Stephen Dyer, former legislator in Ohio, now a fellow at Innovation Ohio, notes that Ohio’s Republicans are scurrying to denounce ECOT, which is now a criminal investigation. Some are even returning campaigning contributions. How did ECOT manage to survive for nearly 20 years while providing a low-quality education and receiving $1 billion from the state?
Bill Phillis of the Ohio Equity and Adequacy Coalition said in a post today that the owner of for-profit ECOT was very generous in distributing campaign contributions to influential officials. He wrote: The ECOT Man really covered all the bases when doling out campaign funds-county prosecutor, legislators, party caucuses, governors, attorney generals, secretaries of state, state treasurers, supreme court justices and probably other office holders. The money doled out came from tax dollars that should have been used to educate students.
Some Republicans are trying to blame Democrats too, since there was a Democratic governor in 2009. But Dyer points out that Governor Ted Strickland tried to slash the appropriations for e-schools by 70%, and Republicans threatened to block the entire state budget unless the cut was restored.
It’s very simple. Gov. Strickland’s budget that year called for a 70 percent cut for Ohio eSchools. That’s right. If Gov. Strickland’s budget had passed unamended, ECOT funding would have been cut by 70 percent, effectively ending the school 10 years before it actually shut down, which would have saved Ohio taxpayers about $700 million that went to the school since then. Not to mention the lives of thousands of students ECOT failed to graduate.
By the way, of the 3,794 students who actually did graduate ECOT the first year of the 2009 budget, only 109 have college degrees today. Just by way of reference.
However, Ohio Republicans still controlled the Senate during the 2009 budget. I was in those budget negotiations and I can tell you that we were told in no uncertain terms that if the 70 percent cuts stayed in the budget, there would be no budget for the 2009 session — severely crippling Ohio’s potential economic recovery from the Great Recession.
When Dyer ran for re-election, he was targeted for defeat by a group that included ECOT.
The Republicans own this scandalous waste of taxpayer dollars. They should be held accountable.
Good riddance to bad rubbish!
This should be forwarded to every Democrat and Independent in Ohio. The state legislature is corrupt. It does not help that US Senator Sharod Brown is wobbly on charter schools.
I can’t figure out if he’s a member, but there’s not a dime’s worth of difference between Senator Brown and DFER.
“By the way, of the 3,794 students who actually did graduate ECOT the first year of the 2009 budget, only 109 have college degrees today. Just by way of reference.”
I’m surprised that it is that high. My supposition would be that those 3,794 struggled and did not make it in a regular “brick and mortar” school but were able to scrape by with ECOT. I wouldn’t expect that category of student to do well with a “brick and mortar” college (not that it couldn’t happen). I wonder how many of those 109 came from online degree programs.
At the same time the author of the piece is using the false “college” is the best option. While not explicitly stated that is the underlying motif.
As far as blame? So, so obvious, eh! Pay to play works! The question is: Will the Ohio voters be wise enough to vote the bastards out?
Pennsylvania is going to end up exactly like Ohio re: charters. They’re about 5 years behind us on discovering what actually transpired over the last 20 years of ed reform.
Ohio was one of the first ed reform states. What fails here will fail other places- it’s just a matter of time.
“By the way, of the 3,794 students who actually did graduate ECOT the first year of the 2009 budget, only 109 have college degrees today. Just by way of reference.”
That’s 3%—equal the MOOC success rate. Btw, how come MOOCs are not under criminal investigation?
“Some are even returning campaigning contributions. ”
So they accepted campaign contributions from ECOT, voted to keep ECOT in business, wasting $1 billion in the process, and all they have to do is return campaign contributions, and they are free from any wrong doing?