May 2015 School levies and issues

Just 102 school levies and issues will appear on the May 5h ballot this year. This is significantly down from 2014 (149) and 2013 (141). About one third of the requests are for new money.

The table below lists all the issues and levies that will appear on ballots. When you vote, we urge all the supporters of Join the Future to consider supporting their local schools.

County	District	Type	Description
Allen	Elida Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Ashland	Hillsdale Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Ashtabula	Grand Valley Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Auglaize	New Bremen Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Belmont	Shadyside Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Belmont	Shadyside Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Butler	Edgewood City School District	Levy	Substitute
Carroll	Brown Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Clark	Northeastern Local School District	Income Tax	Additional
Clark	Springfield City School District	Levy	Renewal
Coshocton	Coshocton County Joint Vocational School District	Levy	Additional
Crawford	Crestline Exempted Village School District	Income Tax	Additional
Crawford	Wynford Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Crawford	Wynford Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Cuyahoga	Brooklyn City School District	Levy	Renewal
Cuyahoga	Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District	Levy	Additional
Cuyahoga	Garfield Heights City School District	Levy	Renewal
Cuyahoga	Warrensville Heights City School District	Levy	Renewal
Cuyahoga	Westlake City School District	Levy	Additional
Darke	Ansonia Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Defiance	Ayersville Local School District	Combo	Additional
Delaware	Big Walnut Local School District	Levy	Substitute
Fairfield	Walnut Township Local School District	Levy	Additional
Fayette	Miami Trace Local School District	Combo	Additional
Geauga	Kenston Local School District	Combo	Additional
Geauga	West Geauga Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Greene	Beavercreek City School District	Levy	Renewal
Greene	Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Local School District	Levy	Replacement
Greene	Xenia Community City School District	Levy	Renewal
Greene	Xenia Community City School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Greene	Yellow Springs Exempted Village School District	Levy	Renewal
Hamilton	Lockland Local School District	Levy	Additional
Hamilton	Northwest Local School District	Combo	Additional
Hamilton	Winton Woods City School District	Bond	N/A
Hancock	Arcadia Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Hancock	McComb Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Hardin	Ridgemont Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Henry	Patrick Henry Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Huron	Monroeville Local School District	Levy	Additional
Knox	Mount Vernon City School District	Levy	Renewal
Lake	Lake County School Financing District	Levy	Renewal
Licking	Heath City School District	Levy	Renewal
Licking	North Fork Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Licking	Southwest Licking Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Lorain	Avon Local School District	Levy	Additional
Lorain	Clearview Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Lorain	Columbia Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Lorain	Columbia Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Lorain	Firelands Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Lorain	Keystone Local School District	Levy	Additional
Lorain	Sheffield-Sheffield Lake City School District	Levy	Additional
Lucas	Springfield Local School District	Levy	Additional
Mahoning	South Range Local School District	Levy	Additional
Marion	River Valley Local School District	Levy	Additional
Medina	Cloverleaf Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Mercer	Celina City School District	Levy	Renewal
Mercer	Parkway Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Miami	Bethel Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Miami	Tipp City Exempted Village School District	Levy	Additional
Miami	Troy City School District	Levy	Renewal
Montgomery	Brookville Local School District - I	Levy	Renewal
Montgomery	Brookville Local School District - II	Levy	Renewal
Montgomery	Kettering City School District	Levy	Renewal
Montgomery	Northridge Local School District	Combo	Additional
Montgomery	Valley View Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Montgomery	Valley View Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Ottawa	Genoa Area Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Ottawa	Genoa Area Local School District	Levy	Additional
Pickaway	Logan Elm Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Pickaway	Logan Elm Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Portage	Aurora City School District	Levy	Renewal
Portage	Crestwood Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Ross	Zane Trace Local School District	Income Tax	Additional
Sandusky	Woodmore Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Sandusky	Woodmore Local School District	Income Tax	Additional
Seneca	Seneca East Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Shelby	Jackson Center Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Stark	Fairless Local School District	Levy	Additional
Stark	Lake Local School District	Combo	Additional
Summit	Coventry Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Summit	Manchester Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Summit	Manchester Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Summit	Mogadore Local School District	Levy	Additional
Summit	Stow-Munroe Falls City School District	Levy	Renewal
Trumbull	Hubbard Exempted Village School District	Levy	Renewal
Trumbull	Lakeview Local School District	Combo	Additional
Trumbull	Liberty Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Trumbull	Lordstown Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Trumbull	Lordstown Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Trumbull	Maplewood Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Trumbull	Newton Falls Exempted Village School District	Levy	Renewal
Warren	Kings Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Warren	Warren County Joint Vocational School District	Levy	Replacement
Wayne	Norwayne Local School District	Levy	Renewal
Wayne	Orrville City School District	Levy	Renewal
Wayne	Rittman Exempted Village School District	Levy	Renewal
Wayne	Southeast Local School District	Bond	N/A
Williams	Edon Northwest Local School District	Income Tax	Additional
Wood	Bowling Green City School District	Levy	Renewal
Wood	Bowling Green City School District	Levy	Renewal
Wood	North Baltimore Local School District	Income Tax	Renewal
Wood	Rossford Exempted Village School District	Levy	Additional

Herculean Efforts By Educators To Mitigate PARCC Catastrophe

Ohio's new standardized tests have been criticized on a number of fronts. Questions about them being developmentally appropriate, results not being available for months, the length of time it takes to administer the tests, the implementation costs, and the technology deficiencies and failures.

The Dispatch reported on the latter set of problems, and they appear to have been widespread, and astronomical in number

Pearson, the testing company that created the state’s new Common Core-aligned English/language arts and math exams, has fielded roughly 9,600 phone calls, emails and chats from Ohio districts since testing started on Feb. 16.

Most of the queries — 86 percent — were related to problems with administering the test, including registering students, getting them into online test sessions and responding to test policies and procedures such as make-up testing.

To understand the full extent of the technology problems PARCC faces, those 10,000 calls must be put in context.

First, only 60% of Ohio's schools administered PARCC online, the rest chose to use paper and pencil. We can only assume that those 40% were the least prepared or capable of offering online testing as a solution this year. how many calls would have been made to Pearson if those schools had had to perform their testing online? How many of those 250 or so school districts will be ready next year?

Secondly, many of the problems we addressed in-house by district staff

Some educators think the number of glitches actually is larger. District technology staffers often turned to one another instead of waiting for a response from a help line answered by the state and Pearson.

No doubt the wait times were lengthy given the sheer volume of problems being experienced.

Nor do these numbers reflect the insane amount of effort districts went to in order to try and mitigate problems before they occurred

The transition at Grandview Heights went seamlessly for students, thanks to nearly 1,000 hours of planning and preparation by staff members, said Jamie Lusher, the district’s chief academic officer. The district tested 780 students.

That's over 1 hour per students, a pattern repeated elsewhere

Bexley schools purposely delayed testing by a week so that any glitches found early would be resolved by the time the district’s students logged in for their exams, Ross said. Also, the district’s technology department spent more than 200 hours preparing devices and planning for administration of the tests. Only 332 high-school students took the exam online; the rest used paper and pencil.

Almost 3 hours preparation per student!

It simply shouldn't be a requirement that Herculean efforts be needed in order to avoid an epic catastrophe. how can you have a high stakes system under these conditions

“If you have a classroom with three to five technical issues and you may have to reset the device, that’s not closing it up and starting it back up again,” said Paul Ross, technology director at Bexley schools. “With some of those device issues, you have to reinstall the test application on the fly. We’re talking about a disruption occurring while testing.”

That has to be solved quickly, he said, or students will have to make up the test.

This years' testing results ought to be treated as a test run, it would be grossly unfair to judge educators and schools on the basis of a product that is barely functional.

Thorough and Efficient Clause Saved From Chopping Block

A sub committee of the Ohio Modernization commission voted unanimously to retain the "thorough and efficient system of common schools" clause in the Ohio constitution, and not propose that voters consider removing it. This clause had been the bedrock upon which the Derolph funding case was litigated. It continues to be critical for maintaining a constitutional framework for the state to provide an thorough and efficient education system.

There was a lot of pressure to remove this clause from the constitution, led by the chair of the committee

The phrase in the Ohio Constitution that requires the state to provide an adequate system of public schools would be stricken from the document if the head of a constitutional modernization subcommittee has his way.

Chairman Chad Readler, a Columbus attorney who leads the Constitutional Modernization Commission’s schools and local government committee, wants to remove the phrase “thorough and efficient” from Article VI of the Constitution.

Readler, who is actively involved in the privately run charter school movement, is among 32 Ohio community leaders and legislators looking at ways to modernize the Constitution for recommendations to the legislature. Readler was selected by House leadership to run the subcommittee.

This is a big win for students, and a blow for profiteers and privatizers.

The Ohio Education Association Says Changes to Current Testing Mandates Are Urgently Needed

Ohio Education Association (OEA) President Becky Higgins today urged members of the Ohio Senate Education Committee to reduce the amount of time being spent preparing for and taking tests, and to extend to 3 years a moratorium on high-stakes decisions based on student test scores. A complete copy of her testimony is attached.

Higgins said current testing measures are flawed. “Teachers are beyond frustrated with the increasing amount of time spent on testing and the way it has crowded out time needed to teach and engage students in dynamic ways. They tell me about the anxiety felt by their students and the growing number of parents who are considering having their children ‘opt out’ of tests. There is a fundamental imbalance that needs to be corrected.”

In her testimony, Higgins proposed four steps that policymakers could take to bring about much-needed change:

“First, reduce the amount of time spent on testing,” said Higgins. “There is too much time devoted to testing. It’s crowding out time for teaching and learning, limiting student engagement and narrowing our curriculum. The disproportionate time spent on testing is being felt by students, parents and educators. It’s time to focus more clearly on our students and their needs.”

“Second, address problems with the tests. The transition to the new tests, including PARCC, is producing mixed results at best,” said Higgins. “A myriad of issues have been raised including technology, lack of timely guidance, tests not properly aligned to standards, age appropriateness of tests, insufficient accommodations for special education students and a lack of timely results from the assessment. These problems must be fixed.”

“Third, use the data appropriately to focus on helping students. Timely data from testing should be used to inform instruction, advance student learning and promote the growth of educators in their practice. It is not appropriate to tie high-stakes decisions to testing results,” testified Higgins.

“And finally, allow time to get implementation right. As Ohio makes the transition to new standards and assessments, there needs to be sufficient time to make adjustments. OEA renews its call for policy makers to hit the pause button and extend to 3 years a moratorium on the use of student test scores in measuring student growth, evaluating teacher performance and any adverse consequence on local schools,” said Higgins.

“OEA believes it is important to limit both the time spent on testing and the use of test results to make high-stakes decisions. The current fixation with testing is sucking the oxygen out of our education system. Students, parents and educators are saying enough is enough,” said Higgins.

The Ohio Education Association represents 121,000 teachers, faculty members and support professionals in Ohio's public schools, colleges and universities.

Video: 3 High School girls take on 6th Grade PARCC practice test

2 seniors and a sophomore from Elyria High School (all on the honors track) take on the practice PARCC test for 6th grade mathematics (PBA). It doesn't go well.

We are taking the practice Math PBA [performance based assessment] PARCC test for sixth grade.

Brooke is in Calculus which is only available on the track of honors math classes meaning during freshman year she started in Geometry, although students can get on the track and double up on math classes for a year and get up to calculus.

I [Megan] took a quarter of calculus but dropped it because I did not need it for college and am taking statistics.

Melanie is in honors classes but is a sophomore, she had more of a fresher memory to middle school math since she’s younger.

This test was hard for ALL three of us.

“I can’t do this,” the girl in the middle says at one point when the test asks students to explain why an answer is wrong.

The girl on the right says she could probably figure out the answers if she had her graphing calculator, but her friend reminds her that 6th graders aren’t allowed to use the more advanced calculators.

“How are 6th graders supposed to take this?” the girl in the middle exclaims.

“I can’t even do this. I’m 12th grade. I’m six years ahead of them!”

The girls complain that with the online test they can’t go back and check their work like they’re able to do with a paper test.

“I feel like I’m going to cry because I don’t know this and I feel so stupid,” says the girl in the middle.

By the time they get to question 11 of 12 on the first section, the girls give up, completely flummoxed by the test, despite their team effort.

When they try to view their scores, they are again frustrated when they discover that they must register for an account to see how they did on the practice test.

“Well, I’m not going to make an account for something I don’t support,” one girl complains (which raises some questions about the motives of this exercise).

THE SCHOOL FUNDING SQUEEZE

Innovation Ohio has produced a new report that looks at the funding squeeze Ohio's public schools have suffered over the last 4 years. The Innovation Ohio analysis found

1. Over the last ten years, Ohio has been investing up to $3 billion annually in tax cuts for the rich instead of high-quality schools for our students.

2. Since 2011, state aid has dropped below 50 percent forcing local revenue now paying for the majority share of the public education funding mix.

3. When factoring in lost revenue to charter schools, education spending as a share of the budget drops to a historic low of 23 percent.

4. In the 2016-17 budget proposal, the percentage of local school districts that face funding cuts jumps from 51 to 67 percent when subtracting the amount of state aid that goes to charters.

5. In too many cases, state funding to charter schools reduces the amount of the total per-pupil funding available to students in local public schools, even with their local revenue.

The immediate fixes suggested by Innovation Ohio include using a portion of the revenue ($4.5 billion) for income tax cuts to instead increase state aid to schools by $1 billion; reducing the cost of new levies for local taxpayers by reinstating the 12.5 percent property tax rollback; base charter funding on the actual cost to educate a charter-enrolled student; and fund charters directly instead of driving that state aid through local schools districts.

Here's the full report.

IO Analysis the School Funding Squeeze