CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Board of Education recently approved two resolutions using lease revenue bonds to help the school district move forward with facility improvements.
“Oklahoma law doesn’t allow school districts to directly use lease revenue bonds, so we work with the Cleveland Educational Facilities Authority (CEFA) — a public trust made up of Cleveland City Council members — to handle the financing on our behalf,” Superintendent Sol Bayouth sa The process works in two steps. The district temporarily leases property (like a school building or athletic facility) to CEFA so they can secure the funding. CEFA then leases the property back to CPS so they can continue using it without interruption while improvements are made and paid for over a period of time.
“This is a creative, legal, and financially sound way to upgrade our facilities even though our traditional bond capacity is limited,” Bayouth said.
In other matters, the school board approved a request for a senior to take a third-period internship next year, giving them extra time in a real-world learning environment.
The board authorized flexibility for students to adjust their graduation plan under new state requirements (House Bill 2627).
“This gives students more options if their schedule makes it difficult to fit in certain fine arts, foreign language, or computer application classes,” Bayouth said.
The board also approved adjunct teacher positions for the 2026 school year. “An adjunct teacher is a qualified professional who teaches part-time in their area of expertise, allowing us to expand course offerings without adding a full-time position,” Bayouth said.