Journalistic Growth Through My Capstone

Laura Richey~ In the news room.


Having the opportunity to take on the challenge as an education beat reporter for my journalism capstone is one that is priceless and definitely has had a positive impact to my journalistic skills.

Contextual reading in the class is important and personally enjoyed. I particularly liked the four-part series, "Innocence Portrayed," published in The Dayton Daily News, written by reporters Laura Bischoff and Mary McCarty. Another favorite; "Mrs. Kelly's Monster."

It's the on-hands experience that has taught me valuable and practical journalism writing skills on a beat. Attending school board meetings, election coverage and working with Middletown City Schools in general has taught me that contacts on any beat are imperative and one of the most important parts of a beat reporters position, next to ethics.

While interviewing community members on school levy issues I developed a better style of stifling my personal opinion to enable a more unbiased reporting style.

In the class in general, I was particularly fascinated with the class visits from professional journalists in the Miami University area, including Cincinnati and Dayton. While Miami University journalism graduate, Leah Rupp, is now reporting for a newspaper in Mississippi it was inspiring to hear her trials and tribulations that she has overcome in her short career.

I have learned through my capstone experience that news doesn't wait for anything or anyone. Family, friends, events and other classes must be sacrificed in order to get the story. I worried my family and I would suffer.

Happily, I have discovered I can juggle home and work under deadline situations. Although news sometimes breaks at the most inopportune moments, my family loves me and they understand I have a job to do.

My husband , Dave, says that I am a “bigamist. You love journalism don't you?,” he asked. The first time I heard him ask this question, I was in denial. “No way,” I said.

After a semester of non-stop thoughts of school levies, band camp, board meetings, sources and further examination I have decided Dave is right, I am married to him and journalism simultaneously. Of course not the same sacramental love I share with Dave but surely with a passion. I don't see anything wrong with that anymore. The more I think about it... if a journalist doesn't have a passion for writing and reporting then why would they go into journalism anyway?

--Laura Richey
Nov. 26, 2007

Community Pulls Together For Education

BY LAURA RICHEY
Sept. 11, 2007

Photography courtesy of Jamie Rodgers-North
IS CARPOOLING THE ANSWER? Traffic situation like this are common in the Middletown School district this year. The city school levy failed last month resulting in reduced bus services. Carpooling may reduce stress of parents.


MIDDLETOWN, OHIO—With the second failure of an August school levy, Middletown parents are working to leave no child behind despite reduced bus service.

Since the Middletown school levy failed , students living two miles or less from the school no longer have bus transportation, leaving some parents in turmoil.

Jamie Rodgers-North is the mother of two daughters. The older attends Middletown High School and the younger attends Central Academy. Rodgers-North is one of many parents who feel they have a responsibility to help those less fortunate with at least a ride to and from school.

Transporting a total of eight children to four different Middletown schools, “is only the right thing to do,” Rodgers-North said.

Rodgers-North, a non-traditional student herself, also cares for her house, supervises her girls’ homework and takes them to band and soccer practice. She has little time for herself but enjoys “giving back to the Middletown community,” she said.

Some of her riders have parents who work and can’t afford to take off, some have parents without cars, and others are adult students who have classes themselves that lead to schedule conflicts. Some parents pay Rodgers-North with gas money or exchange baby-sitting service but nobody has offered to help with picking up and dropping off.

“I have only turned down one child. A neighbor asked if I would take her son to school. I told her no because she didn’t even vote on the levy. The levy failed by such a small margin that it really burns me up when people ask for my help but didn’t vote to help not only themselves but a lot of others,” North said.

Rodgers-North’s neighbor thought that the levy wouldn’t affect her because she isn’t a homeowner and is on assistance programs through the state. “Boy was she wrong,” Rodgers-North said.

Younger parents are struggling too. Kitty Hayes is a mother of three. With her husband driving the family’s one car to work in the construction business, Hayes is left depending on helpful neighbors to take her oldest son, Isaac, to Miller Ridge Elementary.

“I don’t know what I’d do without my neighbor,” says 24-year-old Hayes. “I still worry about stuff like vacations and times when I will have to find Isaac another way to get to and from school.”

Isaac, a kindergarten student, isn’t familiar with exactly how school works yet. “I don’t mind riding to school with my friend Randy but the bus sure does look cool,” Isaac said.

Middletown Police officer Jon Rawlins has been a resource officer at Middletown High School for seven years. Carpools allow traffic to flow more smoothly and reduce stress for commuting parents, he said.

“We are doing the very best we can to get students, faculty, staff and parents in and out of school safe. Our main concern is safety,” Rawlins said.

“For the most part, students seem to be getting to school and class on time. The main thing is for parents not to get in a hurry. We have approximately 2,000 vehicles per day on the premises and parents get frustrated with traffic in such a small area.”

Parents know about traffic procedures at the high school but some still do not abide by them. As a result ,Rawlins said, citations are being issued to those not adhering to rules.

Although the Middletown community as a whole is doing the best it can to help children get to class on time, some parents are not as fortunate to have a caring neighbor.Many are struggling to deal with reduced bus services alone.

Gordon Shepherd recently became a first-time father at the age of 64. A friend died, leaving her 9-year-old son, Brennan, behind. Shepherd took in the boy and enrolled him in third grade last year at Central Academy.

“In the past, the [Middltetown] city school bus would transport Brennan to a daycare until I got off work at AK Steel. Now I have to take an extended lunch and pick him up because they don’t drive them to daycare anymore.” That means economic consequences for Shepherd since he has to take time off from work to pick up Brennan from school at 1:30 p.m.

Tammy Gunther is a single mom with no car and two daughters --one in kindergarten and one in second grade-- to get to and from Amanda Elementary on Oxford State Road. She has been walking the girls to school this year, rain or shine.

“There will be days when I just can’t get them there so they just won’t go,” said the unemployed Gunther. “The girls are too young to walk by themselves and I am a bit scared of traffic on Oxford State Road myself.”

According to the Middletown Police Department there have been over 170 auto accidents on Oxford State Road since 2001.

Gunther,a newly registered voter, encourages others to vote since the last levy failed by just more than 100 votes. “The key is that we all pull together and vote.”

A Middletown levy will be back on the ballot Nov. 7, again asking for $4.4 million. Academics including foreign language, language arts, botany, physics and more have been cut from the budget since the school levy failed.

For voter registration information visit the Butler County Board of Election web site http://www.butlercountyelections.org/ For more information on the school levy visit http://www.middletowncityschools.com/ .

To start your own carpool try these helpful hints from Jamie Rodgers-North

• Don't Be Shy! Call people and ask them if they are interested
• Arrange a Get-Together To Get Acquainted! Set up a time to meet over lunch or after work hours to discuss the possibility of ridesharing.
• Let Democracy Rule! Devise and agree on the pool's rules right from the start:
• Take the Responsibility of Driving Seriously! Make sure your auto insurance covers everyone in the car.
• Follow Protocol! Once a pool gets started, punctuality is paramount.
• Sit Back and Relax! For the protection of all, the driver needs to keep his or her eyes on the road.
• Avoid Side Trips! Make sure there's enough gas in the car for a round trip.

Middletown P.R.I.D.E.

BY LAURA RICHEY
Sept. 26, 2007

As the October 9 deadline for voter registration approaches, local parents are taking action to raise community awareness about the Middletown City School levies and how important voting is.

Parents Respond In Defense of Education, P.R.I.D.E., is an activist group of Middletown parents who are dedicated in “defending public education in Middletown for our children and generations to come,” P.R.I.D.E. Leader Suzie Beckmeyer said.

P.R.I.D.E members are parents who have spent countless hours volunteering and working in their schools. They know what is really at stake should our levy fail again.

The group was denied use of any Middletown public school due to title 9 issues, which basically says that if a group of parents meet in a public school it is considered a Parent Teacher Organization and thus would have conflicting interest in the levy.

Not letting the set back discourage P.R.I.D.E. they held their first meeting Sept. 12 at Miami University Middletown.

The Fairfield School District had 3 failed school levies in 2004, with a pass finally occurring in the November 2004 election. But before the levy finally passed, a Fairfield parent activist group formed and it is this group that greatly inspired P.R.I.D.E. at the Sept. 12 meeting.

“What business will want to come to Middletown? Who will move here? Who doesn’t value education?” asked MOMs (Moms on a mission) president Jeni Brodsky.

MOMs, a grassroots group of Fairfield mothers, are dedicated to protecting the educational future of children in their community. If their school levy didn’t pass, their schools would have been forced to operate at below state minimums, much like Middletown residents now face.

“You need to get business endorsements,” Jeni Brodsky, co-president of Moms On a Mission said. “Talk to them about property taxes and a less educated labor force,” she advised.

P.R.I.D.E held a second meeting Monday at Miami University Middletown to further discuss ways they can get involved. The meeting doubled in attendance and members are enthusiastic that more concerned citizens will climb on board once word gets out that the group is functioning and what their goals are.

Included in their decision was to get events organized prior to the October voter registration deadline as well as promote voting yes on the levy in November. These activities include

• Oct. 5 Homecoming parade
• Oct. 5 Homecoming Game at gates to register voters
• P.R.I.D.E. meeting 7 p.m. MUM (room TBA)
• Oct. 19 Home game Work Game to encourage citizens to vote yes
• Nov. 1 Line the streets with P.R.I.D.E. (Breiel Blvd.)
• Nov. 4 Prayer Vigil 7p.m. location TBA

The Middletown High School senior show-choir members ares decorating the front of the school and landscape with YES pumpkins.

“We’d like to see the pumpkins community wide,” said P.R.I.D.E. member, Rhonda Duff.

Other members will be handing out flyers at local school drop off and pick up sites in effort to bring voter awareness.

“Some people we will never convince. But if this is going to work, we need the face of our youth,” said Laurie Botsford, P.R.I.D.E. Member.

For more information on voter registration visit the Butler County Board of Election web site at http://www.butlercountyelections.org. For more information on the school levy visit http://www.middletowncityschools.com/.

MUM Community Center Celebrates 1st Birthday

Associate Dean for Student Affairs,

James Ewers, said MUM's new

Campus Community Center is state of the art.

BY LAURA RICHEY
Oct. 9, 2007

Whether you stop by for a bite to eat, catch a show on the plasma television, play a game of pool or just hang out with friends, chances are you use the $5 million, year-old Campus and Community Center if you visit Miami University Middletown (MUM).

“Miami University Middletown's new Campus and Community Center, though open only one year, is proving its worth as an asset to the people it was designed to serve,” said MUM Dean Kelly Cowan.

The one-story structure, designed by Michael Schuster Associates of Cincinnati, is built on the regional campuses southeastern corner of Johnston Hall, with dual entrances for the community and student wings.

“I use the center for all sorts of stuff, eating and hanging out mostly. It is a great place to see and be seen,” said junior psychology major Sarah Showalter.

Approximately one third of the 21,600 square foot center already existed and was renovated as part of the new building.

The center “is one of the jewels on our campus as it allows us to host local, regional and national programs and activities,” said Associate Dean for Student Affairs, James B. Ewers. “It is a state of the art addition, which will figure prominently in our future.”

MUM's previous facilities – in Johnston Hall and Verity Lodge – were inadequate and outdated with limited access. Since Hawk Haven—the previous cafeteria and student union area-- was created 23 years ago, campus enrollment has doubled. The campus hosts an increasing number of campus and community events.

“Community businesses and organizations increasingly rely on campus facilities for a variety of functions including meeting space for public and private organizations, cultural events, community forums, seminars, workshops and training classes,” Sherry Pieratt, retired campus’ Director of Development said.

The center is fully accessible to the disabled and equipped with up-to-date telecommunications, audio-visual equipment, and internet access for meetings, seminars, workshops and special events. The community wing of the center features a large multi-purpose room, two adjacent meeting rooms and a catering kitchen.

MUM faculty secretaries, Tyra Day and Tammy Lewis, come to the center to eat but added they “wish the school wouldn’t hold events during lunch like karaoke because it is just too loud.”

Also included in the center are a food court, recreational and meeting spaces, and performance areas, as well as new offices and meeting areas for student affairs, student government, and other student groups.

Michael Governanti, former MUM executive director said the center is designed so that, “students, faculty and staff can come together to share a meal or have a cup of coffee in an informal setting while exchanging ideas. A great deal of education includes that kind of engagement in addition to what happens in the classroom.”

The center's $5 million cost was covered by donors support, state funds and businesses contributions.

“This campus is probably one of the best things that ever happened to this community,” said Ely P. Roland Jr., retired vice president and senior trust officer at First Financial Bank and one of 40 members of the committee that helped raise funds for the Center. “This is the time for everyone in the community to give back for the benefit of the school and the community.”

Sitting with her laptop, MUM student Megan Williams said she uses the facility for academics. “I do homework and stuff like that here on my computer because it is not as crowded as the computer lab, the 19-year-old education major said.

For more information on the center, including reservation information contact MUM Director of Physical Facilities, Chuck Mack at mackcg@muohio.edu or call 513-727-3377.

City At A Crossroad: What's At Stake

Board of education candidate,

A.J. Smith, said reinstatement of bus

services should be the No. 1 priority

BY LAURA RICHEY
Oct, 23, 2007

MIDDLETOWN— This old Butler County city, once historically known as a steel town with a high growth rate not so long ago, stands at a crucial fork in its road leading to education.

Come Nov. 6, voters here will consider renewing a $4 million school levy and creating a new $1.5 million levy. The results will have long-lasting effects on whether Middletown thrives or falls.

This will be the cities third vote on the school levies known as Issue 13 and 14 that were last defeated by a 108 vote margin during a special election in May. Levy failures have forced the district to eliminate $5.5 million worth of programs and services including bus service and foreign language. To restore the cuts, both levies need to pass.

Passage of both levies will cost owners of a $100,000 home an additional $67 more per year. If only the renewal passes, the school can bring back $4 million worth of cuts. That means that $1.5 million worth of programs /services that have been eliminated will not be restored according to Middletown board of education communication specialist, Debbie Alberico. The $1.5 million increase is to cover inflation in the district.

Twelve-year board member Katie McNeil stressed that community input should determine what should be reinstated should one or both of the levies pass.

“We see the impact in our community now and this is a safety issue and that is the concern,” she said.

Bill Triick, president of the Chamber of Commerce serving Middletown, Monroe and Trenton, said he sees a lot of opportunity ahead for Middletown.

“The Chamber wants and needs good schools to maintain a strong work force but the change is ultimately up to the citizens of Middletown. It’s a personal decision,” Triick said.

“Every election is important but this election is the equivalent of the presidential election on a local level. It’s big,” he said. “The public is expecting change; it’s what they want. It is the first time old and new money is being split on the ballot which means enormous changes at the polls. It is a challenging time for economics.”

Miami University economics professor and Middletown resident Selcuk Misirlioglu agrees with Mr. Triick. “Which is more costly? AN increase in crime or an increase in taxes? As a recent home owner I should not mind paying $20-$30 more per tax month so that the value of my house would not at least go down as a result of an increase in crime,” Misirlioglu said.

Among shop owners to families to educators to Chamber of Commerce types, many agree Middletown has struggled for a long time, and the lockout at AK Steel which ended in February for the city's largest employer, didn’t help. But many disagree on what steps the city should take next.

Board of education candidates Greg Tyus, John Sauter and A.J. Smith agree that the reinstatement of bus services should be the No. 1 priority if one or both levies pass.

“There are children not getting to school and not getting to school on time,” said Tyus, a former board member seeking to return.

Al McIntosh is not sure how he will vote on either levy because he “isn’t as directly affected as other parents,” because his children attend a private school. McIntosh said that he is tired of paying more and more money. “These levies are not the answer to everything,” the Berns Garden Center employee said. “I voted yes to build the district new schools a few years ago but it has to stop somewhere.”

Although the AK Steel lockout ended in March, residents are still feeling the pain and it could show in the school levy results on the Nov. ballot.

Don Geldrich feels he was forced financially to retire from the steel company. He had to make the “no brainer decision” of taking an early retirement with full benefits or going back to work at a lower pay rate with less benefits. Geldrich said his entire family is voting no on the Middletown school levies to be decided in November.

“The housing market is in a recession and the economy usually goes into a depression after such an event. With AK Steel settling for a concessionary contract I will not vote yes. With everything on a downswing, I don’t see how they expect people to pay higher taxes.”

Steve Forkner, also retired from AK Steel due to the lockout, is also voting no on both school levies. “I’m paying enough and being unemployed, I mean retired, it just seems like there is no end to it and there probably never will be an end to it,” he said.

While the AK Steel situation is influencing some voters, other citizens see a dire need for the levies to pass.

“Make no mistake, no one likes taxes. But as citizens of Middletown we need to see that both Issue 13 and 14 pass to continue the high standard of education that has become a trademark in Middletown. Voting no does not affect the Board of Education or the superintendent. Yes, it makes their job more difficult, but it is the students that suffer because of lack of programs needed to attend quality universities. A yes vote is for our children and a start at preserving Middie Pride,” said Sam Minge, a member of the pro-levy activist group, PRIDE.

The levies are not the sole educational issue. Three of five Board of Education positions are up for election. Candidates agreed on a need for change at a candidate forum last week. Communication with the community is their first priority when elected.

“We need to change our image,” 2007 Middletown High School graduate and board candidate A.J. Smith said.

Smith, who campaigned in favor of the school levies in August, shocked citizens at a candidate forum last week when he said the renewal was needed and the increase was not.

“The $4 million renewal is a definite need, but the $1.5 million increase, I believe we want it more than we need it,” Smith said.

For more Middletown election and board of education candidate information visit the Butler County Board of Elections web site: http://www.butlercountyelections.org/

Levies Pass And Fail Simultaneously

BY LAURA RICHEY
Nov. 8, 2007

Nearly 60 percent of Middletown voters approved the school district's $4 million levy renewal Tuesday, with 53 percent rejecting an additional $1.5 million new levy.

As a result, students who wish to participate in winter sports will have to pay to play throughout the district's 12 schools due to the failure of the additional $1.5 million levy. The increase would have covered inflation rates the district faces. Coach salaries were cut earlier this year.

Bus services and a full school day will be restored as a result of the renewal. Transportation and class hours were cut earlier this year due to failures of levies in May and again in August.

Bus services require staggered school starting and ending times with at least 45 minutes between each “tier”. The three-tier schedule will require the addition of at least one band teacher since the district cannot cover classes currently scheduled due to the overlap of class time created by the tiers.

While full-day class schedules will be reinstated in elementary schools Nov. 26, the high school and middle school students will not see full days of class until Jan. 22, the first day of the spring semester.

Superintendent Steve Price said he credits the passage of the levy renewal to the Board of Educations decision to separate the levy issues after combined issues failed earlier this year.

“The board has the difficult decision of identifying $1.5 million of these core services and programs that we won’t be able to restore at least in the short run,” Price said.

Board members met Wednesday morning to begin restoring some cuts based on community input. In addition to busing and the longer school day the board wants funds for support positions as well as extracurricular activities according to Price.

“We’ll bring back as much as we possibly can,” he said.

Although not certain, the district may opt to put the $1.5 million levy back on the ballot in the March primaries. If so, the request must be made by the middle of December.

“I am not in favor of putting the increase on the March ballot,” Board of Education member Marcia Andrews said. “People are tired of levies and we need to let the community know their voice has been heard.”

Since both the renewal and additional levies failed earlier this year, some Middletown students have turned to community contributions while others paid $325 out-of-pocket to participate in extra curricular activities such as sports, drama club and band.

“We will not fully reinstate extra curricular activities,” said Board of Education President, John Venturella.

Students wishing to participate in winter sports face a fee of $225, which is due Thursday at 4p.m. The fee is reduced by $100 compared to the fall semester. The district was able to reduce that fee with $200,000 in reallocated general funds and by relying on volunteer coaches.

“To reduce sport fees to $225 is a short-term solution,” Andrews said. “We can’t go back. Nothing has changed to merit paying coaches.”

While some coaches volunteer their services in the fall, others will not be able to return to the district in the Spring, feeling the financial crunch.

Price said the board cannot please everyoneall of the time in Middletown.

“We have found creative ways to make cuts,” Price said. “Without the additional $1.5 million, there will be some people in some sector of the community who will not be happy,” he said.

Happy or not, citizens are asked not to solicit donations from community members to play sports.

“Students should not go out asking for donations,” Price said. “Anyone wishing to donate funds for sports should contribute to the 543 committee.”

Board of Education members face the long term challenges in the upcoming months.

“How to pay coaches and administrative positions is what we are grappling with now,” Price said.

Middie Band: Past, Present and Future

Middletown Marching Middies-- In October the marching Middies brought home a Superior ranking from the state marching competition in Columbus. Photography courtesy of MHS.

BY LAURA RICHEY

Dec. 1, 2007

At some high schools, the band is a small club of little interest, attracting modest audiences of parents for twice-a-year concerts.

At Middletown High School, band is thriving, revered and considered cool by students. It has been that way for nearly nine decades, with particular success in recent years as a top performing band program.

This year, however, has been among the most challenging for the band, as its very existence was threatened by financing issues. Even as the 94-member squad showed its stuff at a state competition, it looks to a future where Middletown High School's band program might go dormant.

PAST
The Middletown High School marching band began in 1920 under the direction of Virgil Carter. But show style marching, having the main role of performing at sporting events, and competitions, didn't become part of the band's legacy for more than half a decade after Carter had left.

When Ken Amburgey graduated from Middletown High School in 1965, he was a tuba player for the marching band. After college, Amburgey became the band director of his alma mater.

In 1974 Amburgey tried to persuade the then-Middletown High School principal to allow show style marching band. He was told fans were not ready for that.

“Show style marching is like Big 10 style, with different shows weekly. We needed to change gears and go to competition to make us grow and increase musicianship,” said Amburgey, now director of the Middletown alumni band. “The principal said that fans wouldn't accept that.”

Although Amburgey's dream of a competition-style show band wasn't fulfilled while he was director, he laid the foundation for the future success of the marching Middies. And, before he left the band in 1980, he succeeded in adding a color guard and choreography to the band's show.

After Amburgey's departure, Randy Hunt filled his shoes as director and a new superintendent was in place. Both men supported show style marching and competition.

The band grew by leaps and bounds, paving the way for today's marching Middie success under the direction of David Leisten.

PRESENT
On a high school football field outside Columbus on a crisp fall day in late October, the attention wasn't on a football game, it was focused on a group normally on display during a football game's halftime --the marching band. The event: the Ohio Music Education Association (OMEA), commonly known as the state marching band finals.

The Middletown High School Marching Band finished its 2007 season on the right note.
The band traveled to Columbus to prerorm in the OMEA competition. They received the highest ranking-- a 1 or “superior,”, the top honor for OMEA marching bands.

This was Middletown's third superior rating in the last five years and marks the sixth consecutive year the "Excellence in Motion" marching band qualified for the state competition.
The Marching Middies' program this year consisted of numbers from the Academy Award-winning motion picture “Braveheart.” The score's three sections feature bagpipes played by senior Jamie Slone.

The 94-member band is led by Senior Field Commanders Laura McGee and Sierra Snow, and Band President Joe Seick.

Their arrival back to Middletown was met with a police escort, shouts of joy, and a triumphant shoulder ride. But this celebration was about much more than just a “Superior 1” rating at the competition.

“We were really down at the beginning of the school year, but we picked back up," said Sierra Snow, the band's field commander.

A performance like the one in Columbus, on the state's largest stage, seemed not only unlikely but also impossible just a few months earlier.

After all, not one but two school levies were turned down by voters in August, taking with it funding for the band.

“It's been a tough year for us parents but the real struggle was for the kids. But we all pulled together--parents and kids-- to go to state and get a 1. You can't ask for any better," said band parent Jamie Rodgers-North.

Through private donations and fund-raising, the Middies band saved its season, making the annual trip to Columbus possible. The students and their parents weren't the only ones making sacrifices: their band's director as well as many other coaches and supervisors refused payment so more students could participate in extracurricular activities.

“We decided to do this for free this fall and we are glad we did because I don't think we would have been able to go through the fall if we hadn't," said band director, David Leisten.

Among the band members on that field Saturday, none even considered dropping out of the band, despite the burden of “pay to play” fees instituted in response to the levy failures.

“It's in my heart to march with the band. I love it and so do all of us,” sophomore flute player Nicki Rodgers said.

Middletown voters faced the same two levies on the Nov. 6 ballot. Both needed to pass to bring back funding for extracurricular activities like marching band.

FUTURE
The future of the Middletown Middies Marching Band is still up in the air today.

On Nov. 6 voters passed a $4.2 million school levy renewal in November but turned down a new $1.5 million levy, keeping the band in suspense as to what will come.

“We will not fully reinstate extracurricular activities,” said Board of Education President John Venturella.

Students wishing to participate in winter sports got something of a reprieve, however, with the pay-to-play fee dropping to $225 from $325. The district reallocated $200,000 in general funds to cut the fee. But some extracurriculars may be short of coaches and directors.

Some who volunteered their services will not be able to return in the spring without salaries.

“To reduce fees to $225 is a short-term solution,” Board of Education member Marcia Andrews said. “We can’t go back. Nothing has changed to merit paying coaches,” she said.

Looking ahead to summer band camp, members of the Middletown Marching Middies are uncertain what's ahead for their award- winning program.

“It is really hard to stay motivated when we aren't sure if we can even compete next year,” Rodgers-North said. “When the new levy failed it leaves us sort of up in the air waiting to see what the Board of Education is going to do as far as the band is concerned. There is a definite risk to us next year.”