- A Catholic school in North Canton whipped from fully in-person learning to a fully-remote model last week (cancelling a day of school and weeks’ worth of planned sports and extracurriculars) after 3 coronavirus cases were reported. (Canton Repository, 11/6/20) Meanwhile, seven staffers in the transportation department of Groveport Madison Local Schools tested positive for the virus last week, leading the district to suspend all busing for two weeks, starting today. School continues in hybrid mode in Groveport, meaning that local families will need to figure out their own transportation, but remember that lots of private and charter school kids probably make use of those buses too. Well… I mean they used to. (Columbus Dispatch, 11/6/20)
- Meanwhile, a small nonprofit in northeast Ohio has bought and outfitted a former schoolbus as a mobile virtual learning center. A small group of kids can work on computer stations inside—safely distanced—while up to 200 students can access the bus’s WiFi outside (probably less-safely distanced, but let’s not pick at that scab right now.) Interestingly, to get the bus rolling to your place, you (parents, I assume) must book it—at no cost thanks to a grant and other donations to the organization—via Facebook. (News5, Cleveland, 11/6/20)
- Here’s a nice story about this year’s “Academic Challenge” tournament, apparently a long-held tradition of smarty-pants contests in Richland County. This year’s tourney is a virtual one, as you might have figured, with the adults for some reason in awe of kids’ ability to adapt. “I was cautiously optimistic about this new format going into the tournaments,” said one spokesperson, who I assume can only be 800 years old, “and following these events I am excited and relieved that my optimism was well-placed and that the tournaments went so well and nearly seamlessly.” Oh. Maybe he was talking about the adults there. (Richland Source, 11/6/20)
- There was a press conference held last week by legislators working on revamping school funding in Ohio. They gave a few details—all pretty interesting, as you might imagine—and said that their hope is to get it passed during the lame duck legislative session. Who knows when they hope to fund it—to the tune of an additional $1.9 billion per year. But as noted in this piece, a lot of the folks doing the passing of the bill will not be around in the General Assembly in the future for the passing of the hat. So I’m sure it will all work out. (Cleveland.com, 11/6/20)
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