COLUMBUS, Ohio – Barberton City School District has requested the state place it on fiscal emergency – the most severe level of state oversight – based on projections showing it will run a $6.7 million deficit this year.
That deficit balloons to $28.9 million in the 2028-2029 school year, according to projections in a state audit released in July.
The deficit is not the result of one expense or event, Superintendent Jason Ondrus said in an email. He’s previously said it was the result of increased health care premiums, overall inflationary rises, lower-than-expected state funding and legislature-enacted property tax cuts. He said cuts in the fall of 2026 when 80 positions were eliminated didn’t create enough savings…