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- Fordham’s Chad Aldis is one of the commentators in this piece, pondering the question “what will federal education policy look like in the new Trump administration?”. Among his prognostications, Chad says, “There will probably be less federal involvement in local school districts. So that means local decisions and state decisions related to education policy become all the more important and relevant.” Sounds right to me. (WOSU-FM, Columbus, 1/6/25)
- Meanwhile, former state superintendent Susan Zelman proposes an interesting New Year’s resolution for the Ohio General Assembly to consider. If, as it seems, our state is committed to school choice, “policymakers ought to hold the notion of systemic improvement for all schools as their primary goal. The existing commitment to funding choices beyond local districts needs to be accompanied by solid research into meaningful access to educational options.” Would be an interesting way to move forward indeed. (Cleveland.com, 1/1/25)
- Also being urged to think practically about school choice—the parents of northeast Ohio. There is definitely an undercurrent of skepticism in this piece, particularly regarding private school vouchers and their potential impact on traditional districts. But the interview subjects, including Ohio Department of Education and Workforce reps and private school leaders, largely give the same prosaic advice to parents: School choice is here to stay; it doesn’t hurt to explore your options; and you can always say no to a private school even after a visit. Although you might also be moved to say yes. (Northeast Ohio Parent, 1/3/25)
- A little less prosaic for me (YMMV) is this look at what is being done to help lower chronic student absenteeism in schools across the state. The work, it seems, is being undertaken mainly by nonprofits (one of whom says “For me, I think it’s just that we see it now… Everything was always here, we just weren’t paying attention.”) and state legislators (especially ones of the minority party) who can’t get bills passed. Not much here in the way of either understanding the problems (if it “was always here”, why don’t y’all have a better handle on it by now?) or practical solutions other than “more money” in large slushy piles. (Ohio Capital Journal, 1/2/25)
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