By Sue Kiesewetter
Enquirer contributor

LIBERTY TWP. - Among Ohio's fastest-growing, suburban school districts, teachers in the Lakota Schools earn less than the $51,000 average annual salary their peers in similar districts make.

But the $48,000 average salary Lakota teachers earn is higher than the statewide average of $46,000.

Those are just some of the comparisons included in the 2003 Cupp Report from the Ohio Department of Education's Center for School Finance and Accountability.

In the report, school districts' data are compared with state averages and the averages of similar districts on 60 different items. In the case of Lakota, comparisons are made with 20 other Southwest Ohio districts, including Mason, Forest Hills, Fairfield and Milford.

In many cases, the numbers paint a picture different, perhaps, than the perception of Lakota, Ohio's eighth-largest school district, school officials say.

"We are not property rich when compared to similar districts,'' said school board member Jeff Jones, who presented the report to the board this week.

"Our value per pupil ($140,155) is about 15 percent above the state average ($122,545) but ... behind similar districts. ($165,053)."

The report is being studied as the district launches a campaign to explain why it is asking voters on March 2 to pass an 11.67-mill combination issue that includes 9.3 mills to bring in $21 million annually for day-to-day operations. The other 2.37 mills will provide $84.9 million to build three new schools and expand or improve others.

The $7,624 the district spends to educate each of Lakota's 16,347 students is significantly lower than the $8,445 average similar districts spend, which is close to the state average of $8,434.

Of that, Lakota receives about $4,150 from local sources, which is less than what similar districts receive (on average, $5,305 from local sources). The state average is $3,965.

Despite spending almost 11 percent below the state average, Lakota has achieved an excellent rating on its Ohio report card for 2002 and 2003.

E-mail suek@infionline.net