Princeton Accomplishments and Challenges

By Bob P Maine

A summary of the accomplishments of the district under the leadership of myself and other board members and a reflection on the challenges ahead.

As election time draws nearer (yes, I know you are all excited), I wanted to take this opportunity to ask for your support in continuing my service on the Princeton Board of Education. My term, along with fellow board members Steve Moore and Sandy Leach, ends this year and we will all be seeking reelection to another term.

It has been an exciting 4 years that have only intensified the passion that I have for this great school district. A few highlights of some of the progress we have made and continue to build on in the future:

1. Academic Achievement Continues to Improve + District test scores have steadily improved EVERY year and we have seen 5 of our 10 schools attain an "Excellent" rating at some point during this timeframe. Our top students are taking a record number of AP/IB exams. Our graduation rate for African American males is among the highest in the state and the achievement gap between caucasians and other minority subgroups continues to close at a rapid pace.
2. Costs are down + We have reduced the general fund budget by over $13 million dollars, or about $2,300 per student. The reductions, while painful, were absolutely essential for us to balance the budget (due to huge reductions in TPP and other sources of funding) and get our spending more in line with comparable districts. Of note, we now have one of the leanest administrative staffs within greater Cincinnati.
3. Best Value New Facilities - Just over a year ago a bond issue was passed to build a new middle school and high school facility which will provide a 21st century learning environment for our children for many years to come. Groundbreaking will occur in just over a month. Importantly, we are building these schools at the lowest cost seen in decades, both in terms of the total cost to build, and the interest rate we are paying on the necessary borrowing. The end result is a great value for the taxpayer and cutting edge facilities for the students.
4. Enrollment is UP + For the 3rd straight year, enrollment is up in the district, ending a decade-plus trend of declining enrollment. We were up about 100 students last year and preliminary numbers this year show us up another 50-70 students to over 5600 students.
5. Outstanding Administrative Leadership - It all starts with leadership and we are fortunate to have been able to hire outstanding administrators in our Superintendent, Dr. Gary Pack, and our Treasurer, Jim Rowan. Both are probably one of the best (if not THE best) in the State at their respective jobs and we are absolutely thrilled to have them. It is the knowledge, experience, and work ethic of these two gentlemen that plays a large part in facilitating the extremely lean administrative staff mentioned above.

With that said, there is much work to be done. The next 4 years will be a pivotal time in defining Princeton as the model of how to make an extremely diverse, urban/suburban school district a top performing educational institution.

1. Continue to drive academic achievement through 21st century learning models and focused programs designed to help every student achieve. This year we roll out "Success for All" at four of our elementary schools and increase STEM (Science Technology Engineering, and Math) at the other four. Related work continues to aggressively redesign our secondary curriculum to better prepare ALL students for a career after high school, with a big emphasis on 21st century learning skills.
2. Complete the new Middle School and High School in a manner that we can all be proud of. On time, on budget, and in a quality fashion.
3. Manage the constantly changing financial picture in a way that is prudent, purposeful, and planned. It is clear that the revenue picture for Princeton has changed dramatically and we are in a new age of how we fund our schools. We must proactively manage the district finances in a way that is transparent to the public and provides a clear picture of the path forward.
4. Embrace our ever changing diversity and demographics. Princeton has the fastest growing Hispanic population in Southwest Ohio and possibly the state. The graduating class last year was ~2% Hispanic. This year our district as a whole is approximately 14% Hispanic and at the elementary level is nearly 20%. There is no racial majority in the district and we are not far off from being a 30/30/30/10 district (Caucasian/African American/Hispanic/Other). This is an exciting build to an already diverse district but will also bring its own unique challenges.

With your support, I look forward to helping the district continue this great progress and meet the challenges ahead. Thanks again for your support. I truly look forward to serving another 4 years for the Princeton School District.

Sincerely,

Bob Maine