Gadfly Bites 4/22/26—Consider all wagons circled

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1. Here’s a nicely-detailed look at the substance of that You Don’t Hate Vouchers Enough seminar, held in Akron last night. Based on this coverage, however, it seems that the voucher portion of the evening didn’t take up much time and the discussion moved on rather quickly to anything and everything else these folks hate, including the school funding formula, state transportation requirements, tax policy, and unused school facilities laws. (Signal Akron, 4/21/26) Lest you think the foregoing kitchen sink anti-school-choice pile on is unique to the educational establishment in northeast Ohio, I give you this surprise entry in the Let Us Tell You How Much EdChoice (And Everything Else That’s Not A Traditional School District) Sucks Season festival of favoritism. In it, a group of reporters concur with each other about how awful every person they interviewed has told them vouchers are. In case you decide to listen, the gang begins spewing a bunch of inaccurate information along with their other “findings” at around the 15-minute mark. (All Sides, WOSU-FM, 4/21/26)
   
   

2. And just in case you need it spelled out any further, here’s a look at an event held in Columbus yesterday in which elected city and district leaders announced a new committee of cooperation between them. The collab will include everything from school-district-owned land use decisions to city/district partnerships, to millions of dollars in wraparound services for “our kids”. As the elected president of the City Council said, “This committee is how the city council and the school board can come together regularly, align priorities and make smarter, more coordinated decisions on behalf of our students and our families.” Doesn’t sound so bad so far, right? Minus the somewhat harsh exclusion of any family who has the audacity not to choose Columbus City Schools. However, Hizzoner goes on to say it’s not just about these airy ideals, “But also our facilities, the neighborhoods around our schools, our land, our economic development policies, our funding priorities and our programs.” Ooh! My “unused facilities loophole” radar is now pinging wildly. And why is this coming along at this particular moment, given Columbus City Schools’ long history of budgetary and academic struggles, as well as its long-running enrollment declines? “It’s important now more than ever,” says our elected council prez, “because we live in an environment where the state government is going on offense against public schools.” Call me a cynic, but when I hear “we need to link arms” in this context, I think “we need to circle the wagons”. And it sounds to me like they’re already in line. (WOSU-FM, Columbus, 4/21/26)

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