MARYSVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) -- Marysville Exempted Village School District announced earlier this month that Dr. Zack Howard will take over as superintendent after the current superintendent, Dr. Diane Allen, shared in November that she would retire at the end of the school year.   Howard currently serves as superintendent of Mount Gilead Schools, but he said he is ready for a new chapter, which will start in August.   Measles outbreak reported in Ohio after several more cases confirmed This is a homecoming for Howard; he graduated from Marysville Schools in 1995. “For me, it's an opportunity to come home; I grew up in the community,” Howard said. “Any time you get a chance to grow up and then finish your career in your hometown, I consider that a tremendous blessing.”   Marysville is in the middle of some financial problems, something Howard said he recognizes.   “I'm going into it with the mindset of we need to solve this together and we're going to do that,” he said.  The district has an emergency levy coming up on May 6 after other recent levies failed. If it fails again, district leaders said it will cut staff, school programs and some AP courses.   “With the passage of this levy, we could offer more support and make sure we're able to maintain those really solid programs,” Howard said.   Gaudreau memorial shirt orders to remain unfulfilled Marysville has lower-than-average costs per pupil which Howard said is good, but he is worried about the current student-to-teacher ratio, which he said would get worse if the levy doesn’t pass. Howard said he wants to earn more community support, which he plans to do by moving to town and connecting with students, staff, parents and residents as soon as possible. “It’s, you know, the local taxpayers supporting in addition to state funding, and so what we've got to do is make sure that our community sees that we're bringing great value for the education that we're providing our students,” Howard said.  The Marysville School Board has a special meeting on Tuesday to approve Howard’s superintendent contract. After the meeting, there will be a meet-and-greet with Howard. Community members wanting to interact with the new superintendent are encouraged to attend.  ...read more read less