Gadfly Bites 5/21/21—No thanks for the memories
Jeff MurrayThose of you with good memories will no doubt recall that eligibility criteria for the state’s Quality Charter School funding was a source of some discussion in 2019 and 2020.
Gadfly Bites 5/19/21—“Our kids have never been where they need to be.”
Jeff MurrayWhile we heard on Monday about how far behind Columbus City Schools’ seniors are, here is a positive “beyond-the-pod” story where we learn a lot about another church-affiliated non-profit doing the work of tutoring, supporti
An overview of what Cleveland schools will offer students this summer
Jessica PoinerSummer school offerings are historically reserved for academically struggling students or those with special needs. This year, though, pandemic-related school closures have increased the number of students who will need extra support during the upcoming summer months.
Gadfly Bites 5/17/21—Some…weirdness
Jeff MurraySeveral odd stories in the news since Friday. First up: some community members in Tipp City are on a crusade to remove certain elected school board members due to what they say is a decline in the “quality of education and overall health” of the district.
Gadfly Bites 5/14/21 – STEM-tastic!
Jeff MurrayGadfly Bites is back from vacation. Hope you missed me as much as I missed you!
Gadfly Bites 5/10/21 – The waitlist
Jeff MurrayGadfly Bites will be on vacation Wednesday. Back with more fun on Friday.
Gadfly Bites 5/5/21 – Laser focus
Jeff MurrayI must admit that I didn’t read or watch yesterday’s budget testimony in the Senate Primary and Secondary Education Committee yesterday. (I’ll be sure to be watching today, though, boss.
Gadfly Bites 5/3/21 – “Mask-erade” indeed.
Jeff MurrayWhile Fordham’s own Chad Aldis notes a couple of positive aspects of the current school funding revamp which is now stuffed into the s
Ohio Charter News Weekly – 4.30.21
Chad L. Aldis, Jeff MurrayBest high schools in America
Gadfly Bites 4/30/21 – Megaphone
Jeff MurrayChad Aldis and the Fordham Institute make up part of the “balance” in this story, which is otherwise all-in for the school funding revamp currently included in the state budget.
Ohio needs to think bigger, bolder on charter facilities
Aaron ChurchillExcelinEd, a national education group, recently released a paper revealing large shortfalls in facility funding for Ohio’s public charter schools.
Gadfly Bites 4/28/21 – Fiscal excellence
Jeff MurrayBrunswick City Schools recently celebrated its third “clean audit” award over the last seven years, bestowed by the Auditor of State.
People tend to solve problems by adding, not subtracting
Jeff MurrayProblem solving involves a complex set of mental steps, even when it happens quickly. A group of researchers from the University of Virginia sought to test one specific aspect of the process—the types of solutions people consider—and uncovered what could be an important human attribute, with significant implications for public policy.
Gadfly Bites 4/26/21 – “Everybody's got to feel a little pain.”
Jeff MurrayI am honestly not sure how any school district is in financial hardship at the moment, given the Covid-relief largesse sluicing in, but it appears that Mansfield City Schools is in such a state and its elected board duly finalized a cost-saving plan last week intended to get the district out of that
Ohio Charter News Weekly – 4.23.21
Chad L. Aldis, Jeff MurrayCharter facilities in Ohio
Gadfly Bites 4/24/21 – Where the suburbs met utopia
Jeff MurrayWith apologies to Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, today’s clips all hail from Suburbia.
School attendance boundaries: A thing of the past?
Historically, children have been assigned to public schools based on their home address. For some students, this works out fine. But for many others, geographic assignment locks them into schools that don’t meet their needs. What can be done to break the link between students’ zip codes and their school?
Gadfly Bites 4/21/21 – Winnowing
Jeff MurrayFordham’s Chad Aldis provided opponent testimony on HB 200 in committee yesterday.
A fairness gap in Ohio and how it might be closed
Sam Duell, Matthew JosephNOTE: The Thomas B. Fordham Institute occasionally publishes guest commentaries on its blogs. The views expressed by guest authors do not necessarily reflect those of Fordham.
Gadfly Bites 4/19/21 – Summer/Fall
Jeff MurrayHere is a look at more “summer school” pandemic remediation plans in school districts across central Ohio.
Gadfly Bites 4/16/21 – The fox guarding the henhouse
Jeff MurrayThere is no author attributed to this commentary piece regarding school report card reform options (and school funding and several other things) so I have no idea who to thank for
How can Ohio meet charter school facility needs?
Brick-and-mortar charter schools serve more than 80,000 Ohio students, most of whom come from low-income backgrounds.
Gadfly Bites 4/14/21 – Past, present, and future
Jeff MurrayWe start out today with a great, in-depth look back at this school year as experienced in
Gadfly Bites 4/12/21 – Policy by WalletHub
Jeff MurrayThe editors at Vindy.com seem preoccupied with Ohio’s lowly ranking in a recent WalletHub report on return on taxpayer investment in education.