Week in Review 04-29-2022

EDUCATION

Former State Board of Education Vice President Steve Dackin drew the support of nearly all his former colleagues Thursday in a vote on which candidates for state superintendent should be granted another interview, a list that also includes Springboro Schools Superintendent Larry Hook and Perrysburg Schools Superintendent Thomas Hosler. Board President Charlotte McGuire said the second round of interviews will take place during a closed-door executive session at the regularly scheduled May board meeting, likely on Monday, May 9. She said it’s possible the board will be able to announce a final selection Tuesday, May 10.

Gov. Mike DeWine recently announced the creation of the new Ohio Student Safety Advisory Council within the Ohio School Safety Center (OSSC). The student-led council will work to identify school safety concerns and develop solutions to address them. To be eligible for the council, students must:

– Be entering grade 11 for the 2022-2023 school year.

– Submit a completed application and nomination letter, which must be submitted together

to OhioSchoolSafetyCenter@dps.ohio.gov prior to the Friday, May 6, 2022 deadline to be considered.

– Agree to serve a one-year term and attend monthly virtual meetings and one in-person meeting in Columbus.

A nationwide survey conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic found that nearly half of teachers who responded are considering quitting or transferring jobs, with one of the main reasons being the violence and threats made against them. The results should serve as a wake-up call to policymakers and legislators about the state of education in the U.S., said Eric Anderman, a member of the task force that produced the report and a professor of educational psychology at Ohio State University (OSU). “When 49 percent of teachers nationwide say they desire or are planning to quit or transfer, that’s huge,” Anderman said. “This is strong national data backing up the disturbing anecdotes and stories we’ve been hearing from teachers. There’s a crisis in the teaching profession.”

A former Dayton charter school director is not financially responsible for embezzlement by the school’s treasurer, the Ohio Supreme Court said Tuesday in a 4-3 ruling awaited by the parties in the separate prosecution of Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT) founder William Lager. The dispute arose from the embezzlement case of Carl Shye, who in 2012 pleaded guilty in federal court and admitted to taking more than $472,000 over several years while serving as treasurer of four charter schools, one of which was New City Community School in Dayton. New City’s director was Robert Burns, and in that role he applied for funding from the state to operate the school. The money went into a bank account controlled by Shye, who was appointed by and reported to the New City board, rather than Burns.

The State Board of Education’s (SBOE) Teaching, Leading, and Learning (TLL) Committee approved the long-debated Ohio Dyslexia Guidebook during a special committee meeting Thursday. The guidebook will be considered by the full board in May. Board members have been discussing the guidebook for the past three months, hearing impassioned testimony from the public in favor of its passage as well as criticism that it overreaches and disagreements over approaches.

The Ohio Department of Education (ODE) Thursday announced $89 million in Summer Learning and Afterschool Opportunities Grants to 161 community-based partners. The funds will go toward creating or expanding out-of-school services meant to address the academic needs and overall well-being of students most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The department received more than 700 applications from across the state for the federally supported COVID-19 relief grants. Awardees will focus on providing direct services for Ohio students who experienced greater disruptions to learning and did not engage consistently in school during the pandemic, ODE said. Organizations that are receiving funds include community centers, colleges and universities, faith-based organizations, arts centers, neighborhood outreach centers and youth activity centers.