- A little quiet in terms of education news today. The Ohio House named the new Education Committee Chair earlier this week. He is Rep. Bill Hayes of Pataskala. While he discusses possible charter school reform efforts in this interview with journalist Ben Lanka, the main topic is Common Core. The new Ed Chair says he knows for certain that repeal efforts will begin again in the legislature and that he, for one, looks forward to the debate. In terms of where he himself stands, he offers that he is “a supporter of local control for school districts.” This is good news, obviously, as the hours of testimony from district teachers and superintendents and elected board members the House heard in 2013 and 2014 was clear in its overwhelming support for Common Core. (Mansfield News Journal)
- Cafeteria Boot Camp is back for a second year in the Southwest Ohio/Indiana/Kentucky area. A number of schools – public and private – are sending food service staff members to a Cook for America-sponsored cooking lessons and engaging in a year-long consultancy to improve the quality of school food. (Cincinnati Enquirer)
- Lorain City Schools has a new board president. He is, as you might expect, quite a cheerleader for his district. He is fairly candid about the long term financial woes (he himself was cut from the teaching staff during a reduction in force) that landed them under state fiscal oversight. He is also fairly candid about the long term performance woes that landed them under state academic oversight. Both oversight conditions persist. But he sees many positives on which the district can build – most specifically sports. He himself left the district for private school due, he says, to the cutting of district sports programs in the early 2000s. Lucky fellow. But I am left wondering what he thinks of school choice today? Open enrollment? Vouchers? (Northern Ohio Morning Journal)
