It feels like we’ve been talking about charter sponsor evaluations and the Youngstown Plan for so long that there hasn’t been room to report on much else. Today, we leave both of those elephants back in their rooms and look at what else is happening in education news…at least in the northern part of Ohio:
- What’s a school district to do when it surveys the community and gets double the number of expected responses? Ask for even more. That is the situation in Orange City Schools in Pepper Pike, Ohio. While they were pleased with the large response, they felt that a broader segment of the community was not represented, specifically families of color, senior citizens, and private school families who many never have even stepped foot into an Orange district school. And they are going all out to engage those folks because “a healthy school system contributes to a healthy community”. For everyone. Nice. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 7/21/15)
- Here’s another interesting story about school districts with shrinking enrollment numbers. It seems to be a broad trend in Ohio, but it is interesting to note the varied reactions of different districts: aggressive downsizing to match declines, nervous penny-pinching while hoping for a rebound, finger-pointing, shiny new buildings, etc. A good read. (Northern Ohio Morning Journal, 7/22/15)
- Unionization efforts at two Cleveland charter schools in the I Can network came to a halt during the 2013-14 school year. Part of the reason was that the union felt some teachers in the schools were retaliated against for organizing activities and took the case to the National Labor Relations Board. The NLRB this week ruled in the teachers’ favor, ordering four rehired and seven given back pay. A unionization vote is planned for this fall at both schools. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 7/21/15)
- You’ve heard of “Black Friday” shopping? Well, Ohioans are preparing for a “Green Weekend” of shopping, as in chalkboard green. Thanks to a bill passed in 2014, Ohio will have its first ever tax-holiday weekend on school supplies August 7-9…with some fine print that folks might want to read before lining up for doorbusters. (Cleveland Plain Dealer, 7/22/15)
