COLUMBUS, OH – Reacting today to continued Columbus City Schools Board of Education deliberations over $50 million in staff cuts, transportation cuts, and additional school building closures, Columbus educators are highlighting the intentional policy choices starving Columbus City School students of the resources they need and calling for a new School Board policy to address the current district budget crisis.
“It is no coincidence that while CCS families learn they may not have a beloved educator, a school bus, or even a neighborhood school in the coming years, we learn that the Ohio legislature spent over one billion taxpayer dollars on religious and private school vouchers last year in addition to $600 million on a billionaires’ football stadium, and that locally our district is missing out on $84 million in tax revenue thanks to tax abatements for wealthy developers” said John Coneglio, CEA President. “Let’s be clear. Taxpayers are contributing plenty, but federal, state, and local politicians have determined that it is better spent on religious instruction, stadiums, and corporate welfare than on educating our students.”
To address this crisis within the district, CEA joins the Columbus Education Justice Coalition in calling for a new budget shortfall policy which would provide much-needed transparency and community involvement in decision making.
Current members of the Board have acknowledged that current policy and process does not accurately assess CCS facilities, building usage, or student and community needs, nor does it take into consideration city growth plans and patterns. Newly-elected School Board member Patrick Katzenmeyer has publicly described the School Board’s current approach as “lurching from crisis to crisis”.
Through the new budget shortfall policy, CEA hopes to work with the School Board to address the intentionally created resource crisis. Educators will also continue to hold politicians at all levels, as well as their wealthy billionaire donors, accountable for their reckless and harmful budgeting decisions.
The Columbus Education Association is the Union representing over 4,500 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.
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