In July 2025, the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission approved the funding of 55% of New Philadelphia City School’s Master Plan. This plan allows for the construction of a new elementary and middle/high school at the same time.

In early 2024, New Philadelphia City Schools adopted a facilities master plan designed to address the immediate needs in district buildings and develop the best long-term learning environment for students. The district formed a facilities committee composed of a broad cross-section of the community, including district staff, city officials, residents, and students. They explored various building and grade configurations, potential school sites, locally funded initiatives, and transportation details.

At the culmination of the committee’s work their plan was adopted by the Board of Education in 2024. 

In the summer of 2025, New Philadelphia City Schools was invited into the Classroom Facilities Assistance Program (CFAP) to receive 55% of their master plan funding from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC). This co-funding opportunity allows the district to pursue two new schools at a greatly reduced local cost—essentially enabling the district to fund both buildings with the local cost of just one.

The entire master plan would be accomplished in a single phase. This plan is on the November 2025 ballot. 

What is included in the plan?

Key Points on this Plan

1. The State of Ohio, via the OFCC, is providing the district with 55% of the total project costs through the CFAP program. This ensures that the district can address the entire plan at once without relying solely on local property taxes to complete the project.

2. All grades in the district will be improved as a result of receiving new learning environments for this plan.

3. Many in the community voiced their desire to keep the middle/high school where it is located. As a result, the Board of Education committed to building the new middle/high school on the existing school site, ensuring this remains central in New Philadelphia City.

4. The community voiced concern about whether the South Elementary site could accommodate increased traffic to the new school. The district commissioned a traffic study to better understand what improvements, if any, need to be made. This third-party assessment ensures traffic will be managed adequately once the building is operational. In addition to rearranging the site for the new school,many design strategies will be employed, ensuring the new building will adequately support bussing and vehicular traffic on site.

What Were the Priorities During the Planning Process?

During the planning process, the district’s strategic plan guided discussions and included addressing the rising maintenance costs of the district’s seven school buildings, which have an average age of 80 years old. These maintenance costs, along with a desire to streamline district facilities, guided many discussions in the group. 

Several additional priorities emerged during the process, which include:

• The committee prioritized developing a facility solution that will serve the district for generations, instead of doing “band-aid fixes.”

• The committee and district explored options for the OFCC to assist with funding for the project instead of relying on only local taxpayers.

• A clear preference for consolidating the district’s six elementary buildings into one school would eliminate grade-banding, simplify transportation, improve security, and provide a single, safe, and modern facility.

• Maintaining possibilities for community-use spaces in the plan.

Notes on Cost and Timing:

• The bond issue in November 2025 will cover funding for both the new PreK-6 and the new 7-12. The OFCC will provide 55% of the cost of the project. This will allow the district to address facility issues across all locations at once. 

• A combined bond and permanent improvement levy will be placed on the November 4, 2025, ballot. The bond issue will be for 6.2 mills, totaling $72 million, while the OFCC would provide 80 Million. Together this would cover the construction of the new PreK-6 elementary school and the 7-12 MS/HS. The permanent improvement levy will be for 1.0 mill, which would generate approximately $627,000 annually and cover future maintenance costs for these district buildings. 

  • • If the ballot issue passes, homeowners will see a tax increase of $252/ annually per $100,000 of home valuation. This annual total equates to $217 for the bond issue and $35 for the Permanent Improvement Levy.