The Wood County Schools Excess Levy Call, also known as a continuing or renewal levy, has been in place since 1945 and will be back on the ballot this November. (Photo by Douglass Huxley)

PARKERSBURG — Officials with Wood County Schools held a public informational meeting Tuesday at the Wood County Technical Center to provide information on the upcoming excess levy renewal.

“Our levy is additional funds that bring money into the county that support student learning,” said Superintendent Christie Willis.

The Wood County Schools Excess Levy Call, also known as a continuing or renewal levy, has been in place since 1945 and has been renewed every five years by local voters. The levy would generate $20.9 million annually over a five-year period for the school system and would not raise the current taxes on residents.

“The number one common question that I’ve had about the levy is, ‘Does it raise out taxes?’ And the answer is no,” Willis said. “This is a continuing levy that has been in place since 1945.”

The levy would provide funds for personnel salaries that include interventionists, counselors and nurses and would constitute the biggest portion of the $20.9 million.

“In our largest category, Category A, that’s where we get out interventionists, additional counselors, and nurses. We’re very fortunate in our county to have a nurse in every school. It’s because of our levy funds,” Willis said. “We know mental health is a top priority right now, and we have additional counselors above state aid formula because of the levy.”

The Wood County Board of Education has also placed a priority on safety with the levy. Funding would be protected if revenue would come in lower than predicted. with $2.5 million to be used for safety and security related equipment purchases, facility renovations, to add resource officers for elementary schools and to retain officers for secondary schools.

“The levy also pays for school safety initiatives,” said Simon Hargus, owner of First Settlement Physical Therapy. “So it doesn’t just impact education, it impacts school safety. Which I think is a priority for everybody.”

Hargus said he has a 7-year-old son who attends Vienna Elementary. He said education would be dramatically hurt without the levy.

“The levy helps pay for school nurses, the levy helps pay for reading interventionists, the levy helps pay for community programs like the YMCA, The Boys and Girls Club,” Hargus said. “So it would impact him day to day.”

Hargus said the levy is important for business owners, as well as parents, to keep business growing in the area. Hargus said having a good school district would also bring new businesses into the area and those without children in the school district should still vote to continue the levy.

“I think even if you don’t have kids in school, the idea of having a strong school system has so much to do with having a vibrant economy and a vibrant community,” Hargus said. “It’s just a better place to live. And our economy is so much better when we have a strong school system.”