Week in Review > Week in Review – 09/14/2018
Posted by BASA on September 14th, 2018Two months into Fiscal Year (FY) 2019, revenues continue the state’s recent trend of exceeding estimates — this despite the reset on projected revenues for the year where they were increased by $531.1 million. Specifically, revenues were $16.2 million or 0.8 percent over estimates for the month of August, bringing the total over estimates for the year-to-date to $27.8 million or 0.7 percent.
A former legislator told the Commission on Infant Mortality that focusing on early childhood education is a massive prevention strategy that can deal with the inequities that exist in the system. Shannon Jones, a former state senator and state representative who now serves as executive director of Groundwork Ohio, noted her work as a legislator with Sen. Charleta Tavares (D-Columbus) on the issue of infant mortality. She said now that she is on the outside of the lawmaking process looking in, she has a different perspective.
The State Board of Education’s (SBOE) Career-Technical Planning District (CTPD) Report Card Workgroup discussed how state report cards should measure success in student preparedness recently, hearing a presentation from national expert Ryan Reyna, director of the Education Strategy Group. The group previously met on Aug. 30, focusing on how industry-recognized credentials should fit in the state report card for career tech districts and those credentials were also a topic of this latest meeting.
Educators and administrators at school districts in Ohio and around the country need to think about school safety and security more comprehensively, the keynote speakers told attendees of the inaugural School Security and Safety Solutions Summit at the Columbus Convention Center Wednesday. Dr. Amy Klinger and her daughter, Amanda Klinger, co-founders of the Educator’s School Safety Network, spoke before hundreds of educators, superintendents, school counselors, and other education professionals at the event organized primarily by the Ohio School Boards Association.
State university education colleges generated economic effects of more than $92 million by placing aspiring teachers in about five of every six Ohio public school districts, according to a report from the State University Education Deans (SUED). The 2018 report uses data on 2016-2017 teacher candidates from state universities to assess their effect on Ohio education. Candidates were placed in 514 districts and 39 charter schools, reaching all 88 counties for that school year, according to the study.
Constitutional issues raised by Youngstown school officials in their challenge to a state oversight panel are not causing confusion among lower courts or likely to be regular sources of conflict, attorneys for the state argued this week in urging the Ohio Supreme Court not to accept an appeal. Youngstown officials asked justices last month to accept their appeal of lower court decisions that upheld the establishment of an academic distress commission that is now in control of the school district via an appointed CEO. The request for an appeal is backed by major school management groups, union officials, and the only other district to fall under the jurisdiction of a distress commission, Lorain City.
Ohio school districts got their first overall ratings since 2012 Thursday with the release of state report cards that finally include the repeatedly delayed summative grade. The results will mean a third district, East Cleveland City, falls under control of an academic distress commission, while Trotwood-Madison schools avoided that fate by earning an overall grade of D.
The agency that hosts centralized broadcasting for public TV and radio stations in Ohio approved plans Thursday for how it would cut its spending by 10 percent if required, a planning exercise ordered by the Office of Budget and Management (OBM) in preparation for FY20-21 budget deliberations next year. Members of the Broadcast Educational Media Commission (BEMC) voted unanimously to submit budget planning documents that would cover the 10 percent cut by reducing funds for Ohio Government Television (OGT) and for multimedia projects that TV stations pursue.
The Ohio Senate said Friday that it will meet on Tuesday, Sept. 25 at 11 a.m. but that the sessions announced for both Thursday, Sept. 20 and Wednesday, Sept. 26 have been cancelled. There are no further Senate sessions scheduled until after the Nov. 6 elections with an “if needed” session set for Tuesday, Nov. 13 and a session set for Wednesday, Nov. 14. The House had earlier cancelled the two “if needed” September sessions it had scheduled. It, too, has no further sessions scheduled until after the elections, with the House due to return on Wednesday, Nov. 14 and Thursday, Nov. 15.
Calling them a “cyber cavalry,” Sen. Frank LaRose (R-Copley) said the Ohio National Guard’s (ONG) Cyber Reserve would, if established, help defend Ohio against increasing cyber threats. LaRose announced SB327 — legislation to create the reserve — in a press conference Wednesday. The reserve, made up of civilians in the cybersecurity industry, would receive $450,000 in initial funding under the bill, which LaRose said he hopes will be passed before the end of the 132nd General Assembly.
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