Bill would ‘thwart the will of Ohioans.’ State Ed board independent for reason| Opinion 12/8/22

Bill would ‘thwart the will of Ohioans.’ State Ed board independent for reason| Opinion
“The people of Ohio passed the 1953 amendment to make the state board of education a fourth branch of government,” William L. Phillis, Guest columnist

Oct 12, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; LGBTQ+ allies protest outside the Ohio Department of Education building as the board hears public testimony on a resolution that opposes proposed changes to Title IX, the federal law that prohibited discrimination in schools on the basis of sex. Introduced by board member Brendan Shea, the resolution lays out an "unequivocal opposition" to the Biden Administration's proposal to expand Title IX's protections to gender identity and sexual orientation. Mandatory Credit: Adam Cairns-The Columbus Dispatch

 William L. Phillis is a former teacher, principal, superintendent, and assistant superintendent of public instruction.  He is currently the executive director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding.

Leaders of the Ohio Senate seem to be inebriated with power.

With a super majority, they do what they want. They are in a position with a super majority in both chambers of the legislature, to overpower the Governor’s office if they wish.

Senate Bill 178 would neuter the State Board of Education by transferring most of the duties of the State Board of Education to the Governor’s office. The move is counter to Article VI, Section 4 of the Ohio Constitution.

In 1953 Ohioans, with a constitutional amendment, removed the state education agency from the governor’s office by establishing an independent state board of education.

A history lesson — which some state officials would ignore — is in order.

Ohio did not have a state school officer until 1837, when the legislature enacted the office of superintendent of common schools and employed Samuel Lewis as superintendent. After three years, Lewis resigned, and the legislature repealed the law which established the position.

This guest column is available free: Support the exchange of local and state ideas by subscribing to the Columbus Dispatch.

The Ohio Constitutional Convention of 1850-1851 called for the common school system.

Delegates debated, but ultimately rejecting the idea of establishing in the constitution a state officer for education.

In 1853 however the legislature enacted legislation providing for a state commissioner of common schools to be elected on a three-year cycle. During the constitutional convention of 1912, delegates crafted language to replace the state commissioner of common schools with a superintendent of public instruction.

Ohioans approved the amendment, and the legislature attached the position to the governor’s office.

In 1953, Ohioans passed a constitutional amendment as follows:

There shall be a state board of education which shall be selected in such manner and for such terms as shall be provided by law. There shall be a superintendent of public instruction, who shall be appointed by the state board of education. The respective powers and duties of the board and of the superintendent shall be prescribed by law.(Article VI, Section 4)

Ohioans removed the superintendent of public instruction and thus the state education agency from the governor’s office.

In the 1990’s Governor Voinovich requested the legislature to allow the governor to appoint State Board of Education members as a means to gain control of the state education agency.

The legislature gave Voinovich the authorization to appoint eight members in addition to the eleven elected members. This action paved the way for a dysfunctional environment that continues to this day.

State officials should restore the state board to an all-elected body to regain the credibility and the respect the state board had from 1956 to the Voinovich era.

The people of Ohio passed the 1953 amendment to make the state board of education a fourth branch of government.

Senate Bill 178 would thwart the will of Ohioans. But that does not matter to some current state political leadership.

The redistricting fiasco is another proof that the will of the people is of no concern to some current state officials.

Senate Bill 178 should be ditched.

William L. Phillis is a former teacher, principal, superintendent, and assistant superintendent of public instruction.  He is currently the executive director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding.

BE IT RESOLVED… State Resolutions & Practice: Infusing Anti-Racism and Equity Into Ohio Schools 7pm ET, Wed, Feb 17 & Feb 24

BE IT RESOLVED… State Resolutions & Practice: Infusing Anti-Racism and Equity Into Ohio Schools

7pm ET, Wed, Feb 17 & Feb 24
Register: bit.ly/RealTalk_BeItResolved
FMI: www.RealTalkLWV.org

Join us for a 2-part series examining how to infuse Anti-Racism and Equity into Ohio’s Public Schools. Hear from the State Board of Education and the practitioners in Northeast Ohio who drive systemic and student programming.

PART 1: Wednesday, Feb 17 at 7pm

Members, past and present, of the Ohio State Board of Education will walk through the recently adopted ‘Resolution to Condemn Racism and Advance Equity and Opportunity for Black Students, Indigenous Students and Students of Color’.

Why the resolution was needed and how it will be implemented across more than 600 public school districts in Ohio.

PANEL: Ohio State Board of Education
Laura Kohler, President
Meryl Johnson, Dist. 11
​Linda Haycock, Dist. 1, Past
Stephanie Dodd, Dist. 9, Past

PART 2: Wednesday, Feb 24 at 7pm
Meet the educators and administrators who are successfully driving innovative student programming, instituting systemic policy changes, and combatting dangerous biases in education. Learn how their proven approaches have impacted student learning, addressed social-emotional health, and bridged opportunity gaps for thousands of students in Northeast Ohio.​​

Opening Speaker: Paolo DeMaria, Superintendent of Public Instruction
Ohio Department of Education

Moderated By: Rick Jackson, Senior Host and Producer, ​ideastream, WVIZ PBS, and WCPN NPR

Produced by League of Women Voters of Akron, Canton, Greater Cleveland, Hudson and Kent

 

“The 2020/2021 School Year. What issues are schools facing this fall?” Monday July 20, 2020 at 7pm via Zoom

“The 2020/2021 School Year. What issues are schools facing this fall?”
Monday July 20, 2020 at 7pm via Zoom
This upcoming school year promises to be one of the most challenging ever faced by parents, students, educators and legislators. This forum will discuss some of issues confronting K-12 education in Ohio during 2020/2021. We will also take questions from viewers for the panelists
with panelists
•Elizabeth Kirby, Superintendent, Cleveland Hts/University Hts Public Schools
•Nathan Manning, (R) Ohio State Senator,  District 13
•Michael Skindell, (D) Ohio State Representative, District 13
•Charles Smialek, Ph.D., Superintendent, Parma City School District
Moderated by Patrick O’Donnell, Schools Reporter, Cleveland and Ohio Schools for “The74”, formerly Schools reporter for the Plain Dealer
The video is here

Patrick O’Donnell
Cosponsored by CWRU Siegal Lifelong Learning and League of Women Voters of Greater Cleveland

“EdChoice/Voucher/Ohio School Funding” a forum on Feb 25, 2020 (w/write up and video)


EdChoice/Voucher/Ohio School Funding Forum

February 25, 2020 7:00p.m.
The flyer is here
The forum summary is here
The video is here

25700 Science Park Dr #100 in Landmark Centre, Beachwood, OH 44122
with panelists:
•Chad L. Aldis, Vice President, Thomas B. Fordham Instit
•Stephen Dyer, Education Policy Fellow, Innovation Ohio
•Frank W. O’Linn, Ed.D, Sec for Education and Superintendent of Schools for the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland
•Barbara Shaner, Ohio Assoc of Schools Business Officials
Moderated by Patrick O’Donnell, Plain Dealer Education Reporter

Patrick O’Donnell, The Plain Dealer

Cosponsored by The Plain Dealer, CWRU Siegal Lifelong Learning and the League of Women Voters-Greater Cleveland
Corporate Sponsor: First Interstate Properties Ltd.

Voucher/EdChoice in Ohio January 2020

State Senator Peggy Lehner tells the state school board Tuesday she hopes legislators will be cautious in making quick changes to the state’s private school tuition voucher program. (cleveland.com 1/14/2020)

Voucher/EdChoice in Ohio January 2020

1. Read what LWV Schools advocate Susie Kaeser wrote:
Diversion of Ohio school dollars to non-public schools has become a raging river. It must stop: Susie Kaeser
Op-ed on January 10, 2020 cleveland.com

2. Read more about Vouchers and EdChoice in Ohio in these articles:

Change To Exploding Voucher Program Likely Coming, But Time Is Running Out
by Karen Kasler, Statehouse News Jan 17, 2020

Do vouchers need a big “fix” or a small one? Legislature leaves two weeks to decide
by Patrick O’Donnell 

With Feb. 1 deadline looming, Ohio House seeks to change school voucher program
by Laura Hancock, cleveland.com

 

Expansion of Ohio’s EdChoice voucher program puts state’s complicated school funding formula in spotlight
by Todd Dykes WLWT Cincinnati

Lawmaker Questions Republican Willingness to Correct Massive School Voucher Expansion

by Karen Kasler WKSU

Dublin, Upper Arlington, Worthington schools ‘under-performing’? New system to expand Ohio vouchers flags even top-tier suburban public schools

by Anna Staver Columbus Dispatch

 

Heights Schools Ask For Help Fighting Voucher Program Losses
The Cleveland Heights-University Heights School District lost $4.2 million to voucher deductions in 2019, one school official said.
By Chris Mosby, Patch

Larry Householder should aim for nothing less than a truly comprehensive Ohio school-funding fix

By Editorial Board, cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer

 

Editorial: Revisit rules to make school voucher program more rational
Columbus Dispatch Editorial Board

 

Increase in private school tuition vouchers is costing districts – and soon you
By Patrick O’Donnell The Plain Dealer

3. More from Susan Kaeser
Voucher Update
Rural and urban interests are frequently at odds when Ohio’s lawmakers assert their interests. This division no longer applies to school vouchers.  

Starting with the 2020 school year, every member of the state legislature will represent at least one school district that must use local funds to pay for students to attend a private school under Ohio’s EdChoice voucher program. 

Because test scores drive eligibility and scores reflect income, the first victims of the voucher laws were high poverty districts – urban districts.  

But new laws – inserted in the new state budget without public review – made the issue ubiquitous.  In just three years EdChoice districts grew from 39 to more than 400 – two-thirds of the state’s 612 school districts. 

The legislature needs to staunch the bleeding of public school budgets by ending the requirement that local districts pay for students they don’t educate at the expense of those they do. 

Legislatures can unite on this one! They can freeze the growth of vouchers, change rules defining Edchoice schools, only grant vouchers to students leaving a public school, and starting with this school year, pay for any new vouchers they approved but didn’t fund for 2019-20. 

4. Forum video:

“How do school vouchers affect our public schools and taxpayers?” Thursday March 14, 2019. 7:00-8:30pm 

This panel will present information on how Ohio’s school voucher policies impact the Cleveland Heights-University Heights schools, as well as other schools in Cuyahoga County and beyond. 

Panelists: Susie Kaeser, LWVO Lobby Corps and Hts Coalition for Public Education 

James Posch, Cleveland Hts-Univ. Hts (CH-UH) Board of Education 

Scott Gainer, CFO/Treasurer, CH-UH City School District 

Meryl Johnson, Ohio State Board of Education, District 11 

Moderator:Jayne Geneva, past chair Lay Finance Committee for the CH-UH Board of Education 

Heights Library Main Branch 2345 Lee Road Cleveland Hts 44118 Cosponsored by Heights Coalition for Public Schools and the CHUH Council of PTAs

5. CALL TO ACTION: LWV-Ohio request
League of Women Voters of Ohio

ADVOCACY WORKS! The legislature is beginning to respond to the backlash against public funds going to private schools. Have you contacted your legislator yet? Click on link

 

High quality preschool closes the achievement gap, experts say By JULIE HULLETT

 

High quality preschool closes the achievement gap, experts say
By JULIE HULLETT
The pdf is here

SHAKER HEIGHTS — Early childhood education has a huge impact on children’s success later in school and as adults, according to local experts at the “Closing the Achievement Gap: Preschool and Early Child Education” forum on Jan. 30.

This panel discussion, hosted by Shaker Heights Public Library and Shaker Heights Chapter of the League of Women Voters at the Shaker Heights Main Library, included Executive Director of Starting Point Billie Osborne Fears and Director of the Cuyahoga County Office of Early Education/Invest in Children Rebekah Dorman.

Executive Director of the Early Childhood Enrichment Center Beth Price and Chief Academic Officer of the Shaker Heights City School District Marla Robinson were also on the panel and Sharon Broussard, former editorial writer for The Plain Dealer, served as the moderator.

“There has been research that documents, especially for kids who are coming from less advantaged backgrounds, that a high quality early care and education experience helps level the playing field for them,” Dr. Dorman said. “The research has been a game changer for us because it demonstrates that it’s an investment that is not [only] socially just, it is a smart thing to do from an economic perspective.”

Value of preschool

Preschool not only gives students a foundation for their kindergarten through 12th grade education, but it also develops necessary social and emotional skills, according to Ms. Price. She said that the Early Childhood Enrichment Center (ECEC), located on Sussex Road in Shaker Heights, focuses on children’s social and emotional needs so they can feel good about themselves, be socially adept and express themselves to other people.

Ms. Price also said that the ECEC is diverse in terms of race, ethnicity, background and socioeconomic status. At Ms. Price’s ECEC center, 90 percent of the children were ready for language and literacy, as measured by the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment, which is administered by the Ohio Department of Education.

Dr. Robinson said that there is a strong correlation between early educational experiences and a student’s success in a school setting. Expectations for students are much different now than in the past, she said.

“The best thing we can do to set them up for success in the k-12 setting is high quality preschool,” according to Dr. Robinson.

Cost barrier

Despite the importance of early childhood education, the panelists said that cost is still a barrier to many families. Ms. Broussard noted that the average cost of quality childcare is $8,600 per year. She asked the panelists to first define what makes childcare “quality” or not and explain why the cost is so high.

Ms. Fears described Step Up to Quality, a five-star quality rating and improvement system administered by the Ohio Department of Education and the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. All early childhood education programs and preschool special education programs are mandated to participate in the rating and earn a 3, 4 or 5 to maintain state funding. She said that the rating was developed to help inform parents on the quality of different programs and provide support for education programs. Ms. Fears added that the teachers are key to the success of the program.

“There are several things that we know from the research. The most important indicator really rests with the teacher,” she said. “If they are educated in early childhood development and understand how children grow and develop…children will do quite well.”

Furthermore, preschool programs are costly, she said, because the administrators are trying to offer competitive wages and benefits to recruit and retain quality teachers. However, the turnover rate is high because the teachers can earn a higher salary at a public school district.

Dr. Robinson said that the Shaker Heights City School District offers preschool scholarships based on the family’s eligibility for free or reduced price meals and offers a payment plan. Ms. Price said that ECEC accepts students on childcare subsidies whose parents have a low income but are either working or in school.

“The state pays for part of their childcare and they pay a copay. They don’t pay us as much as we would get from a private pay individual but we feel that it’s important that everybody has that access to quality early care and education,” Ms. Price said. “We really try to make it for everyone.”

She added that ECEC is also part of Cuyahoga County’s universal prekindergarten program, so the county pays for a portion of the tuition. Ms. Fears said that middle class families are often hit the hardest since they do not qualify for the same financial assistance that low income families do.

“We feel confident that we’re delivering the gold standard of quality,” Dr. Dorman said of the universal prekindergarten program, which includes 67 sites across the county.

The panel discussed a variety of other topics, including recruiting minority students to preschool programs and engaging the parents. Dr. Robinson said that Shaker Heights schools are working strategically to seek out low income and underrepresented families to join preschool programs.

Dr. Dorman also spoke on community engagement, noting that the county Office of Early Childhood/Invest in Children is building a two generation approach to support the children and the parents’ needs. For example, the parents could use resources for further education and career exploration.

The panelists reminded the audience that many services for early childcare and prekindergarten are provided by the health and human services levy, which is on the March 17 primary ballot. If passed, the 4.7-mill levy will replace the current 3.9-mill levy. It would cost the property owner an additional $41 per $100,000 of property value from 2021-2028.

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“School Funding in Ohio: The Possibilities and Challenges of Creating a Solution” Feb 10, 2020 at Heights High

School Funding in Ohio: The Possibilities and Challenges of Creating a Solution
Monday February 10, 2020 7:00p.m.
Cleveland Heights High School, 16263 Cedar Road
w/Representative John Patterson (D-Jefferson) and Bill Phillis, Executive Director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity & Adequacy of School Funding

School funding in Ohio has been deemed unconstitutional for over 20 years.
 
Rep. Patterson (D – Jefferson) and Rep. Bob Cupp (R-Lima) led a three-year process to address the shortcomings of Ohio’s school funding system. HB 305 is now making its way through the legislature.
 
In the 1997 DeRolph decision, the Ohio Supreme Court found Ohio’s funding system unconstitutional. Bill Phillis, Executive Director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity & Adequacy of School Funding, the organization that brought the lawsuit, will provide the history of Ohio’s funding lawsuit and an overview of the constitutional issues that need to be solved.
 
Rep. Patterson will address the challenges in defining a realistic estimate of the costs of education, in determining how much state aid is required and distributing it fairly, and in garnering enough public and lawmaker support for necessary changes.
State Representative Janine Boyd, will introduce the experts and participate in the question and answer portion of the meeting.
 
Event sponsors are Heights Coalition for Public Education, League of Women Voters of Greater Cleveland, Reaching Heights, CHUH PTA Council, NE Ohio Friends of Public Education, the Cleveland Heights Teachers Union, CH-UH Board of Education.
 

How do school vouchers affect our public schools and taxpayers? a forum on 3/14/19


The Heights Chapter of the League of Women Voters of
Greater Cleveland present a forum:

How do school vouchers affect our
public schools and taxpayers?

Thursday. March 14, 2019, 7 pm
Heights Libraries Lee Road Branch
2345 Lee Rd in Cleveland Heights
The flyer is here
Here is the video from the forum

This panel will present information on how Ohio’s school voucher policies impact the Cleveland Heights-University Heights schools, as well as other schools in Cuyahoga County and beyond.

Panelists include:
Susie Kaeser, LWVO Lobby Corps and Heights Coalition for Public Education

James Posch, Cleveland Heights-University Heights (CH-UH) Board of Education

Scott Gainer, CFO/Treasurer, CH-UH City School District

Meryl Johnson, Ohio State Board of Education, District 11 Moderator:

Jayne Geneva, past chair Lay Finance Committee for the CH-UH Board of Education

Cosponsored by Heights Coalition for Public Schools and the CHUH Council of PTAs

Ohio’s school report cards: What do they really tell us? a forum on August 29, 2018


The Plain Dealer preview story is here
The flyer is here
Here’s the video from the forum

Wednesday August 29, 2018 7:00-8:30pm

“Ohio’s school report cards: What do they really tell us? What should they?: 
A discussion about how we evaluate our schools”
moderated by Patrick O’Donnell, Plain Dealer Education Reporter

Panelists:
Chad Aldis, Vice President for Ohio Policy and Advocacy | Thomas B. Fordham Institute

Dr. Talisa Dixon, Superintendent Cleve Hts/Univ/ Hts Schools

Stephen Dyer, Education Policy Fellow, Innovation Ohio

Lisa Woods member Ohio Board of Education (Medina area)

Cost: Free & Open to the Public
Cleveland Heights High School Small Auditorium
13263 Cedar Rd, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118


Patrick O’Donnell

Cosponsored by
Cleveland Heights University Heights PTA Council, Case Western Reserve University Siegal Lifelong Learning Program, League of Women Voters-Greater Cleveland, Cleveland.com/Plain Dealer

Corporate sponsor: First Interstate, Ltd.

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