No Surprise Levy was Trounced, School Officials Say

It would be hard to find anyone in Strongsville who was surprised the 9.9-mill school levy Tuesday.

School Board President Jennifer Sinisgalli certainly wasn't.

"I knew people were not in favor of a 9.9-mill levy," she said. "I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people came out because they wanted to make sure it didn't pass."

Still, while 9,772 people cast ballots against the issue, another 1,745 voted for it -- even though the school board has already placed a smaller 6.9-mill issue on the August special election ballot.

"I am thankful for the 1,700 people who supported us," Sinisgalli said. "I hope they're there for us in August."

The next step is to start spreading the word about that issue, she said. At a recent meeting, board member Carl Naso urged teachers to actively promote the levy with signs and rallies.

"We didn't give it (the 9.9-mill levy) a shot," he said. "We never put out our story, gave it a chance."

Sinisgalli said it is difficult to coordinate a campaign without a communication manager, but the district eliminated that position several years ago.

She added that she is aware that to casual followers of school news, it must seem like the board is changing its mind on major issues, but said officials are only reacting to shifts in funding.

"We've always tried to adjust to be fair to the taxpayer," she said.