House Primary & Secondary Education Committee
The committee heard sponsor testimony on Senate Bill (SB) 168, sponsored by Sen. Michele Reynolds (R-Canal Winchester), which would make several regulatory changes, including but not limited to the following:
- Allowing school districts to develop and use their own frameworks for teacher evaluation, instead of using a framework developed by the State Board of Education;
- Clarifying that a school district is not required to hold a separate, individual public hearing on a proposed school calendar, but that the calendar may be addressed as part of another public hearing or meeting;
- Modifying license or certificate qualifications for senior or lead professional educators, holders of professional administrator or alternative superintendent licenses, and nonteachers employed as teachers;
- Eliminating seniority as a preference when making reductions in nonteaching staff positions;
- Clarifying when non-licensed individuals working in a school must be entered into the RAPback system and that the RAPback provision will be overseen by the State Board of Education (SBOE).
The committee also held a second hearing on House Bill (HB) 339, sponsored by Rep. Gary Click (R-Vickery), which would establish the Nonchartered Educational Savings Account Program for eligible students enrolling in participating nonchartered nonpublic schools.
State Board of Education
The State Board of Education (SBOE) and its staff will no longer be moving their office to the campus of the Ohio Department of Agriculture in Reynoldsburg, Ohio. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Paul Craft notified the SBOE that the board will instead move about a half a mile down the road into the William Green Building in downtown Columbus. The move is set for April of this year.
Department of Education and Workforce
The Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) has the following proposed rules open for public comment:
Draft rules open for comment:
- OAC 3301-102-08: Standards for measuring sponsor compliance with applicable laws and rules.
- OAC Chapter 3301-101: Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship Program.
Click here to view the rules open for public comment.
New Bills Introduced
- HB 406, sponsored by Rep. Steve Demetriou (R-Bainbridge Township), which would require the State Teachers Retirement System and the School Employees Retirement System to evaluate certain digital asset investments, among other provisions.
- HB 407, sponsored by Reps. Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville) and Bill Seitz (R-Cincinnati), requires chartered nonpublic schools that participate in certain scholarship programs to report student performance to the Department of Education and Workforce to be compared to other schools located in that school district and make that data publicly accessible on a web site.
- HB 408, sponsored by Reps. Darnell Brewer (D-Cleveland) and Ismail Mohamed (D-Columbus), requires public schools to provide meals and related services to students.
- HB 411, sponsored by Rep. Joseph A. Miller III (D-Amherst), would increase the base teacher salary to $50,000.
Federal update
Please click here to read the weekly Federal Advocacy Education Report which includes education related information.