Restarting Ohio: Educators mapping plans for return to classroom

DAYTON — Dayton Public School Superintendent Elizabeth Lolli and other top educators from around the state are trying to navigate a complex and problematic path to the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

Lolli and her peers from the eight largest school districts around Ohio Monday called on Gov. Mike DeWine and state lawmakers to provide districts maximum flexibility.

Lolli said in a video conference call with reporters that many students did not stay on course academically at the end of last school year when they finished with online learning. In fact, Lolli said, some students were absent entirely from the virtual classrooms from mid-March to the end of the school year.

“I personally had 2,000 students that didn’t show up on line even though we gave them internet access and we gave them Chromebooks. We actually went door to door to find those students,” she said.

Their requests to the state begin with suspension of mandatory testing for one year. Educators from multiple districts said they support accountability, but argue too many students need more instruction now and not more testing.

“So at this point, I think testing, the Third-Grade Guarantee, all of those things need to be suspended. Allow us to focus on the curriculum. Allow us to focus on the students,” said Kevin Dalton, president of the Toledo Federation of Teachers.

Two other requests to the state involve money. First, the superintendents are asking for an end to cuts in state aid to schools. The last round of cuts was ordered by DeWine in response to a dramatic fall in state tax revenues when the “Stay At Home” order shut down the state’s economy early in the COVID-19 crisis. Second, districts are asking for additional distribution of federal funding from the Cares Act.

While no firm decisions have been announced on how students will return to the classroom and still be kept safe from the spread of the virus, there are many precautions being discussed. They include possible temperature checks on every student before they get on the bus to school in the morning.

Educators, including Lolli, are urging DeWine and the State Department of Education to issue guidelines for the return to the classroom as soon as possible so local districts can finalize their plans.

“We are behind the eight ball when it comes to planning for next school year. The sooner we know the information, the better off we will be,” Lolli said.

An announcement on the state guidelines for a return to the classroom could come as early as Tuesday when DeWine holds his next briefing on the state’s response to the pandemic.

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