School & District Management

Ohio Governor Listens on K-12—But Action Awaits

By Mary Ann Zehr — August 08, 2008 5 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Despite a faltering economy and a political rebuff from state lawmakers earlier this year, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland is pressing ahead with a project to collect school improvement ideas from citizens statewide, with an eye toward eventual legislation.

To date, the first-term Democrat has held five public forums throughout Ohio on K-12 education, drawing crowds of 200 to 300 willing to consider such options as an extended school day or school year, and nontraditional age groupings for classes.

This fall, he plans to follow up with a series of meetings on ways to change the state’s school funding formula, which the Ohio Supreme Court in 1997 struck down as unconstitutional because it relied too much on property taxes, creating inequalities between school districts.

“He introduced a broad draft of reform proposals,” said Fred Pausch, the director of legislative services for the Columbus-based Ohio School Boards Association. “He’s now taking it to the grassroots level around the state of Ohio to get feedback from about everyone who wants to be counted on the issue.”

Talking About Ohio Schools

Gov. Ted Strickland has floated a number of possible approaches to improving his state’s public school system—some more specific than others. He’s also heard from hundreds of citizens at a series of public forums throughout the state. Among the possibilities he’s heard raised so far:

• Better tailoring education to individual students. That might include greater attention to gifted students.

• Giving teachers more time for joint planning and collaboration.

• Extending the school day, or the school year, to provide for more instructional time.

• Changing how students are currently grouped for learning; for example, by mixing various ages or grades in a particular classroom.

SOURCE: Gov. Ted Strickland

But Terry Ryan, the vice president for Ohio programs and policy for the Washington-based Thomas B. Fordham Institute, said the forums could be intended by the governor to help put a positive face on the Democratic Party for the November elections, given that Democrats need to take four seats away from Republicans in the Ohio’s House of Representatives to gain control of it.

“It’s a bit disingenuous to come out and take ideas and talk about all the ideas that take more money without acknowledging there’s not more money to pay for these,” Mr. Ryan said, who attended the governor’s forum in Dayton, Ohio, and noted that 13 individuals stood up from the audience and gave examples of aspects of schooling that needed more funding.

Gov. Strickland is among a handful of state chief executives moving aggressively on education at a time when the gloomy fiscal forecast has forced many governors to concentrate first on budget issues.

He has some company. On June 23, Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts, a fellow Democrat, unveiled proposals for an early warning dropout-prevention program and the creation of universal prekindergarten and full-day kindergarten.

Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter Jr., also a Democrat, is proposing to revamp that state’s system of standards and assessments. (“Colorado Moves Ahead on Ambitious K-12 Package,” May 21, 2008.)

Kathy Christie, the chief of staff for the Denver-based Education Commission of the States, said “the governors who tended not to have education as a significant piece of their state-of-the-state addresses are few and far between.”

But Michael Griffith, a senior school finance analyst at the ecs, observed, “The general rule is it’s a lot easier to make changes in education during good economic times. We saw that in the late 1990s through 2001.”

Campaign Promise

Gov. Strickland, a former congressman born in Lucasville, Ohio, campaigned for governor in 2006 in part on a promise to work to revamp the K-12 education system in Ohio, which enrolls 1.8 million students.

Eager to expand his influence over education policy, he sought a change in the state constitution that would have let him create a new director of the state department of education—who he would appoint—to oversee the state education department and the board of education. The board-appointed state superintendent of schools would have remained, but in a more advisory role.

Lawmakers rejected that proposal, although they had previously agreed to permit him to appoint the higher education chief for the state.

But in the aftermath of that battle, Susan Tave Zelman, Ohio’s appointed superintendent, turned in her resignation letter, effective in December.

“The board has said that they will work with me so we can find a superintendent who is compatible with me to work out my agenda. That was my goal initially,” the governor added.

Any school improvement ideas also will have to take place in the context of Ohio’s economic situation.

The state, which enacted a biennial budget for 2008-09 of $52.3 billion, was among 13 forced to make cuts to eliminate budget gaps after their fiscal 2008 budgets were passed, the National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget Officers reported. Ohio’s actions included layoffs and early retirements.

The K-12 education budget of $7.7 billion for 2008 was reduced by almost $52 million in February; at the same time the $8.1 billion for K-12 for 2009 was slashed by $50 million, according to Ohio Department of Education spokesman Scott Blake. The cuts included money for education service centers and early-college high schools, he said.

Ohio’s economy is suffering high unemployment and a high number of mortgage foreclosures, according to William L. Phillis, the executive director of the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding, the nonprofit organization that filed the successful constitutional challenge against the state’s funding system.

Still, he believes Gov. Strickland is serious about his commitment to revise the funding system for schools.

“He is personally involved,” said Mr. Phillis. “The problem is, the economy of Ohio is not that great.”

Fiscal Pressure

The governor appears well aware of the fiscal squeeze Ohio faces. The state is already spending a lot of money per pupil, he said, and “what I don’t want to do is talk about more resources so we can continue to do what we are doing. I want us to think more deeply about how we need to change.”

In the 2006-07 school year, Ohio spent $9,587 per pupil in state, federal and local funds, according to the state education department.

“I’m talking about having the flexibility within the classroom and the way schools are structured and organized that would enable the student to progress at his or her own speed,” he said in an interview.

As an example, he noted that he attended as a child a one-room school house where grades 1-4 were in the same room, enabling students to learn from one another.

Politics could yet prove an obstacle for the governor to push through whatever changes he ends up favoring on school improvement and K-12 funding. The governor is a Democrat, and both the Ohio House of Representatives and Senate are controlled by Republicans.

But the governor holds out hope that Democrats could gain the upper hand in the House after the November election.

In the meantime, he is pressing ahead with his statewide series of forums, dubbed the Governor’s Conversation on Education. He insists he is open to other people’s ideas. “I’m trying to talk as little as possible at these events,” he said.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the August 13, 2008 edition of Education Week as Ohio Governor Listens on K-12—But Action Awaits

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
The Future of the Science of Reading
Join us for a discussion on the future of the Science of Reading and how to support every student’s path to literacy.
Content provided by HMH
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
College & Workforce Readiness Webinar
From Classrooms to Careers: How Schools and Districts Can Prepare Students for a Changing Workforce
Real careers start in school. Learn how Alton High built student-centered, job-aligned pathways.
Content provided by TNTP
Mathematics K-12 Essentials Forum Helping Students Succeed in Math

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School & District Management Q&A ‘A Nice and Gentle Disrupter’: Meet the New Principals of the Year
The award went to middle school principal Damon Lewis and high school principal Tony Cattani.
11 min read
Damon Lewis, the principal of Ponus Ridge STEAM Academy, and Tony Cattani, the principal of Lenape High School, receive their awards at the annual National Association of Secondary School Principals Illuminate Principal of the Year Celebration in Seattle.
From left, Damon Lewis, the principal of Ponus Ridge STEAM Academy, and Tony Cattani, the principal of Lenape High School, receive their awards at the National Association of Secondary School Principals conference in Seattle. They were both named the 2025-26 National Principal of the Year.
Courtesy of Allyssa Hynes/National Association of Secondary School Principals
School & District Management Opinion Kindergartners Are Struggling With Self-Regulation. How Principals Can Respond
This school leader recommends three actionable steps.
Ian Knox
4 min read
Addressing difficulties and equipping students, staff, and faculty with the tools they need to thrive.
Vanessa Solis/Education Week via Canva
School & District Management Opinion The Stunning Resignation of UVA President Jim Ryan—and Why It Matters
The university president’s departure is more than just a headline. It’s a lesson in leadership.
2 min read
Opinion Licensed Not for Reuse Wait What FCG
Canva
School & District Management In Their Own Words This Custodian Got Students to Stop Vandalizing and Take Pride in Their School
Andy Markus, the 2025 Education Support Professional of the Year, helped boost behavior and engagement in his Utah district.
5 min read
Andy Markus, the head custodian at Draper Park Middle School, in Draper, Utah, sits for a portrait during the National Education Association's 2025 Representative Assembly in Portland, Ore., on July 3, 2025. Markus was named the 2025 NEA Education Support Professional (ESP) of the Year.
Andy Markus, the head custodian at Draper Park Middle School, in Draper, Utah, sits for a portrait during the National Education Association's 2025 representative assembly in Portland, Ore., on July 3, 2025. Markus was named the 2025 NEA Education Support Professional of the Year for his mentorship of students.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week