The CEA Spring Election was originally scheduled to end on Tuesday, Mar. 17 and the ballots were supposed to be picked up from buildings on Wednesday, Mar. 18.

On Thursday, Mar. 12, after Governor DeWine ordered all Ohio schools closed for three weeks, the CEA Board of Governors voted to modify the CEA Spring Election dates as follows:

• The two remaining days of voting in buildings will be accomplished on the first and second teacher work days after CEA members return from the state-ordered closure.
• Ballots will be picked up on the third teacher work day after CEA members return from the state-ordered closure.

Note: If you have already completed your election, ballots can be hand-delivered today, Friday, Mar. 13, to the CEA Office (929 E. Broad St.) until 4:30 p.m. The CEA Office will also be open to receive ballots on Monday, Mar. 16, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released updated guidance for childcare and K-12 settings about COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) — formerly referred to as 2019-nCoV or 2019 novel coronavirus. For more complete recommendations: Click Here

Superintendent Dr. Talisa Dixon

On Wednesday, I met with the Transition Coordinators and the leadership of the Columbus Education Association (CEA). As I listened to the stories of the important work they do with our students, their compassion, care, and commitment to our students and their success was clear. My administrative team and I share this passion for all students. With this common vision in mind, I determined that changing the role of our Transition Coordinators was not the right decision. Therefore,  the Transition Coordinator program and the 26 Transition Coordinator positions will remain as they are currently.

I thank President John Coneglio and the leadership and members of the Columbus Education Association for their advocacy for the students that we all serve. The collaboration of the Columbus Education Association and Columbus City Schools shows that together we can make decisions that are in the best interest of our students and the community we serve.

As we look towards the future of our District and the academic programming we provide to our students, I have recommended that we create a task force comprised of a broad group of stakeholders to evaluate our special education program as a whole and decide as a community how we can best serve our students.

In regards to our Gifted Services programming, I have recommended that we move forward with a new, expanded plan instead of the earlier proposed plan. The additional staff that we will deploy to our schools will allow us to significantly increase the number of students who receive gifted services. I am committed to providing equitable opportunities to ALL students in Columbus City Schools, and I believe this will help achieve that goal.

CEA President John Coneglio

I would like to thank Dr. Dixon for meeting with the Transition Coordinators. The Superintendent’s decision to keep the Transition Coordinator program as is allows our members to continue to do what they do best — serve our students and their families. I appreciate that Dr. Dixon and the Columbus Education Association were able to come to a mutual understanding and agreement on how to best serve our students. It is not easy to reverse course once a decision has been made, and I applaud her willingness to make this tough decision.

While the District and the Columbus Education Association may disagree from time to time on the best way to serve our students, we all want what is best for our students and their families. We have been and will remain committed to working collaboratively to achieve this goal.

The Columbus Education Association is the union representing more than 4,000 teachers, librarians, nurses, counselors, psychologists, and other education professionals in Columbus City Schools. The Columbus Education Association is a proud affiliate of the Ohio Education Association and the National Education Association.

###