Auditor Calls for Overhaul Of Cleveland Governance

The Cleveland school system is on the brink of financial collapse and needs substantial changes in its governance and operations, according to a state auditor's report.

The Ohio legislature had asked State Auditor Jim Petro to examine the district's operations after a federal judge ordered a state takeover of the troubled 74,000-student district. (See Education Week, March 15, 1995.)

In the report released last month, Mr. Petro said the district's debt will likely grow to more than $145 million by the end of the 1996 fiscal year. Moreover, the district may need to spend four times that amount to bring its...