Gadfly Bites 5/15/20 – As the Heights goes, so goes Ohio…or something like that.

1. We’ll start today’s clips with old legal news. Despite this week’s Ohio Supreme Court ruling upholding the state’s Academic Distress Commission law, we still have to wait for the most immediate downstream consequence, which is the dissolution of the elected board of Youngstown City Schools and the mayoral appointment of a new board. Why? Because there’s still a legal injunction pending which currently stops Mayor Jamael “Tito” Brown from doing that. So what do you reckon? Six more months? Ten? (Elyria Chronicle, 5/13/20)
    
2. Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction Paolo DeMaria this week floated what is here called a draft plan for safely reopening schools next year. But it is more a list of questions without answers and options that could be used in whole or in part for traversing an unknown future. (Cleveland.com, 5/14/20) It seems to be Superintendent DeMaria’s preference that local school boards and school and district leaders will make the final decisions as to what shape next school year will take in each community, school, and district. (Dayton Daily News, 5/14/20)
    
3. While a little birdie tells me that “distance learning” is ending a couple weeks shy of the official end of the school year in one school district in northeast Ohio (which shall remain nameless), it’s still not too late for parents teachers teacherparents to weigh in and let us all know what a disaster how distance learning has been for them. (Cleveland.com, 5/14/20)
    
4. Ohio Connections Academy student Amber Bennett is not just completing her freshman year in high school, she’s also celebrating completion of her associate degree (with honors) from Cuyahoga Community College! Here are two pieces of coverage of Amber’s achievement. One from a local TV station… (WKYC-TV, Cleveland, 5/14/20) …and another version in a press release from Tri-C. While the press release seemed to have formed the basis of the TV station’s report, there is one vital piece of the story present there which is missing from the TV report. Can you spot it? (Cuyahoga Community College, 5/14/20)
    
5. We’ll end today—and the week—with new legal news. First up, more mess regarding the state’s school district property transfer law. This time, from Northwest Ohio. (Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune, 5/14/20) Far more important—probably—is the impending filing of a brand-new lawsuit against the state’s voucher program. I’d spend time explaining the plaintiffs’ strategy here, but I think you can read it just as easily in the Cleveland.com piece from earlier in the week where Cleveland Heights-University Heights was whining about money. Man! Can’t believe it’s time to reboot the Voucher Grouchers franchise already. (Columbus Dispatch, 5/14/20) Perhaps these putatively keen legal minds could help Dr. Phillis with his work? Not that he needs help, mind you. He looks very energetic in that picture. Raring to go! (Columbus Dispatch, 5/14/20) Plus, Dr. Phillis already has plenty of help. This op-ed is probably just the start. Wonder if all of them are already written yet? (Cleveland.com, 5/15/20)

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