Our Members
Education Advocacy Opportunity
|
We’re excited to announce an opportunity for Central’s most engaged members to become Education Advocate Leaders. First, what’s an Education Advocate Leader? Education Advocate Leaders (EALs) are members! They strengthen their local associations’ legislative and political grassroots capacity year-round by engaging fellow members around legislative and political campaigns. Who can become an Education Advocate Leader? Any active member can become an Education Advocate Leader. It takes no experience – we’ll provide the training, guidance and resources. To become an Education Advocate Leader, simply take 2 minutes to apply online: www.centraloeanea.org/eal. We will provide Education Advocate Leader training virtually on October 6th, 2021 at 6:00 PM via Zoom. What will I need to do? Mandatory criteria: • Communicate with your local/colleagues on education issues • Contribute to the OEA Fund • Recruit at least 10 colleagues to receive Central ACE’s emails and send their addresses to russell@jointhefuture.org • Attend an Education Advocate Leader training session • Join the OEA Outreach Circle Central OEA/NEA will provide a $100 stipend, paid in December to each Education Advocate Leader who meets the Mandatory Criteria. Recommended: • Play an active role in local election activities • Attend OEA phone banks or an OEA sponsored canvass • Like and Share Central Social Media Content Education Advocate Leader training topics covered will include: • Communication & Involvement (sign up colleagues to ACE’s list, disseminating info to your local) • How to sign up for the OEA Outreach Circle • How to sign up for and use the Hustle App • Cyber lobbying, and engaging Central, OEA, NEA Social Media • Understanding what the OEA Fund is & is not • Statehouse lobbying • EAL Stipend Criteria • Campaign 2021 Apply NOW to become an Education Advocate Leader: www.centraloeanea.org/eal |
OEA Analysis of Recently Signed State Budget
OEA’s Government Relations staff has compiled an analysis of the education-related provisions included in House Bill 110, the budget for FY 2022 and FY 2023. Please click here to read the analysis. CLICK HERE FOR THE SPECIFIC FUNDING INFORMATION FOR FRANKLIN COUNTY and REYNOLDSBURG CITY SCHOOLS.
OEA thanks Superintendent Paolo DeMaria for his long service
The Ohio Education Association wishes to thank Paolo DeMaria for his long service to students and Ohioans, most recently as the State’s Superintendent of Public Instruction during an important time in the state’s education policy history.
“Paolo deserves a lot of credit for the way he has brought people from divergent perspectives together to work toward bettering the lives of Ohio’s students,” said OEA President Scott DiMauro. “His leadership on the strategic planning process and commitment to equity and inclusion deserve high praise. He has set a high bar for the next person to hold the position.”
OEA and all Ohio taxpayers also owe DeMaria a debt of gratitude for his department’s investigation into the Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT), which revealed the largest taxpayer fraud in the state’s history. The school eventually shut down in 2018 after DeMaria’s department had revealed ECOT had been paid at least $80 million to educate students the school didn’t actually educate.
“Paolo showed courage taking on ECOT – a school that had long been held unaccountable by policymakers,” DiMauro said. “Revealing the taxpayer fraud that school perpetrated sent an incredibly important message that continues to resound in Ohio’s education community.”
HB 82: Reworked Report Card System Contains Major Changes Called for by OEA
The Ohio General Assembly has overwhelmingly approved a reworked version of the state report card system for school districts/buildings that seeks to address numerous flaws with the current approach. The updated report card system was amended into House Bill 82, a bill supported by OEA that allows students to opt out of the statewide administration of the ACT and SAT tests in their junior year (with parental consent). House Bill 82 now heads to the Governor, who is expected to sign the bill.
The updated report card system in House Bill 82 contains major changes called for by the OEA. These include the elimination of misleading A-F letter grades beginning with the report card for the 2020-21 school year. The new rating system will be based on a five-star system (including half-stars) accompanied by trend arrows and brief explanatory descriptors. The bill also includes the creation of an ungraded Student Opportunity Profile with twenty-two indicators proposed by OEA beginning with report card for the 2022-23 school year.
A summary of the updated report card system can be found here.
Final Budget Bill Includes Fair School Funding Plan, Pathway Out of State Takeover
On Monday, June 28, 2021, the Ohio General Assembly finished its work on House Bill 110, the state budget for FY 2022 and FY 2023. The final bill was produced by a Conference Committee that worked out the differences between the House and Senate. The final bill was passed by a vote of 32-1 in the Senate and 82-13 in the House.
Of great importance was the inclusion of the Fair School Funding Plan in the final bill. This was OEA’s top budget priority. The Fair School Funding plan was a product of years of work by policy makers and school finance experts that garnered bipartisan support. The plan is based upon the costs of providing a high-quality education. It will reduce the reliance on local property taxes. The bill directly funds charter school and voucher students, ending the pass-through funding model that deducts from local school districts. When fully implemented, it will provide a formula is student-centered, equitable, adequate, transparent, and ensures the funding needed to provide all kids the future they deserve.
Of concern is that the final budget applies the formula to only this two-year budget. Intent language to fully phase in the formula over six years and several studies to further refine aspects of the formula were removed. Clearly, our work is not over, and it will be important to continue to advocate for the resources to fully implement the Fair School Funding plan and make it historic promise a reality for Ohio’s students.
Another positive aspect of the bill was the inclusion of language that was in the Senate version establishing a pathway out of state takeover for Lorain, Youngstown, and East Cleveland. The failed state takeover law has been a harmful experiment for students, educators, and communities. The distractions and dysfunction caused by state takeovers increases the difficulty of developing comprehensive supports that help students overcome barriers to learning caused by poverty. All three districts and communities under an ADC/CEO deserve to regain local control.
On the priority issues of vouchers and charter schools the news was less welcome. The expanded eligibility for EdChoice vouchers, removal of the statewide cap and increased voucher amounts in the Senate version were retained. The Senate’s provision that allows brick and mortar charter schools to open anywhere in the state was also included. The final bill did not include language to allow charter schools to be operated by a sectarian school or religious institution. However, the bill did include tax credits of up to $1,000 on private school tuition.
The bill must be signed by Governor DeWine by June 30 and is subject to potential line-item vetoes. OEA will provide members additional information as this occurs. Fuller analysis of HB 110 will be provided over the coming weeks.
Remember to look for the link to attend the General meeting scheduled on Wednesday, March 23rd.