Ohio Department of Education News
The Ohio Department of Education's Coronavirus (COVID-19) web page provides information and resources regarding the ordered school-building closure.
During the ordered school-building closure period, schools may continue to receive reimbursement for meals served by participating in the Seamless Summer Option (SSO) or the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). Schools may operate as open, restricted open or targeted outreach sites. Refer to the map and map site key for available meal service in your area.
Please check back for updates as they become available
Here’s how Ohio is adjusting College Credit Plus rules during coronavirus
Columbus Dispatch
Education officials are adjusting rules and requirements for Ohio’s College Credit Plus program as the coronavirus pandemic continues to impact K-12 and college education. The Ohio Department of Higher Education and the Ohio Department of Education worked with teachers, school counselors and college directors to prepare updated guidelines for its dual enrollment program.
Related coverage: Ohio updates College Credit Plus Program due to COVID-19 outbreak (Dayton NBC-2)
Statewide education groups thank the state legislature for easing coronavirus challenges
Clermont Sun
The Ohio School Boards Association, Buckeye Association of School Administrators and Ohio Association of School Business Officials appreciate the changes approved by the Ohio General Assembly aimed at easing the challenges for public school districts and their students during the coronavirus outbreak. This is an unprecedented situation, and the legislature acted swiftly to provide relief for educators and students. We applaud their work and their willingness to work with our associations to address the needs of our members and Ohio’s children. While districts have been fervent in their efforts to continue to provide educational opportunities for students in creative ways, educators have been worried about meeting student testing and other state requirements... Other favorable changes include providing local flexibility to grant high school diplomas, waiving retention requirements for the third-grade reading guarantee and permitting boards of education to hold public meetings electronically.
Art teacher star of series
Delaware Gazette
When Jonathan Juravich, an art teacher at Liberty Tree Elementary in Powell, was named the 2018 Ohio Teacher of the Year, he said the award began “sparking some new things” for him. Now, he hopes one of those things will, in turn, create a spark in the lives of his students. Through his “Drawing with Mr. J” online series, aired on WOSU’s website and Youtube pages, students engage in a short, themed drawing challenge that is meant to promote social and emotional skills.
State and Local Education News
Independence Schools benefiting from prior educational initiatives as COVID-19 closure drags on
Cleveland Plain Dealer
The Independence Local School District is adapting to the state’s prolonged closure of schools due to COVID-19 by employing forward-thinking educational practices that are already well established in the district. “A lot of the work we’ve been doing as a district over the past years has been that push toward a 21st century student-engagement model, and that’s sustainable from a distance,” noted Superintendent Ben Hegedish. As evidence, Hegedish read a quote from an anonymous teacher who confirmed, “Every single professional development we’ve been doing for the past five years has been getting us prepared for this.”
Related coverage: Lakewood City School District begins pandemic-related remote learning efforts (Cleveland Plain Dealer), CPS Lays Out Distance Learning Plan The Week After Spring Break (Cincinnati WXVU-NPR), CPS to begin remote learning during extended school clousures (Cleveland FOX-19)
"Stay-At-Home Science" with Imagination Station
Toledo ABC-13
It can be hard to keep your kids engaged in learning during a regular summer break, let alone with the school year being put on hold across Ohio... so naturally, Imagination Station is stepping up to fill the gap. Chief scientist Carl Nelson -- and Cyrus, his scientist-in-training -- aren't letting the pandemic stop them from educating through the Internet. "Cyrus and I are stuck at home like everybody else," says Nelson, "but what we're doing virtually at the science center is creating these 'Stay-At-Home Science' activities."
Mazza Museum offers 'Virtual Storytime' video
Toledo CBS-11
While so many children are home from school during the coronavirus pandemic, an online story telling service offered to everyone online to bring children and parents together. The University of Findlay's Mazza Museum began recording Virtual Storytime videos on their Facebook page two weeks ago. Now, four times a week, faculty and staff from UF share their favorite picture books to help supplement any story time that is lost for kids home from school.
Cedarville offering virtual tours for high school students
Dayton NBC-2
High school students who are thinking of attending Cedarville can now take advantage of virtual campus visits as the campus remains shut down due to the pandemic. “We anticipated welcoming over 3,000 guests to campus this year in March and April,” said Dr. Scott Van Loo, vice president for enrollment. “To still provide information for students and families, we’ve launched the live virtual visit. Our hope is that we will capture the interest of students, and they will return to campus for an in-person visit in the near future.” Virtual visits are offered Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 10:30 a.m. and can be scheduled...
New Richmond High School Concert Band, Choir and Troubadours earn top ratings at OMEA Contests
Clermont Sun
March 7 was a busy but wonderful day for New Richmond High School performing arts students. The NRHS Concert Band, Concert Choir and Troubadours competed in Ohio Music Education Association District XIV Contests. The NRHS Concert Band earned an Excellent Rating at the contest. The NRHS Concert Choir earned a rating of three. The NRHS Troubadours earned a Superior Rating and is qualified for state competition.
National Education News
Remote instruction presents opportunity to empower self-directed learning skills
Education Dive
Simone Kern, a former teacher, principal and district-level administrator who is now a Montessori-at-home parent, suggests in a piece for Edutopia that a school-like structure not be imposed on students' time as they struggle to adjust to the impact of the novel coronavirus on their lives. Instead, she writes, students should be allowed to try more self-directed, and potentially deeper, activities.
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