Madison Local Schools (Richland County) — OH

1. Snapshot

Suburb-Small district immediately east of Mansfield in Richland County, central Ohio. 2,626 students across 6 schools — Madison HS, Madison MS (5-8, 761), Madison South ES (PK-4, 486), Mifflin ES (K-4, 256), Eastview ES (K-4, 218), Madison Early Childhood Learning Center (50). SAIPE poverty 17.3% — high for this list, second only to Elyria and Beloit. Demographics 82% White / 9% Multiracial / 5% Black / 4% Hispanic — much more homogeneous than the Lorain Co. districts. Per-pupil expenditure $16,407 (FY2020) — middle of the cohort.

2. Why this was a hard sell — community context (ACS)

This is the lowest-resource community asked to vote on a new tax in this cohort. Median home $119K, median income $51K, only 1-in-11 adults has a bachelor’s degree. A 1.5% earned-income tax on a $51K household = ~$770/year, for life, in a community where the median home is worth $119K. The math is brutal: the annual EIT cost is roughly 0.65% of the median home value, every year. Compared to a property tax levy (one-time hit, sunset, deductible), the EIT structure is the worst possible fit for this voter base. The 55% No / 58% No across two votes reflects that.

3. Peer comparison

Top peers identified via MCP (enrollment 0.18, poverty 0.15, perPupilExp 0.15, locale 0.12, demographics 0.10, staffing 0.10, plantOps 0.20):

4. The gap story (what the data would have shown voters)

• Plant operations spending: $1,167.03 / pupil vs national median $1,324 — 12% under the median. Peer median across the 6-district comparison set: $1,148 — Madison is slightly above its peer median, which is unusual for the failed-levy cohort. Building investment is in line with peers. The under-investment story is harder to tell here than at Streetsboro or Amherst.
• Capital construction outlay (FY2020): $380K — modest but not zero.
• Per-pupil instruction $8,908 — highest in the peer comparison set (peer median $8,615). Classroom investment is being protected.
• Chronic absenteeism: Madison HS 27.1%, MS 18.1%, South ES 25.1%, Eastview 21.1%, Mifflin 19.5% — every school is above 18%. The trouble is universal, not concentrated.
• FRL % at the elementaries: South ES 79%, Eastview 75%, Mifflin 59%, MS 70%. Madison HS sits at 54%. This is a high-poverty district with elementaries running at near-Title-I-saturation FRL rates.
• Counselor ratio 495:1 — among the worst in the peer set (peer median 419:1).
• 0 expulsions district-wide — clean discipline numbers despite the high poverty and absenteeism. Suggests the staff is managing climate well; the cuts threaten that capacity.
• 1 security FTE for 6 buildings — lowest in the peer set.

5. Levy history

• 2023: Property tax levy passed (the one being retired in the EIT swap)
• Spring 2025: New 1.5% EIT, failed
• Nov 4, 2025: New 1.5% EIT, failed 55.3% No (2,312 / 1,868 / total ~4,180 — small electorate)
• Nov 19, 2025: Board voted to close Mifflin Elementary, eliminate 37.5 FTE, sell 7-acre property at 690 Ashland Rd ($420K), reinstate pay-to-participate
• May 2026: New EIT (re-submitted), failed 58% No

Three consecutive failures with visible cuts between each one — and the cuts didn’t move the needle. The pattern is the opposite of Wickliffe’s: there, between-cycle action moved a winning margin; here, between-cycle action deepened the No vote (55% → 58%).

6. What voters / opposition actually said

Peterson’s quote in Richland Source: “Obviously we’re disappointed. I do want to say that I appreciate all the hard work that our levy committee put in on this and appreciate those who voted to support us.” — gracious but doesn’t probe the voter rationale.

The local context is the explanation: Richland County voters historically reject income taxes for schools at high rates. The Mansfield-area economy has been losing population for two decades (Richland Co. is down ~10% since 2000), aging in place. A 1.5% EIT lands hardest on the working-age cohort, which is the shrinking minority of voters. Retirees and small-business owners dominate the active electorate, and an EIT either hits them in unexpected ways (1099 income) or feels unfair (they don’t pay if they’re not working but want school services for grandchildren).

The Mifflin Elementary closure announcement between the November fail and the May ask was meant to demonstrate seriousness. It didn’t work — and probably hardened opposition by signaling “we’ll close schools to coerce a Yes.”

7. What we could have told them

1. “Per-student classroom spending: $8,908. Highest of our 5 closest peer districts. We’re not over-spending; we’re spending where it counts.” The peer comparison protects against “cut administrative bloat” rhetoric.
2. “$1,167 per student on building maintenance vs the national median $1,324. We’re tight — 12% below. But every dollar’s already accounted for. Plant ops isn’t where the money is.” Honest framing — Madison doesn’t have a big under-investment number to lean on. Acknowledging this rebuilds credibility.
3. “Every one of our six schools has chronic absenteeism over 18%. Madison HS is at 27%. The cuts hit attendance — fewer support staff, more empty seats, less state funding next year. This is a cycle we’re asking voters to help us break.” Concrete and specific.
4. Switch tax structure for the next ask. Three EIT failures and a closed elementary mean the structure is the issue. A property-tax renewal-plus-increase would land differently in this homeowner-majority community.
5. The Mifflin closure showed seriousness; it didn’t show necessity. Voters need the after-Mifflin math: “we closed a building and we’re still $2M short. Here’s the per-student cost of staying open with no levy passing.” Without that, the closure reads as leverage, not need.

8. FMX outreach hook

Madison Local is a complicated prospect: they don’t have a big under-investment story to anchor the FMX pitch, they’re now in a building-closure cycle (which makes facilities data more important, not less), and the leadership is fresh out of a third consecutive failed campaign. Contact unit: Rob Peterson (Superintendent), Bradd Stevens (Treasurer), John Neron (Operations Supervisor).

Lead with John Neron — the named operations supervisor at a district that just closed a building and is selling district property has immediate portfolio-management data needs. Bradd Stevens (Treasurer) is the financial-narrative owner for the next ask.

Opener: “You just closed Mifflin and you’re selling the Ashland Road property. Your portfolio is changing fast and the next levy ask — whether income tax or property — needs to lead with ‘here’s exactly what’s left, here’s what it costs to run, here’s how it compares to Granville and four other Suburb-Small Ohio peers.’ We can have your remaining 5-building portfolio benchmarked in 45 days, with per-building condition data and a 5-year capital projection that helps you avoid closing another school. The 2-redacted OH/MI peers in your MCP top 15 are likely already running FMX. The May 2026 result (58% No) means the November ask is going to be the 4th attempt; data is the variable that hasn’t been tried.”

Note: do NOT confuse this district with Madison Local in Lake County (3904788) — same name, similar enrollment, different politics. The mascot (Rams) and madisonrams.net domain are the disambiguators.