Gadfly Bites 8/4/21—Finding your “E”

1. I know we’re not supposed to talk about “Covid slide” among kids because there is no such thing. But perhaps someone needs to say it a little louder for the parents of the 60 kids mentioned in this piece and the tutoring service they are utilizing this summer in order to “get… them back on track”. Just sayin’. (10TV News, Columbus, 8/3/21) While the aforementioned families are paying for private tutoring this summer, remember that school districts across the state have received hundreds of millions of dollars to, theoretically, do the same work. Miami Trace Local Schools’ summer program—mentioned briefly here—doesn’t sound too far off from the private tutoring described above. However, their expensive plans for the future definitely take a swerve. To wit: A (likely expensive) new purchased service called Naviance which will “help us assist students in finding their ‘E’.” That is, focusing on a goal of either education (meaning higher education), enlistment, employment, or entrepreneurship. They are also spending big on a “digital wellness” initiative to help students “acquire the technology tools to gain a positive experience on their educational journey.” Looks like MT found their “E”, and it’s the same as every other school district: “expenditure”. (Record Herald, 8/3/21)
    
2. The elected board of Youngstown City Schools is here said to have found its “E”. It is “eyeing” an opportunity to emerge from the control of an Academic Distress Commission. (WFMJ-TV, Youngstown, 8/3/21) Unfortunately, only five community members showed up at the first public forum to gather information on a plan that could lead to that opportunity. The one attendee interviewed here is also an employee of the district, so perhaps the number of true “community” members was even lower. Luckily, though, this district employee has also found his “E”: “Elders”, he says, could be the key to getting kids engaged in school. Hope that makes it into the new turnaround plan. (Vindy.com, 8/4/21)
   
   

3. The elected board of Columbus City Schools has also found its “E”, it seems. The board voted unanimously to desist on a plan to use public transit as the primary means for high schoolers to get to school this year. Instead, they will use “electronics”—an expensive but effective computer program (used to positive effect in Boston)—to help streamline routes. Oh, and they’re changing their longstanding practice of completely separate buses and routes for district and charter/private/STEM students. Yeah. Probably should have led with that one. (Columbus Dispatch, 8/3/21)
    
4. The folks taking state school district funding to sue the very same state over vouchers held a press conference this week. (Cleveland.com, 8/4/21) It seems that the point was to allay any concerns reporters the general public might have that passage of the Fair(ly deceiving) School Funding Plan actually addressed any of their concerns and to reassure anyone who might be worrying that they would be filing their suit very soon. (Columbus Dispatch, 8/2/21) In fact, the more “experts” quoted in the piece, the further the discussion seems to stray into a dislike of school choice generally. (Ohio Capital Journal, 8/3/21) To wit: “It has evolved to the point that it is not an exaggeration to say that in their war on public school districts, this budget amasses the tanks and the troops on the border, staging for the all-out assault to come next time.” Yowza. (Toledo Blade, 7/3/21) Not to be forgotten, I believe I have found my “E” among the preceding dross: “enervation”.

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