3/15/2011 10:45:00 PMInterim Cleveland Schools CEO Peter Raskind likely to propose layoffs, school closings
March 15, 2011, 10:45 PM
By Thomas Ott,The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The interim chief executive officer of the Cleveland schools is expected to recommend school closings and large-scale layoffs when he proposes sweeping spending cuts next week.
CEO Peter Raskind won't give specifics until a school board meeting Tuesday but promises a "range of options" for ending a financial crisis. He is even pondering selling the district's historic downtown headquarters, near the site of Cleveland's new Medical Mart.
"It will take, clearly, a combination of actions," Raskind said in an interview Tuesday. "There's no single silver bullet that will solve this problem."
The school board, which discussed the financial difficulties Tuesday night, could vote on cuts April 5. The decision would come after community forums.
Raskind will draw on a study that the district conducted with business leaders. The review was wide ranging but couldn't escape the reality that most of the schools' $600 million-plus operating budget is tied up in salaries and benefits.
Teachers are girding for hundreds of layoffs to erase a $47.5 million deficit in 2012. Raskind, who is putting the final touches on his proposals, would not provide a count but said the number "can't be insignificant."
"We will do our level best to be as thoughtful as possible and as sensitive as possible to the education experience in the school buildings," said Raskind, who indicated that cuts would touch operations across the district, including the central office.
Cleveland laid off scores of employees, including 546 classroom teachers, last year. More than half of the teachers returned to work after agreeing to concessions.
Raskind would not discuss upcoming negotiations on wage and benefit reopeners. Cleveland Teachers Union President David Quolke said he will consider another round of concessions.
The district also closed 15 schools last year, mostly on the foreclosure-scarred East Side. Schools were picked based on enrollment, building condition, test scores and the "culture," a catch-all for attendance, violence and other factors. Raskind said the formula will apply again.
Cleveland continues to maintain more than 90 buildings for 44,000 students. Any closed this time will probably come from among 27 elementary schools placed on a watch list. The district shut down two high schools last year but is unlikely to eliminate more, Raskind said.
Raskind briefed eight City Council members Tuesday morning but did not identify targets, Councilman Mike Polensek said. Polensek asked Raskind to focus on arts of the city that newly released census results show lost the most population.
"He shouldn't be closing schools in neighborhoods that are holding their own," said Polensek, who puts his North Collinwood ward in the better-off category. "That's only going to add to the disinvestment."
Raskind said the district will consider selling 30 closed schools, despite the board's recent approval of a plan that calls for tearing down five and keeping the rest. State law would require first offering the buildings to charter schools for fair market value.
The district receives more than two-thirds of its money from the state. Officials, who had projected at least a 7 percent cut in aid, were assessing the effects of a two-year budget proposed Tuesday by Gov. John Kasich.
Raskind indicated that the district will also try to pass its first operating levy since 1996 but said officials must first prove to voters that they have done all they can to reduce spending.
Raskind, former CEO of National City Bank, has filled in since former schools chief Eugene Sanders retired Feb. 1.
Mayor Frank Jackson, who oversees the schools, wanted Raskind to stabilize the operation until Sanders' permanent successor is hired, probably in June. But Raskind said his proposals would get the district only through next year.
Long-term solvency lies in controlling the "cost structure," mainly pay and benefits, Raskind said. Raskind is not counting on Senate Bill 5, which would weaken Ohio's public-employee unions. He said questions remain as to whether the reopeners would trigger the bill's provisions and noted that a referendum is likely to freeze the changes if the bill becomes law.