CANFIELD — Schools Superintendent Joe Knoll hosted a “State of the Schools” address prior to the regular Board of Education meeting Wednesday, where he gave present data and presented future plans.

During the address, Knoll highlighted the accomplishments of the 2024-25 school year, and was followed by Assistant Superintendent and Director of Curriculum and Instruction John Vitto.

“We added 12 new courses this year. And we are planning to add 13 additional new courses next school year,” Vitto said.

The 12 new courses that are already in place include Career Readiness at the middle school, and at the high school: AP Capstone, College and Life Readiness, Financial Literacy, Sports Stories Through Short Film, Writing Lab, Sports Officiating, Cardinal Chaos (choir), Choir Sectionals, Art History, Farm to Table and Mentor Program.

The new courses for the 2025-26 school year include Accounting 2, Advanced Aviation, AP Capstone Research, AP Computer Science, Business Law, Data Driven Decision Making, History of Rock and Roll, Intro to Aerospace, Intro to Computer Science Principles, Music Literature and Appreciation, Resource Math, Sports Medicine 2 and Sports Psychology.

Canfield Schools Treasurer Pattie Prince followed Vitto and highlighted the financial picture. Prince said the first goal is to publish and promote a series of community-friendly graphics that will help educate the public on the school district’s finances.

“We need to consistently communicate the district’s financial picture to provide an accurate portrayal of the financial standing,” Prince said.

A second objective for finances is to conduct a question and answer session that can show residents and parents the district’s current and projected needs.

She said Canfield ranks ninth in the county for millage rates. Youngstown City is at the top at 39.08% and Canfield stands at 24.86%.

“Residents (and parents) are getting a good value for their money,” she said. “Canfield Schools operating costs per pupil are $11,124 per year, while the state average is $12,397.”

She mentioned the two school levies. An emergency levy was first passed in May of 1986 for 6.5 mills. It was last renewed in 2020 and today has an effective millage of 0.92 mills. The levy is a 10-year one that will be up for renewal as early as 2029.

The other levy is the current operating expense levy first approved in 2013 at 5.9 mills that now collects at 3.66 mills. It was last renewed in 2022 for five years.

Prince said a lot is up in the air right now with the state budget and where school districts will stand regarding state funding.

“Indications are Canfield Schools won’t see any windfall from the state this year,” she said.

For the next school year, Prince said the teaching staff will be reduced by two. She said a high school teacher and two tutors will be eliminated from the roster. Replacing the two tutors will be a full-time special education teacher.

She said enrollment projections are fairly steady through the next 10 years.

Knoll said the board decided to take a breather and not place a bond levy on the ballot in November. However, he said discussion over the aging middle school does need to continue.

In the meantime, Knoll said the middle school needs immediate attention for a roof problem. He said the choir room has a serious roof problem that will cost approximately $100,000. He also hopes to continue the paving project at the high school, which includes the driveway on the north side and student and faculty parking lots.

“The paving according to last year’s numbers is expected to be around $500,000,” Knoll said. “However, we don’t know what the cost of (paving materials) will be.”

One new item coming is a new scoreboard at the high school stadium. Funds for the scoreboard are being raised by the Canfield Big Booster Club. The scoreboard will include opportunities for businesses to advertise or sponsor the board. Donations can be made to Booster President Josh Cohol at josh@youngstowntile.com. The hope is to install the new scoreboard for the 2025-26 fall sports season.

One area Knoll mentioned that has long been a concern is safety. He mentioned the district is looking at AI technology called “Zero Gun.”

“AI is able to detect and photograph a gun as soon as it is shown, and within seconds, send the picture to the proper authorities,” he said. “We got an Attorney General’s grant to fund this.”

Knoll said he hopes to continue to engage communication with the community.

One detail he presented at the meeting involved the MSC chemical spill situation. He said the district brought in their own third party company to test the soil and property for the TCE chemical.

“There is no present danger to staff or students on the high school campus,” Knoll said. “That is good news.”

He said the school district will continue to work with the Ohio EPA. He said the fence they requested was delivered to the school this week and will start being installed to fence off the creek from the school grounds and the residents along the property.