Gadfly Bites 8/5/22—Deferred maintenance

1. A friendly reminder from your humble clips complier that there is still time for parents to look for a charter or private school alternative here in Columbus before the start of the new school year. (Columbus Dispatch, 8/4/22) Yep. Plenty of time. But no one would blame you if you decided to start today. (10TV News, Columbus, 8/4/22)
   
   

2. On Wednesday, several readers took issue with my assertion that reporters approach the opening of a new charter school differently—specifically, with concerns and questions rather than pride and joy (and, you know, actual interest)—than they do a new district school. It is in fact the most feedback I’ve gotten on any clip since a school district media flack took offense at something I said and made me change it. In light of their concern, let’s take a look at some more up-to-the-minute comparisons, shall we? “ProMedica High School” in Toledo sure sounds great, doesn’t it?! And it’s even a school of choice. (WTOL-TV, Toledo, 8/3/22) Additionally, here are five brand new district schools and several other renovations/additions in central Ohio—all totally awesome. Seriously, no one even bats an eye at the phrase “amusement park themed school”? (Columbus Dispatch, 8/4/22) Pretty sure I’m going to stand pat on my assessment at this point for now, but I promise you all that I will keep my eyes peeled. Thanks as always for reading!
   
   

3. Here’s a twisty one for you, from one of my favorite sources: The elected board of Lorain City Schools held an emergency meeting this week and approved spending $2.5 million in Covid-relief funding to buy 26 new school buses and 4 new vans to (possibly) transport students. Why? They felt they needed a “backup plan”—just in case their new third party transportation vendor is not able to start transporting students beginning August 15. At issue, apparently, is whether the new vendor can have all of its own vehicles (long purchased and currently sitting on district lots) inspected and made roadworthy in Ohio by the start of school. The Buckeye State is indeed notoriously persnickety when it comes to school bus regulations, but even CEO Superintendent Jeff Graham’s detailed explanation of the cause and the effect here left me scratching my head. (The Chronicle-Telegram, 8/3/22) I was especially alarmed by this situation because the August 15 date refers to district-resident charter school students rather than district-attending students (who don’t start until the 17th). I was afraid that those charter school students, and school choice generally, would be blamed for either the problem or the very expensive “backup plan”. Silly me. I was forgetting who I was dealing with. According to the editorial board of the Chronicle-Telegram, everything currently happening can be traced back to HB 70 and the district’s efforts to escape state oversight via Academic Distress Commission. How did I not guess that? (The Chronicle-Telegram, 8/4/22)
   
   

4. Returning from the Twilight Zone to end the week on a high note, here’s another really positive update on the HOPE Scholarship program in Toledo. While the specific story is great—a young man who has completed two years in college thanks to the tuition money provided by HOPE—what’s even better is that the HOPE organization now regularly rallies around its young people. And those rallies provide vital support to bolster these first-in-their-family college students to keep moving forward, knowing someone has their back, even when the going gets tough. I love it. (Toledo Blade, 8/4/22)

Did you know you can have every edition of Gadfly Bites sent directly to your Inbox? Subscribe by clicking here.