CMSD Charter Office Newsletter
December 2024-January 2025
The fall has been a busy time for us, and we recently completed all of our fall site visits. As a reminder, these include a special education file audit, a student file review, a compliance and building review, and classroom observations. We appreciate how easy your building leaders have made these for us and hope the information we have shared with them has been valuable.
We will be releasing our annual sponsorship report by January. We previously discussed academic results for all sponsored schools in the last newsletter and at board meetings.
We hope you all get a chance to relax and enjoy special time with friends and family before we are busy with the rest of the school year.
Thank you for choosing CMSD as your sponsor, and best wishes for a wonderful holiday season!
Legislative Update
Members of the Ohio House of Representatives and Senate returned mid-November after a lengthy summer and pre-election recess.
Among the bills recently addressed of interest to K-12 education stakeholders was S.B. 104 which was originally introduced to make revisions to Ohio’s College Credit Plus Program including modifying the student application deadline, requiring the utilization of forms developed by the Department of Higher Education (DHE), and requiring private institutions of higher education to provide CCP students with an orientation that meets guidelines established by DHE. The bill also requires the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to include on state report cards report-only, nonrated data about whether public schools provide information about, and promote, CCP as required under continuing law.
The legislation was amended to include provisions of H.B. 183 which require public and chartered nonpublic schools, educational service centers (ESCs), and institutions of higher education to designate specified facilities for the exclusive use of students of either the male or female biological sex. It also prohibits schools and ESCs from permitting members of the female biological sex to use a student restroom, locker room, changing room, or shower that is designed for the male biological sex and vice versa. Institutions of higher education are prohibited from knowingly permitting members of the female biological sex to use a student restroom, locker room, change room, or shower that is designated for the male biological sex and vice versa. Schools and ESCs are also prohibited from allowing members of the female biological sex to share overnight accommodations with members of the male biological sex.
The Senate concurred with the bill, as passed by the House in June, and S.B. 104 was sent to Governor Mike DeWine who signed it on November 27.
The Ohio Senate Education Committee has conducted several hearings on legislation (S.B. 295) introduced in June aimed at closing chronically poor performing traditional public schools, as well as charters and STEM schools.
The placeholder bill introduced by Senate Education Committee Chair Andy Brenner (R-Delaware) simply expresses the General Assembly’s intent to revise the closure requirements for poor-performing charter schools and school buildings operated by school districts.
In testimony before the Senate Education Committee, Senator Brenner provided greater insight into his vision for a substitute version of the bill. He proposes defining a "poor performing school” as: district operated schools, charters and STEM schools serving grades four and above in the lowest five percent for performance index and 10 percent progress effect size among all public schools for three consecutive years and dropout prevention and recovery charter schools receiving a rating of “does not meet standards” for three consecutive years.
The options for schools meeting the criteria for poor performance would include: close at the end of the school year in which they receive the third strike; replace the school’s principal and 60 percent of its licensed staff; consolidate the entire district with another district in the event it is a district that triggers the closure criteria; or, engage an education management organization, educational service center, or Ohio public or private college or university to operate the school beginning the following school year.
“I have been working closely with the Department of Education and Workforce and other interested parties to create what we believe is a fair approach to standardizing closure language …,” Senator Brenner said in his testimony. “… it is my hope that this bill will help to standardize the law surrounding school closures for public and community schools and help ensure that each student in Ohio receives the best education possible.”
The House and Senate are also considering two companion bills – H.B. 445 and S.B. 293 – which would require school districts to adopt policies authorizing students to be excused from school to attend a released time course in religious instruction. It would require, rather than permit as under current law, school district boards to adopt policies authorizing students to attend a released time course in religious instruction conducted by a private entity off school district property during regular school hours.
The student’s parent or guardian would need to provide written consent. The sponsoring entity would be required to maintain attendance records and make them available to the student’s school district. Additionally, the sponsoring entity, parent, guardian and/or student would take complete responsibility for transportation to and from the place of instruction. The sponsoring entity would also be required to make provisions, and assume liability, for students. No public funds would be spent and no school personnel would be involved in providing the religious instruction. Students would be responsible for any missed schoolwork.
Provisions of the religious instruction bills were merged with the proposed “Parents’ Bill of Rights” (H.B. 8) which would require public schools to ensure that any sexuality content is age and developmentally appropriate, and to provide parents with notice about instructional materials that include sexuality content and an opportunity to request alternative instruction. Schools would also be required to notify parents about school-provided healthcare services and the option to withhold consent or decline any specified service and changes to the health services or monitoring provided to their children by their school related to the student’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being. School personnel would be prohibited from encouraging a student to withhold from a parent information concerning the student’s health or well-being, unless that disclosure would result in abuse, abandonment, or neglect.
Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima), who will likely serve as speaker when he returns to the House in 2025, has acknowledged that H.B. 8 is a priority to current Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill). It appears likely to be passed by both chambers during the brief year-end lame duck legislative session.
Professional Development Sessions
Math Intervention Recommendation Series
Join us in a focused, collaborative series on K-6 Math Interventions, guided by the IES Practice Guide: “Assisting Students Struggling with Mathematics: Intervention in the Elementary Grades.”
Series: 1/9, 1/23, 2/6, 2/20, 3/6, and 3/20
8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Registration deadline: 1/6/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Enhancing Mathematical Thinking Through Writing
This session is designed for grades 3-8 math teachers looking to enhance their students’ learning experiences. We will explore effective strategies from the Hochman Method, as defined in The Writing Revolution.
1/15/25
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Registration deadline: 1/8/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Understanding IEP/ETR: Essential Knowledge for Principals
Join us for two half-day sessions tailored for principals and district representatives. We will unpack the fundamentals of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and Evaluation Team Reports (ETRs), including legal requirements and quality indicators. We will share a variety of valuable resources and offer opportunities for ongoing support.
Series: 1/21/25 (9:00 - 11:30 am), 3/3/25 (1:00 - 3:30 pm)
Registration deadline: 1/20/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Explicit Writing Strategies
Participants will dive into The Writing Revolution strategies resting on explicit, carefully sequenced instruction, building from sentences to compositions.
1/28/25
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Cost: $25 (includes book)
Registration deadline: 1/12/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Calming the Classroom Management Crisis
This session is meant for teachers. Join us to bridge principles (MTSS, RTI, PBIS) into practice.
Do you wish to know more about why student behaviors are happening?
Do you need low tech, no cost tips for behaviors without putting "one more thing on your plate?”
Are your traditional classroom management methods no longer working?
1/29/25
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Registration deadline: 1/27/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Supporting Trauma Informed Play with Young Children
This self-paced session will focus on play and play-based learning and strategies for children who have experienced trauma. Play is essential for the healthy growth and development of all children and is psychologically and physically healthy for children with a history of trauma.
Series: 2/1/25, 3/1/25, 4/1/25, 5/1/25
Virtual
Please register in OCCRRA using:
1/1 - 1/31/2025 ST# 10145897
2/1 - 2/28/2025 ST# 10145898
3/1 - 3/31/2025 ST# 10145899
4/1 - 4/30/2025 ST# 10145900
5/1 - 5/31/2025 ST# 10145901
Improving Adolescent Literacy
Virtually every teacher will work with a student that struggles to read on grade level. This is especially troublesome in grades 4-12 when much of the curriculum requires students to read and understand increasingly complex text.
Join this important series where we will use the new What Works Clearinghouse™ practice guide as our main resource to explore the practical recommendations set forth by the national experts.
During each session, participants will explore, discuss, collaborate, and learn more about the recommendations and example activities that can be implemented the very next day.
Series: 2/6/25, 3/3/25, 4/10/25
9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Registration deadline: 2/5/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Restorative Practice Discipline Training for Middle and High School Administrators
Disproportionate discipline and Chronic Absenteeism are issues facing the majority of school districts in Northeast Ohio. Restorative Practices, specifically aligned to the work district administrators do with students and families, may be one tool to mitigating these issues.
2/13/25
1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Registration deadline: 2/12/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
ED STEPS Root Cause Analysis and Vision Setting
Participants will learn strategies to effectively facilitate the One Needs Assessment and begin to craft a framework for developing the One Plan during the sessions.
2/25/25
9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Registration deadline: 2/24/25
ESC of NE Ohio
6393 Oak Tree Blvd., Essex Place
Independence, Ohio 44131
Other K-12 Education News
The DeWine Administration has identified reducing student chronic absenteeism as a key K-12 education priority and joined about two dozen states in establishing a goal of cutting the current rate in half over the next five years.
Chronic absenteeism – defined as missing 10 percent of the school year (about two days a month) for any reason (including excused absences) – is a national problem. Ohio’s rate of chronic absenteeism in the 2018-2019 school year was 16.7 percent. It dropped to 11.2 percent in 2019-2020 but then spiked to a high of 30.2 percent during the COVID pandemic. Some progress has been made as indicated by a rate of 25.6 percent in the 2023-2024 school year, down slightly from 26.8 percent the previous year.
The clear connection between regular attendance and reading proficiency, academic performance and high school graduation are universally recognized.
According to the Department of Education and Workforce (DEW), the highest chronic absenteeism rates in elementary schools are among kindergarteners. The highest rates overall are among high school students and in Ohio’s large urban school districts.
At DEW’s November public meeting, updates were provided on Governor Mike DeWine’s recently launched Governor’s Science of Reading Recognition Program aimed at celebrating schools that are making strong progress in student literacy including activities required to earn the honor which include: science of reading professional development; assessments and assessment procedures; systems and structures that support student learning; commitment to increasing effectiveness of literacy practices; family engagement to support literacy; high quality instructional materials aligned to the science of reading; and, evidence of literacy progress.
ReadOhio coaches are a part of Ohio’s strategy to provide schools with strong support. In fiscal year 2025, the number of ReadOhio coaches increased to 84 serving 115 schools, up from 33 serving 53 schools the previous fiscal year.
Columbus City Schools (CSS) continues to face legal challenges over its decision to deem more than 2,400 charter and private school students impractical to bus and failing to provide adequate notice to parents (as required by state law).
Attorney General Dave Yost sent a cease-and-desist letter to the district in September and filed a mandamus complaint with the Ohio Supreme Court. The court rejected CCS’s petition to dismiss the case against it, rejecting the district’s argument that DEW – not the judicial system -- was the appropriate venue for determining the merits of the case.
Franklinton High School – a public charter school located just west of downtown Columbus – filed a class action complaint against CCS in Franklin County Common Pleas Court on the basis of it (and other schools) losing students due to the district’s refusal to provide transportation services to its students. The school’s lawsuit seeks financial relief for itself and the estimated 80 fellow class members “based on the determination issued by the Ohio Supreme Court in the pending mandamus action.”
About four percent (102) of students’ families rejected compensation in lieu of transportation (as permitted under current law) and filed for mediation through DEW.
In a previous high court filing, CCS reported that it transports nearly 38,000 students, including 9,400-plus attending charter and private schools.