We have covered the issues with the Portsmouth City School District many times in 2024. The School Board, including the Superintendent, has largely been replaced.
Now, it’s up to the current front office administrators to clean up the mess.
You’ll recall that the school “lost” $6 million. Although the original estimate was $12 Million, the numbers were crunched by the midnight oil, and only $6 million was missing.
This has led to plans for mass layoffs of “all aides, 9 special education teachers, all psych’s, all speech, & more after this year”, according to one of our sources within the district.
This is due to poor financial decisions made by the district when it received ESSER funding (COVID-19 relief under the CARES Act). According to the former treasurer, the money was coming in sporadically, and they voted to get a loan for the full amount with the intention of paying it back as those funds came in.
The multi-million dollar loan was reportedly used to build an auditorium. However, instead of paying on the loan, it seems that the district used those funds on a laundry list of other items that could be construed as extravagant and unnecessary.
This story is less about money and more about the human toll. In the process, these teachers stand to lose their careers, and students who rely on their compassion will lose crucial relationships that could further enhance their education experience.
In the wake of these probabilities, South Central Ohio ESC is making plans to assist with personnel.
In addition to this (which is undoubtedly enough), the Portsmouth City School Board has banned prayer before all school board meetings. Rev. John Gowdy of Temple Baptist Church, who has prayed over all school board meetings for years, has been informed he is no longer allowed to pray over the meetings.
We will continue to follow this never-ending train wreck and report as new details emerge.
Get caught up on our previous reporting.
