OPINION: Judges ruling paves way for rebirth of Youngstown City Schools to commence
Oct 15, 2015 12:00 AM
2015-10-15T00:00:00
OPINION: Judge’s ruling paves way for rebirth of Youngstown City Schools to commence
Last July, after Republican Gov. John Kasich signed one of the most important pieces of legislation passed by the GOP-controlled General Assembly – it’s aimed at the academically challenged Youngstown City School District – we urged opponents to give up their quest to shelve the “Youngstown Plan” and to become part of the solution.
They didn’t. Instead, members of the school board and the district’s employee unions filed a lawsuit in Franklin County Common Pleas Court to block the plan from taking effect today.
On Tuesday, Judge Jenifer French dismissed the suit, saying the plaintiffs had not proved their claims. Thus, we again say to the opponents of what could well be Youngstown schools’ last chance for survival:
Stop fighting the inevitable, and join forces with Ohio Department of Education officials and other advocates to serve the best interests of the children of the shrinking, financially challenged urban school system.
Under the Youngstown Plan, a chief executive officer will be appointed by a newly minted academic distress commission to run the system. The CEO will have unfettered powers to reform the district with the goal of reversing its long-standing academic collapse.
[…]
This isn’t about who ultimately is in charge or who has the power. It is about making sure Youngstown’s children receive the sort of education that will prepare them for college or for the workplace. There are too many young people walking the streets of the city with no futures.
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