PERRYSBURG – Perrysburg Schools established a new trust fund Monday to get more out of money that’s given
to the school district.
Limited investment options for money which has until now been part of the general fund will be expanded
through the district’s Foundation Fund Trust, which will allow the money to be invested through the
Toledo Community Foundation.
About $425,000 in the general fund is restricted from such investments by Ohio Revised Code, but routing
it through the trust as suggested by a Columbus law firm would substantially increase interest income on
the funds, which is currently limited to around 0.25 percent. Proceeds through the Toledo Community
Foundation could be roughly around 4 percent, Superintendent Tom Hosler said after the meeting.
"It’s got to be better than what we’re getting from the banks," said Matt Feasel, the
district’s treasurer and chief financial officer.
Feasel explained that some of the district’s scholarships are based on interest income, allowing the
principal to continue generating scholarship funding. But with interest rates so low, some scholarships
have been less than $2, prompting him to disburse small additional amounts from the principal to make
the award worthwhile, "so they can at least pay for a book."
"We’re so limited" by the code," Feasel said. "This gives us another
instrument."
The fund will be overseen by a district board comprised of the superintendent, treasurer/CFO, development
director, executive director of teaching and learning, and a representative of the Perrysburg Schools
Foundation.
Also Monday, the board reviewed classroom fees that are passed on to parents, which prompted board member
Walt Edinger to repeat his criticism of assessing fees for required classes.
The fees cover consumable materials such as workbooks that cannot be reused by other students. Passing
those costs on to parents was part of a plan formulated during previous levy discussions, Hosler said.

The board approved fee increases 4 to 1 with Edinger voting no, but not before a lengthy discussion of
the issues surrounding the policy.
"I’ve had a problem with this, and I know that we’re allowed to do it and I know the money has to
come from somewhere," Edinger said.
The fee collections for core courses totaled more than $155,000 this school year, money that would come
from the general fund if not assessed to parents.
"These are the ones I would rather see excused from this. … In my mind, as a public school, these
aren’t things we ought to be charging an additional fee for," Edinger said.
"I would vote for them if they were for electives. I vote against them because we include core
courses."
Also on Monday, Feasel outlined the district’s five-year forecast.