Fairfield City School District, Ohio, elections

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Fairfield City School District
District details
School board members: 5
Students: 9,647 (2022-2023)
Schools: 10 (2022-2023)
Website: Link

Fairfield City School District is a school district in Ohio (Butler County). During the 2023 school year, 9,647 students attended one of the district's 10 schools.

This page provides information regarding school board members, election rules, finances, academics, policies, and more details about the district.

Jump to a section:

Elections School board Location Budget Academic performance Students Staff Schools

Elections

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• 2023
• 2017
• 2015

Per our coverage scope, Ballotpedia does not provide election results for this particular race. Check your city or county government's election website for vote totals.

Fairfield City School District school board At-large

General election

General election for Fairfield City School District school board At-large (2 seats)

Scott Clark and Michael Napier ran in the general election for Fairfield City School District school board At-large on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Scott Clark (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Michael Napier (Nonpartisan)

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Fairfield City School District school board At-large

General election

General election for Fairfield City School District school board At-large

Incumbent Brian Begley, incumbent Michael Berding, incumbent Dan Hare, and incumbent Carrie O'Neal won election in the general election for Fairfield City School District school board At-large on November 7, 2017.

		Candidate
✔	Submit photo	Brian Begley (Nonpartisan)
✔		Michael Berding (Nonpartisan)
✔		Dan Hare (Nonpartisan)
✔	Submit photo	Carrie O'Neal (Nonpartisan)

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
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Fairfield City School District school board At-large

General election

General election for Fairfield City School District school board At-large

Incumbent Balena Shorter won election in the general election for Fairfield City School District school board At-large on November 3, 2015.

		Candidate
✔		Balena Shorter (Nonpartisan)

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Election rules

View election rules

 

Election dates and frequency

See also: Rules governing school board election dates and timing

School board nonpartisan primary elections in Ohio are held on the Tuesday after the first Monday in May every two years in odd-numbered years in districts that opt to hold primary elections. Only some school districts hold primary elections, while most do not.

School board general elections in Ohio are held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November in odd-numbered years every two years.

See law:

Ohio Statute Section 3501.01 and Ohio Statue Section 3501.01

Recent or upcoming election dates for all public school districts with elected board members in the state

Below are the recent/upcoming dates for all public school districts with elected board members in the state. There may be exceptions to these dates for specific districts because of local charters and district-specific exceptions and carve-outs.

• Primary election date: May 6, 2025
• General election date: November 4, 2025

Election system

School board members in Ohio are elected through nonpartisan general elections. School boards can adopt resolutions to hold nonpartisan primary elections. Only some school districts hold primary elections, while many do not.

As of 2022, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District was the only district classified as a municipal school district in Ohio. Its nine school board members are appointed by the mayor. School districts are classified as municipal school districts if they have been subject to "a federal court order requiring supervision and operational, fiscal, and personnel management of the district by the state superintendent of public instruction." State law requires a nine-member school board appointed by the mayor to control a municipal school district for four years after the district is released from the court order. After four years, a referendum is held for voters to decide whether to continue with an appointed board or to move to an elected board. In 2002, Cleveland voters approved a referendum to keep their school board appointed.

See law: Ohio Statue Section 3513.256 and Ohio Statute Section Section 3311.71

Party labels on the ballot

See also: Rules governing party labels in school board elections

School board elections in Ohio are nonpartisan, which means party labels do not appear on the ballot for school board candidates. Ohio Statute states, "The name of each candidate for member of a city, local, or exempted village board of education shall appear on the nonpartisan ballot." Statute governing the nonpartisan ballot lists the offices that must be included and states, "No name or designation of any political party nor any words, designations, or emblems descriptive of a candidate or the candidate's political affiliation, or indicative of the method by which such candidate was nominated or certified, shall be printed under or after any nonpartisan candidate's name which is printed on the ballot."

See law: Ohio Statue Section 3513.254 and Section 3505.04

Winning an election

If a school district holds primaries, the candidates with the most votes advance to the general election. Candidates equaling twice the number of open seats on the board advance to the general election. The primary election is canceled unless more than twice as many candidates file as there are open seats on the board. School boards can adopt a resolution by a three-fifths vote to establish nonpartisan primary elections for board members.

The candidates with the most votes in the general election are elected to office.

See law: Ohio Statue Section 3513.256 and Ohio Statue Section 3313.02

Term length and staggering

School board members have four-year terms.

See law: State Statute Section 3313.09

School districts elect as close as to half of their school board members as possible at one general election, and the other half at a general election two years later. Most school districts have five or seven school board members, so two members (or four on a seven-member board) are elected at one general election, and three members are elected at a general election two years later.

See law: Ohio Statue Section 3313.08

Representation: at large vs. by sub-district

School districts must elect all of their school board members at large from the whole district or, depending on the classification of the district, they can elect board members through a combination of some members elected at large and some members elected by sub-district. As of 2022, all public school districts elected their members at large only.

Schools classified as City School Districts can elect their school board members either at large or through a combination of members elected at large and members elected from sub-districts. As of 2022, all City School Districts elected their school board members at large only.

School districts classified as Local and Exempted Village Districts must elect all of their school board members at large from the whole district.

See law:

Filing deadlines and swearing-in dates

School board candidates in districts that have opted to hold a primary election must file by 4:00 pm on the ninetieth day before the primary election. Most school districts do not hold a primary

School board candidates in districts that have not opted to hold a primary election must file by 4:00 pm on the ninetieth day before the general election.

See law: State Statute Section 3513.256 and State Statute Section 3513.256

Newly elected school board members officially take office on the first day of January following their election.

See law: State Statute Section 3313.09

 

About the district

School board

The Fairfield City School District consists of five members serving four-year terms. To find information about school board meetings, click here.

List of school board members

Name	Year assumed office	Year term ends
Scott Clark
Mike Napier		2027
Abby Berding-Miller		2025
Jerrilynn Gundrum		2025
Brian Begley	2015	2025

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District map

School district map

Overlapping state house districts

Fairfield City School District

Office Name	Current Officeholder	Party	% School District Covered	% Other District Covered
Ohio House of Representatives District 45	Jennifer Gross	Republican Party	60%	17%
Ohio House of Representatives District 47	Diane Mullins	Republican Party	40%	10%

The table was limited to the lower chamber because it provides the most granularity. State house districts tend to be more numerous and therefore smaller than state senate or U.S. House districts. This provides an impression of the partisan affiliations in the area.

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Revenue
• Expenditures

Revenue, 2020-2021

SOURCE	AMOUNT	AMOUNT PER STUDENT	PERCENT
Federal:	$10,390,000	$1,070	9%
Local:	$63,327,000	$6,523	56%
State:	$38,937,000	$4,011	35%
Total:	$112,654,000	$11,604

Expenditures, 2020-2021

TYPE	AMOUNT	AMOUNT PER STUDENT	PERCENT
Total Expenditures:	$114,441,000	$11,788
Total Current Expenditures:	$100,826,000	$10,385
Instructional Expenditures:	$63,990,000	$6,591	56%
Student and Staff Support:	$7,726,000	$795	7%
Administration:	$12,620,000	$1,299	11%
Operations, Food Service, Other:	$16,490,000	$1,698	14%
Total Capital Outlay:	$5,250,000	$540
Construction:	$1,595,000	$164
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other:	$1,094,000	$112
Interest on Debt:	$2,099,000	$216

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements. To protect student privacy, percentages are reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five or fewer students were included in a data set, the data will display as "PS."

• Mathematics
• Reading/language arts
• Graduation rates

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2020-2021	47	54	32	30	PS	42	58
2018-2019	61	65-69	46	42	>=50	58	70
2017-2018	62	70-74	47	46	>=50	57	70
2016-2017	66	75-79	50	49	>=50	62	73
2015-2016	65	75-79	48	45	>=50	65-69	71
2014-2015	73	85-89	60	55	>=50	72	78
2013-2014	82	85-89	69	65	>=50	80-84	86
2012-2013	83	90-94	70	68	>=50	80-84	87
2011-2012	83	90-94	68	68	>=50	80-84	88
2010-2011	83	85-89	69	65-69	>=50	75-79	87

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2020-2021	56	59	45	40	PS	56	66
2018-2019	64	61	54	45	PS	63	72
2017-2018	63	60-64	52	45	>=50	61	71
2016-2017	63	60-64	52	43	>=50	63	70
2015-2016	55	60-64	43	34	>=50	50-54	62
2014-2015	77	80-84	68	58	>=50	76	81
2013-2014	87	85-89	80	75	>=50	85-89	91
2012-2013	87	90-94	77	72	>=50	85-89	90
2011-2012	86	90-94	76	72	>=50	80-84	90
2010-2011	87	85-89	76	70-74	>=50	85-89	91

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2019-2020	87	>=90	85-89	85-89	PS	80-89	88
2018-2019	89	>=90	85-89	80-84	PS	80-89	91
2017-2018	90	>=90	85-89	80-89		80-89	91
2016-2017	92	>=80	90-94	75-79	PS	>=90	94
2015-2016	93	>=50	90-94	80-89	PS	>=90	94
2014-2015	93	>=80	85-89	80-89		>=80	95
2013-2014	93	>=80	90-94	80-89		>=80	93
2012-2013	94	>=50	90-94	>=80	PS	>=80	95
2011-2012	93	>=50	85-89	80-89	PS	>=80	95
2010-2011	91	>=50	80-84	>=80	PS	>=80	93

Students

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Enrollment
• Demographics

Year	Enrollment	Year-to-year change (%)
2022-2023	9,647	0.1
2021-2022	9,639	-0.7
2020-2021	9,708	-2.7
2019-2020	9,966	0.7
2018-2019	9,899	0.1
2017-2018	9,886	0.5
2016-2017	9,838	-0.5
2015-2016	9,884	0.1
2014-2015	9,875	1.7
2013-2014	9,708	0.1
2012-2013	9,703	-1.0
2011-2012	9,796	0.0
2010-2011	9,794	-1.1
2009-2010	9,902	-3.0
2008-2009	10,198	0.7
2007-2008	10,125	0.4
2006-2007	10,083	2.2
2005-2006	9,857	2.5
2004-2005	9,607	0.6
2003-2004	9,547	1.6
2002-2003	9,395	2.4
2001-2002	9,165	3.3
2000-2001	8,859	-1.0
1999-2000	8,946	0.0

Racial Demographics, 2022-2023

RACE	Fairfield City School District (%)	Ohio K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native	0.0	0.1
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander	8.5	2.8
Black	23.5	16.8
Hispanic	15.8	7.3
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	0.2	0.1
Two or More Races	6.3	6.2
White	45.6	66.6

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Teachers
• Administrators
• Other staff

As of the 2022-2023 school year, Fairfield City School District had 505.34 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 19.09.

Teachers, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten:	13.50
Kindergarten:	16.63
Elementary:	221.73
Secondary:	245.50
Total:	505.34

Fairfield City School District employed 5.00 district administrators and 26.00 school administrators as of the 2022-2023 school year.

Administrators, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators:	5.00
District Administrative Support:	44.25
School Administrators:	26.00
School Administrative Support:	34.00

Other staff, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides:	182.78
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors:	96.15
Total Guidance Counselors:	20.00
Elementary Guidance Counselors:	0.00
Secondary Guidance Counselors:	0.00
Librarians/Media Specialists:	0.00
Library/Media Support:	0.00
Student Support Services:	130.36
Other Support Services:	414.70

Schools

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

The Fairfield City School District operates 10 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.

List of schools

SCHOOL NAME	NUMBER OF STUDENTS	GRADES
Creekside Middle School	1,126	6-8
Crossroads Middle School	1,135	5-8
Fairfield Central Elementary School	780	KG-5
Fairfield Compass Elementary	750	KG-5
Fairfield East Elementary School	616	PK-5
Fairfield Freshman High School	800	9-9
Fairfield High School	2,200	9-12
Fairfield North Elementary School	658	KG-5
Fairfield South Elementary School	751	KG-5
Fairfield West Elementary School	831	PK-5

About school boards

Education legislation in Ohio

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See also

School Boards	Education Policy	Local Politics	Ohio
List of school districts in Ohio Ohio school board elections, 2025 School board elections, 2025 School board recalls School board authority in Ohio	Ohio Department of Education Public education in Ohio	Municipal government Local courts Local ballot measures Recalls	Ohio Ohio elections, 2025 Ohio State Legislature Ohio state executive offices

External links

Office website

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