- The outgoing school board and the interim supe made some fairly permanent decisions this week regarding the school closure process in Dayton. Come the new year, several public meetings will be held to discuss the situation and solicit feedback on the district’s multiple wildly underutilized school buildings as well as its (apparently) crumbling-at-the-seams HQ building too. (Dayton Daily News, 12/20/17) The outgoing school board and the interim supe also made a fairly permanent decision regarding approval of a new contract with the district’s paraprofessionals union. That still leaves four of Dayton’s eleven bargaining units (how many?!) working on expired contracts, including bus drivers and mechanics. (Dayton Daily News, 12/20/17) I’m sure the district’s drivers and mechanics will work it all out with the school board. I’m sure it won’t be complicated at all by the fact that the city’s public transit drivers have called a strike starting on January 1 due to unresolved contract issues of their own. Guess who loses if it turns sour in one or both of those negotiations? That’s right: folks who already have trouble getting to school and work on the bus every day already! (Dayton Daily News, 12/21/17)
- Speaking of busing, here’s an update on a story we first discussed way back in the spring. Oberlin City Schools deemed that transporting a group of kids to a private school was “impractical” and offered those families payment in lieu of transportation. That is all legal, of course, but the families did not accept the offer and that tossed the whole thing into mediation with the Ohio Department of Education. Fast-forward to November and the mediatorr sided with the parents, but the district is still allowed to either accept or reject the mediator’s decision. The legal fight has cost the district over $23,000 so far with the promise of more if they decide to reject the decision, plus they have had to bus the students all this year while mediation was ongoing. The bus route they were trying to cut would reportedly save the district $33,000. Well, maybe next year it will. (Elyria Chronicle, 12/20/17)
- Here’s another story we first discussed in the spring: Two Catholic girls’ schools in Cincinnati will merge next year, closing Mother of Mercy School for good after more than 100 years. This interesting piece discusses the final year at Mercy from the perspective of two families: one who chose to forgo the last year at Mercy and leave early for a third school where their daughter will likely finish her high school career; and one who chose to stick it out at Mercy and to attend the merged school next year. Interesting…and very Catholic-y. (Cincinnati Enquirer, 12/20/17) Given all of the above, perhaps this article from Cincinnati Parent Magazine is a little too timely. It is a somewhat breezy piece discussing when parents should start to think about changing schools as well as all of the decisions that surround such a change. At least our friends from GreatSchools and School Choice Ohio are quoted sensibly within. (Cincinnati Parent Magazine, 12/19/17)
- Speaking of leaving your school, another chief has announced his impending departure from Youngstown City Schools. (Youngstown Vindicator, 12/21/17) Speaking of schools operating under the aegis of an Academic Distress Commission, Lorain Schools CEO David Hardy held a meeting of his Community Business Schools Partnership this week. Seems that Hardy was trying to refocus the offers of community assistance he says he receives regularly so that instead of businesses offering him their help their way, he wants to define the help he needs and then solicit assistance for those specific needs. Interesting. Oddly enough, neither approach seems to have any intention of helping kids actually learn, if this article is the extent of what folks care about. If I were asked, I might humbly suggest that instead of focusing on “the big E’s” or “the big C’s” as the district’s director for alternative programs proposes, they should probably focus on “the big A’s”. As in, actually teaching kids so that they get A’s on everything. But no one asked me, of course. (Northern Ohio Morning Journal, 12/20/17) Meanwhile, Lorain school board prez Tony Dimacchia seems to have announced his intention to run for mayor of Lorain in the only way he knows how—haphazardly. Best of luck, Your Honor. (Elyria Chronicle, 12/21/17)
- We talked about this story earlier in the week, and now here is the CLE take on a new bill proposing changes to Ohio’s teacher evaluation system. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 12/20/17)
- Finally today—and for the year—this story has been getting a lot of attention in national news and on social media for the last 24 hours so apologies if my jokes fall a little flat after all of that. Seems that a family in Beavercreek believe that their son can perhaps be a bit “taxing” on his teachers some days. To “make up” for this, they have gifted his teachers at their Catholic school with bottles of wine featuring their son’s photograph on the label along with the words “Our son might be the reason you drink”. Ohhhh…. THAT’s why I don’t have any good jokes about this. It’s more appalling than funny. Merry freakin’ Christmas, kid. (WHIO-TV, Dayton, 12/20/17)
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