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Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.Home > Blogs > A Matter of Opinion > Archives > 2009 > May > 08 > Entry
Obama can push Ohio to reform even more
Gov. Ted Strickland’s proposed two-year budget is a thing of the past.
This week numbers came out showing that state income tax revenues are coming in so far below projections that it’s possible — make that probable — that the state’s “rainy day” fund could be used up by the end of June.
That pot — almost $1 billion — was one of the sources of $7 billion in one-time money that the governor was counting on to help pay for the first steps in his huge 10-year education reform plan. Even before this bad news came out, critics were saying that Gov. Strickland couldn’t possibly fund his ideas unless a windfall arrives (or he raises taxes).
One source the governor may be banking on is money from the U.S. Department of Education. It has $100 billion in federal stimulus money to spend. In a speech last week, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said the states that adopt the president’s priorities will be rewarded with extra money from “challenge grants.”
“There will be lots of pressure to fund all 50 states,” he said. “I promise you that is not going to happen. We will focus on the states most committed to these (the president’s) reforms.”
Maybe tellingly, today Secretary Duncan is appearing with Gov. Strickland at a rally in Columbus supporting the governor’s education plan.
Is it possible that Gov. Strickland has cut a deal with the Obama administration, insisting that Ohio deserves something for its support of the president and, by the way, the state is on board for the president’s priorities for schools? Has Gov. Strickland reminded the administration that there’s another election coming up in 2012, and Ohio is tired of being so important during presidential campaigns, but being forgotten later?
These would not be ridiculous points.
But do Gov. Strickland’s goals really match up with President Obama’s? Yes and no. In a recent speech, the president focused on five things:
Invest in early childhood education
Gov. Strickland has actually proposed cutting money for pre-school, after speaking up for early childhood education in his State of the State speech. He has dedicated some people to the cause, but spending money in pre-kindergarten classrooms is where the real work gets done.
Better standards and assessment
President Obama is critical of states that give easy proficiency and graduation tests that students score well on, even as they do poorly on national tests. Ohio is not in that group. Its state and national test scores compare fairly well.
Meanwhile, the president also opposes using just proficiency tests. Gov. Strickland is with the president on that score, proposing to require that all high-school students take a college entrance exam and calling for end-of-course exams and senior projects.
Recruiting, preparing and rewarding teachers
Though Ohio should have merit pay, the state doesn’t push that practice. President Obama, however, favors it. In what may be a back-door approach to the controversial issue, the governor has called for a “residency” program for new teachers, coupled with a “career ladder” and new sorts of licenses for top teachers. Those changes could lead to paying the best teachers more.
Promoting innovation and excellence
President Obama wants to lift caps on the number of charter schools. Gov. Strickland says he’s a fan of good charters (Ohio has a ton), but many charter school advocates complain his budget doesn’t reflect that. In his defense, the governor has pushed for more accountability from charter operators.
Quality higher education
This is a big strength for Ohio. Under the direction of Chancellor Eric Fingerhut, the state has pushed colleges to create opportunities for high-schoolers to start college early, and the state has kept a lid on tuition increases, with the goal of making Ohio colleges more affordable. Its colleges also are increasingly partnering with K-12 schools.
Gov. Strickland has plenty of good stories to tell Secretary Duncan about what Ohio’s doing in and with its schools. If, however, he wants to argue that the state can be a poster child for the Obama administration’s goals, he has more work to do.
Given how desperately Ohio needs Washington’s money, President Obama and his people can’t be criticized if they insist the state should be even more in sync with them.
Permalink | Comments (7) | Post your comment | Categories: Editorials, Education, Scott Elliott
Comments
By ACE
May 8, 2009 7:35 AM | Link to this
“Ohio needs Washington’s money”, is about one of the most dumbass things I have ever read. What you should say is “Ohio WANTS taxpayers money” seeing how they don’t need money they want it, and Washington doesn’t have or control money, taxpayers do. Maybe if Ohio was smart and lowered tax rates, more people would move to Ohio than leave, which would bring in more tax revenue.By George
May 8, 2009 8:23 AM | Link to this
“Reform” is another word designed to mislead the public. Requesting MORE money (that we do not have) for a failing, bloated bureaucracy known as the public school system is senseless. Democrat politicians like Obama and Strickland are either addicted to power or addicted to spending our money. Letting the free market system educate our children would create better schools at about 2/3rds of the current cost. It is done in other countries but not in America. Why?, because Democrat politicians are beholden to the powerful teachers unions.By Sdot
May 8, 2009 8:35 AM | Link to this
What people don’t seem to understand when they say taxpayers’ money is that if we don’t take “Washington’s” money then Strickland will undoubtedly have to raise taxes. Pay me now or pay me later.By JB
May 8, 2009 10:01 AM | Link to this
A video is worth a billion dollars http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDPtm0-JjD8By Margaret
May 10, 2009 9:15 PM | Link to this
Funding cuts to early education programs just doesn’t make good economic sense. Research tells us that children in high quality early learning programs have better outcomes including higher graduation rates, employment with higher earnings and fewer brushes with the criminal justice system. According to Lawrence Schweinhart, Executive Director of the High/Scope Research Foundation, in “Using Preschool Research to Facilitate Change,” the High/Scope Perry Preschool Study,shows program costs vs program benefits provide a 716% return on public investment. I believe that is a fantastic return on any investment. Our youngest citizens are worth it!By skarkskinjacket
May 11, 2009 11:34 AM | Link to this
“President Obama wants to lift caps on the number of charter schools.” Then tell Obama to send the money to pay for them out of his own pocket! He clearly doesn’t understand the problem or that would be the last thing he would be looking to do. Then again, what do expect from a guy who makes a living reading a teleprompter and looking at polls?By greg alan
May 15, 2009 12:15 PM | Link to this
money for education in ohio is what ohio has always been asking washington.