Thank you for joining us to celebrate National School Choice Week! You have done great work and we have built even more momentum for the success of Ohio kids. And we hope you had fun doing it.
One last idea: tell someone today why YOU support school choice. Just start a conversation and share some of the great ways that school choice is helping kids in Ohio.
Happy National School Choice Week!
National School Choice Week has been going gangbusters in Ohio! Events in Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus were wonderful and a bus tour in Toledo of high quality public and private schools tomorrow promises to be amazing.
What are you doing to celebrate National School Choice Week today?
May we suggest calling Governor John Kasich’s office to wish him a Happy National School Choice Week and thank him for his proclamation of Ohio School Choice Week? His office phone number is (614) 466-3555.
Are you a hard-core supporter of school choice? Do you see the potential for our kids if we let families choose the best fit?
You’re invited to become a local ambassador for school choice. It’s simple, fun, and we show you how. Ambassadors are already working around the state building relationships with legislators, sharing information in their circles, and becoming informed.
You can sign up at www.scohio.org/getinvolved.
The response to this year’s essay contest was remarkable. It was hard to narrow the winners down to only three parent winners and four student winners. We chose a parent winner for each of Ohio’s three scholarship programs. The student winners came from across Ohio – three from the 6th-12th grade category and one from the K-5th grade category. To give you a glimpse at the wonderful entries we received, we would like share a sentence or two from each of our winners.
PARENT WINNERS
Mary (Springfield)
“School choice does make a difference. Daily I am so appreciative of the EdChoice Scholarships, and I will continue to share the good news with other families so they will be aware they have an option for their children to have a better chance in life.”
Jennifer (Dayton)
“Thank you for allowing us families to have the ability to make the choice in which school setting is best for our children’s special needs and for giving us the opportunity to watch our kids flourish and accomplish their goals in their education. You have given them such a gift in this scholarship and we are truly thankful for the school choice!”
Khalilah (Cleveland)
“I am very thankful to the Cleveland scholarship program for giving me an option. It’s like a breath of fresh air. At our new school the classes are much smaller, the teachers I interact with have hope in the students and we work together as partners for the good of the children.”
STUDENT WINNERS
A’Sarah (Alliance)
“This scholarship was truly a blessing for me and my family; never in our life time would we have thought and opportunity like this would come our way… I will always be grateful to Ed Choice for providing me with the fantastic opportunity to receive a scholarship to St. Thomas and to keep my dream alive.”
Donavan (Springfield)
“The curriculum is excellent, and my teachers expect me to do my best. Because of this, I will be better prepared to face the years ahead of me. I am thankful that my EdChoice scholarship offers me a better opportunity.”
Kieran (Maple Heights)
“Overall the EdChoice Scholarship has really benefited me and my family and gave me the opportunity to receive a good education at a successful high school. I enjoy learning here and I can tell that I am already gaining knowledge and I still have a lot more to obtain.”
Kennedy (Columbus)
“I am thankful that I have a scholarship to St. Mary Elementary because it is out of the ordinary. This school has things that many schools don’t have. I have to say that St. Mary is quite a wonder. It’s like nothing I’ve seen in my life and the EdChoice Scholarship let’s me experience it.”
What better way to celebrate National School Choice Week than with an official gubernatorial proclamation? Governor John Kasich proclaimed this week “School Choice Week” in Ohio by issuing the following proclamation:
WHEREAS, Ohio has long been a pioneer in the realm of school choice. From the first convening of the Governor’s Commission on Educational Choice in 1991, the message has been clear to Ohio’s parents; you do have a choice in finding the best education for your children; and
WHEREAS, The Cleveland Scholarship and Tutoring Program, which began in 1995, was among the first in the nation to offer a private school tuition voucher to students in a struggling urban district. Today, that program serves over 5,200 students; and
WHEREAS, Ohio created a system of charter/community schools in 1997, giving parents statewide brand new options for education without tuition and very few barriers to access. Today, over 325 schools serving over 88,000 students are in operation throughout the state; and
WHEREAS, In 2003 the Ohio Autism Scholarship Program was created, becoming the only voucher program in the United States to focus solely on the educational needs of children with autism. Today, this program is still unique in the U.S. and is serving over 1,670 students statewide; and
WHEREAS, In 2005, the legislature created the Ohio EdChoice Scholarship to provide private school tuition vouchers to students in underperforming public schools anywhere they may exist statewide. In just 5 short years, the program reached its statutory cap of 14,000 scholarships; and
WHEREAS, Traditional public school choice has been around even lounger than all of the above options, with open enrollment between public school districts beginning in 1989. As of 2008, there were nearly 45,600 students (2.7% of the total student body in Ohio) being educated outside of their resident districts via open enrollment; and
WHEREAS, By observing National School Choice Week in Ohio, our citizens can truly recognize that Ohio is front and center in the important work of giving all children access to a quality education.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOHN R. KASICH, Governor of the State of Ohio, do hereby proclaim January 24 through January 29, 2011 as SCHOOL CHOICE WEEK in the state of Ohio, and I call this observance to the attention of all our citizens.
Given under my hand and seal of the State of Ohio, in Columbus, this 24th day of January, Two Thousand Eleven.
John R. Kasich
See the proclamation for yourself here: http://www.scohio.org/ohioschoolchoiceweek.
We are so grateful for Governor Kasich’s support and all that it means for thousands of families across Ohio!
What better way to celebrate National School Choice Week than by speaking up and asking our state leaders for more school choice?
Here’s how:
Step 1: Find your two state legislators at www.schoolchoiceadvocates.org
Step 2: Give each one of them a quick call (leave a message if they don’t answer) or send them an e-mail.
Step 3: Tell them something like: “Hi! My name is _____. I am calling because it’s National School Choice Week and I’m excited that Ohio has so much school choice already. I think it would be great if we had even MORE school choice because ____.”
It’s just that easy. Our legislators don’t know what we want unless we tell them. If you want more school choice, speak up!
Help us celebrate by spreading the word about school choice and joining the conversation.
Want to see who else is “IN” for National School Choice Week? Check out this video.
School Choice and Education News
January 2011 – first edition
Ohio News
Charter-school partners: Columbus should follow example set by nine big-city school districts
The Columbus Dispatch-December 31, 2010
The nine big-city school districts who signed the “District-Charter Collaboration Compact” are taking a step to break the failed patterns of many traditional public schools. This is an important step as traditional public schools seek ways to collaborate with charters that have found success with new approaches and methods.
Rebooted: After a rough start, Columbus KIPP school’s progress encouraging
The Columbus Dispatch-January 3, 2011
After the first year without seeing any progress, KIPP Junior Academy showed tremendous performance gains during its second year. In the 2008-2009 year, the passing rates were 29 percent in math and 32 percent in reading. That same group of students then had a 62 percent passing rate in the 2009-2010 school year. KIPP schools stress hard work, high expectations and strict behavior codes while recruiting only the most committed and brightest graduates in all disciplines as teachers.
Cleveland school district gets proposals for 10 new charters
Cleveland Plain Dealer-January 18, 2011
The Cleveland School District offered to sponsor the start-up of new charter schools in the area. Under the district’s “transformation plan,” charter schools will be promoted as options for students. Ten schools have been proposed for selection and the school board will determine which, if any, schools to sponsor on February 22nd.
Recession makes education reform urgent, educator says
Dayton Daily News-January 19, 2011
The current recession is making education reform a top priority. Geoffrey Canada, of the Harlem Children’s Zone, is pushing for charter schools, using student performance to hold teachers accountable, and longer school calendars in order to turn around a underperforming schools’ culture of failure. Ohio is striving to implement national education standards while continuing its support of school choice and charter schools.
National News
Rhee taking agenda for D.C.-style education reform to national stage
Washington Examiner-January 1, 2011
Former D.C. city schools chancellor, Michelle Rhee, plans to create a national education platform through StudentsFirst, the nonprofit advocacy group she started earlier this month. Although it cannot be determined if her platform will be adopted by legislators, there are many legislators willing to take risks and school districts looking to turn around failing schools.
Indy Star-January 13, 2011
Indiana’s governor, Mitch Daniels, emphasized education reform and school choice during his State of the State address this week. He believes that parents should have the choice of public school, charter schools and private schools. Public surveys have shown that voters are in favor of educational options as well.
America Gets Ready for National School Choice Week, January 23-29, 2011
PR NewsWire- January 16, 2011
Tens of thousands of individuals are expected to attend National School Choice Week events beginning January 23rd. Events will raise public awareness about any and all forms of educational choice while encouraging elected officials to fight for true education reform.
Education choice to push innovation
The Des Moines Register-December 30, 2010
Jason Glass, the newly appointed Director of the Iowa Department of Education, has an aggressive education reform plan in mind which will give local school districts more freedom to try new things. The plan also includes finding a new system of teacher evaluations that identifies and removes weak teachers in order to return Iowa’s focus back to student achievement.
School Choice Ohio is proud to announce the activation of its long-awaited YouTube Channel.
With just a click, you can see and hear parents and students telling their stories about what school choice means to them, both in their own lives and for students across Ohio.
The written word is powerful, but hearing the voice and seeing the eyes of a mom whose son is learning to speak for the first time brings that story alive in a way that transcends the words she uses.
Currently the SCO YouTube Channel boasts a half-dozen videos of families grateful for the Ohio Autism Scholarship. Look for more videos from EdChoice Scholarship families coming soon.
We all know how important it is for our state and local political leaders to know the positive impact that Ohio’s voucher programs are having in their areas. And the best way for leaders to understand the impact of vouchers is to see it firsthand.
Parents and students are active across the state building relationships with their state legislators, investing in the democratic process, and sharing the stories of the wonderful changes that the EdChoice, Cleveland, and Autism vouchers bring to their families and neighborhoods.
Legislators, in turn, have been eager to connect with families to hear their stories and learn more about this important area of education policy.
Linda Feigenbaum, a Columbus grandmother, took the initiative to have lunch with the then-candidate in her area, Michael Stinziano. They met for lunch at Bob Evans and talked about school choice, Mr. Stinziano’s background, and his areas of policy interest. Linda shared how important the EdChoice voucher has been for her grandson and was excited to learn that Stinziano, an incoming Democrat member of the House of Representatives, already supports school choice.
“Michael was so personable and easy to talk to,” Linda said.
School Choice Ohio appreciates all the families who take time to share their stories and all the legislators who take time to listen.