PARMA, Ohio– Parma City School Board president Kathleen Petro resigned Tuesday during a packed meeting concerning the proposed budget plan.
A special board meeting is being held at Parma Senior High School Auditorium, where parents, students and families are voicing their concerns.
As the meeting was getting under way, someone asked Petro to “resign.” The crowd erupted in cheers; Petro then announced she was resigning and left the meeting.
As the meeting continued, Board members said they would ask the Ohio Department of Education for an extension for this fiscal year until the end of this month….and until January to figure out Fiscal Year 2018.
In addition, they would like to table the repurposing plan for now. Which means schools would stay open.
But, if these extensions are not granted, the original plan will go through, meaning that over 100 teachers could lose their jobs.
Hundreds of Parma City Schools students marched through the streets this afternoon, right before the meeting.
The Ohio Department of Education has placed the district under fiscal caution status and said the changes are necessary to keep the state from coming in and taking over.
In order to balance the budget, they need $7 million in cuts for fiscal year 2017 and another $8 million for fiscal year 2018.
Administrators from every Parma school were on hand at the meeting. Many voiced their concerns about the major problems the plan would cause. Among some of their issues were the number of students in study halls and home liaison cuts.
To read the full list of the proposed cuts, click here.
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