- This feels like good news to me: It was announced last week that Ohio will join the group of states participating in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Direct Certification with Medicaid Demonstration Project. Ohio’s involvement—which starts in the 2023-2024 school year—allows households that receive Medicaid to automatically qualify for free- or reduced-price meals for their children at school. Fordham has been calling for just this change for many years, arguing that it will streamline the process for families and schools as well as helping to direct vital financial support to the families who need it most. But it has happened rather quietly in the Buckeye State (ODE press release from last Thursday is here) if I do say so myself. This tiny bit of TV news coverage is all that I have seen so far. (13ABC News, Toledo, 2/16/23)
- Speaking of next school year, officials at the Miami Valley Career Technical Center say they will add at least 10 new programs at their area campuses in response to a surge in demand from local high school students. They had to turn away more than 250 kids this year and have already received a record-high number of applications for the 2023-2024 school year. Wowza! (Dayton Daily News, 2/20/23). Given the previous piece, perhaps the annual Dayton Tech Fest event—aimed to show local students all the great tech jobs out there—is less essential than it has been over the last 20 years. However, I am tickled by the thought that the Dayton Regional STEM School students who attended the geeky gathering were probably walking around whispering to the other kids, “Come to our school and you can work with this cool tech every day.” Head canon! (Dayton Daily News, 2/18/23)
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