School & District Management

Cleveland Voters OK Bonds To Repair Schools

By Karla Scoon Reid — May 16, 2001 3 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Clevelanders agreed last week to a tax hike that will raise millions of dollars to repair and renovate the city’s aging public schools.

The successful bond issue will generate $335 million for school construction and qualifies the district for $500 million in state assistance. The measure also guarantees that $3 million will be raised annually for building maintenance, an area that has been underfunded for years. The bonds will be repaid over 25 years.

“It’s phenomenal,” said Barbara Byrd-Bennett, the district’s chief executive officer. “I thought it would be a tighter margin than it was.”

While 60 percent of voters approved the May 8 bond issue, 40 percent opposed it. Residents of the city’s East Side overwhelming supported the construction measure; a majority of voters on the West Side—who historically have been reluctant to raise taxes—opposed it. About 27 percent of registered voters turned out at the polls.

It had been five years since Clevelanders backed a school spending measure. In 1996, voters supported an operating levy that raises $67 million a year for the district.

The collapse last October of the roof over East High School’s gymnasium sparked Cleveland leaders’ effort to secure new money to repair district schools. While no one was injured at East High, the gravity of what could have occurred had a significant impact on the district and the community.

The 76,000-student district plans to spend about $80 million annually over the next 10 years to shore up its deteriorating campuses and make much-needed improvements. The average age of the district’s 122 schools is 51.

While the bond issue guarantees repairs at every school, it falls short of meeting the estimated $1.4 billion price tag for tending to the district’s chronic building needs.

District officials had remained guardedly optimistic throughout the campaign, acknowledging that voters were less than confident in the school system’s ability to manage its money. Many voters still remember that promised renovations were not all completed following the district’s 1987 bond issue, which raised $60 million.

In a move to reassure voters, City Council members had requested an itemized list of repairs slated for each school, but the district declined to provide it. The district’s priority list of repairs won’t be finished until next month, and public meetings about the projects will be held in the fall.

All-Out Campaign

Mayor Michael R. White and Ms. Byrd-Bennett have appointed a 24-member bond-accountability commission to track how the money raised from the bond is spent.

In an effort to seal a victory, Ms. Byrd-Bennett and her staff left little to chance.

From the pulpits of area churches to city street corners, the district CEO led the battle cry for the campaign to rebuild Cleveland schools. Signs bearing the slogan “Safe Schools for Cleveland’s Children” dotted the lawns of homes and school campuses across the city. Students made personal appeals in television commercials and helped register voters at their schools.

“I went to anybody who would listen,” Ms. Byrd-Bennett said. “Sometimes you have to go into the lion’s den.”

Many political observers suggested that the bond issue was a quasi- referendum on the futures of both Mr. White and Ms. Byrd-Bennett. Mr. White, a Democrat who is expected to run for his fourth term as mayor this coming fall, assumed control of the district in 1998 and named Ms. Byrd-Bennett CEO. Under the Ohio law giving him that power, Mr. White also appoints the nine-member school board.

The school bond victory could bode well for both Mr. White and Ms. Byrd-Bennett. Voters will consider keeping a mayoral-appointed school board in the fall of 2002.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the May 16, 2001 edition of Education Week as Cleveland Voters OK Bonds To Repair Schools

Events

Student Achievement Webinar What Effective Tutoring Should Look Like—and Achieve
Join this webinar to learn how to sustain effective tutoring programs that help improve students' performance in reading and math.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Mathematics Webinar
Engaging Every Learner: Strategies to Boost Math Motivation
Math Motivation Boost! Research & real tips to engage learners.
Content provided by Prodigy Education
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Student Well-Being Webinar
The Ripple Effect: Mental Health & Student Outcomes
Learn how student mental health impacts outcomes—and how to use that data to support your school’s IEP funding strategy.
Content provided by Huddle Up

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School & District Management Opinion How to Be a Focused Leader When There’s a Lot of Noise
Burnout, attrition, absenteeism, and disengagement are key issues for schools. Here's a path forward for educators.
3 min read
Screen Shot 2025 04 29 at 6.54.09 AM
Canva
School & District Management 'Go-Betweens' Are Invaluable to Principals. A Guide to Cultivating Them
A school leader's guide to creating and supporting a second-line leader.
2 min read
Wooden pawns on interconnected circles. Concept of interrelationships. 3d illustration.
iStock/Getty
School & District Management Quiz Quiz Yourself: How Well Do You Understand K-12 Leaders’ Social Media Habits?
Test your knowledge of how school and district leaders use social media—what platforms they prefer, how often they post, and getting their attention.
School & District Management Opinion 'We Get to Be a Kayak': Why This Superintendent Isn't Panicking Over Politics
A small, rural district is ready to prove the relevance of its schools to parents and policymakers.
George Philhower
4 min read
A hand offering a small school building.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty