- Patrick O’Donnell took a look at the latest CREDO study of charter management organizations, showing that several CMOs with schools in Northeast Ohio are performing very well indeed. John Zitzner of Breakthrough Schools calls their results “mind-boggling”. You know what’s more mind-boggling to me? The fact that this piece has been posted on the PD website for nearly 48 hours and has attracted not one comment. Not one. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 6/21/17)
- Speaking of charter schools, here’s a story about the rent agreement between the City of Mansfield and a charter school which rents space from them. It’s a long one – over 1000 words – and the upshot is that the school has not paid rent for a year or so. But the round robin of misunderstandings, missing voice mails, typos in contracts, and the like reads like a comedy of errors on both sides. Interestingly, there are no online comments on that article either. (Mansfield News Journal, 6/21/17)
- As you may have heard, Dayton City Schools’ infamous busing woes lasted almost the entire year in 2016-17. But things are going to change in 2017-18! By which I mean the bell schedules at nearly every building in the district. Some school days will begin as early as 7:10 am while others won’t start until 9:25 am. This piece currently has 117 comments on counting. (Dayton Daily News, 6/21/17)
- We start a brief sojourn in Youngstown with a short piece on a cool-sounding summer “manufacturing camp” for kids in grades 4 through 6, conducted under the auspices of a local science museum. The first session, profiled here, includes writing, performing, recording, and producing music. Two further sessions, boat building and construction work, will follow. (Youngstown Vindicator, 6/21/17) Back in the Youngstown school district, Krish Mohip says he’s looking forward to Year 2 as CEO. Almost everyone interviewed seems pleased with the progress they saw during Year 1 of CEO leadership and are positive that more progress is to come. Anyone in Lorain listening? (Youngstown Vindicator, 6/22/17) And don’t forget, school choice is alive and well in Youngstown too. Just in case. Here is a little reminder from your good friends and the Vindy that the standalone STEM/mastery school Valley STEM + ME2 Academy (that name!) still has some spots available for rising 9th and 10th graders for next year. (Youngstown Vindicator, 6/23/17)
- Speaking of districts under the aegis of a CEO-style Academic Distress Commission, the Morning Journal would like you to know that there is an online citizen survey available for residents to weigh on the Lorain CEO search process. Here’s hoping the buttons you need to click are not shaped like Moe Syzslak’s face. “Pick me! I’m right here AND I’m awesome! Just ask my publicist!” (Northern Ohio Morning Journal, 6/22/17)
- Finally today, I’m highlighting this story about the new and greatly improved Delaware Hayes High School building – whose construction is close to completion – not because of what will be in this new Colossus, but because of what apparently will not. (Sorry, Lorain!) There is no mention of hundreds of security cameras, or swipe card access requirements for every door, or metal detectors, or even “knuckleheads” who know how to bypass those putative metal detective. Anyone got a guess as to why those things are missing from this story and yet were prominent in the new Lorain High School building? Moe? (ThisWeek News/Delaware News, 6/23/17)
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