Westlake City Schools Proactive in Search for New Revenue

Every little bit helps. 

In light of the steep cuts to Ohio’s education budget, school districts around the region are getting creative and are on the hunt for alternative sources of revenue to help regain some financial footing. 

Levies are typically the best ways to raise money, but they can be a tough sell and can take months to pass. 

That’s why school districts, like Westlake, began partnering and negotiating with organizations that have the business plan and the capital to create new funding opportunities today or in the near term. 

Last spring, Westlake City Schools officials decided to enter into an agreement with the Scholastic Sponsors Association (SSA) to generate some extra revenue to help cover the district’s technology costs, said Superintendent Dan Keenan. 

Here’s how the agreement breaks down: 

SSA contacts local businesses and vendors and offers them advertising opportunities on the district’s web sites. The district gets a percentage of the online ad sales, and the hope is to create a long list of sponsors that would collectively net some decent earnings over a five to 10 year period, said director of business affairs Dave Puffer. 

Since March, the Westlake Schools have made around $1,700, and the revenue, which comes to the district on a quarterly basis, is slowly rising. 

On a larger scale, Puffer, Keenan and various other school officials are currently negotiating with major companies, like AT&T. that want to place an antenna on top of one of the light poles at football field. 

In doing so, a handful of cell phone companies would pay to use the antenna which would beam a stronger cell phone signal to the surrounding neighborhood. 

As they’re still in negotiations, Puffer opted not to give a number, but said the district could see some “nice gains.” 

“I think we’re looking for any source of revenue that can help supplement what we get from the state or what we’re asking our residents to pay,” Puffer said. 

In the mean time, the district will have a little breathing room over this school year and next to figure out how to hedge the that may come down through 2016. To fill such a large projected funding gap, school officials have said that all options are on the table, including a new levy. 

Any ideas, big or small, on what the school district can do to raise revenue? Submit your ideas in the comment box below.