News Release

Toledo area speaks out about education

Will deliver community concerns to gubernatorial candidates

TOLEDO, OH – The Speak Out for Ohio Schools listening tour convened in Toledo today to highlight key local education priorities. The nonpartisan forum held at the Rogers High School media center brought together a capacity crowd of area parents, school board members, superintendents, teachers and other education advocates to speak out on the issues most important to local public schools this election year.

“From one end of the state to the other Ohio voters are saying education is their top priority in this election,” said event moderator Dr. Steven C. Steel, a State Executive Committee member of the Ohio School Boards Association and a representative of the Fair Schools Campaign. “The Speak Out for Ohio Schools tour is giving local communities from around the state the opportunity to make sure their unique concerns will be heard by Ohio’s next governor.”

The Toledo event is among a series of ‘speak outs’ designed to bring together Ohioans representing every aspect of education including elected officials, school administrators, parents, teachers, and students. The Toledo priorities will be forwarded to the gubernatorial campaigns, in addition to lists provided by ‘speak out’ participants from other Ohio communities.

Five priorities were identified at the Toledo area ‘speak out.’

1. Holding Ohio’s next governor accountable for making education his top priority;

2. Assessing and supporting the needs of the whole child;

3. A fair funding formula that provides adequate resources and provides for local control and an end to unfunded mandates;

4. Using consistent and equal measures to evaluate public, private and charter schools; and

5. Development of career technology programs to prepare young people for success who don’t go on to college.

The Speak Out for Ohio Schools listening tour kicked off statewide in Cincinnati September 13th. The nonpartisan forum held at the Institute of Technology and Career Development brought together Southwest Ohio superintendents, parents, teachers, students and other education advocates to speak out on the issues most important to local public schools this election year.

Participants in Southwest Ohio identified three top priorities for Ohio's next governor including:

1. The leadership and commitment to making education the first priority for Ohio;

2. Accountable policies to address the needs of students challenged by socioeconomic circumstances, and

3. Long term solutions to Ohio's over reliance on property taxes to fund public education.

Across Ohio, voters believe the most pressing problem facing schools is a lack of funding. Ohioans rank education (30%) as the most important issue followed by jobs (19%), taxes (8%), cost of living (5%), corruption (5%) and health care (3%). When read a list of concerns they want the governor to address, Ohioans rank education (33%) as the number one priority followed by job opportunities (32%), health care (11%), taxes (6%) and immigration (5%).

Speak Out for Ohio Schools is a coalition of concerned citizens, state and national organizations dedicated to quality public schools including the Ohio Fair Schools Campaign, Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Ohio Education Association, Ohio Federation of Teachers, Communities for Quality Education and people all over the state who are concerned about Ohio schools.

For more information visit the Speak Out for Ohio Schools website at www.speakoutohio.com.

To schedule individual interviews with coalition members please contact Damien Filer at the number listed above.

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