Gadfly Bites 4/8/19 – Formulaic

WE'RE BACK FROM LAST WEEK'S CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM/VACATION – I HAVE A NOTE IF YOU NEED IT

1. As you all know, a new proposal for revising Ohio’s school funding formula is up for debate around Capitol Square. The lack of information about possible changes to charter funding (and that of other schools of choice) to this point has our Chad Aldis asking some questions. (Statehouse News Bureau, 4/3/19)

2. While the leaders in charge of crafting the new funding formula make some mention here of the choice funding issue, they are more interested in discussing how much positive response “people” are giving to the proposal. (Gongwer, 4/5/19) There is some evidence which runs contrary to that sunny assessment, of course. Some of it centers around how much additional money wealthy school districts would stand to gain from the new plan. (Columbus Dispatch, 4/8/19) The editorial board of the Plain Dealer calls the plan a “great start”, but opines upon some issues its members perceive. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 4/8/19) And the editorial board of the Toledo Blade opines in flat out dislike here. (Toledo Blade, 4/5/19)

3. Editors in tiny Marietta opine in favor of the new funding formula proposal. (Marietta Times, 4/8/19) This piece is listed as news, of course, but it’s really just the opinions of the treasurers in Butler County’s school districts. Their opinions on the plan are mixed, just like their putative bottom lines. (The Journal News, 4/4/19)

4. Given all of these mixed opinions across the board, how can we know what’s right regarding school funding? Editors in Columbus lead with that very question in this editorial from yesterday. In it, they seem to suggest that if the unholy triumvirate of Phillis/Dyer/Fleeter are cool with the new plan, the rest of us might not have standing to question it. (Columbus Dispatch, 4/7/19) Which is fine, I guess, except that late last week those same editors seemed cool with letting the state teacher’s union decide for us. (Columbus Dispatch, 4/3/19)

5. In other news, the state supe testified late last week regarding his proposed changes to the state’s Academic Distress paradigm. What did he have to say? Something warm and reassuring, I imagine. (Gongwer Ohio, 4/4/19) Far less reassuring—to me anyway—was the knowledge that some new tentacles have sprouted from the existing multipod of district coalitions in Ohio. These include the First Ring Collaborative and the Ohio Mid-Sized Urban Leadership Collaborative. I had never heard of them before today, and of course they have something to say about Ohio’s Academic Distress paradigm, so I’m figuring they were established for that very purpose. Although I’m sure they’ll find new stuff to justify their existence talk about soon. (Gongwer Ohio, 4/5/19)

6. Finally today, the Dispatch has a story about money that is owed back to the state by online charter schools. The total is large, ballooned of course by ECOT, which is closed and seems unlikely to return any money. It is noted with sadness that the same may be said for all of the schools which are closed. However, unlike ECOT, a large number of those closed online schools were sponsored by districts. Surely we do have a mechanism to get THAT money back. Don’t we? Anyone? Hello…? (Columbus Dispatch, 4/7/19) 

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