If you’re following the local education stories, then you’re probably aware that there’s been lots of controversy about who should lead the effort to reform Columbus City Schools.
At present, the local school system is governed by the Board of Education, a seven-member, elected governing body.
If you read the Dispatch, the stories imply (over and over again) that the elected board may be losing its power. Regarding a proposal (to appoint an innovation panel with a little spending power) that’s on the table for Friday’s Education Commission meeting, the latest newspaper story used this language:
“The commission staff doesn’t believe any change to state law would be required to create the innovation panel, which implies that the school board is prepared to cede a significant amount of its current authority.”
That proposal involved controlling up to $50 million of a district with an annual budget of $1.4 billion (with a B!). “Significant” is surely a relative term, if it applies to controlling less than 4% of a budget.*
There are also the state politicians who seem to think the mayor should take more control of the school system. That position seems to be a little vexing for Mayor Coleman, who said during Friday’s appearance with US Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan:
“I’ve said it a thousand times, I guess I need to say it another thousand times, I have no interest in taking over Columbus public schools.”
Coleman’s not the only guy who seems to want an elected board to maintain control. Meet Molly Shack and the Ohio Student Association.
The Ohio Student Association has been around for over a year, it was established to give students better tools to advocate for their own collective interests. The group organized a Town Hall last week where the community met to oppose efforts take power from an elected school board. The Ohio Student Association also worked with a coalition to organize the newish website www.noschooltakeover.com.
Shack is one of the founding members of the group. When it comes to the future of Columbus City Schools, the organizer says, “We want to keep a democratically elected school board so we can vote in, or vote out, those who represent us.”
She adds, “A recent article in the Washington Post has shown that the results of mayoral takeover are bleek. After seeing the massive schools closings, strikes and major layoffs across the country, we want to protect our schools here from a hostile takeover.”
The Washington Post article actually does look pretty bleak for takeover teams. When it compares test improvements in takeover schools against improvements in normal districts, the takeover schools are outpaced. The report also says that achievement gaps grow in takeover schools.
And while Shack is a staunch defender of the democratic process, she’s not blind to the present situation in the local school system.
“While there are real problems with accountability in our schools, the answer is not to remove the accountability system itself, but to engage families and community members to do a better job holding our elected officials accountable to who they represent, the residents of Columbus.”
Shack says, “Real opportunities to engage in the democratic process are few and far between in Columbus, and the Town Hall was an example of one way that we can have open and honest dialogue with the community about the decisions that are being made about our communities.”
In fact, another meeting is planned for May 2, Downtown. Specific details will be released on the Ohio Student Association’s Facebook page and also at www.noschooltakeover.com.
*(PSST: If you took the special panel’s $50,000,000 per year and instead funded a scholarship for each of the 50,000 students in Columbus City Schools, you’d have a $13,000 scholarship waiting for each child at the end of 12th grade. Opening a door sounds sort of “significant”, no?)
To read more updates on Columbus City School Issues, CLICK HERE.
For more ongoing discussion on the Columbus Education Commission, CLICK HERE.
