Loveland, Ohio – On November 26 the Loveland Board of Education unanimously passed two motions in response to subjects that had been requested by voters who questioned the need for the operating and bond levy that the Board had placed on the November 5 ballot. The ballot issue was defeated by a 78-22% margin.
The Board first voted to cancel the contract with Allerton Hill Consulting, the Columbus and Washington D.C. based consulting company the District hired to help with “messaging”. The contract was set to expire at the end of March, and Superintendent Amy Crouse said it would take 30 days to end the contract so it will end at the end of December. Crouse said the consultant has been working with the District for the last two years and were hired to help the District as they undertook big projects and to help support the Communications Director. She said Allerton Hill Consulting, increased social media presence, helped reduce costs in some mailings, and provided “structural support”.
Before voting, Board member Ned Portune said, “It goes without saying I’ve not been satisfied with what we have gotten out of the Allerton Hill and I agree with the void of that contract.”
Responding to Portune’s comment, Board member Eileen Washburn said, “I think that sums it up.”
The second action was also a unanimous vote to participate in Ohio Open Checkbook. This will allow the public easier access to District spending.
Treasurer Kevin Hawley said he hopes to get the most recent 12 months of data on-line in two weeks and then each month another year would be added. The Board discussed a target goal of having five years’ worth of data on the site by the end of 2019. The motion that passed said the District would participate in Open Checkbook and the Treasurer’s office will enter one-year’s worth of data within the next 2 weeks.
Below is OPENGOV’s video demonstration of how Ohio Open Checkbook should work for District residents. The City of Loveland uses Open Checkbook and you can check it out HERE.
Users can search by a specific department, date, vendor, or use the Google-style search bar, which will return any value in the report that matches the entered text. Keywords may be searched by simply clicking on the term – one of the most popular ways to explore the data.
In this LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV video, you can hear the discussion on these two motions. (From the bottom of the screen are Treasurer Kevin Hawley – Board member Eileen Washburn – Board Vice President Dr. Kathryn Lorenz – Board President Art Jarvis – Board member Ned Portune – Board member Michele Pettit – Superintendent Dr. Amy Crouse.)
LOVELAND MAGAZINE TV IS SPONSORED BY MOVE2LOVELAND
