Last edition of 2023. Thanks for reading and subscribing, despite your better judgment. Back on Wednesday, January 3, 2024. I can stand more if you can!
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- I found at least one interesting nugget in the new cost study of Ohio’s College Credit Plus program, released by the auditor’s office earlier this week. To wit: The most-used method of CCP instruction was through specially-credentialed district employees teaching college classes at students’ high schools (40.3 percent of courses). Second was online instruction (36.2 percent), with students traveling to college campuses classes (15.4 percent) and college employees teaching courses at students’ high schools (8 percent) bringing up the rear. And while those facts might not appear to pertain to program costs, the report makes a pretty compelling connection between them. District-based employees, it seems, are the most-used teachers because that method i$ the one that i$ mo$t benefi¢ial to ¢ollege$. If you see what I mean. The full report is here for your holiday perusal. (Gongwer Ohio, 12/20/23)
- Kudos, I think, to Akron City Schools officials for trying generally to stay the course in regard to right-sizing their district. This currently still includes closure of at least one school building due to steadily falling enrollment over the years—and probably more than one. It all sounds very complicated with the reassignments and the realignment of “clusters” of schools that automatically default from elementary to middle to high school. Parents are right to be confused and concerned as I see it, and indeed to still be in “wait and see” mode since the plans continue to change. Sad. Toward the bottom of the story, however, we discover that none of this is even necessary and that the easiest way to resolve the parents’ questions already exists: “All families in Akron Public Schools have the option to request their children attend any school in the district,” we are told. Well that should end the confusion entirely, shouldn’t it? Intradistrict open enrollment via parental choice. But then we read that “the district has the option to deny requests” and to deny transportation in any case where a request is granted. So then we’re back to clusters and feeders and redistricting and confusion and inefficiency—and we’re back to sad as well. Given all this messiness, I can imagine a time where Akron’s situation resolves itself no matter what actions the district ultimately take; because without centering what parents need and want, their enrollment will continue to decline. And then they’ll have a whole different “cluster” they’ll need to solve. (Akron Beacon Journal, 12/15/23)
- Spare a thought for our beset and beleaguered elected school board members this Christmas, won’t you? This wide-ranging piece—how to spend huge amounts of levy dollars, reviewing and approving construction contracts, facing down opposition from parents to closing the virtual school, taking heat from the teachers union for daring to suggest you have too many buildings for your shrinking enrollment, getting flak from community leaders over out-of-state hiring—ends with a weary-sounding lament from the outgoing president of the elected Columbus City Schools board: “The work of the school board is not easy.” Indeed, Madam President. Indeed. (Columbus Dispatch, 12/20/23) Same vibe in Lorain City Schools, where they—like their peers in Columbus—face big decisions on how to spend millions of dollars to fix up almost all of their reportedly-crumbling buildings. “You realize you don’t do anything to your house for 20 years and see what kind of shape it’s in,” said Lorain’s Executive Director of Operations in answer to the question of why all this work ($35 million of it over the next five years) needs to be done now. At least Columbus is in a better position than Lorain to move forward, even as they express equal weariness and mutual possible despair: Columbus at least has the money. Lorain faces an operating deficit coming up even without loosening the first bolt on the old boiler. (The Chronicle-Telegram, 12/22/23)
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