Enrollment is now open for STABLE Accounts – the nation’s first savings plan for people with disabilities. With the creation of a STABLE Account, eligible participants are able to save money, invest money and spend money on qualified expenses such as healthcare, education, housing and transportation – all without affecting participants’ eligibility for benefits programs…
I have been a part of the public education system as a student and educator for 57 years…or “since the earth cooled.” Never has there been a time that the process of educating children undergone change at this unprecedented pace. AND never has that change been so frenetic. In the typical local school district, the…
The Madison-Champaign ESC has officially launched a new and improved website to better serve our communities. The new website features a user-friendly design and is now responsive to most mobile devices. Both external and internal audiences will notice the same commitment to providing accurate and detailed content, but with a much-improved focus on ease-of-use. External…
We are quickly approaching the end of another calendar year and the midpoint of another academic year. This is an appropriate time for every “servant leader” in an educational setting to reflect on the past and refocus for the future. Every educator, regardless of the number of years they have spent in the field, should…
Think back to a time you entered any type of business and the first person you encountered was friendly and professional. They showed an interest in your concern BUT unfortunately they were unable to personally help. Now think about a time when you entered a business and just your presence was considered to be an…
Recently, accompanied by the typical, over-the-top media circus, the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) released its most recent school district report card data, which is supposed to inform the public about how well their schools are performing. Of course, the report cards, which have cost taxpayers millions and millions of dollars, do no such thing. …
In November, Dr. Richard Ross has announced his intention to retire as the State Superintendent of Public Instruction effective December 31, 2015. With his exit date looming on the horizon it has provided me with an opportunity to reflect on the type of state superintendent public education needs in Ohio. I asked the superintendents from…
Public education is a function of states, not the federal government. Each of the fifty states has one or more constitutional provisions that assign the responsibility of public education to the state. The delivery of educational programming is assigned to local political jurisdictions-school districts. Historically the federal government has played a supplemental role, such as…
We should with purposeful steps desire to be people willing to serve others. Our current culture counters this way of thinking by being self-obsessed. We don’t have time to notice the needs of others, let alone actually do anything about those needs, because we are too busy gratifying self. It cuts across the grain of…
“From the Field” Ohio School Districts Prep for the 2018 Graduation Cliff he Issue In mid October, President Obama announced that the national graduation rate hit an all time high of 83.2% [White House Press Release]. Ohio, however, is slated beginning in 2018 to move in the opposite direction. In 2018, Ohio will transition to…