Proposed higher education bill draws criticism; The challenges Ohio colleges would face

COLUMBUS — A new bill for higher education enhancement was introduced Wednesday to the Ohio Senate.

State Senator Jerry C. Cirino (R-D18) introduced Senate Bill 83, Higher Education Enhancement Act, designed to protect higher learning for future generations.

“The bill attempts to micromanage public and to an extent, private colleges and universities on a variety of issues, most of which are rooted in the culture wars,” a spokesperson for the American Association of University of Professors said.

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Cirino is the chair of the Workforce and Higher Education Committee for the Ohio General Assembly and formerly served as chairman of the board of trustees of Lakeland Community College and a board member of Lake Erie College.

“I consulted with leadership at many of these institutions, and a variety of other experts, to make sure we have a plan that is both practical and ambitious, with the best interests of students as our top concern. This sweeping and exhaustively detailed legislation is meant to ensure students get what they pay for – a world-class education that will give them top value in the workforce and the tools needed to help them succeed in life,” Cirino said.

In the 39-page bill, Cirino introduces various ways private and state institutions should protect freedom of speech, provide syllabus transparency, post-tenure review, and ban affiliations with the People’s Republic of China, highlighting a few key areas. Private schools would only be affected by this bill if they are receiving state funding.

The bill calls for private and state colleges to no longer have required diversity, equality, and inclusion training or courses for staff, faculty, and students.

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The course syllabus would now have to include biographical information about the instructor and all assignments and exams listed, and each lecture would be required to be accompanied by a general description of the subject matter.

Cirino’s call for syllabus transparency also requires each state college to post each syllabus on the college’s website for at least two years unless changes are needed and accessible from the website’s homepage. Additionally, all syllabi shall not be password protected to allow anyone to see them.

If this bill makes it to the governor’s desk for DeWine’s signature, students seeking an associate or bachelor’s degree graduating Spring 2026-2027 will be required to take at least three credit hours of either American government or American History. The bill calls for all students to complete the following reading assignments:

• The entire Constitution of the United States
• The entire Declaration of Independence
• Five essays in their entirety from the Federalist Papers
• The entire Emancipation Proclamation
• The entire Gettysburg Address
• The entire letter Martin Luther King Jr wrote from Birmingham Jail

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After students complete the reading assignments, colleges will be required to give a cumulative final exam over the six reading assignments that students will need to pass.

“The bill’s primary purpose is to ensure Ohio’s students are educated by means of free, open, and rigorous intellectual inquiry to seek the truth,” Cirino said.

Colleges will be required to include standard questions on student evaluations of their instructors designated by the bill, which includes the following question: “Does the faculty member create a classroom atmosphere free of political, racial, gender, and religious bias?”

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By August 1, 2024, the numerical score of student evaluations of their instructors will be required to be published on the college’s website and then updated every year.

The bill will also require any state college not to renew any contract with the People’s Republic of China or accept any gifts, donations, or enter into any new academic relationships or agreements.

According to our news partners at WCPO, Ohio Education Association’s President Scott DiMauro said this of the proposed bill, “any proposal that undermines the freedom of educators to teach and learn or that threatens collective bargaining rights would threaten the ability of these high-quality professionals to effectively do their jobs and fight for the learning conditions their students deserve.”

The bill has been introduced to the State Senate, and it is unknown when the bill will be reviewed or heard by the Ohio Senate committee. To read the bill, visit the Ohio Senates website.

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