OEA congratulates CNP on ballot signature success
“When we pass this bipartisan measure to end gerrymandering once and for all, we will finally give Ohioans a true voice in the decisions that affect our schools and communities every day,” said Ohio Education Association President Scott DiMauro. “From securing school funding to meet the needs of the 90 percent of Ohio children who attend public schools to the bills that attempt to dictate what and how Ohio’s trained, experienced educators can teach, the policy decisions of Ohio’s lawmakers have an enormous impact on our ability to deliver the world-class education our students deserve.”
“With fair legislative districts that make lawmakers accountable to the voters of our state, we can ensure pro-public education candidates—from both parties—have a fair shot at winning seats in our statehouse to represent us,” DiMauro said.
If voters approve the Citizens Not Politicians ballot initiative in November, a 15-member panel of citizens – five Democrats, five Republicans, and five Independents – will draw Ohio’s legislative district maps through a newly designed process emphasizing transparency and fairness.
To learn more about the Citizens Not Politicians ballot initiative and OEA’s support for this effort, listen to OEA’s recent conversation with Retired Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor and former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Yvette McGee Brown in the latest episode of the Public Education Matters podcast.
Ask Your State Senator to Support HCR 6: Urging Congress to Repeal GPO and WEP
Federal legislation is needed to repeal the unfair Social Security offsets that reduce the earned benefits of public employees in states like Ohio. The Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) are provisions of federal law that reduce the earned Social Security, spousal, and survivor benefits of those who also collect a public pension from states that do not pay into Social Security. Because Ohio is a non-Social Security state, many teachers, education support professionals and other public servants are adversely impacted by GPO and WEP.
The Social Security Fairness Act (HR 82 and S. 597) is pending before Congress and would repeal GPO and WEP, helping right this decades-long injustice. One way to help keep the pressure on Congress to act is for our state legislators to urge them to do so. House Concurrent Resolution (HCR) 6 is a resolution that urges Congress to repeal GPO and WEP. The resolution has already passed the Ohio House by a unanimous vote and is now pending in the Ohio Senate.
Write to your State Senator today and urge them to support this resolution. By doing so they will be standing up for Ohio’s public servants and help to improve their economic security in retirement.
OEA & NEA recommend Sen. Brown for re-election to US Senate
“Sen. Brown is a champion for public education and workers’ rights, and we are lucky to have him fighting for what our public schools and public school employees need every day,” said OEA President Scott DiMauro. “The OEA members who serve on the OEA Fund State Council emphatically recommend Sen. Brown for re-election, and we are pleased to give him our full support.”
Among his many priorities during his time in Washington, Sen. Brown has:
- Fought to make sure Ohio educators can retire with dignity by passing the Social Security Fairness Act which would ensure teachers, first responders, and other public sector workers and their families receive the full Social Security benefits they’ve earned.
- Secured millions to expand high-speed internet access for students and families across Ohio.
- Introduced the Educators Expense Deduction Modernization Act to quadruple the amount educators can deduct from their taxes for out-of-pocket classroom expenses.
- Led the fight to help educators become homeowners so education can remain a sustainable career path that can attract the best talent to serve our state’s students.
- Introduced the Full-Service Community School Expansion Act to help students succeed by helping schools and districts implement wraparound supports – including medical, mental, and nutrition health services, mentoring and youth development programs, technical assistance and continuing education courses.
- Spearheaded the passage of the SMART Act to reduce excessive testing that robs students and teachers of valuable instruction time.
- Secured nearly $300,000 to support training programs that prepare Ohio educators to teach life skills.
- Worked to level the playing field between workers and corporations to protect the right to organize and expand overtime pay for workers.
- Taken on Ohio’s private for-profit schools that take funds away from public schools and fought for charter school accountability.
“Ohio educators support our kids in and out of the classroom – we need to make sure their hard work pays off and they have the resources they need to create the best outcomes for students,” Sen. Brown said. “I’m honored to have OEA’s endorsement in my reelection and I look forward to working with them to make sure every Ohio student gets a high-quality education by protecting our educators’ right to unionize, lowering their out-of-pocket costs, and ensuring every educator can retire with dignity.”
OEA reflects on final days of Lame Duck
Senate Bill 178 would have moved most of the oversight of education in Ohio away from the State Board of Education and into a newly created cabinet-level department under the Governor. Late Wednesday night, the Senate amended SB 178 into House Bill 151, which was originally intended to improve the state’s resident educator program and summative assessment. Harmful and unnecessary language to ban transgender girls from playing high school sports was also added to that bill by the House earlier this year. Early Thursday morning, in the final hours of the session, Ohio House members voted against concurring with the Senate’s Lame Duck changes. A new version of SB 178 will likely be reintroduced in the new year.
“OEA believes it is worth taking a hard look at how Ohio’s schools are governed and supported at the state level. However, collaboration is key,” OEA President Scott DiMauro said. “Stakeholders need to be at the table. The voices of Ohio’s educators need to be heard, valued and central to any change. That is how we will get the best results for Ohio’s students.”
OEA appreciates the work of legislators in the 134th General Assembly who adopted educator’s recommendations on Disadvantaged Pupil Impact Aid (DPIA), the funding component that supports economically disadvantaged students, resulting in an increase of approximately $56 million in additional state funding in FY ‘23. Additionally, lawmakers increased allocations of the federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds for our public schools and provided an additional $112 million in federal funds for school building security and safety grants.
OEA remains hopeful that the next General Assembly will once again take up the cause of ending mandatory retention under the Third Grade Reading Guarantee, after the Senate failed to act on the House-passed House Bill 497 this session.
OEA also looks forward to collaborating with Ohio’s elected leaders to ensure the Fair School Funding Plan is fully implemented in the new state budget. That plan, which represents the first constitutional school funding system in the state in decades, was adopted in the last budget but only funded through the end of this biennium.
“Certainly, there is more work to be done, especially around issues like addressing growing educator shortages and supporting student and educator mental health and wellness,” DiMauro said, “but OEA is proud of what our members have been able to accomplish through their diligent advocacy work this session. We all look forward to working collaboratively with members of the 135th General Assembly to ensure their important public education priorities are front and center as new legislation is introduced.”
OEA calls for end of mandatory retention under Third Grade Reading Guarantee
[October 10, 2022] The Ohio Education Association (OEA) joined together Monday with state leaders, educators, and education policy experts to advocate for action in the General Assembly to end mandatory retention tied to third-grade standardized testing.
A full recording of Monday’s virtual event can be viewed and downloaded here.
“Mandatory retention under the so-called ‘Third Grade Reading Guarantee’ takes decisions about students’ futures out of the hands of parents, administrators, and teachers who know them best, allowing politicians in Columbus to determine their fates based on arbitrary cut-scores on high-stakes English language arts tests,” said OEA President Scott DiMauro, who moderated Monday’s event. “OEA commends the State Board of Education for its attention to this issue as it considers a resolution to call on the General Assembly to change this misguided law.”
“Grade retention distorts test data, disproportionately impacts and punishes vulnerable populations of students, and creates a distraction from reading reform’s ultimate goal of increased student reading proficiency,” noted Furman University Professor Dr. Paul Thomas in his recent white paper, “A Critical Examination of Grade Retention as Reading Policy.”
“It’s rare that policymakers stop and measure mandated education initiatives for their effectiveness, but that’s exactly what we have done for third grade retention. Through data provided by the Ohio Department of Education, we now know retention has failed as an initiative and has, in fact, hurt children more than helped,” said Dr. Christina Collins, Ohio State Board of Education member for District 7, who put forth the resolution that the State Board of Education is considering this week.
“In my experiences as a third-grade teacher, I have observed students put tremendous stress on themselves, become discouraged, think of themselves as losers, and develop behavioral problems because of this punitive, socially inappropriate, and educationally ineffective practice,” agreed Karen Carney, a teacher at Campbell Elementary & Middle School in Campbell, Ohio. “What a huge burden for a young child to carry—this truly broke my heart. As an educator, my primary job is to teach my students to be life-long learners, not test takers.”
“Ending mandatory retention has broad bipartisan support because it’s the right thing to do for kids,” said State Rep. Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville), who sponsored House Bill 497, a measure to end mandatory retention under the Third Grade Reading Guarantee. “These decisions should be made by parents and educators, not dictated by a score on a test.”
House Bill 497 passed in the Ohio House in June. The Ohio Senate must take up the bill and pass it when lawmakers return to session later this fall.
OEA members offer solutions to state’s growing teacher recruitment and retention crisis
[September 29, 2022] As Ohio continues to contend with an alarming decrease in staffing in its K-12 public schools, educators from around Ohio have come together to take on the problem and offer potential solutions. The Ohio Education Association (OEA) convened the cadre of diverse educators, as part of the National Education Association’s Educator Voice Academy (EVA) program, beginning in January, 2022. The EVA team’s full report, which includes numerous suggestions for Ohio’s elected leaders and OEA, is available here.
“Ohio’s growing teacher recruitment and retention crisis is one of the largest issues of our time,” OEA President Scott DiMauro pointed out. “When excellent educators are feeling that they have no choice but to leave the profession or young people are left feeling that teaching is not a sustainable career option – for a variety of reasons noted in the EVA’s report – Ohio students lose out on crucial opportunities and supports. Ohio’s students can no longer wait for meaningful solutions to this problem.”
Recommendations in the EVA report include:
- Immediately increase Ohio state minimum teacher’s salary to $40,000, and pending approval of a change in OEA Legislative Policy by the OEA Representative Assembly, increase the state minimum salary to $50,000.
- Fully fund the Fair School Funding Plan in the 2023-2025 state biennial budget and provide state support to local school districts with the resources to help fund necessary salary increases.
- Extend Public Service Loan Forgiveness deadlines and expand student loan forgiveness, grants, and scholarship programs to provide meaningful financial relief for those who commit to serving students in our public schools.
- Strengthen educators’ retirement security by supporting a fully funded State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio and repealing the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP).
- Remove financial barriers for completion of pre-service requirements for teacher licensure.
- Require the state to complete a comprehensive assessment of the alignment of Ohio’s teacher preparation programs with the realities of PK-12 schools.
- Seek feedback from educators on their working conditions and create systems for school leaders to act on that feedback to make necessary changes to policies, practices, and culture in schools.
- Create and maintain an accessible statewide database of education job openings to facilitate the matching of educators seeking employment with available positions and to provide a reliable source of information for the public to monitor trends in education employment in Ohio.
“It is important to note that the recommendations from the Educator Voice Academy are focused exclusively on issues related to the recruitment and retention of teachers; issues related to the recruitment and retention of education support professionals, including bus drivers, cafeteria workers, and paraprofessionals, among others, is an equally important topic deserving serious consideration as soon as possible,” DiMauro said. “Ohio’s policymakers and school leaders need to take immediate, significant action to ensure our students have all their needs met so they can learn, grow, and thrive in our classrooms. The time to act is now.”
OEA celebrates advocacy wins in new state report card system
[September 15, 2022] As families and education stakeholders around the state continue to examine the newly released state report card data, the Ohio Education Association (OEA) is celebrating the hard work of Ohio’s dedicated educators to support the state’s students as they continue to overcome the challenges of pandemic-era learning. Further, OEA expresses its sincere gratitude to the lawmakers who answered OEA’s calls for report card reform, resulting in the fairer assessments that were made public today.
“OEA has long fought against the overreliance on high stakes standardized tests in determining the value and success of Ohio’s public schools and students. The adoption of House Bill 82 in 2021 and other recently enacted laws that resulted in the significant changes in this year’s state report cards represent an incredibly important win in that regard,” OEA President Scott DiMauro said. “Gone are the misleading A-F grades, which gave an incomplete picture of a district’s performance at best. Gone are the draconian punishments for districts that failed to measure up to the cookie cutter standards of out-of-touch bureaucrats who clung to the report card letter grades to trigger state takeovers and wrest control from local parents and voters. Here to stay is a commitment to a more accurate and transparent assessment system for Ohio’s public schools.”
Among the trends highlighted by this accountability system, it is clear that Ohio’s traditional public schools continue to best serve the students in their communities. This year’s data demonstrates that the average achievement component score for the state’s traditional public school districts is 3.5 stars compared to the 1.7 star rating achieved, on average, by charter schools in the state on that same metric.
While more work is needed to further improve the state’s report card system, including major changes to improve accountability standards for Ohio’s charter schools and the private schools that take taxpayer-funded vouchers, OEA celebrates the move to a more informative star-rating system in this year’s report cards, complete with explanations about what the stars mean to provide the public with critical context. Further, OEA welcomes the inclusion of Student Opportunity Profiles in the 2022-2023 data that will be released next September. Those profiles will provide detailed information regarding what students have been offered to enhance their success. Academic and non-academic supports are essential for our students, especially as pandemic recovery continues.
OEA members recommend pro-public education candidates for statewide, legislative races
[September 7, 2022] Decisions made in Ohio’s statehouse and by other elected officials impact what happens in our public-school classrooms every day. Ohio Education Association members have spent the last several months interviewing candidates in political races around the state to make recommendations about who will best serve Ohio’s students, educators, and public schools if elected to office. The full list of OEA member-recommended candidates is now available here.
Among the many recommendations made by OEA members who serve on the OEA Fund State Council and District Screening Committees, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Nan Whaley has received OEA’s recommendation. “Whaley was instrumental in the Senate Bill 5 fight in 2011, serving as a key voice in the effort to protect collective bargaining rights in Ohio. As Dayton’s mayor, she was able to implement universal pre-K across the city and championed gun safety reforms that would make our schools safer,” OEA President Scott DiMauro noted. “Ohio needs Nan Whaley as governor.”
OEA members have also voted to recommend Representative Tim Ryan for U.S. Senate and Justice Jennifer Brunner, Judge Marilyn Zayas, and Judge Terri Jamison for the Ohio Supreme Court. Other OEA member recommendations include Representative Jeff Crossman in the race for Attorney General, and Mayor Scott Schertzer in his bid for Treasurer of State.
In races for the General Assembly, OEA members are recommending several educators-turned-candidates, including State Representative Joe Miller (D-53), Sean Brennan for House District 14, and Sophia Rodriguez for House District 84. “When educators represent us in the statehouse, Ohio’s students win. These candidates know better than anyone what our students need to succeed and how lawmakers can provide meaningful support for our public schools. They also know firsthand how damaging bills dragging our schools into manufactured culture wars have already been, so their voices in the ongoing battle to ensure our students have the freedom to receive a fair and honest education will be crucial,” DiMauro said.
The decisions about who to recommend for office are made entirely based on the candidates’ views on public education issues, or in the case of an incumbent candidate, on their record regarding public education issues. Political affiliation and views on other issues are not factors in these recommendations. “OEA members know having pro-public education leaders in office is essential for the future of our public schools,” DiMauro said. “We thank all of the members who have dedicated so much of their time and energy to the candidate screening process to ensure the best pro-public education candidates receive Ohio educators’ support.”
Ohio Education Association Candidate Recommendations
Ohio’s General Election is on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. Make sure educators voices are heard this November by making your plan to vote. Please see below for some important dates and links for information on voting in the upcoming General Election.
Important Dates
- Monday, October 7, 2024 – Deadline to register to vote and update registrations in advance of the General Election Boards of Election will be open until 9:00 PM for individuals to drop off registrations. See below links for how to check your registration status, register to vote, or update your registration online.
- Tuesday, October 8, 2024 – Early voting for the 2024 General Election begins. See links below for in-person early voting locations, dates, and times.
- Monday, November 4, 2024 – Absentee ballots must be postmarked by this date if returned by mail.
- Tuesday, November 5, 2024 – General Election: Polls are open from 6:30 AM to 7:30 PM and absentee ballots may be returned by 7:30 PM to your Board of Elections if not returned by mail.
Important Links
- To check your registration status, please click here.
- To register or update your registration, please click here.
- To find your county’s early voting location, please click here.
- To find the schedule for early in-person voting, please click here.
- To find out how to request a mail in ballot and vote by mail, please click here.
Click here to look up your current legislative district under the latest state maps.
As part of your voting plan, we urge all OEA members to check out the list of candidates recommended by the OEA members below. Many more candidate recommendations will be made after the Primary, so please continue to check for updates.
It is important to note that OEA members across the state—not OEA staff or leaders—make all the endorsement decisions. In each race, candidates from both parties are asked to fill out questionnaires describing their positions on education issues, and those who are state officeholders are also rated on their education votes in the General Assembly. Candidates are then interviewed by OEA members who work in the district or area in which candidates are seeking office. Based on the candidate’s views on public education issues—and only on public education issues—the OEA Fund State Council and District Screening Committees vote on whether to endorse specific candidates.
You can learn more about the OEA Fund and the screening process here.
**If viewing the recommended candidates list on a mobile phone or small screen, please rotate your device to a horizontal orientation for better viewing.**
President and Vice-President | Kamala Harris (D)/Tim Walz (D) |
US Senate | Recommended Candidate |
US Senate – OH | Sherrod Brown (D) |
Judicial Seat | |
Associate Justice of the OH Supreme Court | Melody Stewart (D) |
Associate Justice of the OH Supreme Court | Michael Donnelly (D) |
Associate Justice of the OH Supreme Court (Unexpired Term) | Lisa Forbes (D) |
Ohio House | Recommended Candidate |
District 1 | Dontavius Jarrells (D) |
District 2 | Latyna Humphrey (D) |
District 3 | Ismail Mohamed (D) |
District 4 | Beryl Brown Piccolantonio (D) |
District 5 | Meredith Lawson-Rowe (D) |
District 6 | Christine Cockley (D) |
District 7 | Allison Russo (D) |
District 8 | Anita Somani (D) |
District 9 | Munira Abdullahi (D) |
District 10 | Mark Sigrist (D) |
District 11 | Crystal Lett (D) |
District 12 | Brad Cotton (D) |
District 13 | Tristan Rader (D) |
District 14 | Sean Brennan (D) |
District 15 | Chris Glassburn (D) |
District 16 | Bride Rose Sweeney (D) |
District 17 | No Position |
District 18 | Juanita Brent (D) |
District 19 | Phil Robinson (D) |
District 20 | Terrence Upchurch (D) |
District 21 | Eric Synenberg (D) |
District 22 | Darnell Brewer (D) |
District 23 | Daniel Troy (D) |
District 24 | Dani Isaacsohn (D) |
District 25 | Cecil Thomas (D) |
District 26 | Sedrick Denson (D) |
District 27 | Rachel Baker (D) |
District 28 | Karen Brownlee (D) |
District 29 | Cindy Abrams (R) |
District 30 | Stefanie Hawk (D) |
District 31 | Bill Roemer (R) |
District 32 | No Position |
District 33 | Veronica Sims (D) |
District 34 | Derrick Hall (D) |
District 35 | Mark Curits (D) |
District 36 | No Position |
District 37 | No Position |
District 38 | No Position |
District 39 | No Position |
District 40 | No Position |
District 41 | Erika White (D) |
District 42 | Elgin Rogers, Jr. (D) |
District 43 | Michele Grim (D) |
District 44 | David Blythe (D) |
District 45 | No Position |
District 46 | Benjamin McCall (D) |
District 47 | Vanessa Cummings (D) |
District 48 | Scott Oelslager (R) |
District 49 | Krista L. Allison (D) |
District 50 | Matthew Kishman (R) |
District 51 | No Position |
District 52 | Gayle Manning (R) |
District 53 | Joe Miller (D) |
District 54 | No Position |
District 55 | Laura Davis (D) |
District 56 | Cleveland Canova (D) |
District 57 | Jamie Callender (R) |
District 58 | Lauren McNally (D) |
District 59 | No Position |
District 60 | Rachael Morocco (D) |
District 61 | David Hagan (D) |
District 62 | Katie Vockell (D) |
District 63 | No Position |
District 64 | Lauren Mathews (D) |
District 65 | No Position |
District 66 | No Position |
District 67 | No Position |
District 68 | No Position |
District 69 | Jamie Hough (D) |
District 70 | No Position |
District 71 | No Position |
District 72 | Nathaniel Adams (D) |
District 73 | No Position |
District 74 | No Position |
District 75 | Haraz Ghanbari (R) |
District 76 | No Position |
District 77 | No Position |
District 78 | No Position |
District 79 | Monica Robb Blasdel (R) |
District 80 | No Position |
District 81 | James Hoops (R) |
District 82 | No Position |
District 83 | No Position |
District 84 | Arienne Childrey (D) |
District 85 | No Position |
District 86 | Tracy Richardson (R) |
District 87 | No Position |
District 88 | No Position |
District 89 | No Position |
District 90 | Justin Pizzulli (R) |
District 91 | No Position |
District 92 | Mark Johnson (R) |
District 93 | Jason Stephens (R) |
District 94 | Wenda Sheard (D) |
District 95 | Don Jones (R) |
District 96 | No Position |
District 97 | No Position |
District 98 | No Position |
District 99 | Louis Murphy (D) |
Ohio Senate | Recommended Candidate |
District 2 | Paloma De La Fuente (D) |
District 4 | Thomas Cooke (D) |
District 6 | Willis Blackshear (D) |
District 8 | Louis Blessing, III (R) |
District 10 | Daniel McGregor (D) |
District 12 | No Position |
District 14 | Shane Marcum (D) |
District 16 | Beth Liston (D) |
District 18 | Katie O’Neill (D) |
District 20 | No Position |
District 22 | No Position |
District 24 | Tom Patton (D) |
District 26 | Mohamud Juma (D) |
District 28 | Casey Weinstein (D) |
District 30 | Iva Faber (D) |
District 32 | Michael Shrodek (D) |
District 33 | No Position |
U.S. Congress | Recommended Candidate |
District 1 | Greg Landsman (D) |
District 2 | |
District 3 | Joyce Beatty (D) |
District 4 | |
District 5 | |
District 6 | |
District 7 | |
District 8 | |
District 9 | Marcy Kaptur (D) |
District 10 | |
District 11 | Shontel Brown (D) |
District 12 | |
District 13 | Emilia Sykes (D) |
District 14 | |
District 15 | Adam Miller (D) |
State Board of Education | Recommended Candidate |
SBOE 1 | Kristie Reighard |
SBOE 5 | Mary Binegar |
SBOE 6 | Chris Orban |
SBOE 7 | Rhonda Johnson |
SBOE 8 | Karen Lloyd |
SBOE 11 | Delores Ford |
Oh Yes, We’re Social — Join the Conversation!
Updated September 17, 2024
OEA 175th Anniversary Video
Since 1847, the Ohio Education Association has been proud to lead the way for great public schools for every child. As OEA marks its 175th anniversary, members and leaders have been sharing their memories from the last several decades of serving Ohio’s students and fighting for the teaching and learning conditions all Ohioans deserve.
From the hard-won fight for collective bargaining rights in Ohio to the ongoing struggle to secure fair funding for all of our schools, these stories have been brought together in this short film.
We invite you to watch and reminisce along with the dedicated educators who have shared their perspectives in this video. As we contemplate our collective past, we are empowered to create a brighter future together for all Ohio students: