Ottawa Hills Schools is moving forward with a plan to recruit tuition-paying students to help bolster the pupil population, namely in elementary school.

School board members Thursday directed Superintendent Kevin Miller to continue working with advertising agency Hart Inc. to lure students from nearby districts. The school has spent about $10,000 for the agency to conduct market studies and form a plan, and now will spend $28,000 to $37,000 on a campaign that includes direct mailers and social media ads.

Ottawa Hills doesn’t participate in open enrollment, which allows students to attend school tuition-free in a district other than where they live. But families who live outside district lines can send their students to the high-performing schools at a price.

In-state tuition is $13,428 and out-of-state tuition is $15,869, Ohio Department of Education data show. The state sets public school tuition rates using a formula that takes into account local tax revenue and the per-pupil state funding.

Officials hope to recruit five students for the 2017-18 school year, which they say more than makes up the marketing cost. School board president Brad Johnson said the move isn’t about bringing more cash into the district, but more families.

“This isn’t about the money. It’s about populating our district with kids so that we can offer the programs that we want to offer,” he said. “So whether they’re paying tuition or move in, either way, that’s a win for us.”

The marketing campaign will target families with young children living in Toledo’s Old Orchard neighborhood and in Sylvania as well as a 10-mile radius around the school.

Board members agreed they may expand the scope to include middle and high school students as the campaign moves forward, which would increase the marketing cost.

“Let’s go into that with the expectation that we’re going to learn something about the things that work and the things that don’t work,” Mr. Johnson said. “We may well want to spend more money than just what’s reflected here. but I wouldn’t spend it until after we’ve learned a little bit about what the response is.”

Contact Sarah Elms at: selms@theblade.com or 419-724-6103 or on Twitter @BySarahElms.

First Published February 3, 2017, 5:00 a.m.