As another new year is upon the City of Aurora, the City received an update on the status of the City Schools and the City plans. Outgoing Superintendent Mike Roberto and Mayor Ann Womer Benjamin addressed these matters at the annual State of the City luncheon last Wednesday afternoon at The Bertram Hotel Inn & Conference Center.
For Roberto, it marked his final address to the City before his retirement at the end of the school year, concluding a 25-year career in the Aurora School District
“This year, which is my 25th and final year in Aurora, I will be retiring, so this is also my last opportunity to share the state of the schools,” he said.
Roberto began his teaching career at Aurora in 1999, when he arrived to teach science at the high school. During his distinguished career, he has served as the principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent.
Roberto commended the hard work of the five Board of Education members. He lauded the continued achievement of the Aurora Schools for earning five stars in all five components on the state report card, marking this the third consecutive year that the school district has achieved that milestone. Roberto said that the school district is only one of six schools out of 600 in the State of Ohio to consistently exceed expectations.
“The light of those stars is not the only bright spot in the Aurora City Schools,” he added. “Moving beyond state recognition and to national recognition, congratulations go to the intermediate and Harmon Middle School staffs as both schools were recently listed in the US News and World Reports best Elementary and Middle schools respectively.”
According to Roberto, Leighton Elementary School was ranked 264th out of 3,000 elementary schools in Ohio, while Harmon Middle School was ranked 31st out of 2,451 middle schools in the State, which were accomplished through efficiency and performance.
Roberto noted that Aurora High School earned the number one ranking out of the 52 high schools in the Akron Metro area in three of the last five years, falling within the top 2.1% of Ohio schools and 2.3% of high schools across the country.
He then spoke of the school-community programs that took place just last fall, including Leighton’s family pancake breakfast, Craddock Elementary School’s Veteran’s Day Celebration, Harmon’s annual Coats and Kids Collection and Aurora High School’s Rake and Run event.
“As you can see, describing Aurora City Schools as a shining district on the hill is not hyperbole, the school’s foundation is strong, thanks to our connections to the community which help us to create nurturing learning events that help Aurora learners be future ready,” he said.
Roberto then spoke of the decline in state funding that has occurred over the last decade, from 2011, when Aurora received 27.8% of its school revenue from the State of Ohio, to last year, when it only received 18.1% of its revenue from the State.
Roberto noted that the erosion of the State of Ohio’s support is tied to the increasing support of private school funding in the form of school vouchers.
“For those who don’t know, school vouchers are a public fund that help parents pay for private educations, giving poor children in low-performing public schools the chance to attend private schools,” he said. “These vouchers have been in Ohio since the end of the last century, but the universal school vouchers are new, they allow any student, no matter their parents’ income and no matter the school’s performance, to use public funds for a voucher.”
Roberto said that private school vouchers can provide support for a family of four, which amounts to about 70% of the families in the State of Ohio.
Private school vouchers can cover approximately $9,800 per student while public school vouchers only total $2,000.
“Across Ohio, the $970 million in public school funds used for vouchers went to approximately 10% of the population, who like in Aurora, were previously attending private schools,” he said. “I acknowledge that the estimated cost of educating more than 80% of the students in Ohio who attend a public school is a big investment but please understand that that $970 million of public funds spent on vouchers for approximately 10% of the student-population in Ohio will cover almost half of the cost of the project needs of the fair school funding plans.”
Roberto said that should things continue, the consistent erosion of public school funding could ultimately lead to a total collapse.
Mayor Womer Benjamin then took her turn to deliver her annual keynote address, beginning with the City’s recent purchase of Geauga Lake and its 47 adjacent acres.
“That, to me, is the best thing that could have happened with that property,” she said. “Creating a park instead of yielding to housing or commercial development in this space. These are the decisions, and long pursuits we are involved in as a city, all for the benefit of our residents.”
Mayor Womer Benjamin then talked about the significance of public service at the local level, which may have come in the form of smaller projects but still carried great impact.
She extended her appreciation to all public service employees for their hard work on behalf of the City of Aurora.
“We have an incredible team in Aurora of dedicated public servants who work hard for you every single day,” she said. “I thank them for their service from the bottom of my heart and ask those who are here to please stand.
The Mayor then spoke of some of the future plans in store for Aurora, including the impending groundbreaking ceremony at Geauga Lake in the spring to begin construction of the new park.
“Our new park to be developed along the south shore of Geauga Lake is a monumental opportunity for our community and the entire area,” she said. “What was a site for family fun, outdoor recreation and enjoyment for years will not be going the way of housing, commercial development or wasteland. Instead, it will be redeveloped into a beautiful park facility for all to enjoy.”
She also said that some demolition will occur on the Aurora side of the property for which the City has been awarded a grant of $415,000 from the Ohio Department of Development.
Mayor Womer Benjamin also noted the economic development Aurora has experienced in the past year such as Atlas Theaters, Foot Spa, Lucha Bubble Tea, Wrap City restaurant and Sand Pebbles, all opening their doors.
Mayor Womer Benjamin concluded her speech by lauding the improvement of the City’s infrastructure, thanks to the work of Public Services’ Director Harry Stark. She said that has included road paving, improving the wastewater system and vital work on the sanitary system to better its efforts combat stormwater.
Mayor Womer Benjamin concluded the luncheon by unveiling the first designs on the Geauga Lake park project.
