With over 700 school districts across Ohio and the growth of the internet, it should be easy to find districts that provide contact information, agendas and minutes of meetings and maybe even provide audio or video footage of their meetings. Last year our organization contacted hundreds of districts and found that many did not even list an email or phone for contacting their board members.
2014 is off and running for OSBLC. Newly elected school board members from around the state took part in essential training for board members. Topics discussed included board ethics, ORC codes, responsibilities of a board member, networking, public records and so much more. All the events were packed into a 10 hour day. Agenda speakers included Christopher Finney and William Deters, both prominent attorneys practicing in the Cincinnati area.
“Ohio Controlling Board Approves Recommended Straight A Fund Grants to Foster Innovation”
The state of Ohio approved 24 grants involving about 150 school districts in the mid December meeting of the Controlling Board. The awards totaled about 88 of the 250 million allocated by the Governor’s budget. Applications for the 2014 grants will be accepted beginning in February. Just click here to see if your district was awarded funds.
If you are an active school board member or a citizen looking to educate yourself, please use these links below to help you in your quest to be better informed.
5 year forecastTeacher salary databaseView collective bargaining agreementsView an audit of any school district or municipalityFind your school report cardDistrict profile reports (Cupp report)Find donors in your communityPast election/levy results
In front of a crowd of over 325 concerned citizens, advocates debated the pros and cons of Ohio’s new Common Core State Standards. Click below to watch the complete video of the debate.
If you believe Ohio needs an organization like OSBLC, we encourage you to become a member today. Membership provides us with the funds and influence to make a difference in Ohio.
Ohio School Boards Leadership Coalition advocates for excellence in education through reform, restoration, and accountability. We believe that school board members are responsible for the oversight of the management of these initiatives.
Our goal is to coach our members and citizens of this State to become more informed about the quality and costs of education.
May 7 shaped up to be a day where some districts across the state passed levies and some were left to wait for recounts. One such district in Montgomery County, Brookville local schools passed a renewal levy with relative ease, but the request for new money ended in a tie: 865 for the levy and 865 against. It will likely be resolved with absentee votes and a mandated recount. Elsewhere many schools await the biennium budget among other factors before they decide what to do in the fall.
Lewis Center, Ohio – Advocates on both sides of the Common Core State Standards debate met Saturday in front of a crowd of over 325 concerned residents. Most came to learn about Ohio’s new Common Core State Standards and the impact that they will have on Ohio students.
On Saturday March 16 more than 30 citizens from across Ohio attended OSBLC’s Board Candidate Workshop.
The workshop provided potential board candidates answers to common questions ranging from election laws to organizing their campaigns. In addition to learning valuable information, attendees had an opportunity to network and discuss their motivations for running for school board. The focus of this first workshop was to help attendees with their decision to run for school board and provide them with tips and resources on how to run a successful campaign.
OSBLC will be holding another candidate workshop on June 22nd. Subcribe to our mailing list to be notified of future details.
On Thursday, January 31st, Governor Kasich announced his education budget plan to a room filled with Ohio Superintendents, press and charter school organizations. Dr. Richard Ross, Barb Mattei-Smith and Tim Keen were there to provide an overview.
Today marks the 6 month anniversary of OSBLC, a state wide organization designed to be a resource for citizens, school board candidates, and current school board members.
For citizens, we are a resource that can be utilized to gain essential information about your local school district. Citizens can contact us anytime with questions about any educational concern from legislation to curriculum.
For school board members, we serve as a source to communicate about all things district related from 5 year forecast to curriculum changes.