Superintendents discuss education challenges

News Top Stories Facebook X Pinterest WhatsApp LIMA — Superintendents play a crucial role in the education system through funding, tough decisions and leadership. Allen Lima Leadership held an education session Friday and learned about both the Ohio State University at Lima and Apollo Career Center. At Apollo, members of ALL also heard from superintendents across the Allen County region talk about their biggest challenges and successes. “Today, we saw a glimpse and a lens on higher education at Ohio State-Lima, and then Apollo, which has hosted us for the last several years, giving us the opportunity to see what’s happening on the vocational front, and the high schoolers that are going to school here, and what that means for the community,” said Matthew Childers, president of ALL. Childers said it was crucial to connect with administration. “We wanted to take one step further and see what the superintendents are doing from their chair, because it’s really important,” Childers said. “Those things are really impacting students and families, and they’re the ones on the front lines, really being able to provide the education. So, it’s really nice to be able to hear from them each year.” One challenge local superintendents faced recently was downsizing because of funds. “If you don’t know, the last spring, I reduced almost 25 positions. But we’re still facing a large deficit,” said Andre Rudolph, superintendent of Lima schools. “Some of the things that Lima City is facing that may be a bit more drastic than some of our other spaces. Our student population is just always increasing.” Joel Mengerink, superintendent of Elida schools, spoke about how he balanced property tax cuts and school funding. “I think everybody in this room would like to see their property taxes cut, just being honest, us included,” he said. “You know, from an educational standpoint, school funding is now about 60% property tax funded. The state obviously isn’t doing a good job, which is why we’ve pushed that hard for this fair school funding plan, just because of the money that would bring into the districts.” Mengerink said current laws keep superintendents in a tighter box. “From a school funding standpoint, you don’t want to necessarily see those cuts, I understand that,” he said. “I think it’s really the legislature having to do a better job of distributing funds in the way they should be distributing.” A key topic that was brought up from ALL students was how to motivate the next generation to pursue careers in education through recruitment and retention. “I think before we talk about retention, we’re talking about recruitment right?” Rudolph said. “There’s a few things, just as a society, we have to do better. I think, even historically, when I was growing up, we talked about teacher pay and made it as if we can’t have a decent living based off of a teacher’s salary, right?” Apollo Career Center tries to remind students their best choice is what they think is right for them, superintendent Keith Horner said. “We have to remind students, we’re just an extension of your district,” Horner said. “We are a partner with your district, and if you choose to stay at your home school or not, it’s what’s best for you and what your opportunities and outlook for education and careers looks like.” Attendees also asked follow-up questions about resource officers, open enrollment and motivation for the next generation. Featured Local Savings