Statewide Education News
- $700 million in federal education grants coming (Cincinnati Enquirer)
- Late changes stall education bill (Springfield News Sun)
- Five Things You Can Learn Tomorrow About Ohio Teacher Evaluations (State Impact Ohio)
National education groups said this week that they’re putting their money where their mouths are when it comes to improving teacher effectiveness. Cincinnati Public Schools said Thursday it will join the growing cadre of districts applying for the $400 million latest round of federal Race to the Top school reform grants announced this week by the U. S. Department of Education. Read More...
State lawmakers aren’t finished revising Gov. John Kasich’s education reform bill and will continue to hash out their disagreements and attempt compromise after the holiday weekend. Senate Bill 316 was scheduled for a floor vote in the House on Thursday, but there was disagreement about changes that include:
• Raising the minimum reading test score students need to pass third grade.
• Scrapping the report card committee.
• Creating a system of charter schools for gifted students. Read More...
Ohio school districts are in the middle of making major changes to how public school teachers are evaluated. The changes come amid a national push to make teacher evaluation actually count. That means using it to help teachers improve and to tie performance to how teachers are paid and whether they keep their jobs. How important is this change to teachers and principals? So important that about 2,500 of them will descend upon Columbus tomorrow for a conference on what the new evaluations will look like and what they mean. Read More...
Local Issues
- Ohio Graduation Test scores down, but still good (Mansfield News Journal)
- Inmates May Soon Work Inside Central Ohio School District (NBC-4, Columbus)
- Lane to be tried as adult in Chardon High shootings (News Herald)
- Special-needs students benefit from work-training program (Vindicator)
- Male teachers are rare in elementaries (Hamilton Journal News)
- Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson's education plan does not get legislative approval, but deal is made to pass it soon (Plain Dealer)
- Cleveland mayor reaches agreement to fix troubled schools (Dispatch)
Early reports indicate Ohio Graduation Tests scores at all Richland County public schools decreased this year. Lucas High School Principal Eric Teague said he wasn't surprised scores dropped a bit in his district. Last year, scores were phenomenal and students scored a 100 percent in reading, mathematics and writing, he said. Read More...
They've been sentenced to years in prison, but inmates may soon be working in and around schools in a Central Ohio district. Leaders with the Fairbanks Local Schools in Union County are currently working on a partnership with the Ohio Reformatory for Women. Read More...
T.J. Lane will be tried as an adult in the Chardon High School shootings, Geauga County Probate/Juvenile Judge Tim Grendell ruled Thursday. Lane is being held in the county Juvenile Detention Center without bond. Read More...
A year of hands-on vocational training has helped 10 special-needs students secure entry-level jobs. Corey and Brian Dyer, work-training coordinators for the Mahoning County Educational Services Center, brought the work-training program to Austintown Fitch High School and the Mahoning County Career and Technical Center. Read More...
Men make up only 10 percent of the elementary school teachers in Butler County, a trend seen nationally and one that concerns education experts. The Hamilton JournalNews analyzed staff lists in 10 Butler County districts, and of the 1,603.8 full-time equivalent teachers in elementary schools, 164 — or 10.2 percent — are men, according to 2010-11 data from the Ohio Department of Education. Read More...
Mayor Frank Jackson did not get final approval from state lawmakers on his education reform plan, but they struck a deal late Thursday that it would be passed soon. Jackson was adamant he wanted his sweeping plan to pass Thursday so he could move ahead with a school tax campaign. Raising property taxes would help offset the school district's projected budget deficit. Read More...
Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson reached an agreement tonight with state legislative leaders on a bill to overhaul his struggling school district. House Speaker William G. Batchelder, R-Medina, said there will be a news conference on Friday to announce the details, but said it is his intent to pass House Bill 525 when the legislature returns to Columbus in mid-June. Read More...