“Stocktaking” of issues facing all public schools
Bellwether this week released a new report—first of a semi-annual series—that aims to find common ground among all public schools. Analysts look at six issues—including enrollment, achievement, and discipline—that both district and charter schools across the nation are dealing with in the wake of pandemic disruptions. Their hope is to help educators and school leaders “establish a common fact base” around the issues as a basic step toward navigating through them.
Busing improvements happening in Columbus?
Elected school board members overseeing Columbus City Schools were told by transportation officials this week that changes to bus routing and assignments implemented at the start of January were working to improve coverage of routes and to help students get to and from school daily. This positive assessment comes despite the fact that the transportation help line continues to receive over 1,000 calls a day from parents with questions and concerns.
Busing improvements on the way in Dayton?
Meanwhile, elected school board members overseeing Dayton City Schools voted this week to approve three new proposals aimed at improving long-troubled busing service provided by the district. They are: Hiring a transportation director (filling a post vacant since August), bonus incentives for drivers based on attendance, and green-lighting a new transportation hub (to be operational near the end of 2023).
Synergy between schools and sponsors
A new report from the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice at Tulane University indicates that prospective charter school operators look for authorizers that share their values and goals. Using best practices in equity policies as an indicator, analysts found that authorizers with clear commitments to equity were more likely to receive applications from schools with similar aspirations than were authorizers more focused on other goals. The full report is here. Interesting stuff.
National School Choice Week in Ohio
National School Choice Week 2023 begins Sunday! Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted issued a formal recognition of the celebration earlier this week. Among many events going on in Ohio and across the country next week is the fifth annual Northwest Ohio School Fair, happening in Sylvania on Sunday afternoon.
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