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- Some wildly-contrasting commentary on Ohio’s efforts to amend its ESSA waiver here. There are a number of changes state leaders have requested, but intervention in persistently low-performing schools is the primary concern in this coverage. Specifically, Akron City Schools is feeling salty because their schools still on comprehensive support and improvement status will face more serious accountability should the changes be accepted. Rather than, as Superintendent Mary Outley puts it, getting a blank check as they have been. “In hindsight, we would have not accepted the $200,000-plus,” Outley said, referring to one school being continued in improvement status. “We know moving forward, we would not. We are hopeful that when people tell us there are no consequences, there would not be any. But we see now how things change very quickly.” By contrast, Lacey Snoke from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce says the amendments requested are “designed to align with the state’s priorities, including raising literacy achievement”. Fordham’s Aaron Churchill is even more blunt: “When local control has failed, the state has an obligation – on behalf of students – to take more aggressive steps to turn around a low-performing school.” Guess it’s just a matter of per$pe¢tive. No word yet on whether those amendments will be accepted nor how quickly they might be implemented after they are. (Akron Beacon Journal, 10/7/26)
- Speaking of federal education programs impacting local decisions, here’s a northeast Ohio-focused look at the Education Freedom Tax Credit, which will go into effect in dozens of states (including Ohio) starting January 1st. Commentary ranges from a Cleveland Metropolitan School Board member, the deputy director of Honesty for Ohio Education, and national school finance guru Marguerite Roza. Good stuff. (Signal Cleveland, 10/7/26)
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