The Ohio Democratic Party, aware that some Democrats have supported the privatization agenda in the past, took a strong stand supporting public schools. The resolution specifically rejects the privatization lobbying of ALEC, the Thomas Fordham Institute, Democrats for Education Reform, and TFA.
If every state Democratic Party passed similar resolutions, the candidates would be forced to be equally resolute in support of public schools.
Ohio Democratic Party
Resolution 2019-04
Opposing School Privatization
WHEREAS, over 600 traditional public school districts in Ohio serve more than 1.8 million students; and
WHEREAS, the state of Ohio has the constitutional responsibility to secure a thorough and efficient system of common schools; and
WHEREAS, adequate and equitable funding is required to fulfill the state’s constitutional responsibility to Ohio’s school children; and
WHEREAS, students deserve a quality early childhood and K-12 education, certified teachers who have a voice in the policies which affect their schools, a rich curriculum that prepares students for college, careers, and meaningful participation as citizens; and
WHEREAS, the public school privatization agenda, which includes state takeovers, charter schools, voucher schemes, and a high-stakes test-and-punish philosophy, relies on destructive policies that harm students and blame educators that has proven to be ineffective at bringing efficiency and cost savings to our schools; and
WHEREAS, education profiteers dedicated to the public school privatization agenda and anti-educator initiatives also fund organizations entrenched in their movement to replace district schools with charter and private schools, such as the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the Thomas Fordham Institute, Chiefs for Change, Teach for America (TFA) and Democrats for Education Reform (DFER); and
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Ohio Democratic Party rejects the public school privatization movement and opposes making Ohio’s public schools private or becoming segregated again through the lobbying and campaigning efforts of affiliated organizations like the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), the Thomas Fordham Institute, Chiefs for Change, Teach for America (TFA) and Democrats for Education Reform (DFER); and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Ohio Democratic Party reaffirms its commitment to free accessible public school districts which are adequately and equitably funded to guarantee a comparable education for ALL children.
Adopted April 30, 2019
Diane Ravitch's blog 
It’s been positive for public school families and students in Ohio lately.
We were as reformy as a state could possibly be for years, so it may give others hope that the echo chamber CAN be busted up, with a hammer and chisel but it can be done.
Ohio newspapers were crucial. Without real reporting on what was going on we would have continued to have fake “debates” where Michelle Rhee would provide 15 of 18 witnesses (that actually happened at the height of the madness) or Jeb Bush would parachute in and tell us all how great ECOT was, to unanimous applause.
It’s like a fever broke and lawmakers looked around and said “oh, will you look at that! We have public schools in this state! Maybe we should do some work for those students”
The staff of my Republican legislator (the representative is an ALEC member) hadn’t heard about HB 70 as of two days ago, despite the Ohio Supreme Court’s involvement and diverse publications like Forbes publishing about it.
HB 154 would repeal the legislator malfeasance of HB 70 (ALEC template law) enacted in 2015, in a 24-hour period with no public comment.
(Facing term limits I have no idea when the Rep. planned to learn about Ohio education law). Once, the staff informed themselves about the bill, they replied back that they had “heard buzz” about it now that they could put the buzz in context. I speculate there is selectivity on the part of ALEC and Fordham in their contact with our “lawmakers”.
But they’re actually debating a PUBLIC education bill, which is brand new stuff, so they’ll have to get up to speed 🙂
We’re making progress. They now know public schools exist. That may lead to them performing some actual work for students.
sad to need the sarcasm when finally addressing reality: They Now Know Public Schools Exist….
I credit the change to the momentum developed and steered by a nationally prominent hero, Diane Ravitch. Thanks to her for her interest in our state!
Sheesh! About time.
As an immigrant liberal Ohioan who has observed the politics of this state since 2002, my contempt and disrespect for the Ohio Democratic Party and its current head David Pepper knows no bounds. In my time here, I have seen them squander political opportunities, abandon a governor running for reelection, put up two of the most lackluster, passionless, poll-driven people for governor in the past two elections, give John Kasich a free ride for two elections, and lose all five state-wide races in the last election, all to charter cheerleaders and enablers. Where was this interest in public education prior to November 2018 or earlier? This is window dressing to kiss up to Ohio PEP and Ohio BATS, and other pro-public education advocates pure and simple. Where was the Ohio Democratic Party when charters and ECOT were plundering public funds? Where was the Ohio Democratic Party when the Cleveland Plain Dealer laid out the case that Kasich helped cause and benefitted from the 2008 recession? With friends like these…
On April 11, 2019, a post at the Ohio Dem. Party website shows us who Pepper listens to about education…some are expected because the article was about Trump/DeVos -(1) Sherrod Brown (2) Ohio Federation of Teachers (3) Innovation Ohio. The outlier is (4) CAP.
GregB,
Are you including Sen Sherrod Brown in that trashing of the Ohio Dems? I know he has made the DFERs very happy.
https://dfer.org/press/sen-sherrod-brown-wisely-withdraws-charter-amendment/
But I will accept a change of heart from any Democrat — including “public” charter supporter Sherrod Brown.
I think Sherrod Brown is wrong on “public charters” the way Bernie Sanders is wrong, but the only way things will change is if LEADERS like them actually take a stand instead of giving cover to the DFER movement.
I don’t see how you blame the Ohio Dems without blaming their most prominent member – Sherrod Brown. And I agree that he sold out public schools just like all the other progressive Dems have done. I absolutely forgive them all if they ever change. But I’m not holding my breath.
The best thing a Democrat (not DINO) can say about Brown is he survives as a blue politician in a state that has become red. Ohio has an aging population that watches Fox and that wants to preserve what Fox tells them and what they believe is their entitlement. That’s the environment in which Brown survives. If not Sherrod, the odds that a different Dem would win as senator, are slim to none.
Linda,
I agree with you and I like Sherrod’s position on many issues (but not on education).
But I give many Democrats the same benefit of the doubt I give Sherrod. I don’t have to agree with their position on every issue to understand that their underlying philosophy is one that is miles better than even the most “liberal” Republican like Susan Collins.
As long as there isn’t a hypocrisy where certain progressives get passes (usually the white males) when they sell out the progressive agenda in education and others (often women) get excoriated and called “no better than Trump”. I watched that normalizing of the far right racist agenda of Trump happen in 2016. And I certainly hope that if the majority of democratic primary voters prefer an African-American candidate or a female candidate to a certain white male who has his own issues embracing the DFER agenda in 2020, that we don’t hear the same kind of hypocrisy we heard in 2016.
Sherrod’s brand lives outside the Ohio Dems rotted microcosm. Linda and I agree, as far as I can tell, on pretty much everything except Sherrod. She’s not a fan, I, on the other hand, have discerning respect. I don’t like his equivocation on education or his protectionist trade agenda. But what I like about him is that I can look him in the eye and say that and, while we don’t agree on those issues (or his AIPAC support, for that matter), he does stand tall on other issues and I believe he genuinely cares about his constituents, even when they disagree with him. Linda and I would also disagree, I assume on this. Sherrod has core beliefs. I do not believe his opinions are poll-driven. That’s why I can respect and support him even when I disagree with him.
That’s a big reason why I think David Pepper and the Ohio Democratic [not sic] Party are worse than jokes. They have no beliefs. I spoke to Pepper once and it was the second worst experience I’ve ever had at a political event. The worst was at an Ed FitzGerald fundraiser when he ran for governor (what a complete idiot who shouldn’t be anywhere near public office). They are completely poll-driven as this “resolution” proves. When it’s safe and inconsequential, they take a stand. They never made this case in the last election, which is why every charter/ECOT/privatization cheerleader and enabler won statewide office.
Perhaps my feelings about Sherrod come from having been weaned on Louisiana politics. I like it when people have core beliefs on working class issues and forgive them when they stray on others. Remember, Louisiana is the only state of which I know where “Vote for the Crook, It’s Important” was a winning message—when Edwin Edwards won against David Duke.
GregB,
I agree with you!
Greg,
Adding to your analysis- Princeton Prof. Martin Gilens documented what politicians enact as policy…it is not poll driven. It is the agenda of the wealthy. My opinion about Brown- good nonverbal cues, doesn’t seem like a guy who will be targeted by the FBI, won’t take stands that would jeopardize his tenure in D.C., isn’t like a Manchin or Dan Lipinski.
It’s a great statement! Good for them.
The next step should be for Ohio Dems. to join with public interest groups and speak out against SETDA (state department of ed. employees’ organization). They foster public private partnerships, promote digital learning, offer “scale up” seminars for ed tech firms and pitch fests for new ed tech products (the organization is funded by Gates).
If Gates’ wanted a sibling to ALEC, it might look like SETDA. A former SETDA director said the group lobbies the government. Do the employees lobby as registered lobbyists? If not, by what authority are they hiring lobbyists? And, who does SETDA lobby for, its private sector partners, the funder, Gates, or, for themselves and their tech departments?
Our antenna should be up relative to SETDA’s goals as can be understood by reading, “Questions We Should Be Asking about ‘Future Ready’ Schools”, at AWrenchintheGears.com.
I hope real Democrats in other states demand the same level of support from the Democrats in their states. Let’s hope Ohio starts a blue wave of endorsing real public schools.
I don’t know about other Ohio districts but ours has quietly scaled back the blended learning/online learning fad that all of ed reform pushed.
I think it was a disaster for students. I’m glad someone is willing to admit a mistake, if only to the extent that the quietly stop offering the cheap course selections.
Public schools should really seriously consider not accepting advice from ed reformers. I don’t think it’s worked out well for their students and families. Ask someone from outside the echo chamber, if indeed we need “consultants”, which I’m not sure we do.
I agree. Most of the reformers come in through some top down manipulation that the public or even teachers have no idea about.
Sadly, we, the taxpayers pay salaries to people who then partner with ed tech firms to promote digital learning. SETDA, funded by Gates, has a digital Instructional map that lists which states mandate implementation of digital instructional materials. To me, the process looks like an ALEC model to thwart democracy.
“Actions speak louder than words” and “talk is cheap”. They better stand behind their resolution and get moving on the deal.
Tampa Bay Times takes ed reformers to task for imposing a “death sentence” on public schools in the state:
“They approved the death sentence for public education in Florida at 1:20 p.m. Tuesday. Then they cheered and hugged each other. ”
“Florida cannot afford this free market fantasy. The state ranks near the bottom in spending per student and in average pay for teachers. Hillsborough County has hundreds of teacher vacancies, broken air conditioning systems in dozens of schools will take years to repair and voters just approved a half-cent sales tax to help make ends meet. Pinellas County would need $1,200 more per student in state funding just to cover inflation over the last decade. Yet Florida will send $130 million to private schools next year for tuition for 18,000 students.”
Nothing, nada, for public school students in the state. Ed reformers in Florida made it abundantly clear our students are a dead-last priority. They offer absolutely nothing to students in public schools.
http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/editorials-the-death-sentence-for-floridas-public-schools-20190430/
It seems that the idea is to starve the public schools until they become uninhabitable and everyone has to send their kids to schools where the roof isn’t caving in and there is air conditioning on days when the temperature reaches 97 degrees outside because of the global warming that isn’t happening, as we know from Trump’s intuition, which is so much better than science.
The tragedy is how many midwesterners who benefitted from public schools abandoned any sense of responsibility when they moved to Florida, instead, preferring to limit their interests to shopping, eating out and golfing.
Of course, Ohio still has its share of shallow-interested and selfish people who vote Republican.
And, racism probably always figures into a Republican’s motive.
I think this is a comment that is way more important than most people think. Rural and small town America produced what Tom Brokaw justifiably termed ” the Greatest Generation”. While I applaud these people, now mostly gone on, I note that it was their generation that moved around so much in search of the best job that the communities where the suckled were not the ones they fed in their later years.
Subsequent generations are following in some of their footsteps, especially where moving to the job is concerned. While this may benefit the economy (perhaps not), it certainly leaves the places they left bereft of funding for the basic needs of the communities they left. The children and grandchildren of the people they left in the small towns and cities they deserted have not always benefited from being underfunded.
Wonderful news!
I. Love. This.
B-bye, Kasich! See ya, wouldn’t want to be ya.
We. Need. This. In California. Governor Newsom, California Legislators? Do you care enough about Californians to do it, or do you care about billionaires instead? There is no middle ground.
I, as Justin Wilson used to say, gay-rone-tee not a single person in the Ohio Democratic Party wrote a word of this resolution. It is window dressing. They took the words written by Bill Phillis and/or Ohio PEP and put it on their letterhead. There is not one person there that understands this issue. Take David Pepper’s pronouncements. He blames Betsy DeVos and Ohio Republicans for everything related to the education debacle in this state and would still stand up for Obama’s and Arne Duncan’s policies. He’s only doing this because he knows he doesn’t have to take a principled stand and it will cost him and his party of sycophants nothing. It certainly took no effort since others wrote it for him and them.
No, you don’t. Need. This. It is rhetorical window dressing only. What you need is legislators who take the time and effort to understand the issues. Tell them to become conversant with Diane Ravitch’s writings. And tell them to take risks and stand up for teachers, even if it might cost them their jobs.
This is really HUGE! Greg B. — I don’t see why it matters who wrote it? As long as the ODP is willing to sign it — Yay!! They are finally listening to us. We have it in writing and can now use it to pressure candidates. Why the negativity?? I’ve been waiting for this for years and I HOPE more state parties adopt it and eventually the National Dem Party.
A statement from Ohio Dems will pressure no one. They have absolutely no core principles and everyone who knows them know it.
But Greg, if many state Democratic parties adopted a similar stance, the candidates would have to pay attention.