Week in Review 4-6-26

Week in Review > Week in Review 4-6-26

Posted by Buckeye Association of School Administrators on April 06th, 2026

BALLOT ISSUES

The Ohio Ballot Board Thursday unanimously approved a proposed constitutional amendment that would ban large data centers in Ohio as one amendment, clearing the way for supporters to begin collecting signatures. Petitioners who brought the proposal and attended the hearing told reporters that they hope to get the issue before voters in November, though Ballot Board member Sen. Bill DeMora (D-Columbus) raised doubts they would succeed.

EDUCATION

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) is seeking feedback on draft materials for the state’s integrated model curriculum, an academic framework blending English language arts, social studies, civics, technology and life skills in elementary and middle school classrooms. The feedback will strengthen the curriculum ahead of its release in summer 2026, DEW said.

The school district coalition suing over the constitutionality of EdChoice vouchers and the state and private school attorneys defending the program will have double the usual time to make their case in person when the legal dispute comes to oral arguments. The 10th District Court of Appeals recently granted a motion jointly filed by all parties requesting 30 minutes per side of oral arguments, rather than the typical 15 minutes. The litigants argued in a motion that the monumental nature of the dispute merited extended oral argument time, as did the breadth of parties involved. Arguments are scheduled for May.

Gov. Mike DeWine and Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) Director Stephen Dackin announced schools have the option to use an America 250 design on the diplomas of students who earn Ohio’s Citizenship Seal at no additional cost. The commemorative seal comes as part of the America 250-Ohio initiative, the organization charged with honoring the state’s role in the nation’s semiquincentennial this year.

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) Student Transportation Workgroup will continue to meet for at least another month before presenting its finalized draft policy priorities and recommendations to Gov. Mike DeWine and DEW Director Stephen Dackin, Susan Bodary, director of Battelle Education and the group’s facilitator, told Hannah News during a break in its meeting Thursday. While the original plan was to get finalized materials before DeWine and Dackin by May, Bodary said some of the legislators participating in the group suggested the materials needed more detail and informed data before deliberations could come to a close. She did not specify which legislators had advised the group’s time frame be extended.

Despite a ruling in U.S. District Court this week that found President Donald Trump’s executive order to defund National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) to be unenforceable, Ohio’s public broadcasters will not see previous funding restored after substantial funding cuts from both federal and state sources in the past year. “It’s hard to come back from,” said Kitty Lensman, chair of Ohio Educational Television Stations at Thursday’s meeting of the Broadcast Educational Media Commission (BEMC).

GENERAL ASSEMBLY/STATEHOUSE

Following criticism after Gov. Mike DeWine’s “State of the State” address that the state of Ohio and its Legislature have not done enough in the past 20 years to ease affordability issues for Ohioans, House Democrats on Monday unveiled a slate of bills addressing those issues on topics including health care, housing, child care, consumer goods and energy. Rep. Beryl Brown Piccolantonio (D-Gahanna) said Ohio ranks unfavorably among U.S. states for affordability and issues related to affordability with the state’s relatively high poverty rate and 500,000 children going hungry each day due to Republican trifecta control of state government doubling down both on bills to benefit those at the top economically and on culture war issues.

GOVERNOR

The governor signed the following bills:

– HB229 (Deeter), regarding licensure for pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs)

– HB730 (Stewart), the capital reappropriations bill

– SB244 (Roegner-Timken), designating Aug. 26 as “Abbey Gate Remembrance Day”

HIGHER EDUCATION

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched a civil rights compliance investigation into the Ohio State University (OSU) College of Medicine’s admissions policy, according to a letter sent last week to the university by DOJ. The letter, dated Wednesday, March 25 and signed by Harmeet Dhillon, assistant attorney general for the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, states the investigation “will focus on possible race discrimination in medical school admissions.”

Amid ongoing negotiations to annex Central State University (CSU), the city of Xenia agreed during its council meeting last week to extend water services to the university through the end of its academic year, given the city’s previous temporary agreement with the university was set to expire the first week of April, according to media reports.

OHIO HISTORY

The America-250 Ohio celebration will take a closer look at the state’s place in early American history with two separate events at the Statehouse in April. Visitors and history enthusiasts are invited to an American Revolutionary War encampment on the West Plaza and North grounds of the Ohio Statehouse from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 15, 2026 for an opportunity to step back in time and experience the sights, sounds and tastes of a late 18th century military camp through music, historical reenactors and authentic demonstrations.

PENSIONS

The Ohio Public Pension Coalition, a group of Ohio labor groups and affiliate of the National Public Pension Coalition, announced that three additional unions have joined the six original unions in the group. The Ohio Conference of the American Association of University Professors (Ohio AAUP), SEIU District 1199 and the Ohio Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association (OPBA) are now part of the coalition. They join the Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT), Ohio Education Association (OEA), Fraternal Order of Police of Ohio (FOP), AFSCME Ohio Council 8, Ohio Association of Public School Employees, as well as the Ohio AFL-CIO and the national coalition.

POLLS/STUDIES

Poll results released Monday by Quinnipiac University (QU) found Americans have substantial concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) technology, including how it will affect education and the workforce as well as its use by businesses and the level of government regulation. Nearly two-thirds of respondents were opposed to construction of an AI data center in their community, while 24 percent said they would support that. Asked why they opposed it, 72 percent cited electricity costs; 64 percent, water use; and 41 percent, noise. Among supporters, 77 percent said they favored new construction for job creation; 53 percent, increasing tax revenue; and 47 percent, the potential to become a tech hub.

PUBLIC SAFETY

Gov. Mike DeWine, joined by Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) Supt. Col. Charles Jones, expressed hope the Legislature would move forward with making seat belt violations a primary offense in Ohio while speaking with reporters Friday following the fourth annual “State of the Patrol” address at the OSHP Academy. DeWine didn’t