Educational Articles

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    Member Spotlight: Angéle Latham, Treasurer/CFO, Cleveland Heights-University Heights City Schools

    By: Angéle Latham 3 days ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? Ten years! How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? I first learned of the school business profession when I was working in higher education. I recall my manager at that time informing me he was leaving to become the Assistant Treasurer for a local district. Shortly after, I left the college to accept a position at CMSD. What is your proudest career accomplishment? ...

    3 people like this.
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    Economic Development Agreements: A Strategic Approach for School Districts

    By: Charles Wise 3 days ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    by Charlie Wise, Senior Vice President, and David Tiggett, Managing Director, Keybanc Public Finance Economic development agreements—such as Tax Increment Financing (TIF), tax abatements, and Community Reinvestment Areas (CRA)—are designed to attract investment and stimulate growth. However, these incentives often come with positive and negative consequences for Ohio’s school districts. The Pros of Tax Incentives 1. Economic Growth and Development One of the primary ...

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    Incorporating EMIS Data into Your Onboarding and Offboarding Process

    By: Julie Erwin 5 days ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    Welcoming new employees and ensuring smooth departures are essential components of school district operations. Detailed onboarding and offboarding checklists are one of the most effective tools to ensure consistency, support positive employee experience and provide for transitions in the business office. At a recent EMIS seminar, it was emphasized that developing a checklist includes both HR and EMIS requirements helps to ensure every step is handled consistently and accurately. Consistency ...

    1 person likes this.
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    Member Spotlight: Jill Bradford, Treasurer/CFO, Walnut Township Local Schools

    By: Jill Bradford 17 days ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? 23 years How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? I began my career at the district I graduated from, working as a library aide and assistant treasurer. During that time, Pat Williard from ODEW visited to assist our newly hired treasurer. After observing my work, Pat encouraged me to pursue my treasurer's license - a recommendation that brought me to where I am now. What ...

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    Onboarding New Board Members: The Treasurer/CFO’s role

    By: William Blakely 17 days ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    As a treasurer/CFO, one of the most important responsibilities during an election year is helping onboard new board members. This process provides a valuable opportunity to share essential information and to build relationships, clarify roles, and set the stage for effective collaboration. While the superintendent also plays a critical role in onboarding, this article focuses on the treasurer/CFO’s perspective and responsibilities. Laying the Groundwork Before Taking Office Before new board ...

    3 people like this.
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    Honoring Scott Gooding

    By: Todd Puster 21 days ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    I am honored to share that my fellow OASBO Past President Scott Gooding received the 2025 Distinguished Eagle Award at the Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) Annual Conference & Expo in Fort Worth, Texas. It was great to see Scott stand before nearly 1,000 conference attendees to receive this prestigious national award. All OASBO members should take inspiration from the way Scott has distinguished himself professionally. The Eagle Award is the highest honor in school business, ...

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    Member Spotlight: Andrew Pizzulo, Treasurer, Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio

    By: Andrew Pizzulo one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? Ten years! How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? I was at a career fair at Youngstown State University and took an internship with the Ohio Auditor of State. After 5 years with AOS, I joined Akron Public Schools as the accountant. What is your proudest career accomplishment? My proudest accomplishment is building a shared services model that supports multiple ...

    2 people like this.
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    Are COPs the Right Tool for Your District—or a Payment Plan You’ll Regret?

    By: Dan Schall one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    Lease purchases and Certificates of Participation (COPs) have gained popularity as financing methods for school districts to address capital needs. COPs are a form of lease financing where a district makes payments that ultimately result in district ownership of the asset or improvements. These financing tools can help districts manage cash flow, fund critical improvements, and move quickly without requiring new taxes or ballot issues. They're fast, flexible, and don’t count against debt limitations—making ...

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    The Certificate of Transition: Your Fiscal Operations Playbook

    By: Rhonda Feasel one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    The Certificate of Transition: Your Fiscal Operations Playbook The Certificate of Transition is more than a formality—it’s the backbone of continuity in your district’s fiscal operations. It is an official record and inventory of the treasurer’s office responsibilities, accounts, and access points. It is intended to facilitate a smooth and efficient change from one treasurer to another – including the transition from an interim treasurer to a new one. Implemented in 2021 by Ohio Revised Code ...

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    Ideas for Managing Workplace Stress

    By: Rejeana Woolum-Napier one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    Stress is a growing concern across many industries, as it can impact not only workers’ well-being but also their safety and productivity in the workplace. It affects employees in several ways, including their mental and physical health, staying focused on the job at hand, and maintaining awareness of their surroundings. Whether stress comes from our personal life or from work, we need to be able to understand what causes stress and how to minimize or eliminate it. Below are some causes of workplace ...

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    Member Spotlight: Kyle Kiffer, Treasurer/CFO, Nordonia Hills City Schools

    By: Kyle Kiffer one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? Eight years! How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? While working for the Ohio Auditor of State’s Office, I found that I most enjoyed auditing public schools. My conversations with treasurer clients during that time sparked my interest in our profession. What is your proudest career accomplishment? It was a difficult 2.5 years when I first started at Nordonia Hills ...

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    School Transportation: Best Practices for Ensuring Safety, Efficiency and Excellence

    By: William Andexler one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    Yellow bus transportation is one of the most visible and vital services that school districts provide. It is also one of the most complex, requiring strict adherence to state and federal regulations, efficient route planning, precise scheduling, accurate reporting, and careful fleet maintenance while keeping student safety at the forefront. Every day, transportation supervisors and their teams make hundreds of decisions that directly impact student well-being. Through decades of collective experience ...

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    Staying Organized: Checklists for Every Season

    By: Rhonda Feasel one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    Staying organized is the key to managing the many responsibilities of a school district treasurer. Checklists are practical, easy-to-follow reminders to help treasurers stay on top of daily, monthly, and year-end tasks. Staying on Track: Checklists for Every Season The role of a school district treasurer requires juggling daily responsibilities while also anticipating monthly, quarterly, and year-end requirements. During my career, I developed a series of checklists to serve as a practical ...

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    Develop a School Safety Inspection Checklist

    By: Rejeana Woolum-Napier one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    Developing a safety inspection checklist for your school is a great way to reduce or eliminate hazards and help ensure the safety of students and employees. The first step in developing a checklist is to perform a hazard assessment. A hazard assessment will help identify the dangers associated with a specific department or functional area. You can perform the assessment yourself or assemble a team consisting of representatives from different departments as this will offer a fresh perspective and ...

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    Member Spotlight: Jamie Mullet, Treasurer/CFO, West Holmes Local Schools

    By: Jamie Mullet one month ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? 23 years How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? I come from a family of educators and school employees with a grandfather who was a school board member for over 20 years. What is your proudest career accomplishment? I feel staying in one district has been an accomplishment that has allowed me to make a difference by building long-term relationships and trust in ...

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    A Grassroots Effort to Build Legislative Relationships

    By: Katie Hoffmeister 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    What began as a casual conversation at the Shared Services Alliance “Newish Treasurers” meeting quickly became a coordinated advocacy effort I was privileged to lead alongside the brave treasurers of Portage County. We knew this budget season wasn’t one to sit out! More importantly, we needed to make our voices heard. During the OASBO Annual Conference, the treasurers and I organized three legislative meetings, assigned certain treasurers to lead particular points of conversation relevant to their ...

    1 person likes this.
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    Creative Ideas to Grow School Breakfast (and Your Reimbursements)

    By: Shannon Amos 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    As students head back to school this year, many are finding school breakfast and lunch available to them at no cost. While some schools have offered free meals for students for a number of years, the popularity of the federal Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) has significantly increased the number of schools offering no-cost meals. CEP is available for schools that enroll at least 25 percent of students who are eligible for free meals. As of last school year, over half of all school buildings ...

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    Ohio’s New Cybersecurity Requirements: What Schools Need to Know

    By: Andrew Thornton 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    By Andrew Thornton, Director of Sales, DataServ A New Cybersecurity Mandate for Ohio Schools Ohio’s new cybersecurity law, included in the biennial budget House Bill 96 (HB96), has been a hot topic in recent months. The new requirements add clear, statewide expectations for local government organizations, including public school districts, to put a documented cybersecurity program in place and to follow specific reporting timelines and procedures when incidents occur. For schools, the ...

    1 person likes this.
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    Real World Example: Impact of A Veto Override on Sidney City School District

    By: Ernie Strawser 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    by Ernie Strawser, Senior Advisor, Analytics Frontline Education Background Sidney School District voters have authorized a fixed-sum levy and a school district income tax on top of their current fixed-rate operating levies of 20 mills. Governor DeWine vetoed budget language to eliminate fixed sum levies, and instead proposed a committee to study property tax reform. The Ohio House of Representatives voted to override the veto, and the issue is now pending before the Ohio Senate. ...

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    Frequent Flyer Miles and Similar Rewards Programs: An Overview of OEC Advisory Opinion No. 2025-02

    By: Brooke Hewlett 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    The Ohio Ethics Commission (the “Commission”) issued Advisory Opinion No. 2025-02 (the “Opinion”) on August 4, 2025, clarifying whether public officials and employees may personally use frequent flyer miles or other rewards points, including credit card rewards and hotel points, accrued during official business or travel. Ultimately, the Opinion removes restrictions on personal use of frequent flyer miles, consistent with the guidelines already in use by the federal government and many other jurisdictions, ...

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    Member Spotlight: Kaitlin Huck, Treasurer, Fort Frye Local Schools

    By: Kaitlin Huck 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? 6 How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? Prior to being a district treasurer, I was an auditor for the Ohio Auditor of State's office. I audited several local governments, including my local school districts. One day while at an audit site, I had a treasurer ask me if I had ever considered this as a profession. I loved the idea of less traveling and a better work-life balance. ...

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    Unlocking Retirement Security: Why 457(b) Plans Are a Valuable Complement to 403(b) Plans for Ohio School Districts

    By: Fred Makonnen 2 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    As school districts across Ohio continue to strengthen employee benefits to recruit and retain top talent, retirement plan design plays a critical role. While 403(b) plans are already widely available to school employees, adding a 457(b) plan can provide advantages that enhance financial security for staff and flexibility for districts. Comparing 403(b) vs. 457(b) for School Districts 403(b) plans are the most common retirement savings option offered by public K–12 school districts, ...

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    Ohio Supreme Court Upholds BTA Decision on Rover Pipeline

    By: Rebecca Princehorn 3 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    On August 13, 2025, the Ohio Supreme Court unanimously upheld the decision of the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) in valuing the Rover Pipeline. The decision is available on the Court’s website, Slip Opinion 2025-Ohio-2806 . In short, the Court reviewed the expert witness testimony of both sides and determined that the BTA’s decision was not arbitrary, but appropriate under the facts and circumstances surrounding Rover’s construction. Unlike the Court’s decision in Nexus, with Rover there ...

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    Member Spotlight: Carla Rice, Retired Treasurer/CFO

    By: Carla Rice 3 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    How many years have you been in the school business profession? 20 How did you first learn about and then become involved in the school business profession? I was a state auditor for 6 years prior to becoming a school treasurer. Of all the entities that I audited, the schools were the most involved and most interesting so I chose to get my license and apply for some local openings. What is your proudest career accomplishment? Working with and networking with the NWOHIO ...

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    Understanding Your Risk: Bonds, Insurance & Treasurer Liability

    By: Mike Ugljesa 3 months ago
    Posted in: All Member Forum

    by Bill Petro & Mike Ugljesa, Ohio School Plan In school business, managing financial risk isn’t optional, it’s essential. Whether protecting physical assets, defending against legal claims, or ensuring the faithful performance of key duties, school districts rely on a combination of risk financing mechanisms to stay secure. There are three distinct types of protection that districts should understand: property insurance , casualty insurance , and surety bonds . Each plays a unique ...

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