Gadfly Bites 9/24/25—Every excuse

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1. Lots of third-party folks and outsiders seem worried about the exceedingly-high chronic student absenteeism rate reported in Ohio last year, per the latest report cards. It notched down a little from the prior year, but still remains above 25 percent of students. There is discussion of the reasons for it (still) and the work they are doing to help (nothing new)—“If school is a place where you really want to show up, where you really want to engage, even when things are tough in the neighborhood, you’ll likely find a way to show up more.”—but nothing that inspires much confidence. Especially since any hope of a solution seems to be placed firmly at the feet of parents and families. (Columbus Dispatch, 9/24/25)
   
   

2. Also feeling pessimistic are the editors of The Blade, who opine on Toledo Public Schools’ dismal 2 star overall rating this year. They are speaking of test scores rather than absenteeism. But, because lots of families have opted for higher-performing charter and private school options—and because Toledo’s intradistrict choice schools perform better than the district as a whole—they also determine to point their fingers at parents, grandparents, and other caregivers to fix the problem rather than district leaders. (Toledo Blade, 9/21/25)
   
   

3. In light of the two previous clips, this excellent op-ed in support of school choice is quite timely. It lays bare the false arguments against charter and private school choice and lays out the benefits, especially for lower-income families across Ohio looking for the best educational option. Awesome. (Columbus Dispatch, 9/23/25)
   
   

4. To end the day, let’s talk about a couple of awesome-sounding school options. The first one is pretty straightforward: A traditional Catholic high school in northeast Ohio (that of course accepts students using EdChoice Scholarships) that has received a scanning electron microscope (!!) via anonymous donation to help boost their already impressive-sounding science and technology offerings. (The Chronicle Telegram, 9/23/25) The second is a bit odd. Toledo Technology Academy of Engineering is a district-run school—part of the technology and career academy network which we have discussed a lot over the years—whose high schoolers are actually learning to build electric cars via amazing-sounding SwitchLab kits, provided to the school with the assistance of the local UAW chapter. What’s odd is that the report uses the exact same phrasing to describe the school (“a tuition-free public school for 7th through 12th grade. The school is open to any student from any school district within northwest Ohio.”) as they would for a charter school. I’m not saying it’s not true, and I actually welcome the UNloaded language for change. I’m just saying it’s an unusually open-minded way to describe what is, essentially, just another school building in a district that accepts outside students via open enrollment. (Spectrum News, 9/22/25)

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