In the midst of the back-to-school hustle at Dublin City Schools, a man by the name of Brian Kern can be found quietly working behind the scenes.
As treasurer and chief financial officer of Dublin City Schools, Kern holds one of the two highest positions in the district, the other being Superintendent Dr. John Marschhausen. Kern spends his days deeply entrenched in numbers, as evidenced by the white board in his office that is covered with mathematical calculations.
In Ohio, a school superintendent and treasurer are often the only two district employees who report directly to the Board of Education. The roles, while interdependent, are very different, with each working toward continuous improvement in their expertise area while sharing the responsibility of achieving district goals.
Like a superintendent, a school treasurer must have an approved license through the Ohio Department of Education. They must also complete 180 hours of continuing education every five years.
While Kern isn’t always front and center, the work he does is just as critical to the success of Dublin City Schools. Kern, who is supported by twelve staff members in the treasurer’s office, is responsible for all accounting, payroll and financial reporting in the district, as well as employee benefits and wellness.
From publishing the annual budget to forecasting revenue and expenditures, and serving as the secretary to the Board of Education, the work rarely wanes. Nor does Kern’s commitment to managing the district’s finances with integrity and transparency.
“We take the role of managing money very seriously here. My team is reliable, hardworking and
accurate,” Kern says.
A graduate of Heidelberg University’s accounting and public administration programs, Kern first kicked off his finance career at the Auditor of State’s Office. He worked his way up to audit manager before exiting for a career at a certified public accounting firm.
In 2003, Kern accepted his first role with Dublin City Schools as budgetary coordinator. Four years later, he was promoted to assistant treasurer before being hired by Olentangy Local School District (OLSD) in 2013 as their treasurer and chief financial officer. After gaining valuable experience at OLSD, Kern returned to Dublin City Schools to serve in his current role.
The many awards around Kern’s office are evidence that, in a world where financial mismanagement often makes headlines, integrity and transparency are key at Dublin City Schools.
“We’ve had a clean audit for at least the last 20 years, if not longer,’” Kern says. “We’ve won Auditor of the State awards numerous times, many with distinction.”
The volume of work in the Dublin City Schools Treasurer’s Officer is noteworthy. In fiscal year 2023, the district wrote 8,750 checks and produced 11,833 purchase orders.
One of these includes an award from the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) for Excellence in Financial Reporting, one of multiple on Kern’s wall.
Dublin City Schools is also AAA rated, the highest-issued credit rating assigned by S & P Global, and has been recognized as a healthy workplace by the Healthy Business Council of Ohio seven times.
“Our financial forecasts are always within 1 to 2% of our actual expenditures. We have the best financial team out there. I’d put them up against anybody,” Kern says.
Speaking of the team, his supporting cast includes Assistant Treasurer, Tyson Hodges. Hodges, who graduated from The Ohio State University, also started his career at the Auditor of State’s Office. He focused on performance audits, including special projects that worked to uncover fraud and mismanagement of funds.
After nine years with the State Auditor, Hodges accepted the role of Assistant Treasurer at Hamilton City Schools in Butler County, Ohio before coming to Dublin City Schools in 2017. Hodges is currently a trustee with GFOA and serves as the treasurer of the central Ohio chapter of the Ohio Association of School Business Officials (OASBO). Kern has also held volunteer roles with both organizations.
In a post-pandemic era of ever-tightening budgets, Kern and Hodges have tackled evolving challenges while steadfastly upholding their commitment to the highest standards of fiscal responsibility. This year is more of the same, as the pair work through their second levy
experience together at Dublin City Schools.
In 2018, the Dublin community passed a combined operating levy, permanent improvement levy and bond issue – the first “trifecta” levy in the district’s history. After stretching the new revenue over five years, the Board of Education approved a resolution this July to place a 7.9-mill operating levy and a $145-million no-new-millage bond issue on the November 2023 ballot.
“We owe it to our community, our students and their families to be open about how we manage their resources,” Kern says. “The five-year forecast shows that the district is deficit spending and will deplete our cash balance by fiscal year 2026.”
The intricacies of school finance, especially how schools in Ohio are funded, make explaining how levy issues impact schools and taxpayers challenging. Property values, tax millage and the effect of House Bill 920 are just some of the many things that a person must learn to understand the inner workings of school funding.
A comprehensive Levy Information page on the district’s website includes numerous visuals that Kern and Hodges helped craft so that stakeholders know the facts.
No matter the outcome, Kern and his team remain dedicated to uphold the trust bestowed upon them as stewards of taxpayer dollars.
“Even though we are behind the scenes, our work supports the people in the classrooms,” Kern says. “We want the best education possible for our students, so we make the best decisions we can with the information and resources we have.”
Cassie Dietrich is a Public Information Officer for Dublin City Schools.
