Vantage supt. provides renewal levy info

Editor’s note: Vantage Career Center Superintendent Rick Turner provided The Van Wert independent with the following information on Vantage’s upcoming renewal levy.

RICK TURNER/for the Van Wert independent

As Vantage Career Center begins its 45th year in the community, the career center will be on the ballot November 3 to ask residents in its district to renew a five-year, 0.7-mill permanent improvement levy that was first approved in 1996. 

Since this levy is a renewal, it will mean no new taxes for property owners in the Vantage district, except for those in the Delphos City School District. That’s because Delphos City Schools became a member of the Vantage district this year, and the levy will replace the cost of a negotiated contract Delphos previously held with Vantage to provide career technical services to its students.

Voting for this renewal levy will cost a taxpayer with a home valued at $50,000 approximately $5.11/annually and a home valued at $100,000 will cost approximately $10.23/annually to support this levy.

A fair question to ask is what will that investment of $10.23 per year on a $100,000 home mean for property owners? This levy provides Vantage just over $700,000 annually to purchase equipment to keep Vantage labs up to date so it can train high school and adult students for the skills area employers tell school officials they need. Healthcare workers and public safety servants are examples of the essential workers Vantage provides training for. Having up-to-date, modern equipment is essential for Vantage to train high school students and adults so they can get the critical certifications and licenses needed to staff local healthcare facilities, fire departments, and police departments. 

The number of certifications Vantage has issued annually to students has increased significantly in recent years. Certifications/licenses issued to Vantage students:

• 2017 — 593 credentials issued
• 2018 — 807 credentials issued
• 2019 — 1,044 credentials issued

A breakdown of those credentials tells an important story regarding the value to its students and to the community as a whole. Within those numbers, 29 are practical nurses, 203 are state-tested nurse’s aides (STNA), 14 are level I firefighters, 12 are emergency medical technicians, and 19 are Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy (OPOTA) certified.  

The community has provided tremendous support for Vantage over the years which allows it to train essential workers with a well-equipped, state-of-the-art training facility. The Return on Investment (ROI) for district residents includes well trained, certified health and safety services personnel available to support the community. 

For more information, or for questions, contact Turner at 419.238.5411 or by email at turner.r@vantagecareercenter.com.