- In case you didn’t hear about it, there was a big ol’ rally in favor of school choice—especially vouchers—at the Statehouse on Wednesday. While I had a fantastic time down there helping out and soaking in the amazing positive energy of all the students, teachers, legislators, parents, and advocates (shout out to School Choice Ohio’s incredible crew and all the partner organization staffers who made the whole thing happen), you dear reader can be forgiven for your lack of awareness. Mainly because there appeared to be no proper media coverage until this piece dropped yesterday. (Statehouse News Bureau, 5/18/23) The media silence is despite the fact that the giant event happened right on the doorstep of the state government; was super loud, energetic, newsworthy, and adorable; and that there were actual reporters there on site. I saw them! Here is the footage and reportage produced by the good folks at NBC4 Columbus, which I found on YouTube and has not, to my knowledge, actually aired on TV at all. Probably just as well since despite the obvious signs and comments from schools, advocates, and even the Lieutenant Governor of Ohio showing exactly the positivity of what the event was about, the focus of the minimal coverage is all wrong anyway. (NBC 4 YouTube Channel, 5/16/23)
- While this piece is talking about a school in Kentucky and I am no closer to understanding what it is after reading the article, I am including it here for three reasons: First, it is covered in the Cincinnati Enquirer. Second, it reminds me of my beloved independent STEM schools here in Ohio in terms of innovation, student population, and awesomeness. (Make no mistake, every student chooses to be here.) Third, Ignite Institute in Boone County, Kentucky, sounds freakin’ awesome! “Over 70 high school graduates earned their associate’s degrees from the Ignite Institute in Erlanger on Monday…in the areas of allied health, biomedical science, computer science, design, education, and engineering.” These are high school students—including some youngsters with two years of “high school” left—and they are already college degree holders. It’s definitely not a private school (no tuition), and I don’t think it’s a district program (no specific district affiliation is even hinted at). So it’s either some kind of career center on sci-tech steroids or a rocket-powered version of Metro Early College High School here in Ohio. Whatever it is, I love the sound of it, find its students to be inspirational, and would wish for about 100 more of these in any state that will have them. (Cincinnati Enquirer, 5/19/23) Compare and contrast: Here’s a look at a manufacturing-focused summer camp offered in counties across Ohio coordinated by the Ohio Manufacturers Association and U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown. (Cleveland.com, 5/18/23)
- We’ll end the week on the sports page with a reminder that, once in a great while, there can be an “I” in “team.” Apparently. (NBC4 News, Columbus, 5/17/23)
Did you know you can have every edition of Gadfly Bites sent directly to your Inbox? Subscribe by clicking here.
Policy Priority:
Topics:
