Cloverleaf Local Schools and Medina City Schools have entered a landmark shared-services agreement in which Medina City Schools treasurer James M. Hudson will oversee treasurer’s office operations for both school districts.
"The Medina City and Cloverleaf Local school districts are pleased to announce a collaborative initiative that will fundamentally change the way each of us conduct the business affairs of our school districts,” said Medina City Schools Board of Education president Bill Grenfell. “Beginning this school year, we will jointly share the services and costs of the current Medina City Schools treasurer, Jim Hudson.
“However, this is just the first step in a process of examining how the two school districts perform their business aspect of their operations,” Grenfell added. “The district will examine central office functions including the treasurer's office, transportation, maintenance, human resources, legal, community relations and food service departments to identify ways to operate more efficiently to better serve our respective communities. This concept of shared services between our two organizations has the potential to both reduce costs and increase the level of service provided to our communities as well as our employees.”
With approximately 10,600 students between Medina and Cloverleaf, it will not only be the first collaboration of its kind in Medina County, it is one of the largest such shared-services agreements in the state of Ohio.
“Exploring shared-service opportunities is absolutely essential as state funding continues to be reduced,” Hudson said. “Our overall goal is to increase financial accountability and use taxpayer funds wisely. Local governments in Medina County have been working collaboratively for several years to reduce the costs of providing services. This agreement is one additional means of exploring future opportunities between the two districts.”
Medina County’s school superintendents meet regularly to examine ways districts can work together to save costs, yet offer the highest degree of service to their students. When the position of Cloverleaf treasurer became open earlier this year, Cloverleaf superintendent Daryl Kubilus, Medina superintendent Dr. Randy Stepp, and Hudson discussed the possibility of sharing treasurer services. The conversation soon widened to include both boards of education, resulting in today’s agreement.
“I am lucky to work in a county where the superintendents are all open to discussing increasingly creative ways to stretch our taxpayer dollars,” said Kubilus. “Sharing the services of a treasurer with our neighbors in Medina is a win-win for both districts. Jim Hudson brings a business acumen to the treasurer’s position which will benefit us greatly from an operational perspective. As Jim acclimates himself to the operations of our school district, I expect we will find additional creative ways to share resources with our Medina City School District partners.”
One of those areas of potential savings could be greater group buying power in purchasing goods and services.
“At every opportunity we look at how we can reduce our expenditures while maintaining the level of service that is expected from our community,” Stepp said. “When we look at what we do on a daily basis, we see many opportunities to work with area school districts and other public sector entities so that we can take advantage of economies of scale. Merging treasurer’s office functions is yet another example in a long list of ongoing collaborative measures in our goal to become more cost effective in our daily operations. This pilot initiative goes beyond sharing treasurers and delves into areas where there are greater opportunities for significant cost savings. If successful, this could be a model for other districts around the state.”
The term of the initial contract is for the 2012-13 school year. By sharing the cost of a single treasurer, Medina will realize revenue generation of $69,000 and Cloverleaf will save $51,000 in salary and benefit expenses. Ample safeguards are included in the contract to ensure all parties can withdraw at any time. The agreement will be evaluated in the spring, when the districts will discuss the possibility of a longer-term contract.
The initiative affirms the commitment of both districts to “think outside the box.”
"The treasurer relationship with Medina City schools should demonstrate to all stakeholders that Cloverleaf and Medina are serious about using innovative methods to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the delivery of services needed to support the objective of educating our students,” said Cloverleaf Board of Education president Bill Hutson.