By Michael D. Clark
Enquirer staff writer

DEERFIELD TWP. - For Kings schools, Wednesday's first day of class was also a chance to leave last year's troubled school year behind.

More than 3,800 Kings students started classes, the first Southwest Ohio public school district to open.

And while students at Kings Junior and Senior High School off Columbia Road returned to a campus still missing its football stadium and baseball fields, the excitement of coming back to school helped overshadow the loss.

The discovery of lead in the soil last August forced a $2 million cleanup by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that removed tons of contaminated soil and led to the demolition of Kings' football and soccer stadium. Kings also experienced a windstorm last year that caused $300,000 worth of damage and closed schools for two days.

Moreover, the district is facing a deficit that will cut $2 million in personnel and programs during the next two school years. The district has a tax levy on the November ballot.

Last week Kings officials announced the discovery of mold in the junior and senior high school auditorium. The mold has since been cleaned and tests show the auditorium is now safe.

Despite all that, the first day of school went smoothly for Kings, and district officials could finally talk about a new start.

"The first day of school always brings a new beginning," said Kings Board of Education member Roger Jones. "Last year Kings faced unfathomable obstacles, but we faced each obstacle head-on and conquered them. We learned that you can't keep good people down."

Superintendent Charles Mason said the new school year's message is simple: "We have great kids, staff and parents, and we are going to use those ingredients for more success."

Senior Mary Ann Prince was happy to be back in school.

But she isn't eager to spend a second consecutive fall football season without a stadium. Kings football and soccer teams played last fall at nearby Galbreath Field.

"We've tried to make it into our own home field, but it's just not the same. But we'll make do," she said.

Mary said she is pleased about one big change for the new school year at the high school, where juniors and seniors now attend classes on the ground-floor level and younger grades are on the second floor. The move was designed to reduce hallway congestion brought on in part by the school's growing enrollment.

High School Principal Tom Higgins said enrollment has jumped from 975 students last school year to more than 1,075, prompting the classroom realignment according to grades and changing the rooms of 20 teachers.

"We've grown a little bigger than we anticipated," Higgins said.

School board not unanimous on levy

Four of the five Kings Board of Education members desperately wanted to project a unified front this week when they voted to put a 4.9-mill operating levy on the November ballot, but despite public lobbying during the meeting, one board member remained unconvinced.

Board member Toby Darkins remained steadfast in his contention that a 4-mill levy would have a better chance of passage given the low success rate of eight Greater Cincinnati schools that had 10 tax issues on the Aug. 3 ballot. Only two passed.

"The biggest risk we run is if we don't pass the levy," Darkins told fellow board members. He said Kings next year is considering asking voters to approve a bond issue and renew a permanent improvement levy, and said he believed voters will see the 4.9-mill levy in November as too high. It would raise taxes on a $100,000 home by $150 a year.

The remaining board members said they have tried to compromise with Darkins by lowering their original levy amount from 5.9 mills but to go lower would shortchange the district's quality, which has earned the state's top ranking of "excellent" for years.

They argued that it is important for the board to show unanimous support in what is expected to be one of the most contentious school levy campaigns in the history of the Warren County school system.

The board eventually approved the 4.9-mill levy by a 4-1 vote. E-mail mclark@enquirer.com