Green sign with white lettering
Madison High School is located at 600 Esley Lane in Mansfield. Credit: Richland Source file photo

MADISON TOWNSHIP — The Madison Local School District is in the midst of preparing for a renewal levy on the Nov. 3 ballot.

The measure would renew two existing property taxes totaling 14.4 mills for five years, beginning in 2027, with the first collection due in 2028.

During the school board meeting Monday evening, Superintendent Rob Peterson said the levy would not increase taxes because it is a renewal levy. If approved, the district would maintain its existing funding.

“Financially, if that levy passes, we’re still gonna have to make some cuts this spring, prior to next school year, of about $300,000,” Peterson said.

If the levy does not pass, Peterson said the district would face an additional $1 million in cuts, bringing the total to $1.3 million.

“If that levy fails and goes on to the May ballot, that will be too late for us to pass it for that $1.3 million in cuts to go away,” he said. “Those cuts will have had to of been made prior to the May election.”

Peterson said the November election represents the district’s only opportunity to avoid the additional $1 million in cuts.

The additional cuts would come on top of 79 positions the district has eliminated over the past six years amid its ongoing funding challenges, Peterson said.

The deadline to register or update your information to vote is Oct. 5 by 9 p.m. Early voting begins Oct. 6 for both absentee ballots and in-person.

While the district prepares for the levy, board members also highlighted recent academic performance during their meeting Sept. 14.

Madison Schools 2025-2026 school year preliminary state report card

Board Member Adam Porter noted preliminary student performance results from spring 2026 end-of-course exams.

Porter said the district’s English language arts scores were 7 percentage points above the state average, while Algebra I scores were 6 points above the state average.

American Government produced the district’s strongest end-of-course result, with scores 12 percentage points above the state average, Porter said.

The district’s performance index also increased from 74.7 to 75.1 percent, although he noted the results remain preliminary and could change.

“We’re encouraged by this progress and hopeful that the numbers will hold,” Porter said.

Peterson said the permanent report card would be released the next day.

Permanent school district report cards released

Tuesday morning permanent Ohio School Report Cards showed Madison Local Schools retained its preliminary overall rating of 4 stars districtwide.

This score is an improvement from the previous year, which gave the district an overall rating of 3.5 stars.

Peterson said the district was excited about the four-star rating, which exceeds the state standard and represents an improvement over the previous year.

“There is so much more that goes into educating our students and supporting them than what comes out on a report card,” Peterson said.

What do these components mean?

Achievement is a measure of how well students performed on state tests.

Progress is a measure of the growth students are making based on their past performance.

Gap Closing is a measure of the reduction in educational gaps among students of different races, ones with special needs and those from economically disadvantaged families.

Graduation is a measure of the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate and the five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate.

Early Literacy is a measure of reading improvement and proficiency for students in kindergarten through third grade.

College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness is a measure of how prepared Ohio’s students are for future opportunities, whether training in a technical field or preparing for work or college.

Every year, the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce rates public schools and districts on six components, with a one-to-five star scale with half-star increments.

One star means a district needs significant support to meet state standards. Three stars means a district has met expectations. Five stars means a district has significantly exceeded expectations.

Peterson said each Madison building except one also received a four-star rating, which he called another point of excitement for the district.

Madison schools report card score breakdown

Madison’s overall district rating for the 2025-2026 school year broke down as follows:

  • Achievement: 3 stars
  • Progress: 3 stars
  • Gap Closing: 4 stars
  • Graduation: 5 stars
  • Early Literacy: 2 stars
  • College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness: 5 stars

Peterson said the district will continue working to improve in every area but identified early literacy as a particular focus for the coming year.

“We will not be satisfied with where we’re at,” Peterman said. “We’ll continue to seek improvement in all areas.”

He said the district is putting measures in place to improve its early literacy performance.

Individual buildings within the Madison school district also received overall ratings:

  • Eastview Elementary School: 4 stars
  • Madison High School: 3.5 stars
  • Madison Middle School: 4 stars
  • Madison South Elementary School: 4 stars
  • Mifflin Elementary School: 4 stars

While Peterson said the report card provides valuable feedback, he noted the test scores and report-card ratings represent only part of a student’s educational experience.

He said he is proud of the district’s teachers, non-teaching staff, administrators, board and other employees for their care and support of students.

“I think that is a real strength of our district and something that we’re really proud of,” Peterson said. “While it may not show up on the report card, I think that care and support does go a long way into the success of our students.”

Peterson also thanked the students, their parents and families for their role in the district’s success.

“They play a vital part in the success as well,” he said.

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