Ohio Educators Stand Firm on Keeping Politics Out of the Classroom

With Ohio’s Midterm Elections just a few weeks away, educators in Ohio are looking to keep politics out of the classroom. 

“Let your local boards, local schools, and their departments run their programs, and stay out of the way,” said Tony Cochren, the Special Education Director at Bethel Schools.

Cochren believes the only help that his school needs from the Ohio General Assembly is funding, aside from that, the politics just interfere with education.

“I know that we have boxes we have to check to get federal funding and state funding. But such as the third grade reading guarantee, that’s just an albatross in my view of the assembly getting in the way of what we do.”

Ohio’s Third Grade Reading Guarantee is a program that is used to determine which students, between kindergarten and third grade, are behind in reading skills. The Third Grade Reading Guarantee is state law required from the state’s board of education.

“Typically what the legislature does when they pass laws is, they work to increase expectations. So they’ll have expectations around testing,” said Dante Capers, Associate Superintendent of Student Affairs at Warren City Schools. “For example, if the kid doesn’t pass the third grade reading tests, the current law is that they’re retained in third grade, until they show mastery of that third grade reading content.”

Capers doesn’t agree that the general assembly should just stay out of the way, but he believes that the laws get over emphasized. 

“I think some of the laws are well intentioned. I mean, everybody wants students to do well. But when you craft a law, you put accountability in the place that is tied to testing outcomes,” said Capers. “That takes time, that can take focus away from the well being of the kids. That puts pressure on administrators to increase test scores, who then put pressure on teachers to increase test scores, who then put pressure on students to perform on the test. I think it just takes people’s eyes off the ball a bit.”

Ohio’s legislature has passed a law that allows teachers to carry firearms in school. With student safety being an important priority in education, this decision has been cause for controversy. 

“That kind of thing creates a lot of fear. I know some communities are comfortable with it and teachers are comfortable with it. But with our community, that is not something that people would be comfortable with,” said Christine Palumbo, Assistant Superintendent at Lakewood City Schools. “One of our principals said to me, I can barely keep track of my radio and now they’re going to be asking me to keep track of a firearm?”

With House Bill 99 allowing teachers to carry firearms with 24 hours of training, which was previously 700 hours, Warren City Schools is choosing to use other means to protect their students. 

“When it comes to school safety and arming teachers, okay that’s one response. But in light of everything that’s going on, is that really the most important thing,” said Capers. “We had a camera upgrade, re-outfitted our entrances, and have done training for staff. There’s a lot we’ve taken the initiative to do that doesn’t require action from the legislature.” 

 The most effective solution for keeping students safe is not a clear cut answer. School districts have the choice to protect their students using multiple different assets and procedures. However, one thing that’s common among the districts, something needs to change. 

“It’s a multilayered challenge,” said Cochren, the Special Education Director at Bethel Schools. “It’s a local decision, how safety looks at Bethel looks different than the safety issues in Springfield city or Dayton public.” 

Public schools require state funds to operate effectively and that’s all they’re asking from Ohio’s General Assembly, they have their own plans on how it will be spent. 

“You need candidates that know the issues around school funding at the state level,” said Cochren. “And if they don’t, they really need to do their research.”