Board of Education Update — March 10, 2026 Regular Meeting

The March 10, 2026, meeting of the Board of Education included presentations on the following topics:

Communications from the Board

Board of Education President Jenny McKenna led the room in a moment of silence for the two students who have died by suicide over the past six months and reiterated the district’s commitment to student well-being and mental health. 

She also reviewed the recent Board of Education Work Session on February 27 and 28. The Board of Education received updates on the facilities master planning process, including the findings of the Financial Advisory Board and initial recommendations for a phase two master plan from Superintendent Robert Hunt, Ph.D., and Treasurer/CFO Andrew Geistfeld. The Board asked them to begin sharing their draft recommendations with the community and how those were related to the work of the Financial Advisory Board and the many other data points collected during this nearly two-year process.  The Board asked that they provide opportunities for stakeholder feedback before a final recommendation is brought to the board for consideration.

She also shared that the Board worked with governance consultant Kerri Mollard during the work session, reviewing the results of recent Board surveys and focusing on strengthening governance practices. One area discussed was emergency contingency planning for unexpected circumstances that could create the need for new leadership at the district level. The Board also began identifying the broader ecosystem of stakeholders connected to Upper Arlington Schools — including families, staff, students, community partners, and civic organizations. Understanding these stakeholder groups will help guide future outreach, communication, and committee engagement. As a result of this work, two ad hoc committees were formed to focus on these areas. 

She also shared information about an upcoming opportunity for parents/guardians to learn more about supporting their child’s mental health on April 8 at 6:30 p.m. in the Upper Arlington High School Performing Arts Center. Parents/guardians will gain practical strategies for encouraging open communication and will learn about school, community and clinical resources available to support young people. Participants will also have the opportunity to ask questions. The session will be recorded and the link shared out with families.
 

District Highlights

Superintendent Robert Hunt, Ph.D., recognized the UA Rotary Student of the Month —  Issac M., a senior at Upper Arlington High School. Issac earned the rank of Eagle Scout by designing and building shelves for storing the tubas in the high school band room.  While Isaac has remained active in the scouts as a mentor to younger students, he has also been involved in the high school’s Interact Club.  In addition to those activities, he serves as a student representative to the Upper Arlington Commission on Aging.  

In addition, Dr. Hunt shared the following highlights: 

• The girls swimming and diving team won the state championship for the third consecutive year. The team will be honored at the April Board of Education meeting.
• The Amplify Student Voice Committee will be the focus of an upcoming webinar by AASA, the School Superintendent’s Association, as an example of pioneering work in deepening student voice and engagement in schools.
• Special education will be the focus for the district’s next Coffee & Conversation event on Friday, March 13 at 9 a.m. at the Bob Crane Community Center.

This year, the district has also been creating a video series to intentionally highlight special, memorable moments that our staff creates for students. These videos are available on the district’s YouTube channel. Dr. Hunt highlighted a video on a bird migration station project at Wickliffe Progressive Elementary School.
 

Gifted Services update

Gifted Service Coordinator Shannon Gagel shared an update on the gifted services review in collaboration with Northwestern University’s Center for Talent Development and resulting recommendations. Over a two year period, the team from Northwestern gathered a significant amount of data and feedback through surveys and focus groups.

The results of the review affirmed the effectiveness of our services for gifted students while also recommending ways to improve our services. These suggestions were taken to a work group of educators and administrators to develop recommendations for implementation. As a first step, the district has implemented gifted cluster grouping as a Tier 2 gifted service at the middle school level, in which students who have at least one identification are placed in clusters in regular education classrooms. Teachers are receiving professional development in gifted education to support this model. 

As a result of the implementation of gifted cluster classrooms, now 97% of students who are identified in at least one area are now receiving gifted services at the middle school level.

Future plans include increasing clarity in communicating our services and identification options to stakeholders and utilizing MTSS structure to better include gifted and high achieving students’ needs. 

Policy updates

Deputy Superintendent Stephanie Siddens, Ph.D., shared 13 policies for first read, and five policies for second read and approval. One of the policies for first read is 5220-Attendance, which includes updates based on the state budget bill and will require more frequent notifications for families regarding chronic absenteeism. 
 

Fiscal / Master Planning update

Dr. Hunt and Treasurer/CFO Andrew Geistfeld shared an update on the facilities master planning process and related fiscal information involved in the conversation surrounding a combined operating levy and bond proposal for the November 2026 ballot. This is a high-level review of the information the Board of Education received at their February work session.

Dr. Hunt introduced Matt Rule, senior vice president of National Church Residences and one of the members of the Financial Advisory Board (FAB), to share his experience working on this team of professionals and community experts in business management and the financing and management of facilities improvement projects. He shared that it was a privilege to work with this work group. He described the meetings as being very educational, covering topics such as school finance, school construction, inflation and other areas. He shared that there was robust dialogue around the options for the middle schools and Burbank Early Childhood School, particularly around Jones and its historical nature. The FAB wrestled with the costs associated with the options but put an emphasis on the long-term investment.

What resulted from their robust discussion over these meetings was a final report to the superintendent and treasurer to inform a final master plan recommendation and a combined bond/levy proposal to the Board of Education. 

Geistfeld shared the most recent update to the financial forecast in February, including district revenue and expenditures. He shared that the updated forecast reflects what has been expected for some time — that, after stretching the last operating levy for an additional year, expenditures are beginning to outpace revenue. 

He reviewed that, as property values increase, voted millage decreases to generate the same dollar amount for school districts. This is due to a state law known as House Bill 920. For the most part, there are no inflationary increases in property tax revenue for the district due to property values increasing. Additionally, unrestricted state aid base funding is still using 2022 base cost inputs. So, looking at the district’s funding overall, for more than 94% of revenue there is little if any inflationary growth. This is why the district typically asks for a new operating levy every three to four years. 

Dr. Hunt shifted the discussion to the master planning process and the commitment in phase one to come back in 10 years to revisit the middle schools and Burbank Early Childhood School, which were not touched during the first phase. He noted the incredible investment of the community in phase one in the facilities for K-5 and high school students. Since the start of phase two, there have been multiple opportunities for stakeholders to get involved, with more than 5,000 touchpoints so far in the process. 

He reviewed that the options discussed included repair, which would address infrastructure needs only, and renovate and rebuild, which would address both physical and educational needs identified through professional assessments. Some options have been removed along the way based on community feedback and other factors.

He shared an overview of the recommendations of the Financial Advisory Board, which can be reviewed in full in their report.   

• Phasing: The FAB reached a consensus on addressing all three buildings in a single phase due to the immediacy of the needs and the escalating costs of construction.
• Scope: The FAB reached a consensus that the following options were most appropriate for each building:
  • Burbank Early Childhood School ($39,450,000) - rebuild with additional classrooms
  • Hastings Middle School ($110,800,000) - rebuild on site of current athletic field
  • Jones Middle School ($134,740,000) - rebuild without retaining the facade, consider forming a historical advisory board to advise on the project
• Funding: The FAB agreed that the bond issue for these projects should not increase the current bond tax rate by more than 2.5 mills of actual collection.
• Operating levy millage: The FAB reached consensus that the operating levy portion of the ballot issue should not exceed 5 mills.
• Additional considerations: The team’s discussion led to the identification of the following additional considerations for a phase two master plan:
  • The formation of a historical advisory board for Jones Middle School
  • The addition of turf fields for the middle school athletic facilities
  • The educational experience during construction and the recommendation to look at all possible options for transitional educational space
  • The long-term investment in these buildings

Dr. Hunt shared the subsequent recommendations from the administration to move forward with a $287 million phase two master plan that would include:

• Burbank - rebuild with additional classrooms
• Hastings - rebuild on athletic field
• Jones - rebuild entire building (no facade)
• Hastings and Jones athletic fields - turf

Geistfeld recommended that the bond request associated with this plan be offset by $14 million that the Board of Education had set aside in the Capital Projects Fund. That would result in a bond issue request of $273 million and an estimated 2.0 mill increase over current bond millage. This would assume that collections over 37 years, not using level payments and an estimated interest rate at .25% over current rates.  Current bond millage tax rate is 5.7 mills

He also recommended moving forward with a 4.9-mill operating levy request, which would result in an estimated total millage of 6.9 mills. If approved, this would increase the property tax of a $500,000 home (as valued by the county auditor) by approximately $1,210.

He also shared an update with the Board of Education that arose from the Financial Advisory Board regarding swing space during construction. The district is investigating the possibility of adding a third floor above the Mincy Center and the music rooms at the high school to provide swing space for potentially two grade levels from Jones Middle School or all 8th graders during construction. That work is ongoing, and the district is planning to gather feedback on this idea from stakeholders in the coming weeks.

Before finalizing any master plan recommendations, the district plans to receive feedback from the community at the March 25 community engagement session at 6 p.m. at Upper Arlington High School and through an online survey available at www.uaschools.org/facilities from March 26 through April 9. All of this feedback will be brought back to the Board of Education before the final recommendation is made.
 

Treasurer’s updates

Treasurer/CFO Andrew Geistfeld shared the monthly financial statements for February 2026. 

You may visit our Upper Arlington Schools Board of Education page to access the March 10 meeting agenda and video. To view the meeting presentation, please click here. For meeting dates and more information about the Board of Education, please visit www.uaschools.org/board.