What to know about the plans for major changes in Ohio Department of Education

Anna Staver  The Columbus Dispatch, December 1, 2022

Republicans in the Ohio Senate want to change who's in charge of Ohio's Department of Education, a system that oversees the schooling of more than 1.8 million children.

And they hope to do so before the end of the year.

Some of the changes in Senate Bill 178 would "completely" alter how big decisions about public education get made in Ohio.

"SB 178 proposes a significant shift in the way education is overseen and supported in Ohio," Ohio Education Association .President Scott DiMauro said.

The 2,100-page bill is both long and technically complex, but here is what supporters and opponents say parents need to know about the ways this might change education in Ohio.

What would the bill do to the Ohio Department of Education?     A quick explanation of Senate Bill 178 is that it would change three areas of public education.

First, it changes what the Ohio Department of Education is called and who is in charge. The bill renames ODE as the Department of Education and Workforce and creates a new director who would be appointed by the governor. The current leader of the department is the state superintendent who gets elected by Ohio's State Board of Education.

Second, the legislation transfers most of the Ohio State Board of Education and state superintendent's responsibilities to that new director position.

Third, the plan puts a bigger focus on college alternatives by dividing the new department into two divisions: The Division of Primary and Secondary Education and the Division of Career Technical Education. Each of these divisions would get a new director.

Director vs. state superintendent     Changing who runs Ohio's public education system and how they get the job is a big deal.  The state superintendent is chosen by the Ohio State Board of Education, and 11 of those 19 people are elected by the citizens of Ohio. Together, they guide the development of academic standards. They develop our state strategic plan (currently called Each Child, Our Future), recommend textbooks and set curriculum standards.

SB 178 would change that by placing those powers into the new cabinet-level position.  "There is nobody in the cabinet in education and education is one of the most important responsibilities that legislators have, that the governor has," Sen. Bill Reineke, R-Tiffin, said. The governor already appoints several agency heads like the Ohio departments of Health, Commerce and Medicaid.

But Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson, D-Toledo, questioned how "removing power from a public body and placing it in a cabinet position" would be better for Ohio's children, parents or democracy.  "One of the hallmarks of school board meetings is that parents are able to go and talk directly to their elected officials, and they won’t have that opportunity anymore," Hicks-Hudson said. "There's no regular opportunity for people to meet with the (Ohio Department of Health) and talk about their delivery of services."

Is Ohio better with or without the state board's input?     Reineke and other Senate Republicans say the state board of education has been plagued by ideological infighting for years and the current way of doing things at the Ohio Department of Education doesn't work.   Nearly one in five Ohio students entering college need to take remedial courses in math or English, according to 2021’s Ohio Remediation Report.  Programs passed by lawmakers to help children close those achievement gaps never seem to get the attention they should, Reineke said. "I'm absolutely convinced with that high of a remediation number that they are not being effective now."  

The Afterschool Child Enrichment program (which is administered by the state board) is supposed to give lower-income students $500 for enrichment and tutoring services. More than 240,000 children are eligible for the program but less than 20,000 have accounts−a lackluster result that he and Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima, blame the board for.

"There is no accountability for this failure to our citizens or our students and their families," Reineke said.

DiMauro, whose organization doesn't support or oppose the bill yet, told state lawmakers that he understands "a lot of the frustration" with the current board, but he's wary of making such a significant change without taking more time to vet the new plan.  "There is a lot of experience and institutional knowledge within ODE," DiMauro said. "Would that talent transfer over to the newly created Department of Education and Workforce?"  Would this new director also change the agency's entire organizational chart? Would certain programs get more or less emphasis in the new system?  "I find it troubling that this bill would get serious consideration during lame duck without answers to these important questions," he said.

Is the bill being rushed by Ohio lawmakers?    Reineke introduced the current version of SB 178 on Nov. 15, and it's more than 2,000 pages in length.  Many of those pages change the Ohio Department of Education's name everywhere it appears in code, but the rest of the legislation restructures how the department works.

These are major changes, and DiMauro isn't alone in thinking one month of hearings, votes and debate across both chambers won't be nearly enough.  "This is a huge shift in how we make education decisions in this state, and it deserves to be properly vetted ...," Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper said. "To rush it through in lame duck, something that fundamentally changes how we do education in this state, is unfair to the people of the state of Ohio and seems undemocratic."

Hicks-Hudson also questioned why this had to be done in the waning days of this current legislative session instead of taking more time next year.  "Consider that it took 20-some years for us to land on a bipartisan fix for the school funding formula, and we’re going to do this in 20 days," Hicks-Hudson said. "I know God created the earth in seven days but it takes man a little bit longer."

But Reineke said this idea is not new, Ohio governors have been talking about shifting these duties into a cabinet position for decades. Former Republican Gov. John Kasich tried to fold the state board's duties into his office in 2018. And former Gov. George Voinovich tried something similar in 1991.

What about this emphasis on career technical education?     This seems to be a place where there is a lot of agreement.

Everyone interviewed by the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau said the state would benefit from increased participation in trade schools and other non-college career pathways as well as reducing the stigma around them.

"To get out of that way of thinking structural changes may need to occur," Vanguard Sentinel Career and Technology Centers Superintendent Greg Edinger said.

What do local Ohio superintendents think?     The superintendents who have testified so far have been in support of the proposed changes in SB 178.  "My support for a new path forward isn't because of the people in the current roles; it is because the existing structure needs alignment and vision," Dublin Superintendent John Marschhausen said.   He told lawmakers that Ohio's current system keeps schools from "adapting to the changing workforce needs," putting "our children and communities at a disadvantage." In plain language, "there are simply too many cooks in the kitchen to create a clear path forward." 

But opponent testimony on the bill hasn't gotten underway yet and folks like Hicks-Hudson worry that weather, holiday obligations and general life responsibilities may get in the way of hearing from key stakeholders.  "We’re moving very quickly on what I think is a very important issue," she said.

What does Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine think of SB 178?     Republican Gov. Mike DeWine told reporters that he feels the same way as his predecessors about moving many of the state's education responsibilities into his office.  "Candidly, the bill was not our idea, but I support the bill...," DeWine said. "I think what the public expects is accountability, and it'd hard to have accountability under our current system."

Can SB 178 pass before the end of the year?     Senate President Huffman is a strong supporter of the legislation, which means it's likely to get a vote in that chamber if it gets out of committee.

The bill's chances in the Ohio House are less clear. Speaker Bob Cupp, R-Lima, didn't respond to a request for comment.