Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Kids picket in front of high school as they re-enact teachers' work stoppage
Seniors at Strongsville High School staged a mock strike Tuesday morning, picketing on Lunn Road before classes started. About 60 teens, toting signs and yelling things like "Get an honest job," parodied their teachers during their recent eight-week strike. Tuesday was senior memory day for Prom Spirit Week at the high school. "Obviously, this was our biggest memory from senior year," said Alex Iammarino, one of the organizers. Alex said some seniors carried "opposite" signs from the striking teachers -- instead of saying "For the kids," they read, "This is for the teachers." Some dressed as police officers and others as Huffmaster security people to give the mock strike some added realism. Alex said he talked to Principal Bill Steffen …
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Here's what's been going on in Strongsville
A rundown of the top Strongsville stories this week: Teachers strike costs city cash -- Strongsville has to transfer money into police account to cover the cost of overtime from security during the strike. School enrollment dips -- Officials expect a significant decrease in the number of students next year. Homes in foreclosure -- 11 properties go to sheriff's sale in May. Road work ahead -- The city hires an engineer to unsnarl traffic at the Albion-Prospect roads intersection. Upgrades at schools -- Plans for building a new middle school and updating other buildings are moving forward quickly. Schools to cut pay-to-play fees -- The superintendent recommends reducing pay-to-participate costs by at least half. Man living in woods -- …
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Students in Strongsville will dip below 6,000 next year; teachers will likely be laid off, official says
Enrollment in the Strongsville City Schools is expected to dip below 6,000 next school year, a sign of an aging population and -- potentially -- the effects of the eight-week teachers strike. Assistant Superintendent Cameron Ryba said he is projecting the 6,200-member student body will drop to 5,800 for the 2013-14 school year. "Enrollment continues to decline," Ryba said. Ryba said the effects are being seen first in elementary schools. While Strongsville High School is graduating classes of well over 500, kindergarten registration hovers at about 250 a year. He is estimating that next school year, the high school's enrollment will drop by 41 students and the middle schools will lose 63. The elementary schools, meanwhile, will lose 300…
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
City has to transfer money to cover expense of security at schools
The eight-week teachers' strike in Strongsville cost the city $275,100 in police overtime and benefits. City Council Monday night transfered $231,800 into the police department's account to cover the salaries of officers stationed outside schools, meetings and school board members' homes during the eight-week strike, and another $43,300 in to the police pension fund. "That's a lot of potholes," Councilman at large Duke Southworth commented during a committee meeting Monday night. "It was a huge inconvenience to the taxpayers of the community," Mayor Tom Perciak replied. "But we're sworn to provide safety, and that's what we're going to do." The first four weeks of the strike cost the city $135,000 in police overtime, Finance Director Joe…
Monday, May 6, 2013
Superintendent recommends chopping sports costs in half and eliminating general education fee
Superintendent John Krupinski is recommending the district cut pay-to-play fees in half and eliminate the general education fee in the 2013-14 school year. Krupinski last week asked the School Board to consider getting rid of the $60-per-student general education fee, and cutting the pay-to-participate charges by at least half. He suggested dropping the fee at the high school from the current $400 per sport to $200, and the fee at the middle schools from $300 to $150. Another option, he said, would be to cut cut the middle school fee even more -- to $100. The reductions were first mentioned last month, when the district received a $3.2 million windfall in unexpected tax revenue. Strongsville schools are "probably at the top" of the scale…
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Here's what's been going on in Strongsville
A rundown of the top news stories in Strongsville this week: Teachers strike ends -- Both the union and School Board ratify a contract, ending the eight-week old strike. Strike aftermath -- Classes are canceled Monday so substitutes can gather their belongings and teachers can set up. A Strongsville High School teacher who crossed the picket line reports that her property is damaged when other teachers or students move it from one room to another. Crime is down -- The Strongsville Police Department's annual report shows many offenses were down in 2012. Computer scam reported -- The first incident of a nationwide computer scam is reported in Strongsville. Teacher complaints fielded -- Building principals are handling a number of concerns…
Friday, May 3, 2013
Pretrials continued for both men charged during Strongsville strike
Two teachers charged with crimes for their actions during the Strongsville teachers strikes had pre-trials at Berea Municipal Court Friday morning, but there was no action in either case, a court spokeswoman said. Ian Steffen, 37, a teacher at Center Middle School, was charged with disorderly conduct March 6 after allegedly blocking cars from entering the school. He has pleaded not guilty to the charge, a fourth-degree misdemeanor. Chris Koval, 37, a was charged with reckless operation March 7 for allegedly blocking a van carrying substitute teachers to Kinsner Elementary School. He has also pleaded not guilty to the charge, a third-degree misdemeanor. Both cases were reset for pre-trial, according to the court. A date has not yet been…
First School Board meeting since teachers' strike is low key; only 3 parents speak
Superintendent John Krupinski called on staff, parents and the community to come together in the wake of the eight-week teachers strike, which came to an end at the beginning of this week. "As we begin this new chapter, we still have the same goal -- to work together as a team," Krupinski said at a School Board meeting Thursday night. The meeting was low-key and sparsely attended, in sharp contrast to the last session, when more than 700 people filled the auditorium at Strongsville High School. Only one police officer guarded the hallway, and only three people asked to speak during the public comment session. The strike's aftermath nonetheless set the tone for the meeting: • Parent Peggy Uhler said she was disappointed in the board for …
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Strongsville High School is investigating incident
The healing has not begun quite yet in the aftermath of the Strongsville teachers strike. A Spanish teacher at Strongsville High School who crossed the picket line and returned to work several weeks ago arrived Tuesday morning to find some of her belongings had been moved from one classroom to another -- and ruined in the process. High School Principal William Steffen said he is looking into it. "I'm not sure we're going to find out who did it, but we're investigating it," he said. Rumors of the vandalism swirled on Facebook throughout the day, with parents saying Maria Schleich was in tears when she found her property damaged. Here's what happened, according to Steffen: Some of Schleich's belongings, including paper wall hangings, were…
So far, few parents have asked to have their children removed from classrooms after strike
Strongsville teachers returned to their classrooms Tuesday morning after an eight-week strike and, for the most part, students did, too. Assistant Superintendent Cameron Ryba said that as of mid-day Tuesday, he had heard of fewer than five cases where parents insisted their children be removed from a teacher's class. He acknowledged, though, that there have been other incidents he is not involved in. "I'm sure there are others the (building) principals are handling," Ryba said. "This is going to be an evolving process." With tempers running high on both sides of the issue, a number of parents cited the behavior of certain teachers during the strike and said they do not want them teaching their children. Ryba said principals are working …
monica zapora
9:36 pm on Thursday, May 23, 2013
Strongsville Grad 2010...you need to move on! Why are you involved? When I was a post hs graduate, I certainly wasn't interested in high school politics. I was in college working on my degree. Maybe when you mature a little more, have a career, get married, have children and settle in a community, you will understand where the majority of us are coming from. You had McMillian when she did not … more ›