The Shaker Heights City School District has not put a full operating levy on the ballot in 11 years.
Updated: Oct. 28, 2025, 4:03 p.m.Although Issue 51 is the first full operating levy the Shaker Heights City Schools has put to the voters since 2014, a "partial" 3-mill request was added to the district's bond issue in 2023 to fund extensive renovations for the new Ludlow Pre-K.
Shaker Heights City Council kicked in over $100,000 to add a community playground for older kids, shown here.SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio -- For the first time in 11 years, Shaker Heights City Schools will bring a full operating levy before voters on Nov. 4.The request comes at a time when inflation continues to outpace district revenues by an estimated $13 million annually -- to the point where $50 million in cash reserves could be depleted in 2027.It would cost property owners $347 per year for each $100,000 of a home’s appraised value.also cite uncertainty over continued state and federal funding, with cuts threatened at both levels. Some of those cuts have already been carried out, with state lawmakers rolling back the previously agreed to Fair School Funding Plan, slashing the public schools budget by $3 billion. Meanwhile, the Trump administration continues its efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and withhold funds from school districts that refuse to uphold an accompanying assault on diversity, equity and inclusion to make their case for passage, as did Board of Education President Lora Cover. “Without the operating levy, we will face cuts, including larger class sizes, fewer course offerings and extracurriculars, as well as staff reduction,” Cover stated in a prior LWV-GC candidates forum. “That would hurt not only our students but our city as a whole -- strong schools drive a strong Shaker community,” Cover added., with roughly two-thirds of that going toward a bond issue to modernize and reconfigure most of the schools in the district. That measure took advantage of $42 million available through the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission , providing a 37 percent funding match on the transformational project currently under way.Ludlow Early Learning CenterAs for the district’s ability to keep a full operating levy off the ballot since 2014, Johnson cited careful fiscal management, as well as federal COVID relief funds and previously low inflation. Before that, Shaker Heights voters passed 15 operating levies over 38 years in what amounted to a 2.5-year election cycle since 1976, when the state legislature voted to keep property tax revenue constant. Passed in Columbus during a period of high inflation “similar to what we’re experiencing now,” Ohio House Bill 920 still limits the district’s property tax revenue while inflation continues to drive operational costs -- namely staff salaries, Johnson said.In addition to immediate expense-reduction measures, an Issue 51 failure could lead to a larger levy request next year or a return to an accelerated levy cycle moving forward. Delaying the 9.9-mill levy request even by a year could permanently cost the district $12.5 million in unrecoverable revenue, Stockdale said. As for the academic state of the schools, Johnson pointed out that “it’s a good product -- Shaker gotFor that matter, Shaker Schools also surpassed state standards in closing the achievement gap on academic performance across racial and English-as-a-second-language categories. And the district now ensures that all students receive access to honors-level coursework through ending the practice of “tracking.” Stockdale also noted that Shaker’s classroom ratio of 17 students per teacher remains among the best compared to surrounding districts, as does the fact that 86 percent of its teachers have master’s degrees. While efforts continue to shift more of the tax base to business and commercial, about 90 percent of taxes collected still come from residential property owners. “We cannot look to the state and the feds to save us,” Johnson said. “If we want our kids to have a good education, it’s really up to us.” The district has already identified $2.5 million in cost savings for next year, including reducing staff by 31 positions through natural attrition. Officials also plan an additional $1 million in annual cuts for the next five years, with further reductions in stipends and supplemental contracts, as well as cutting down on district-issued phones and credit cards., which seeks funding for maintenance and operational costs through Issue 31. The five-year, 0.3-mill levy would collect an estimated $352,291 per year and would cost about $11 for each $100,000 of appraised property value.Read more from theIf you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation.
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