For those of you who closely follow state government, it’s time to take a breath. The Ohio Legislature has completed its work for the year and for the biennium and will be away from Columbus until January when we will see new members seated, policy new and old introduced and the biennial budget process begin.
As your OSPA inboxes surely informed you, the legislature was busy during the “lame duck” session that spans the weeks between the election and the end of the year, a time when legislation has its last chance to be completed before being erased from the docket. Bills that impact negatively and positively on school psychologists and children made it to the finish line while others were left incomplete and are forced to start the process over next year.
The most important legislation to pass was HB 509, which was a massive bill making changes to a variety of state licensing boards. In the final steps of the process, Republican senators added language to remove the school psychology license for practice in schools from under the purview of the Department of Education and instead make the State Board of Psychology the licensing board. The bill requires this change to happen by Dec. 31, 2024. This means the license will share a home with the private practice license for school psychology but will retain its own five-year license cycle and will actually reduce CEUs from 180 clock hours down to 50. Lawmakers’ motivation for the change is a desire to streamline and reduce regulations for working in Ohio.
OSPA does not support this change and will now go to the governor’s office to try to get support to return to current law by adding this to the governor’s budget bill. We are at least pleased that an even worse outcome was avoided. HB 509 in November had picked up an amendment that would have wiped the private practice license off the books altogether. In addition to the behind-the-scenes phone calls and meetings I had, we rallied our members to fight back, and I am heartened by the almost 90 people who emailed senators in our initial push, more than 50 who emailed when the bill went to the House for concurrence and all those who called lawmakers. A special recognition is due for Robyn Coleman, Craig Hanthorn, Erin Hull, Rob Kubick, and Jamilah Mogharbel, who stood up and testified before a Senate Committee Nov. 30. We were also supported in the committee room by Doug Cole, Bradley Havelka, Juliana Ramirez, Ann Brennan and Jen Glenn. It really made a difference in reversing the effort to eliminate the license.
On the positive side we are pleased that OSPA’s efforts to change the developmental delay age range were a success. This effort was spearheaded by OSPA Consultant Ann Brennan in her final year of service to OSPA. She worked directly with Sen. Andrew Brenner (R-Delaware) and his staff to write the bill and garner support from other education associations. Sen. Brenner dropped his own bill (SB 356) to increase the age range from ages 3-6 to 3-9 and then amended it into an omnibus education bill just before the close of the session (HB 554). The legislation is now in front of the governor.
One headline-grabbing bill that failed to see enactment would have stripped both ODE’s superintendent of public instruction and the State Board of Education of most of its duties (SB 178). It instead would have created a cabinet-level leader for the agency to be appointed by the governor. ODE would also be renamed the Department of Education and Workforce or “DEW.” The Ohio Constitution establishes the State Board of Education and gives it the role of hiring and firing the superintendent, so that function, along with licensure duties would have remained with the board under the measure.
This lame duck effort by the Ohio Senate found support – although not unanimous support – on both sides of the legislative aisle and was pushed for by Gov. Mike DeWine. The majority in the House, however, failed to coalesce around the measure. Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima) promises its return in early 2023.
Republicans argued a number of reasons why the leadership structure at the education department is in need of change. The largest looming issue is the more than year-long absence of a permanent Superintendent of Public Instruction as well as the debacle in the hiring of Steve Dackin to that role last spring - his tenure lasted less than a month before resigning over ethical concerns. Supporters also lamented the state of reading and math achievement scores among Ohio’s children at a time when the state board has become consumed with “culture war” posturing on things such as the anti-Title IX resolution (keep reading below).
Also failing to come to completion was a bill (HB 497) to eliminate the retention requirement under the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. Despite efforts from many education groups and support from the State Board of Education, the Senate was resistant to the measure. OSPA provided testimony in support of this bill in both the House and Senate. This will likely be reintroduced next year. A big thank you to Jen Glenn who joined me in testifying in the Senate.
Another hot-button measure (HB 151) that did not garner support from both chambers before years’ end was the so-called “Save Women’s Sports Act,” which would have banned participation of transgender students on the sports team for the gender with which they identify. OSPA provided testimony in opposition to this bill. Although it had passed the House, differing opinions among Republicans in the Senate prevented it from coming to completion.
Among the other bills OSPA’s Legislative Committee tracks are:
- HB 105: Erin’s law, which would require sexual abuse prevention education in schools but now includes a parental opt-out provision and prevents abortion-related organizations from providing educational materials. It was amended into a criminal justice omnibus (SB 288) and passed.
- HB 322 and HB 327 Critical Race Theory, which would ban teaching of divisive concepts in schools. This bills saw no action in the last six or more months.
- HB 616 CRT and Don’t Say Gay, this combination legislation was introduced in spring 2022 and had only one hearing.
- HB 454 Gender-Affirming Care, which would have outlawed gender-affirming care for minors. This bill had an opposition testimony hearing in the lower chamber in November before being left to languish. OSPA provided testimony against the bill. Expect it to reappear next session.
- HB 722 Parental notification on student health/well being, which implies notification of gender identity/social transitioning. This bill was introduced in September. Expect it to return next session.
- HB 619 Student Mental Health days, which would allow school districts to permit students to take up to three mental health days away from school each school year. It was introduced in the spring but received only one courtesy hearing in November.
State Board of Education
Meanwhile down the street, the Department of Education is no closer to identifying a new superintendent of public instruction. As a refresher, the State Board of Education conducted a search last year to replace Paolo DeMaria, who stepped down in fall 2021, and hired its own board member Steve Dackin in spring 2022. Dackin had vacated his board seat as the search began to allow himself to be in the running. After less than a month on the job, Dackin resigned amid concerns of a “revolving door” ethics violation. That brings us to December 2022 when the state board was expected to vote to choose a search firm to find candidates for job. Board members voiced hesitation about committing money to a firm given pending legislation that would strip the superintendent job of much of its responsibilities (see above). Instead the panel voted 11-4 to postpone the search firm decision until February.
One thing the State Board of Education did accomplish at its December meeting was a final vote on the “Shea Resolution” that would voice the board’s opposition to federal Title IX language offering protections to transgender students. After four months of testimony on the bill, mostly in opposition, the board voted 10-7, with two abstentions, to approve the resolution. Earlier in the proceedings, members did manage to soften the language by voting 11-7 to remove the first three paragraphs, which contained some divisive language about sex being a “biological fact.” A similar effort to remove a paragraph calling on the superintendent of public instruction to send a letter to all districts about the resolution failed 9-9 to gain necessary majority approval. Some members argued the letter would confuse districts into thinking the resolution has the weight of law while others said the letter is necessary to clear up confusion around Title IX.
Looking into 2023, I will continue to work to garner an increase in the state funding for the internship program. This has been flat funded for several biennia at a level that provides salaries to the interns that fall below the state teacher minimum salary schedule. This funding was always meant to mirror the teacher minimum salary, so I will be working with the governor’s office in early January to try to increase the line item to accommodate that.
Be sure to join the OSPA Legislative Committee to get timely updates on legislation, OSPA advocacy and to see copies of OSPA testimony. Thank you for your membership. It supports all this work!
The State Board of Education’s Budget Committee held a special meeting Aug. 29 during what is normally the board’s month off. The committee heard an overview of the department’s official budget proposal. Next, the committee will meet in September and ideally vote to approve the budget as it looks at that time. The committee’s recommendation moves up to the full State Board of Education in October for approval, which triggers its submission to the governor’s Office of Budget and Management. OBM will create the state’s full budget proposal for submission to the legislature in early 2023. The budget then moves through the Ohio House before going to the Senate. Expect many changes to the ODE budget as it goes through its cycle and each body puts its own priorities into the budget.
The State Board of Education’s top budget priority area is literacy. To that end, ODE developed a number of proposals and funding amounts to meet the goal of improving literacy among Ohio students. It proposes $43.25 million for this effort in fiscal year 2024 and $33.75 million in FY 2025.
ODE proposes to develop its own PD on the science of reading and provide $20 million to give stipends to incentivize teachers to take the training. They envision training to be taken on evenings and weekends. ODE will also work with the Department of Higher Education to allow for course credit for this same training.
The department also recommends, but cannot require, districts use their COVID relief dollars to purchase learning programs for their educators aligned to the science of reading.
The budget recommendation also includes a plan for ODE to invest one-time General Revenue Fund money in FY 24 to provide matching funds to districts that adopt high quality instructional materials, as determined by a list of such materials created by the department.
Meanwhile, ODE would work with the Department of Higher Education to align coursework and teacher prep programs with the science of reading. This would benefit those training to become teachers as well as in-career teachers, ODE Budget Director Aaron Roush said at the meeting.
Also on the literacy list is the development or purchase of a dyslexia screener and the plan is to do so with federal COVID relief funds in the first year of the biennium. For the following years, state GRF funds would cover those kindergarteners going forward.
Board member Brendan Shea questioned the term Science of Reading vs Evidence Based Practices and why the ODE documents presented Science of Reading capitalized as a proper noun. ODE Director of the Office of Approaches to Teaching and Professional Learning Melissa Weber Mayer said “science of reading” is the broad term around all of the evidence that has been studied. It does not refer to a specific program; it is the collective evidence-based strategies. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Stephanie Siddens said the department can articulate as part of their budget submission what that term means and also determine if it does need to be capitalized.
Board President Charlotte McGuire said the board and department have pledged to meet the unique needs of every child. We want our districts to be challenged and empowered to produce the best outcomes for students, she said.
The second area of priority is learning acceleration. Funding has been targeted to direct services to students via a Summer Opportunities Grant for summer enrichment via community nonprofit organizations, “high dosage” tutoring, and Learning Aid Ohio. The area would receive $24.1 million in FY 2025 in state funds and $3.5 million in federal funds for a total of $45.6 million that second year of the biennium.
Workforce Readiness priority funding would cover things like work-based learning, career advising and exploration, transition-to-work supports, summer vocational agricultural programs. Business Advisory Councils are something already required for all districts to have – or access via educational service centers. The funding proposed would create incentives for high-performing business advisory councils. There are 110 BAC and 10 are highly ranked. To increase that number, the incentives would compensate those who achieve a high rating. Similarly, incentive payments would go to districts per student engaged in work-based learning. Per the proposal, this area would receive $9.5 million in year one and $6.1 million in year two of the budget.
Please use the below link to see the legislation currently being tracked by OSPA's Legislative Committee.
On May 10, 2022, OSPA offered testimony in support of HB 454, a bill to repeal the retention requirements under the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. I presented the testimony - written by Melissa Bestgen and myself - before the House Primary & Secondary Education Committee. To see the testimony, click here.
Ohio Alliance for Arts Education
Arts on Line Education Update
October 19, 2015
Joan Platz
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
•131st Ohio General Assembly: The Ohio Senate and House will hold committee hearings this week, and the Ohio Senate will hold a session. The House and Senate education committees are not meeting this week.
NATIONAL NEWS
•Status of Federal Education Initiatives in Question: Alyson Klein writes for Education Week that the impending departure of Speaker of the House John A. Boehner and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan complicates the prospects for the Obama Administration and Congress to finalize K-12 initiatives over the next year and a half remaining in the 114th Congress. In addition to Speaker Boehner, Republicans are also losing Representative John Kline (R-MN), who has chaired the House Education and Workforce Development Committee for several years, and is the sponsor of one of the two bills being considered to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).
The outlook for reauthorizing ESEA and approving pending education regulations is also complicated by other controversial issues facing Congress this term, including raising the debt ceiling and approving allocations for FY16. Alyson Klein reports that the Obama administration is still pushing for increases in the Preschool Development grant (from $250 million to $750 million) and Investing in Innovation (from $120 million to $300 million) and continued funding for Striving Readers ($160 million). However, funding for these programs is not included in the budget allocations bills already approved by the House and Senate along party lines.
See “Leadership Issue Cloud Federal Ed. Policy Picture”, by Alyson Klein, Education Week October 14, 2015 at http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/10/14/leadership-issues-could-cloud-federal-k-12-picture.html
See “Some Key Education Programs Alive in NCLB Rewrite, But Dead in the Budget,” by Alyson Klein, Education Week,” October 12, 2015 at http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2015/10/some_key_education_programs_al.html
•Obama Administration Releases FY16 Priority Goals for Education: Shaun Donovan, Director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, released on October 8, 2015 the Obama Administration’s final set of Agency Priority Goals. The 92 goals represent the Administration’s commitment to make the federal government more efficient and improve conditions for Americans in housing, health care, homeland security, the environment, education, and more.
The Education Department’s FY16-17 Priority Goals include increasing enrollment in high-quality state preschool programs; student aid transparency; evidence-based decision making; equitable educational opportunities; college degree attainment; effective teachers and leaders; and support for college-career-ready standards and assessments.
•Bill Would Increase Fiscal Oversight for D.C. Charter Schools: The District of Columbia (D.C.) is considering a bill that would allow the Public Charter School Board (PCSB) to access financial records and contracts of school management companies, and better define standards for fiscal management of charter schools to catch abuse. The bill, The Public Charter School Fiscal Transparency Amendment Act of 2015 (B21-0115), would tighten charter school compliance with financial rules, and revoke the charters of schools that do not comply.
According to the testimony of Soumya Bhat, an analyst with the DC Fiscal Policy Institute, charter schools in D.C. serve over 44 percent of public school students, and cost $600 million a year. Although her organization supports the bill, she believes that it could be improved to require that charter schools show how resources are spent, including operating costs and capital costs. She also recommends that all publicly funded institutions “...should be subject to the same levels of scrutiny and oversight, particularly when it comes to public schools.”
See “Testimony of Soumya Bhat, Education Finance and Policy Analyst, DC Fiscal Policy Institute, At the Public Hearing on the Public Charter School Fiscal Transparency Amendment Act of 2015 October 14, 2015” at
http://www.dcfpi.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Charter-School-Transparency-10-14-15.pdf
See “D.C. Considers Crating More Fiscal Oversight for Charter Schools,” by Arianna Prothero, Education Week, October 15, 2015 at
•Charter Schools Spur Real Estate Investments: Peter Grant from the Wall Street Journal writes that as state and local governments funnel more public funds into charter school facilities, real estate investors are increasing investments in charter school development. Some real estate businesses are converting industrial spaces for charter schools or investing in building new facilities. According to the article “During the 2014-15 school year, 500 new public charter schools opened nationwide, for a total of more than 6,700 enrolling about 2.9 million students, according to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.”
States are also allowing charter schools to take advantage of certain laws that help finance public schools, including tax exempt bonds, but there is a concern that some charter school real estate developers are more concerned about profits. Charter school proponents counter that the for-profit sector is needed, because resources from non profits and foundations is not enough to support the charter school demand.
See “Charter School Movement Grows--for Real Estate Investors” by Peter Grant, Wall Street Journal, October 13, 2015 at
http://www.wsj.com/articles/charter-school-movement-growsfor-real-estate-investors-1444750383
•STEM Education Act Becomes Law: President Obama signed into law on October 7, 2015 The Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education Act of 2015 (H.R. 1020).
The law authorizes a number of grants to support STEM schools and research, and requires the National Science Foundation (NSF), to continue to award local grants to support research and development in the field of informal STEM education.
The law also amends the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002, which allows teachers who possess a bachelor’s degree in math and science to earn a NSF Master Teaching Fellowships. Currently the award is limited to those with a master’s degree.
See “STEM Education Act of 2015” at https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/1020
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION HOLD MEETING:
The State Board of Education, Tom Gunlock president, will meet on October 19 & 20 at the Ohio Department of Education, 25 South Front Street, Columbus.
The State Board of Education includes eleven elected and eight “at-large” members appointed by the governor. The members serve terms of four years, and are limited to two terms.
The State Board’s newest member is Dr. Frank E. Pettigrew, Jr. He replaces Dr. Mark Smith, who resigned in September. Dr. Pettigrew was appointed in September by Governor Kasich to complete Dr. Smith’s “at-large” term, which expires on December 31, 2016. Dr. Pettigrew is the former provost and dean of the college of education at Ashland University, and has also worked at Kent State University, the University of Idaho, and Northwestern University.
Governor Kasich has yet to announce a replacement for Robert Hagen, who resigned from the Board as representative of the 8th State Board District in July 2015.
State Board Schedule for October 19, 2015: The following committees will meet starting at 8:30 AM:
•The Achievement and Graduation Requirements Committee, chaired by C. Todd Jones, will discuss revisions to Rule 3301-41-01, Standards for Issuing an Ohio High School Equivalence Diploma, and receive updates on several other topics. The committee does not list on its agenda a review of “Operating Standards for Identifying and Serving Gifted Students” Rule 3301-51-15. The committee received in September a new draft of the standards, which is still under the “five year review process.” The draft was prepared by the Ohio Department of Education staff.
•The Capacity Committee, chaired by Melanie Bolender, will review the following several bills for passage:
-Rule 3301-30-01, Ohio Department of Youth Services’ Schools
-Rule 3301-53-01, Minimum Standards for Chartering County Board of Developmental Disabilities Special Education Programs
-Rule 3301-53-03, Excess Cost Charges for County Boards of Developmental Disabilities for Special Education Programs
-Rule 3301-55-01, Minimum Standards for Chartering Special Education Programs in State Developmental Centers and Hospitals of the Department of Developmental Disabilities and the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services
-Rule 3301-24-03, Teacher Education Programs
-Rule 3301-27-07, Provisional License Renewal
-Standards-Based Framework for the Evaluation of Teachers
-Standards-Based Framework for the Evaluation of Principals
The following committees will meet starting at 9:30 AM:
•The Urban and Rural Renewal Committee, chaired by Mary Rose Oakar will discuss the process and criteria for selecting best practices for its website.
•The Accountability Committee will review Rule 3301-56-01 School Improvement; Prepared for Success; ESC rules for high performance; and receive a presentation from the Ohio School Boards Association.
State Board of Education Meeting on October 20, 2015: The State Board of Education will convene its business meeting at 8:30 AM on October 20, 2015. State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Dr. Dick Ross, will brief the State Board on the components of Sub. HB 2 (Dovilla-Roegner); the implementation of the Youngstown Plan (HB70); the federal charter school grant; the work of a panel to develop evaluations for sponsors of charter schools; the third grade reading guarantee; and the state report card’s K-3 literacy measure.
The State Board will take action on the following resolutions at their business meeting on October 20, 2015:
#5. Approve a Resolution of Intent to Amend Rule 3301-30-01 of the Administrative Code, Ohio Department of Youth Services Schools (Volume 2, page 15)
#6. Approve a Resolution of Intent to Amend Rule 3301-53-01 of the Administrative Code, Minimum Standards for Chartering County Boards of Development Disabilities Special Education Schools; Rule 3301-53-03 Excess Cost Charges for County Boards of Development Disabilities for Special Education Programs; and Rule 3301- 55-01, Minimum Standards for Chartering Special Education Programs in State Developmental Centers and Hospitals of the Department of Developmental Disabilities and the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (Volume 2, page 18.)
#7. Approve a Resolution to Refile the Proposed Rescission and Adoption of Rule 3301-56-01 of the Administrative Code Regarding School District and Building Improvement, Support, and Intervention. (Volume 2, page 33)
#8. Approve a Resolution to Amend Rule 3301-24-05 of the Administrative Code, Licensure and to Amend Rule 3301-24-14 Licensure and Supplemental Teaching License. (Volume 2, page 36)
#9. Approve a Resolution to Amend Rule 3301-24-11 of the Administrative Code, Alternative Principal License; to Amend Rule 3301-24-16 Senior Professional Educator License, and to Amend 3301-24-17 Lead Professional Educator License. (Volume 2, page 55).
#16. Approve a Resolution to Confirm the Johnstown-Monroe Local School District Board of Education’s Determination of Impractical Transportation of Certain Students Attending Blessed Sacrament School, Licking County, Ohio (Volume 4, page 4)
#17. Approve a Resolution to Confirm the Johnstown-Monroe Local School District Board of Education’s Determination of Impractical Transportation of Certain Students Attending Granville Christian Academy, Licking County, Ohio. (Volume 4, page 22.)
#18. Approve a Resolution to Confirm the Johnstown-Monroe Local School District Board of Education’s Determination of Impractical Transportation of Certain Students Attending St. Francis De Sales School, Licking County, Ohio. (Volume 4, page 23)
#19. Approve a Resolution to Adopt Ohio Standards for Counselors. (Volume 4, page 24)
OHIO NEWS
•New Resources for Voters: Secretary of State Jon Husted announced on October 16, 2015 some new resources to prepare Ohio voters for Election Day on November 3, 2015, and find election information in a one-stop location.
The new “MyOhioVote.com/VoterToolkit” can be used to check voter registration status, find polling locations, view sample ballots, and track absentee ballots by accessing data bases at county boards of elections. The website also includes information to inform voters about key statewide issues.
See http://voterlookup.sos.state.oh.us/voterlookup.aspx
•Youngstown Takeover Can Proceed: Judge Jenifer French, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, denied on October 13, 2015 a preliminary injunction to block implementation of Sub. HB70 (Brenner-Driehaus), which became law in June 2015 and takes effect on October 14, 2015.
The law was challenged in August by the Youngstown Board of Education, Youngstown Education Association, and other plaintiffs in a lawsuit Youngstown City School District Board of Education v. State of Ohio. The lawsuit alleges that lawmakers violated constitutional provisions requiring that bills receive three readings in each chamber; violated Article VI Section 3 concerning voter determination of boards of education for city school districts; and violated federal and state equal protection rights of voters.
HB70 includes a plan developed by business and community leaders, with the assistance of State Superintendent of Public Instruction Richard Ross, to revamp Youngstown City schools. The plan allows an academic distress commission to select a CEO to operate the school in lieu of the elected board of education.
Development of the “school takeover plan” was kept secret from the public and the State Board of Education, until added to HB70 in the Senate. Lawmakers then approved the bill in both chambers in one day, along party lines.
The plaintiffs immediately appealed the Common Pleas Court decision to the 10th District Court of Appeals to block implementation of the law.
Meanwhile, Senator Joe Schiavoni (D-Boardman) and Representative Michele Lepore-Hagan (D-Youngstown) say they will introduce legislation this week that modifies the Youngstown School plan outlined in HB70. The legislation would require community involvement in the plan, and limit the powers of the CEO.
According to Hannah News Service, the Democratic caucus also plans to launch a tour of schools in Ohio called the “Columbus to the Classroom: Doing our homework on Ohio school.”
See “Youngstown School Board plans appeal of judge’s ruling,” by Denise Dick, Vindy.mobi, October 14, 2015 at
http://www.vindy.com/news/2015/oct/14/youngstown-plan-to-proceed/?mobile
See “Democratic Lawmakers Tout Own Youngstown Plan, Launch Education Tour”, Hannah News Service, October 16, 2015 at
http://www.hannah.com/ShowDocument.aspx?HRID=6632
•Ohio Awarded Gifted and Talented Grant: The U.S. Department of Education announced on October 9, 2015 that 11 states, including Ohio, will share a total of $4 million in grants through the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education program. The Ohio Department of Education will receive $323,088.
The grants will be used to increase the number of underserved students in gifted and talented programs, including students who are economically disadvantaged, limited in English proficiency, or have a disability. The grants can also be used to support demonstration projects, innovative strategies, and scientifically-based research to enhance the services provided to gifted and talented K-12 students. According to the press release, “The new grants will allow these states to take models that have proven effective on a small scale and expand the programs to multiple schools or districts.”
See “U.S. Department of Education Awards More Than $4 Million to Support Underrepresented Students in Gifted and Talented Programs,” U.S. Department of Education, October 9, 2015 at
FYI ARTS
•Arts Website Launched in Summit County: ArtsNow launched on October 16, 2015 a new website to promote access to the arts, cultural events, artists, and venues in Summit County. The website, www.SummitLive365.com, is one of the first initiatives of ArtsNow, a new nonprofit organization directed by Nicole Mullet.
See “Website one-stop shop for arts”, by Betty Lin Fisher, Akron Beacon Journal, October 15, 2015 at
•Tax to Support the Arts on Cuyahoga County Ballot: Voters in Cuyahoga County will decide on the November 3, 2015 ballot Issue 8, a renewal of a penny-and-a-half sales tax on cigarette sales to support local arts organizations for the next 10 years. The sales tax for the arts was first approved in 2006, but expires on January 21, 2017. Cuyahoga Arts & Culture was created to distribute the revenue from the sales tax, which has provided $125 million to 300 arts and culture organizations in Cuyahoga County. The sales tax currently raises $15 million a year.
See “Cuyahoga Arts and Culture Levy Extension to Appear on the November 3, 2015 Ballot as Issue 8”, Cuyahoga County Council, September 23, 2015 at
•Maryland Schools Embrace Arts Integration: An article in The Washington Post highlights Maryland schools that are incorporating the arts into classroom learning to improve academic achievement, creativity, and motivation. Fifteen schools in Prince George’s County in Maryland piloted an arts-integration program last year under the direction of Superintendent Kevin Maxwell. The program expanded to 41 schools this year, as educators found that integrating the arts helped make the content more meaningful for students, and promoted deeper learning. The arts integration program aligns the arts, including dance, drama/theater, music, and visual art, with math, science, language arts, and social studies classes. Superintendent Maxwell believes that the arts are a way to turn-around the schools in Prince George’s County, which is among the lowest-performing districts in Maryland. Arts integration is also being implemented in schools in Anne Arundel, Frederick, Washington, and Wicomico counties, and in Baltimore.
See “More schools are working to integrate the arts into classroom learning,” by Donna St. George, The Washington Post, October 14, 2015 at
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