challenging time of diminished income, higher fuel costs and general living expense increases. It is true that the teachers union has been successful in stopping any general salary reductions while the majority of workers in Stow have either had job hours cut, lowered benefits or lowered salaries. My neighbor agreed to a 30% cut so the company he works for wouldn't cut jobs. I would never expect that much from school staff, but somethings got to give.

The teachers have the best benefit packages I have ever seen.. etirement alone is over $50,000 with full medical. Do they want it now or later

By the way the Friday before Spring break , my kids watched the NCAA basketball tournament and the other watch a basketball hoops fundraiser at the high school, and all the staff were paid their teaching salary, but no teaching was going on.

Jeanne, I hope you run for a seat on the school board. I'm afraid most of them are or have been connected to the union either themselves as former teachers or thru family, so that ensures the contracts lean in the union's favor. I'm not saying they're all that way, but when you look at their backgrounds there is certainly a leaning toward favoring the union. I don't see a proper balance. I'm an independent. And, Rhonda, I hope you're running At Large so I can vote for you.
If we were a wealthy community like Hudson I wouldn't be against this new tax levy. I know what I can afford and have to budget accordingly. I know at this time I can't ask my employer for a raise. I wish the school board felt that way about asking the property owners for a raise. That's what they are asking us for; a new property tax levy is asking for a school revenue raise. In essence, the voters are the employer and if they have enough knowledge of the budget of those around them they'll realize this raise is financially unwise at this time in this troubled economy. When an employee doesn't accept the pay they are given, they can leave and the employer must replace them or spread the duties around to the existing ones. I'm sure there are some very good eager young teachers ready to become teachers in Stow if others walk. It's all about the contracts. A reminder: http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/teacher-salary

Ed, Hudson has voted against their new school levies since 2006. They also failed each time in 2010. Stow voters are not alone in their objection to school raises at this time. The economy is hitting a lot of people hard, yet both Hudson and Stow teachers/administrators have never been willing to take any pay decrease (well, the union that is that represents them as a whole). Both districts did get the unions to agree to a temporary freeze, but that did not affect their step up raises which still take place. Both districts have made some cuts to their budgets, but have so far resisted any significant cuts to the main part of the annual budget, the salaries. I don't blame them. None of us in the private sector wanted cuts in our income either. It seems the real solution at this time in order to not place more burden on the property tax payers, many struggling to stay in their homes, is to cut positions and increase classroom sizes especially at the middle school and high school levels. If they need to go from 17 or 18 students per classroom up to 25 to 30 students per classroom then that's what they'll need to do in order to maintain their current step up raises and benefits. But, some will lose their jobs, of course.

Jeanne, my apologies for not meeting you at the Republican Club function last week, I did not realize you were there. I would me more than happy to meet with you at your convenience. As far as not interacting or participating, I do believe that I spoke to about 15 people and was there to participate in the meeting and the business at hand. I also was very interested in the speaker and what he had to say. I did feel that he was an invited guest and the floor should be his.
Like you said, "actions speak louder than words".

I feel compelled to respond to one of Rhonda's comments. What study do you cite for Stow having the worst record for bullying and suicide in Ohio? As a teacher, I work hard at doing my part to make Stow Schools a safe and productive place to learn.

^ I agree. Rhonda, as an employee of the district, I would also like to know where you got your information from regarding bullying and suicide in our schools. A statement that bold needs to be supported by facts. I have a hard time believing that it is true.

It may be that Rhonda's family has experienced unusual bullying and that lead to her understandable feelings towards the district. While actual figures may not support the broad claim, bullying is still a problem in every school and must be dealt with. I know many teachers that would never tolerate it if they knew, but unfortunately, as I experienced myself, some just laugh. Some of the things I witnessed I can't even tell on here it was so bad. Suicide is a problem, but a lot of that came from problems outside school and then what happens at school is the breaking point. It's the administrators that have got to listen to the student and act, instead of being so worried about the power of teachers union (when the problem stems from a rare bad teacher who fails to prevent a known problem). Rhonda, have you spoken with the police? That may help get those in the school motivated that maybe you have spoken to that may have not acted on your situation. Threat of violence should not be tolerated anywhere. Even a shove could be deemed as assault and the police must look into it.

Ok now I know this administration has losts it's mind. Lets waste more of the tax payers money on a levy campaign. If the citizens in Stow do not start fighting back about the wasteful spending, they will keep taking and taking from us. I have had discussions with several teachers, that teach outside of Stow, about how the teachers in Stow have it made. It is rediculous. I have nothing against MOST of the teachers, but I am tired of hearing my kids come home, that have teachers who have been riding the pay raise/pension trian, tell me the teacher is not teaching or explaining their assignments correctly. Is everyone hearing that 86% of the taxes are going to the staff and administration. Our kids are being told we need a levy passed so we can continue our excellent schools. We dropped a rating last year on the proficiency status of our schools. Also, we have fewer students and we have more teachers employed in the last few years. How about starting at the top, cut the salary of Mr. Jones. If he doesn't like it, I know there are plenty of qualified people who would be willing to take on the responsibility of running our schools, at a much lower salary.And THEY want 6.5 MILLION in new money, ENOUGH ALREADY!

Jeanne, I would ask that you walk a mile in a teacher's shoes before you criticize teachers who do not "teach" or "explain assignments correctly." Today's teachers are expected to fill many roles within their title of teacher, up to but not including: parent, psychologist, emergency medical technician, police officer, friend, and the person who imparts knowledge and skills. Behavior management is becoming increasingly difficult and time consuming for teachers as students and their parents show alarmingly decreasing levels of respect for the teacher and rules that are in place for the safety and learning ability of all. As far as I'm concerned, teachers earn their salaries - and deserve hazardous duty pay to boot. All students have the right to a free and public education, and teachers must be able to handle whatever challenges come their way- AND teach the day's lessons. It is a tough act to juggle, I know, because I am an educator.

PS Dr. Jones earns approximately $120,000 per year. The superintendent of the Columbus schools earns $185,000. When Dr. Jones was pursuing the Independence job, the salary range was $130,000 to $150,000. To keep our schools "excellent" or go back to "excellent with distinction," we need to pay a leader what he or she is worth, not seek another candidate who is willing to accept less money. Remember, you get what you pay for.

Both the teachers and property tax payers need to be respected and not taken for granted. And, we can't cut down a whole tree just because of some bad apples. Sure, not every teacher and administrator could be counted among the good apples, but that's why trees need pruned. When a tree is pruned it tends to yield greater fruit. One might think that a tree with plenty of branches can do more producing, but that is not the case. It's obvious the classroom size can be increased at the middle school and high school level if the union refuses to come in line with current revenue so the schools can operate within the budget. But are they willing to make the tough cuts or will they push full steam ahead to increase the burden of the property tax payer? Really, when it comes to property tax levy decisions it should only be property owners who are permitted to vote. At this time with all being able to vote on levy issues, what we have is representation without taxation. No, the increase in property taxes doesn't always get absorbed by renters. An even more fair taxation approach would be to eliminate property tax levies for schools and rely on sales tax. Those with larger families, who are also users of the public school system, would tend to be more financially contributive because they must buy more clothing and so forth for their growing family. I'd even rather see an income tax of 1/4 percent than this levy, but those who don't pay property taxes, yet work, always vote that down.

What we need is alternative method of funding that doesn't constantly punish the tax-paying homeowner. Since moving here four years ago, my taxes have already increased over $500 a year. This new levy would add another $420 to my yearly tax bill. Prior to living in Stow, I lived in the southern U.S., where "special purpose local option sales taxes (SPLOSTs)" are authorized to fund education and other specific capital outlays. My southern city used a 1-cent sales tax to build schools and retain staff and programs. Now really, how painful is a 1-cent sales tax? Residents, non-residents, taxpayers, non-taxpayers, people with and without children - EVERYONE contributes and it all goes toward the good of the schools. I have raised this idea with many local Stow leaders but so far, there has been no interest. I wonder how many other Stow residents would feel about a penny special purpose tax that would relieve some of the burden on property owners?

The honor classes I attended years ago must have been different than now. I got a lot out of those. I needed challenged to keep school interesting. I also studied on my own through outside means that I paid for through my own fund raising and benefited through other programs funded by private corporations. Surely, other students do the same today and I support that greatly. I also financially support those who don't have parents through private donations and volunteer to help those who have hit rock bottom. I enjoy helping the Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank along with other organizations. I say all that because I want people that have read my comments to realize I'm not just a grump about supporting schools. Like you Jeanne, we enjoy helping, but are trying to find a better and more fair way to fund schools and take the pressure off property tax payers, which the Supreme Court has already ruled we must find a lawful way since property tax levies were deemed the wrong way. I would like to know why were the all-volunteer finance committee members removed from helping the school district?

As a teacher of Advanced Placement Government and Advanced Placement Economics at the high school I can assure Jeanne and others that we don't cover the same material "just faster". The students are challenged and expected to demonstrate mastery of the material. At the end of an AP course for example, students take a nationwide exam to determine if they qualify for college credit. Last year 58 of the 65 students who took the AP Government exam were able to earn 3 college credits for their scores. Other AP and Honors classes have similar rigor. This is the real story of what goes on in my classroom, from a person who works in the school, has children in the school and lives in this community.

Thank you John Moyer for sharing with us these facts. Advanced Placement Economics has got to be one of the most interesting subjects. I enjoyed taking that when I was in school in Cuyahoga Falls years ago. Economics is one of the most important subjects a student can learn and I have used what I learned in that class to help others avoid losing their investments during the recession. Because of the things I learned I was able to predict the recession and the stock crash a year before it occurred and helped steer friends' money into safe havens. Keep up the good work at the high school and please don't feel like we're all unsupportive of higher teacher wages and benefits. I really wish my income could have kept up during these tough times so that I could afford to take this new property tax hit. Please understand this turnip has been squeezed to death. I know it's not your fault and we all want a better way to get our good schools funded properly.

i for one, am a voice of the younger generation if you will... i am a 2000 graduate of stow high school, and took some of those honors classes that some of you want to remove. i am now a business owner , in stow, with two small children, one of which attends a stow school, and will gladly support the levy. i do agree however that some salaries need to be cut, and things need to be in order.. perhaps they should look at ways to fix this mess before they take the levy to ballot, and maybe , instead of asking for the highest amount of money, that it could be a lower amount asked for... i also do agree with the sales tax, and perhaps, all stow businesses should pay something to the schools.. our school are a great place, and yes i did get some bullying in school, but what school full of 2,000 teenagers does not get bullied? it happened, i moved on, and am even friends with some of those same kids that picked on me now. stow has some great schools to offer, and some great teachers, and i know my daughter truly enjoys going to school... i moved back here for the schools to raise my children through them... please before you start bashing different programs and such that are offered, perhaps find better solutions? i know when i was moved into one of the honors classes it helped tremendously, because of the fact the class i was in before was filled with the kids that could care less about learning. thank you all for caring, but bashing this levy is not the right thing to do...

Will the actions at River Elementary derail any progress that has been made on turning the community in favor of passing a levy? Teachers and administrators need to be in lockstep unity if we want to have any chance of passing this.

I would love to support a levy if not for the fact that my family, like most others in this community, have had to get by with significantly less. I simply cannot afford an increase in my mortgage payment which would be approximately $50.00 a month. All other expenses continue to increase. Gas is $3.79/ gallon. We pay much more at the grocery for much smaller packaging. I hate to see what will be cut from the schools if this levy doesn't pass but I also hate to see what would have to be cut from my household budget if it does.

To see the actual salaries ofStow teachers and administrators go to http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/teacher-salary

What happened to the common sense cuts to reduce the projected deficit? Where is the leadership in this district? It takes a former member of the Stow Finance Committee, Kevin Clark, to come up with a real plan to help reduce costs, ( March 6th, Stow Sentry Editorial). By closing Highland School, we could reduce a large part of the supposed 2 million dollar deficit. This is the kind of thinking that Stow Administrators need to be doing! There is no way anyone can afford higher taxes. I believe higher property taxes at this time will hurt property values. $200 more for every $100,000, most houses are in Stow are much more than that.

Here's a more accurate assessment of what the new property tax levy would mean for the majority of homeowners in Stow/Munroe Falls based on their home values (Mean prices in 2009: All housing units: $184,187; Detached houses: $191,227)

For the owner of a $200,000 home, the 10-year additional tax levy would cost:
•$4024.20 ten-year tax duration
•$402.42 annually
•$201.21 for half a year
•$33.53 a month
•$1.10 a day

For the owner of a $300,000 home, the 10-year additional tax levy would cost:
•$6036.30 ten-year tax duration
•$603.63 annually
•$301.81 for half a year
•$50.30 a month
•$1.65 a day

For the owner of a $400,000 home, the 10-year additional tax levy would cost:
•$8048.40 ten-year tax duration
•$804.84 annually
•$402.42 for half a year
•$67.07 a month
•$2.20 a day

Of course, we cannot assume that the property owner has received enough increase in their income to cover the proposed tax increase on their property. Those who are on fixed income are forced to consider selling their home if their income cannot compensate for the property tax increases they incur. As Ward mentioned, this is why some states have been helping those property owners who's income hasn't increased, yet they're hit with a property tax increase. That's something Ohio may need to consider in the future. The proposed 6.57 mill property tax levy is a 16.5% increase in the total (voted) millage for the district.

A friendly reminder of our terms of use: http://stow.patch.com/terms

The terms of use are very important to read. It's imperative that we keep our comments free from personal attacks. One of the first things I do is read the terms of use for any new site and if they allow mayhem, I'm gone. Although, I should keep my comments shorter, especially since the facts I've shared are just public data and therefore some may find them redundant in nature.

I would like to know if anyone (maybe Amanda can look into this?) has the public records of levy requests (renewal and new) that the Stow-Munroe Falls School District has put on the ballot for the last 10 years. I would like to see each request, the ballot date and result. I realize the most recent 'new' school levy that was passed was 2002, but it would be interesting to see each request including those that failed and the renewals that have passed. I believe I voted for all renewals, but I don't remember how many requests there have been over the last 10 years. The Summit County BOE website only goes back 3 years, or I'm not using it correctly.

Beth M. and Sammy, I am looking into your question. When I find out where to gather the information, I will let you know here in the comments section or it will be a full story by itself. Thanks for your comments.

Please take a look at the .pdf now uploaded to this story. It is the history of levies since 1978 provided by Treasurer Catherine Bulgrin.

Look im a student in the stow district, and all i know is if this next levy doesnt pass its going to be bad for us students. Pay to participate will double which my family cant afford. We wil have no field trips, no band or orchestra concerts, no plays or musicals, sports practices cant be longer than an hour and we will have no home games. Only those who live outside a 2mile radius will have bussing. To hear you people sit and complain about the teachers who have taken a pay freeze, have class sizes up to 35 kids, have immense amounts of school work to be done at home and pay hundreds out of pocket for the classroom is ridiculous. Why dont you become a teacher then?!? If they have it so good, why isnt everybody a teacher?! Because they dont!! So stop and think about us childeren. Its not fair to us. Vote for the levy.

Cameron, you sound very immature and selfish. Here is an idea for you, go cut grass, help the elderly or do something to earn the money yourself!!! here is another idea , ask your parents to get a third job. People are losing their homes and cant afford to eat. Do you do anything to help people in need?

Here is a simple solution for a simple problem. If you really want the levy to pass, why would you wait for the system to become in this condition, open your wallets throughout the year and give give give. If you know they need books, go buy them and donate them. Parents are as dumb as the students