“Today is a truly great day for the children of Cleveland and the future of our community,” said Senator Turner. “The dedicated efforts of all involved in this legislation have paid off, and the Cleveland Schools will now have the mechanisms in place to turn Mayor Jackson’s vision into reality. However, the real work has just begun. It will take the continued commitment from everyone in our community to fix our schools and give our students a brighter future—legislation cannot do it alone.”
The overall goal of the collaborative effort among Cleveland city officials, the Ohio legislature, teachers union and business community is to ensure that every child in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District has access to a high quality education.
“This bill makes the kinds of bold changes that are necessary to address the problems that plague Cleveland and many other large urban school districts across the country,” said Senator Lehner. “With this plan, Cleveland is leading the way in implementing and developing models for delivering quality education.”
Highlights of the plan include tripling the number of Cleveland students enrolled in high-performing district and charter schools, and eliminating failing schools within six years.
“This is the first step in improving the lives of Cleveland children who find themselves in a substandard educational system,” said Representative Williams. “The support by the House and the Senate was overwhelming. As soon as the Governor signs Sub. House Bill 525, the ball will be in the hands of the citizens. I understand that times are tough for many Cleveland families, but we have to pass a levy in November in order to implement the necessary changes.”
This legislation will also give students in grades 9-12 a voice in their educational futures through an amendment offered by Senator Turner that creates a Student Advisory Committee.
“It was an honor to support the leadership of Cleveland legislators and Mayor Jackson on this bi-partisan process to respond to Cleveland’s call for help on better educating their children,” said Representative Amstutz.
HB 525 will also authorize the district to intervene in low-performing schools in consultation and collaboration with the Cleveland Teachers’ Union and clarifies that teachers and employees cannot be fired as a direct condition of being in a low-performing school.
“It has taken a lot of hard work to reach this point, and will take sustained effort and collaboration to make what was accomplished today a true success,” said Senator Turner. We have demonstrated that a partnership between teachers and administrators; businesses and labor; and parents, politicians, and so many others can make a real difference—it is up to us to continue to fight for high quality education for all students in every school.”
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