release

Education News for 10-15-2012

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State Education News

  • Department of Education to release report card ratings, performance indexes and attendance rates (Dayton Daily News)

    • The Ohio Department of Education is expected to release the 2011-12 report card ratings, performance indexes and attendance rates for local schools and districts on Wednesday, according to Ohio Acting Superintendent Michael Sawyers....Read more...

  • Former Monroe treasurer could lose license (Middletown Journal)

    • Former Monroe schools treasurer Kelley Thorpe could have her treasurer’s license revoked or suspended, pending a hearing before the State Board of Education, according to documents obtained by the Middletown Journal....Read more...

  • Here’s Your Chance to Shape Ohio’s Seclusion and Restraint Policy (State Impact Ohio)

    • Seclusion rooms are enclosed spaces that are supposed to be used to calm or restrain children who become violent. Seclusion — and restraint, or physical force used to control a child — are often used for children with disabilities....Read more...

  • Week Ahead: Report Card Data, State Board of Education Voters’ Guide and More (State Impact Ohio)

    • Wednesday: Ohio Department of Education to release the rest of the “preliminary” school report-card data, including school and district letter grades....Read more...

  • TPS holds state’s 1st forum to boost parents’ interest (Toledo Blade)

    • Believing that an active parent group can do more to improve conditions at a school than any reform, Toledo officials said they hope a forum Saturday at Bowsher High School will help boost parents’ involvement in the district....Read more...

Local Education News

  • Ross County schools posting bullying incidents on their websites (Chillicothe Gazette)

    • About a year after the Gazette first reported that five of Ross County's seven school districts had failed to comply with a 2007 state law requiring a summary of bullying incidents be posted on their websites, every district now is in full compliance....Read more...

  • Cleveland school tax would have widely different costs in different neighborhoods (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

    • CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland's proposed school tax would have very different costs in the district's diverse neighborhoods....Read more...

  • Bluffton staff goes viral (Lima News)

    • In a bit of a twist, it is time for the adults to be hip -- sort of. A group of Bluffton teachers and administrators have gone viral with their own music video...Read more...

  • Transportation duties to be shared (Lisbon Morning Journal)

    • LISBON - The school district intends to contract with the Columbiana County Educational Service Center to share transportation administration duties following the loss of Lisbon's bus supervisor....Read more...

  • Elgin milestone (Marion Star)

    • MARION - Elgin Local Schools students, staff and supporters celebrated a milestone in the construction of a new K-12th grade building at a topping off ceremony Friday....Read more...

  • Superintendent evaluation process varies (Middletown Journal)

    • While Race to the Top and other education reform movements are putting an emphasis on teacher and principal evaluations, there is no uniform method for evaluating superintendents....Read more...

  • Avon Local Schools preliminary report card looks similar to last year (Sun Newpapers)

    • The Ohio Department of Education released preliminary School Report Card Data for the 2011-2012 school year late last month. The reports are not complete and the release of the official reports is running behind schedule, but the preliminary data shows...Read more...

  • School board likely to mull results, plan of action (This Week News)

    • Parents in the Johnstown-Monroe school district whose children attend nonpublic schools should have time to make other transportation arrangements if their child's route takes more than 30 minutes to complete....Read more...

  • Licking Heights anticipates highest grade on official state report card (This Week News)

    • Although official results haven't been released, Licking Heights Superintendent Philip Wagner said the district learned it likely will be graded "Excellent with Distinction" on the Ohio Department of Education's state report card....Read more...

  • Superintendents Are Retiring With Large Pension Plans (WCMH)

    • In the last few months, five superintendents from some of the largest school districts in Central Ohio have decided to retire. They're taking hefty retirement packages and taxpayers are helping pay for them....Read more...

  • Two Westlake elementary schools earn Blue Ribbon distinction (West Life)

    • Kim Conley, principal of Hilliard Elementary School, said teachers and staff at her school are never satisfied with the status quo....Read more...

  • Youngstown students give up day off to learn lessons in teamwork (Youngstown Vindicator)

    • Youngstown Eighth grader Jarell Thompson wants to help other students who don’t fit in....Read more...

Editorial

  • Toledo tax crapshoot: Natural seven or snake eyes? (Toledo Blade)

    • Lucky seven? We’ll find out soon. If you’ve looked at the fall ballot, you know that voters in the city and school district of...Read more...

  • Get Ohio school data cleared up (Warren Tribune Chronicle)

    • A testy exchange between an Ohio Board of Education member and state Auditor Dave Yost last week helped make it clear serious problems exist in some of the state's largest school systems....Read more...

Education News for 10-10-2012

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State Education News

  • School report card date set (Cincinnati Enquirer)

    • Ohio will be handing out state report card ratings for districts and schools Oct. 17, state officials said Tuesday, now that State Auditor Dave Yost’s investigations into enrollment…Read more...

  • State to release new report cards (Columbus Dispatch)

    • A second round of preliminary school report-card data that includes school ratings and attendance rates will be released next week. The State Board of Education voted 12-3 yesterday to make the additional data public…Read more...

  • Parent attacks dress code policy (Dayton Daily News)

    • A Tippecanoe High School student’s mother isn’t happy with the new principal’s interpretation of the dress code…Read more...

  • State board to release some report-card data (Toledo Blade)

    • The state board of education voted Tuesday to release some of the school report card information it has withheld pending a state auditor’s investigation of attendance-data manipulation in some districts…Read more...

  • Ohio officials discuss Ledgemont Schools' fiscal emergency (Willoughby News Herald)

    • Community and staff members filled Ledgemont Elementary School’s cafeteria Monday to hear an Ohio Department of Education official outline the ramifications of the school district’s fiscal emergency status…Read more...

Local Education News

  • Riverdale, teachers union reach contract settlement (Findlay Courier)

    • Contract agreements have been reached between Riverdale school's administration and the teachers union, officials…Read more...

  • Schools, families adjust to healthier school lunches (Hamilton Journal-News)

    • Many students and parents have reacted strongly to National School Lunch Program updates introduced this year that mandate calorie limits and more fruits…Read more...

  • Parents cite bullying issue as reason to reject Lima schools levy (Lima News)

    • Bullying is at the center of an effort to defeat next month’s Lima schools levy. Three families upset about what they say is a bullying problem in the district called a news conference…Read more...

  • Switzerland of Ohio schools paring $1M from budget (Marietta Times)

    • The Switzerland of Ohio Local school district is working to cut $1 million from its budget. The district has already laid off three employees and instituted a teacher hiring freeze…Read more...

  • Career center banks on surplus (Marietta Times)

    • The Washington County Career Center is projected to be in the black for the next five years, even as expenses overtake revenue, according to a forecast approved…Read more...

  • Catholic teachers will vote on union (Youngstown Vindicator)

    • About 100 Catholic elementary school teachers will decide later this month whether to be part of a union…Read more...

Editorial

  • Why secrecy? (Columbus Dispatch)

    • The Dispatch has filed a lawsuit against the Columbus Board of Education for a simple reason: Public meetings should be open to the public. The board has ignored repeated requests by the newspaper to honor that legal requirement…Read more...

Education News for 09-12-2012

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State Education News

  • Ohio school board extends report card delay (Associated Press)

    • COLUMBUS -- Ohio's school board again blocked release of state report cards on Tuesday amid an attendance-tampering investigation, but it cleared certain untainted data to be publicized…Read more…

  • Ohio school board raises reading expectations (Associated Press)

    • COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — As many as 10,000 third-graders could be held back next school year if they fall short of new minimum scores set for the state reading test.…Read more…

  • State to release limited report cards (Columbus Dispatch)

    • The state’s school report cards are coming. Sort of. They’ll be stripped-down versions missing overall ratings, attendance rates and a performance index score.…Read more…

  • Stricter seclusion rules in works (Columbus Dispatch)

    • All schools will be required to track — and disclose — how often they are restraining or secluding children under a proposed state policy.…Read more…

  • Ohio School Board Extends State Report Card Delay (WBNS)

    • COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio's school board has again blocked the release of state report cards amid an attendance-tampering investigation.…Read more…

  • Ohio will release report card data, with big caveats (WKSU)

    • After weeks of delay, the State Board of Education has decided to release preliminary report card data on school districts and buildings…Read more…

Local Education News

  • Audit flags ethics questions at charter school (Cincinnati Enquirer)

    • A local charter school overpaid an employee $3,333 and committed possible ethics violations, according to the Ohio Auditor’s Office.…Read more…

  • Cuyahoga Falls Students Ready for Battle on Bullying (Cuyahoga Falls Patch)

    • The start of the new school year brings a new front in the battle on bullying in the Cuyahoga Falls City Schools with the help of the $50,000 Safe and Drug Free Schools Grant the district received from the Ohio Department of Education last spring.…Read more…

  • School board puts limit on sports (New Philadelphia Times-)

    • UHRICHSVILLE — The Newcomerstown Board of Education adopted a new policy Monday that would limit the…Read more…

  • Teen arrested this morning after taking fake bomb to Parma Senior High School (Sun Newpapers)

    • PARMA -- A 15 year-old boy was arrested this morning after he allegedly took a fake bomb to Parma Senior High School, 6285 West 54th Street.…Read more…

  • Beachwood school district may pull out as host of deaf and hard of hearing program (Sun Newpapers)

    • BEACHWOOD -- The Beachwood school district may end its role as host and fiscal officer of the deaf and hard of hearing consortium program in two years.…Read more…

  • Parma parents air school traffic and safety concerns (Sun Newpapers)

    • PARMA -- Parents crowded into the school board meeting room Sept. 10 to complain about traffic around their children’s schools, late school buses and other issues that have occurred since the start of the school year.…Read more…

  • Teachers review Common Core math program (This Week News)

    • Upper Arlington parents attended "Parent University" at the elementary schools last week to learn about the district's new Math in Focus program.…Read more…

  • T.J. Lane to be transferred to adult detention facility (Willoughby News Herald)

    • Accused Chardon High School shooter Thomas Lane III should be transferred to an adult detention facility, Geauga County Common Pleas Judge David L. Fuhry has ruled.…Read more…

  • U.S. Department of Education Recognizes Ontario Schools (WMAN)

    • The Ontario Local School District has been recognized for its environmental efforts. The district has received an honorable mention award as a Green Ribbon School from the U.S. Department of Education.…Read more…

  • Education Department Expands IDEA Help Centers (Disability Scoop)

    • The number of training centers across the country designed to assist families in accessing services for students with disabilities is on the rise.…Read more…

Education News for 08-22-2012

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State Education News

  • Delay in report card release keeps good news from parents (Middletown Journal)

    • With the state board of education indefinitely delaying the release of the state report cards, some local school districts will have to wait to announce good news to parents
    Read more…

  • Local school district leaders frustrated over delay with state report cards (New Philadelphia Times)

    • School superintendents in the Tuscarawas Valley say a delay in releasing state report cards won’t have a major impact on area districts, but it’s frustrating nonetheless.
    Read more…

  • Ohio school report cards delayed during investigation (Zanesville Times-Recorder)

    • Amid an attendance-tampering investigation, Ohio has delayed next week's release of annual school report cards whose results determine innumerable decisions by schools and families about funding, student scholarships and building and program placements.
    Read more…

Local Education News

  • Cloverleaf, Medina sign deal to share treasurer (Akron Beacon Journal)

    • The neighboring Cloverleaf and Medina school districts have struck a deal to share a treasurer for the next school year.
    Read more…

  • Teachers get closer look at oil, gas drilling industry (Chillicothe Gazette)

    • CHILLICOTHE -- A couple of area teachers recently picked up some first-hand experience with the oil and natural gas industry to take back to their classrooms this fall.
    Read more…

  • Columbus schools hire lawyers in attendance probe (Columbus Dispatch)

    • Despite having a full-time attorney on staff, Columbus City Schools agreed last night to pay up to $100,000 to hire independent attorneys “to advise and represent” the district in an ongoing investigation into data rigging.
    Read more…

  • School safety stressed (Marion Star)

    • MARION - As summer vacation ends and school starts for Marion City Schools students, law enforcement recommends that everyone give themselves a little more time to get to where they need to go.
    Read more…

  • Man mistaken for participant in mock school shooting (Newark Advocate)

    • PATASKALA -- Roy Luckett isn't a school shooter, but the Newark resident said he was tackled like one during a training exercise at Watkins Memorial High School this past week.
    Read more…

  • Parents sue Northridge school board over busing policy (Newark Advocate)

    • NEWARK -- Three parents filed a lawsuit against Northridge Local Schools' board Tuesday, saying their children should be bused to private schools.
    Read more…

  • Judge continues bullying lawsuit against Mentor Schools (Willoughby News Herald)

    • A lawsuit against Mentor Schools that alleges it failed to recognize and stop the bullying that resulted in a student’s suicide was continued on Tuesday in the United States District Court Northern District of Ohio.
    Read more…

Editorial

  • Sort it out (Columbus Dispatch)

    • The State Board of Education made the right call in voting 18-0 on Monday to delay releasing the state’s annual report cards on public schools’ performance.
    Read more…

  • No excuses for faking records (Warren Tribune Chronicle)

    • Area residents will have every right to be furious if they learn local school districts are among those that have been tampering with data to make it look as if student attendance is better than actually is the case.
    Read more…

Education News for 03-20-2012

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Statewide Education News

  • ‘Dropout factories’ grow in state (Dispatch)

    • WASHINGTON — A new report says the number of Ohio high schools considered “dropout factories” jumped from 75 to 135 during the eight years ending in 2010, an increase that far outpaced those of other states. The data are part of research presented yesterday at the Grad Nation summit in Washington. The summit was organized by the children’s advocacy group America’s Promise Alliance, founded by former Secretary of State Colin Powell. The group defines dropout factories as schools that fail to graduate more than 60 percent of students on time. Read More…

  • In Ohio school shooting case, judge refuses to release documents that may involve T.J. Lane (Plain Dealer)

    • CHARDON - A Geauga County judge today refused to release any documents that may relate to abuse, neglect, dependency or custody issues involving T.J. Lane, the 17-year-old accused of killing three classmates at Chardon High School last month. In a 13-page decision, Juvenile Judge Timothy Grendell declined to say whether such records exist. But the court's docket shows there was a case involving the youth. He said the release of such records, if they exist, could potentially skew the jury pool if the youth is bound over to Common Pleas Court. Read More…

  • Ohio has more 'dropout factories' (Enquirer)

    • The number of “dropout factory schools” in Ohio shot up by 80 percent between the 2001-02 school year and 2009-10, according to a new national report. “Dropout factories” is a term for schools with a graduation rate of 60 percent or less. Ohio is among 35 states in which the number of these schools has increased, according to the report, Building a Grad Nation, which was released Monday. The report does not list schools by name, although state data shows two Cincinnati Public schools and several Cincinnati charter schools likely would fall into this category. Read More…

Local Issues

  • Granville school board to eliminate positions (Newark Advocate)

    • GRANVILLE - A somber Granville Board of Education Monday night unanimously, and reluctantly, agreed to a Reduction in Force resolution that would eliminate 22 positions, full and part-time, and reduce two other full-time posts by one-quarter each next school year. The move is the latest to reduce general operations spending by $1.5 million next school year and to readjust staff in the face of a declining enrollment. Read More…

  • Poland voters’ rejection of tax levy for schools paves way for pay-to-play (Vindicator)

    • POLAND - The school board met for more than two hours Monday to discuss fallout from the March 6 levy defeat and appeared to reach two short-term conclusions: All-day kindergarten will remain through next school year, and pay-to-participate athletics are on the way. All board members said they would vote “no” to cut kindergarten to half-day and agreed that pay-to- participate athletic fees are necessary, though the proposed amounts range from $150 per high-school sport to $300 or $500 per high-school sport. Read More…

  • School buildings under budget (Findlay Courier)

    • Crediting this year's uncharacteristically warm winter, Touchstone CPM Project Manager Chris Moore announced Monday that the project to build Findlay's three new school buildings is $2.6 million under budget. "We've had so few hurdles," Moore told Findlay's school board Monday. "From a financial standpoint, that's very good news." Moore said the $2.6 million is a part of the project's contingency, or emergency, fund. And although District Treasurer Mike Barnhart said that total will most likely decrease by the time the project is completed. Read More…

A bridge too far

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If you're a school administrator, wondering what your next budget is going to look like, waiting for the release of a new school funding formula, our advice is "don't hold your breath".

Ohio had a school funding formula. Strangley, it still has a website dedicated to it

After 20 years of controversy over its school funding system, Ohio now has a new method for providing funding to its public schools. Enacted as part of the 2010-2011 state budget, the Ohio Evidence-Based Model is designed to fund strategies that have the best chance to help students learn.

While economic realities require that the new approach be phased in over 10 years, the principles underlying the evidence-based model are now in place.

What's more, the new funding model is tied to education reforms designed to build a 21st-century system of education for Ohio.

Unlike the current Attorney General, Mike DeWine, who is winning plaudits for continuing and building upon much of the work of the previous administration, the Governor decided that everything the previous administration had done must go. Whether it worked or not. The Evidenced based model, which brought together hundreds of stakeholders and took years to develop was immediately scrapped. Replaced with a make-it-up-as-we-go-along "bridging formula". It is increasingly likely that a continuing "bridging formula" is on the horizon

But nearly a year later, Kasich, like governors before him, has found that overhauling the way Ohio funds education is not simple math.

The Republican administration concluded a series of public meetings on the issue in September but has yet to release a draft proposal promised for October. And now the governor’s office appears certain to miss a self-imposed deadline of January for unveiling its method of paying for Ohio schools.

Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said the administration is working on its plan, and he doesn’t know when it will be ready.

We asked the Governor's education Czar, Bob Sommers, if he could provide some timetable guidance.

@RDSommers can you give us some guide as to when we might see a funding formula? Is it close, not close? Thanks!
@jointhefutureOH wish I could, but the issues are complex. We continue to study the possibilities. Ideas welcome

We suggested they look at successful models elsewhere in the country, but apparently they don't think there are any. We'd also suggest that they were a little trigger happy in shooting down the Evidence Based Model, and perhaps they could perform some CPR and bring it back with their own modifications.

Either way, the administration has clearly learned that this is no simple task with obvious answers.

Their difficulties will certainly have been further complicated by severe funding cuts as a result of HB153 raiding school budgets, and alienating most school districts and communities with bills like SB5 and HB136. It's hard to collaborate with hundreds of stakeholders when the previous 12 months have been spent attacking them and their mission.

If the administration have learned this lesson we should expect to see more outreach and consultation, and eventually arrive at a funding formula that works for most. Otherwise the administration is going to find itself having traveled a bridge too far.

Final note. We'd like to thank Bob Sommers for engaging in our questions with honest and forthright answers. While we sometimes disagree on fundamental policies, being able to have open and honest policy dialogue is our number one goal, his efforts in this repect advance that.