- In case you missed it, the Senate Finance Committee voted out their version of the budget bill—amended before approval—moving it on to the full Senate for a vote. The Dayton Daily News covered a number of the bill’s education provisions and included a quote from our own Chad Aldis, speaking positively about the school-choice-centric nature of the Senate’s version. Link (Dayton Daily News, 6/8/21) On the topic of the Senate’s version of school funding, the Blade’s headline contains an error. It says that “a fight is coming” (that is, House proposals vs. Senate proposals) but I think they meant to write “a conference committee is coming”—because that is how laws are made. (Toledo Blade, 6/7/21) It seems to me that the editorial board at Cleveland.com would prefer no such conference, as they opine rapturously about the House’s school funding plan while tossing some grudging kudos at a couple of the Senate’s proposals. (Cleveland.com, 6/9/21)
- But back to school choice for a moment. Explorers Academy of Science and Technology (EAST) is a new charter school opening its doors in the Glass City this fall. Go Rockets! (WTOL-TV, Toledo, 6/7/21) Meanwhile, charter schools in the Gem City are still using the dreaded “if” in regard to the state of bus transportation for their students in the fall. While Dayton City Schools has got lots of details about how it will be restructuring transportation to serve resident students attending its buildings (even preschoolers!), Dayton Early College Academy and other charter schools appear to still be waiting for any scrap of news as to how students will reach their buildings. (Dayton Daily News, 6/8/21)
- This is a fascinating story for a lot of reasons. Be sure to read it in detail. It is celebrating Kacie Ramshaw, a recent graduate of Meadowbrook High School in eastern Ohio, who is headed into the working world a year earlier than the K-12 system originally planned for her. After a tough freshman year that included social anxiety and bullying, and the start of a sophomore year that promised more of the same, Kacie got a reprieve when the pandemic shut down her school and learning pivoted to a fully-online model. With help from a small group of fellow students, her family, and a counselor, she found her groove in remote learning and cranked out both her junior and senior years’ coursework in one school year. There’s way more to it than that, and a lot of education issues to consider, but it seems like Kacie’s story is one of success that owes more to flexibility and choice than it does to seat time and one-size-fits all. (The Daily Jeffersonian, 6/9/21)
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