South Range Local Schools K-12 Newsletter

April 2015

…. a school family serving children and those who love them

Inside this issue:

Superintendent's Message 2

Elementary School 6

Middle School 7

High School 9

2

Superintendent’s Message..............................

Dear South Range Community,

Happy Spring!

After the winter we have endured, it is with great pleasure to officially welcome the spring of 2015. I would like to thank everyone for your patience and understanding regarding all of the modifications to our school day as well as the events and activities that have been shuffled as a result of the winter weather. As always, our primary con-cern is the safety for all attending South Range and for those visiting our school for events.

The severe winter weather has made it necessary to “make up” two (2) days of school as of this publication. The school calendar adopted in February of 2014 provided for five (5) calamity days and also had provisions for make-up days in excess of the statutorily provided and approved calamity days. The additional make-up days for the 2014/2015 school year will be June 10 and 11, 2015. Let’s hope for an early spring and summer to make up for the harsh winter.

The school calendar for the 2015/2016 school year was recently adopted at the February board of education meet-ing. The newly adopted calendar is on the website for planning purposes as we get closer to the new school year. Please note that the first day of school will be August 24, 2015. This monumental change has become neces-sary as our students are required to take many state mandated assessments starting in February and continuing through May. Starting school after Labor Day unfortunately puts our students further behind in terms of test preparation, test performance and ultimately student achievement. The earlier start to the school year did not go without careful consideration and discussion regarding the Canfield Fair and our student’s participation in fair re-lated activities. Students will not be in session September 1 through September 7 for students and respective fami-lies to have the opportunity to attend and participate in the fair activities. School will resume September 8, 2015. The earlier start allows for an early end to the school year with graduation scheduled for the Class of 2016 on May 28, 2016.

The February and March board of education meeting witnessed several changes to board policy. The first modifi-cation effects the way in which class rank is determined and the overall selection of valedictorians and salutatori-ans, this change is effective with the graduating class of 2020. The changes will be clearly communicated to the students and parents prior to the start of the 2015/2016 school year. The second modification to board policy is the physical education waiver for students participating in Marching Band and Athletics. In accordance with Sen-ate Bill 311, students in grades 9-11 may be excused from the physical education (PE) requirement for graduation by participating in District-sponsored interscholastic athletics, marching band, or cheerleading for at least two sea-sons. The board has approved this waiver with the class of 2019 as the first class to be eligible.

The February board of education meeting also included as a precursor to the projected financial deficit in FY17 with the abolishment of three teaching positions, for financial reasons, effective with the end of the 2014-2015 contract year:

A. One (1) Elementary Music Position

B. One (1) Middle School Industrial Tech Position

C. Six tenths (.6) High School Science Position

The positions may be re-instated for the 2015/2016 school year providing funds are available to maintain the abol-ished positions. Without additional operating revenue, the abolished positions and additional positions will un-doubtedly continue to be analyzed as expenditure reduction measures.

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The first of the new calendar year brought board action regarding the placement of a 4.9 mill emergency operating levy on the May 5, 2015 ballot. The area of school finance and communicating the need for additional operating dollars is often a highly charged conversation. To that end, Mr. Phillips, Treasurer/CFO and I are more than will-ing to meet with community members, at your convenience, to share the need for additional operating funds and the concerns associated with reduced operating funds. Please note that Mr. Phillips, our Treasurer/CFO, has in-cluded in this newsletter his April edition of “The Bottom Line.” Please note that a Question and Answer docu-ment regarding the May 5 emergency operating levy is on the South Range Website homepage for community members to view.

As discussed in recent publications, a district advisory/communications committee has been organized and meets prior to each monthly board meeting. The advisory committees are comprised of school board members, parents, employees and community members. The purpose and/or function of each committee is to provide accurate communications between the school and community, and to raise awareness regarding pertinent issues within each committee’s focus area. The six advisory committees are: School Finance, Academics, Performing Arts, Athletics, Community/School Support Organizations and Employee/Community Relations. Each advisory committee will meet on a rotating basis prior to each monthly board meeting at 6:00 p.m. in the K-12 complex. Please contact the board of education office if you have any interest in serving on any of the aforementioned committees.

Many thanks to Mr. Bruce Zinz for his year of service to the South Range Board of Education, Mr. Zinz resigned from the board of education at the February 17, 2015 meeting. Mr. Zinz has cited his recent inability to dedicate the amount of time necessary to fulfill his responsibilities and duties as a board member as the main consideration for the resignation. Mr. Zinz expressed his assurances that he would like to continue to support the students, teachers and the entire district in any way possible as a resident and parent.

Please welcome Mrs. Amy White, who was recently appointed by the Board of Education at the March 16, 2015 board meeting to fill the unexpired term of Mr. Zinz. Mrs. White will serve as a board member through the re-mainder of the 2015 calendar year. Mrs. White may choose to continue her service to the South Range School community by electing to run in the November 3, 2015 general election for the present unexpired term which will run until January 2017. Mrs. White and her husband Rob reside in Green Township with their children Gracey, Brady and Riley.

*The newly renovated South Range website went live during the first week of January and continues to be a great resource for important information regarding the district. Please visit www.southrange.org to stay up to date with school related events and activities.

Thank you for your continued support of the South Range Local School District. Together we can make everyday a “Great day to be a Raider”.

Sincerely,

Dennis J. Dunham

Superintendent

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The Bottom Line_______________________________________________________________

By Jim Phillips, Treasurer/CFO

TAX SHIFT “A New Day Has Dawned In Ohio”

In 2004, the development of the biennial budget for Ohio (House Bill 66) began what is the “new day” in how Ohio funds its local schools and other local governmental agencies. Tax rates for individuals were cut 21% be-tween 2005 and 2010, and business personal tangible property taxes (PPT) were phased out all together by 2010. The South Range School District consequently has lost at least $391,905 per year of business taxes under the HB66 tax reform. Today, PPT receipts to the district are zero. The current budgetary biennium we are experiencing today in Ohio includes an additional 10% tax rate decrease to individuals, and additional business tax cuts as well. The 2016/2017 biennial budget that the Ohio legislature is currently considering includes an additional 23% income tax rate decrease for Ohioans as well as additional busi-ness tax cuts. If these additional tax cuts remain in the next biennial budget, Ohioans will be paying 54% less in tax rates by 2017 than they otherwise would be paying had no tax reform occurred since 2004. The State of Ohio helps to fund its local governmental subdivisions. They have financed the tax cuts by reducing support to schools and other local governments. Governor Kasich said in a recent interview … the State will help poor districts … if you are from a wealthier district based

on incomes and property values, “you’re gonna have to do more to help yourself.”

The State considers South Range to be the 6th wealthiest of forty-five districts in the tri-county area based on aver-age and median incomes as released by the Ohio Department of Taxation for tax year 2012 which is the most re-cently published data. To paraphrase, the Governor is advising in reference to his proposed budget, if South Range constituents want good services, you’ll have to fund them locally. Whether you agree with the “new day tax philosophy” or not, it is our reality. An additional estimated $212,000 of state support would be lost if the cur-rently proposed budget were to become law.

On the opposite page are two examples that illustrate what has happened to the tax structure in Ohio over the past decade. The table showing the percent of school taxes averages in Ohio between 1975 and 2011 clearly illus-trate the change. The table is taken from a Hanna News Service Publication On The Money article published July 11, 2014.

South Range has always placed in the near middle of school tax rates within Mahoning County. The bottom table shows this is still the case as the tax shift that is occurring in Ohio has affected other districts as well. This table was constructed with Mahoning County Auditor Office data using the 2015 Rate Resolution Worksheet.

There is little that can be done in the short term to change what has happened to Ohio’s tax structure. However we could consider embracing the changes and using the positive tax shift that has benefited Ohio citizens on the individual income tax side to help support our local services. It seems to be by design what Ohio leadership is ex-pecting citizens to do. You can calculate what your current Ohio tax amounts would have been if not for the tax reduction by utilizing the formula on the Ohio Department of Taxation’s website for tax year 2004 with your cur-rent annual earnings. A recent test calculation showed an average earner living within the South Range School District is paying $550 less in Ohio income taxes than they would have paid without the restructuring.

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Who Pays Ohio’s Property Taxes? Changes from 1991 to 2011

Table C: Percent of Total School Property Taxes by Type of Property, 1975 – 2011

Type of Property

1975

1983

1991

1999

2007

2011

Class 1 Real % Taxes

46.1%

47.1%

47.5%

52.4%

65.0%

69.9%

Class 2 Real % Taxes

18.8%

18.6%

20.4%

20.3%

22.3%

24.3%

Total TPP % Taxes

35.1%

34.4%

32.1%

27.3%

12.7%

5.7%

Business TPP % Taxes

23.2%

22.3%

19.2%

17.7%

8.0%

0.0%

PU TTP%

11.9%

12.0%

13.0%

9.6%

4.7%

5.7%

Total Business Property % Taxes

53.9%

52.9%

52.5%

47.6%

35.0%

30.1%

Source: A Hannah News Service Publication By Howard Fleeter Vol. 130, No. 37 July 11, 2014

2015 School Tax Rates – Mahoning County

Residential and Ag-riculture

Commercial and Other Personal Property Public Utility

West Branch 23.064533 23.822403 33.2

Springfield* 25.483187 25.484193 36

Lowellville 27.038891 37.202511 61.5

Sebring 28.067821 42.32122 59.3

Jackson-Milton 32.79148 33.15638 44.95

Austintown 35.353403 39.285841 60.4

Canfield 37.17281 36.991852 59.9

South Range 38.066565 38.612253 56.9

Struthers 38.193707 48.122076 63.5

Western Reserve 38.962516 39.125211 52.9

Boardman 39.437507 39.709422 58.15

Poland 41.389249 41.49796 53.4

Campbell 42.172242 40.854381 42.2

Youngstown 53.842812 61.114089 63

Averages 35.78833736 39.09284229 53.23571429

Source: Mahoning County Auditor Rate Resolution Worksheet

Please note that living in a district other than the one you live in today may cost you more in other areas such

as police, fire, roads….etc. therefore, moving to another district could result in higher total taxes.

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Principal’s Message

It is hard to believe that March is coming to an end

and April is right around the corner. Our students

and staff are patiently waiting as the harsh winter

changes from gray and gloomy to bright and cheerful.

There is a sense of hope in the elementary that this

spring will be filled with excitement and memories for

all of our students.

In March, our Kindergarten students put on a wonder-

ful show for our “Dinner with Dad.” Also, our second

grade students will put on a heart-warming perfor-

mance for “Evening with Mom.” Coming in May, the

first grade students will perform their annual Grand-

parents’ Day program and our fourth grade students

will perform on stage with their recorders. I would

like to thank all of the staff, students and parents

who have volunteered to make these events so special.

The students and staff work very hard to make each

program a memorable night.

I would also like to thank the parents and community

members of South Range for helping to make this a

great year for our students. You play a major role in

our students’ lives, and it is with your caring and sup-

port that we are able to achieve great success.

Steve Matos

Principal

Kindergarten Screening

Kindergarten Screening will be held at South

Range Elementary on Thursday, May 14 & Fri-

day, May 15. If you have a child who will be five

years old by September 30, 2015, and they will

be entering kindergarten next school year, you

may register them by calling the elementary

office at (330) 549-5578. At that time we will

set up a screening date and time for you and

your child.

Third & Fourth Grade

Assessments

Our third and fourth grade students will be as-

sessed in both reading and math during the

month of April. In May, our fourth grade stu-

dents will be assessed in Social Studies. Below

is the schedule for when each grade level will

complete their assessments:

Fourth grade Reading - April 22

Third grade Math – April 24 & 28

Fourth grade Reading – April 21 and 23

Fourth grade Math – April 27 and 29

Fourth grade Social Studies – May 7

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Power of The Pen The middle school Power of the Pen teams competed in the Regional tournament at Malone University on Satur-

day, February 28, against 25 other schools representing seven different counties. The seventh grade team placed

first among all seventh grade teams and our combined seventh and eighth grade teams placed fourth over-

all Seventh grader, Olivia Rhodehamel placed first in the individual competition, earning number one rankings

from five out of six judges. She also placed first at the district tournament, earning a perfect rank score. At re-

gionals, two of her stories were recognized as the Best of the Best and will be published in The Book of Winners,

an annual Power of the Pen publication. She will receive a cash award for those stories. Addie Flowers also

earned a Best of Round award at Regionals. Olivia and Addie have qualified to compete at the state tournament

at the College of Wooster in May. Other writers may have qualified, but final results will not be received for ap-

proximately two weeks.

Seventh & Eight Grade Dance

Our seventh and eighth grade Valentine’s Dance has been rescheduled for April 17, from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. in the cafeteria. Admission to the dance is $3.00. Magic Moments Photography will be

End of Third Grading Period

The third grading period ends on April 2, 2015.

Report cards will be distributed to students on Friday, April 17.

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South Range Middle & High School PTO Newsletter April 2015

PTO Board Members

Jennifer Frank – President Shari Thomas – Treasurer Debbie Stratos – Secretary

Stacey Willis – Box Tops Coordinator

PTO meeting for April will be FRIDAY APRIL 24 at 1:30 in the Middle School Conference Room. During this meeting we will be discussing the board member positions for the 2015/2016 school year. Anyone in-terested in becoming part of the board, please plan to attend! Remember this is a middle school & high school

PTO so anyone with children in grades 5-12 can be a part. Please plan to join us!

Craft Show

A HUGE thank you goes out to everyone who helped to make our craft show a success!

THANKS for supporting South Range.

$ MONEY $ for our Students

Goodsearch – (UPDATE)

A few months ago we introduced the Goodsearch program to the students and parents of South Range to help bring in additional money for the students. As of March 15 we have 32 supporters and have raised $45.00! Thanks to eve-ryone who has begun to utilize Goodsearch. The more supporters we can get the more MONEY we can raise for South Range! Please consider signing up and utilizing Goodsearch if you haven’t already! Remember when choosing your cause, make sure to select South Range Middle School. There is another South Range School on Goodsearch…let’s make sure we are supporting the right district. If there are any questions about this program, please reach out to the secretary, Debbie Stratos at dms050899@aol.com

Box Tops

*Please continue clipping and sending in box tops! South Range receives 10 Cents for every one turned in! Let’s finish the year strong and bring in extra $money$ for our students!

*Make sure to include your child’s name and homeroom teacher with the submission.

*We will be running our Spring Box Top Contest from March 1 until May 31.

*The winning class from our Winter Box Top Contest was Mrs. Hartz. This class will be receiving a treat from PTO.

Thanks again for all you do for the students of South Range Schools!

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Junior/Senior Prom

This year’s prom will be held on Saturday, April 25 at “The Barn” on West Pine Lake Road in Salem. Student may

purchase tickets the week after spring break, April 13-17. April 17 is the absolute last day you may purchase a

ticket. Tickets for all seniors will be $35.00 each. Juniors who participated in fundraising events will have a dis-

counted ticket price. Any junior still owing candy sale money will be not be sold a ticket until this amount is paid

in full.

Report Cards

The end of the third nine weeks will be Thursday, April 2., 2015. Report cards will be distributed on Friday, April

17. If any student still has outstanding fees, their report card will be held. Please call the office if you should have

any questions.

Speech & Debate Team Wins High Honors

On March 14 & 15 the South Range Speech Team competed in the Ohio High School Speech League champion-

ship where as a team finished 19th out of more than 90 schools from Ohio. An impressive 12 Raiders made it to

the scoring rounds, individually placing them in the top 24 in their particular events. In Speech, Nic Wix, Troy

Waliszewski, Brant Rothbauer, Jordan Campanelli, Megan Kiselica, Sam Millison, Brooke Sheridan, Holly Toy,

Natalie Eusebio and Morgan Sauerwein made it to the quarter finals. In Debate, Katie Justison also advanced be-

yond preliminaries into the top 24. Congratulations to Dominic Garuccio who is a semi-finalist in Expository

Speaking and special congratulations to Madison Bokros who is a State Finalist in Oratorical Interpretation placing

a fantastic fourth place in the State of Ohio. Congratulations to the entire team for a wonderfully successful sea-

son!

Photography Award

Congratulations to junior, Brian Patrick! Brian’s photog-

raphy piece titled, Runner’s Contemplation, won a gold

key award at the Regional Scholastic Art and Writing

Competition. Brian captured this photo of his sister,

Kelly Patrick and friend, Jordan Roush after a run they

had taken. The photo is unique because it was taken

with a 1960’s Roloflex camera. His first place photo

moved on to the National Scholastic Art and Writing

Competition where he earned a Silver Medal! Brian has

been invited to New York City to receive his medal in a

national ceremony held at Carnegie Hall in June. The

Fine Arts Department is very proud of his achievement!

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2015 National Honor Society Inductees

Carrie Adams

Kirsten Adams

Landon Baer

Madelyn Baker

Lucas Beabout

Madison Bokros

Mario Buzzacco

Jordan Campanelli

Caleb Chaffee

Carly Chopp

Morgan Coler

Kaitlin Donnelly

Natalie Eusebio

Mackenzie Ferenchak

Deven Fickes

Cole Frank

Emily Fromel

Jordan Gregory

Kameron Hobbs

Alexis James

Kaitlin Justison

Madelyn Kimpel

Charli Littleton

Robert Matos

Monica McCabe

Cassidy McKenna

Hazel Minich

Brian Patrick

Mollie Pierson

Brant Rothbauer

Alesandra Sakacs

Morgan Sauerwein

Meghan Smith

Nicholas Stanton

Joseph Ben Stebelton

Jessica Stellers

Ryan Sympson

Brooks Thomas

Holly Toy

Shannon Troy

Jonah Wilson

“ Goodness is about character - integrity, honesty, kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like.

More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people. “

- Dennis Prager

11

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Class of 2015 The following are important events about which seniors should be concerned. Seniors are re-

quested to meet all of the time/date deadlines to avoid any problems. Please be reminded that

ATTENDANCE AT GRADUATION PRACTICE IS MANDATORY! Work assignments

that seniors have outside of school are not reasonable excuses. Please make a special note that

the senior recognition dinner by both Ruritan communities is a unifying event. The commu-

nity looks forward to seeing the seniors at that dinner.

SOUTH RANGE HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR CALENDAR OF EVENTS

April 25, 2015 Junior/Senior Prom - 8:00 p.m.

May 5 Music Boosters Banquet - Antone’s Banquet Center -

6:30 p.m.

May 12 Senior Project Presentations - 7:00 p.m.

May 14 Beaver-Greenford Ruritan Senior Dinner - 6:30 p.m.

May 21 Cap & Gown Distribution

May 22 Senior Class Trip - Cedar Point

May 26 FTA Field Trip

June 1 Senior Picnic

June 2 & 3 Senior Exams

June 4 Senior Class Breakfast/Senior Awards Day

The Georgetown - 8:00 a.m.

June 5 MCCTC Awards Day - 8:00 a.m.

June 5 Commencement Practice - 12:30 p.m.

June 6 Commencement - 6:00 p.m. Seniors arrive at 5:15 p.m.

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April 2014

March 2014

K-12 Events Calendar

April 2015

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 Market Day Pick-up

2 End of Third Grading Period

3 Good Friday No Classes

4

5

6 7 8 9 10

11

12 13 Classes Resume Athletic Boosters Meeting 7:00 p.m.

14 Elementary PTO Meeting 7:00 p.m.

15 16 17 Report Cards Distributed

18 ACT Test 7:30 a.m.

19 20 Board of Education Meeting 7:00 p.m.

21 Fourth Grade PARCC Test

22 Third Grade PARCC Test

23 MS English Festival @ YSU

24 25 Prom

26 27

Fourth Grade

PARCC Test

28

Third Grade

PARCC Test

29

Fourth Grade

PARCC Test

30

Spring Break - No Classes

14

15

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South Range Local School District

WWW . SOUTHRANGE . ORG

Middle School

11300 Columbiana-Canfield Rd.

Suite M

Canfield, Ohio 44406

330-549-4071

330-549-4073 FAX

Mr. J. Daniel Szolek, Principal

dszolek@southrange.org

Mrs. Katie Toy, Secretary

ktoy@southrange.org

Office Hours 7:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

School Hours 7:50 a.m.-2:45 p.m.

Elementary School

11300 Columbiana-Canfield Rd.

Suite E

Canfield, Ohio 44406

330-549-5578

330-549-3430 FAX

Mr. Steve Matos, Principal

smatos@southrange.org

Ms. Janet Noble, Secretary

jnoble@southrange.org

Office Hours 7:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

School Hours 7:50 a.m.-2:45 p.m.

High School

11300 Columbiana-Canfield Rd.

Suite H

Canfield, Ohio 44406

330-549-2163

330-549-4083 FAX

Mr. Stephen Rohan, Principal

srohan@southrange.org

Ms. Joanne Kane, Secretary

jkane@southrange.org

Office Hours 7:00 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

School Hours 7:50 a.m.-2:45 p.m.

NON-PROFIT ORG.

U.S. POSTAGE PAID

YOUNGSTOWN, OH

PERMIT NO. 884