Media inquiries
Members of the media may contact OFT Communications Director Neil Bhaerman at 412-266-4899 (cell).
Press
Ohio Federation of Teachers Thanks Retiring State Superintendent DeMaria
"From implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act to a forward-looking strategic plan through a pandemic year, Superintendent DeMaria has demonstrated that the best way to create an education system that serves and supports all students is by bringing stakeholders to the table, truly listening to their input, providing opportunities for civil discourse, and working towards consensus,” said OFT President Melissa Cropper.
Legislature Makes Gains on School Funding But Fails to Enact Fair School Funding Formula
“We organized. We held town halls. We called and emailed our legislators. We came together – parents, teachers, school support staff, school administrators, community members – and we made a huge impact for our kids,” said Taylor Pennington, a public school parent in Lima, Ohio. “This legislation enacts a student-centered school funding formula for the next two years that will help all our local schools deliver world-class opportunities. We need to keep raising our voices to make this a permanent funding formula.”
Worthington Libraries Staff Announce Union Effort
Today, staff at Worthington Libraries called on their library management to voluntarily recognize their union after they presented signed union cards from an overwhelming majority of library employees. The organizing campaign is led by staff from all three library branches.
“We love our jobs and we love the library,” said Coleman Mahler, an adult services librarian at the Northwest Library branch. “Now we’re asking for a voice in policy that affects us, autonomy over our working conditions and a library that works as hard for us as we work for our community.”
House Bills Targeting School Curriculum Are a Dishonest Attack on Public Schools
"HB 322 and HB 327 are bills that were written to address a non-existent problem that was ginned up by the same bad actors who have been trying to privatize public education for decades. If these bills were to pass, they have the potential to prohibit or dissuade educators from covering important topics that are essential for students to learn our past, understand our present, and build our future."
Ohio Federation of Teachers and Ohio Education Association Oppose Legislative Attack on Trans Students
“These bills -- HB 61 and SB 132 -- are not just a sports ban, this is part of a coordinated national attack on the safety and lives of trans students. As educators, we are speaking up because we know that our students don't thrive when they're not safe and healthy, and because every student deserves respect and equal opportunity."
Governor DeWine Misses Opportunity to Take Action on School Funding
OFT President Melissa Cropper released the following statement in response to Governor DeWine’s budget proposal for FY 2022-2023: "We're disappointed that Governor DeWine chose to punt on the opportunity to fix our broken and unconstitutional school funding system rather than using last year's Fair School Funding Plan, which passed the Ohio House with an overwhelming bipartisan majority, as a framework.
Ohio’s Largest Teacher Unions to Governor: Life-Saving Vaccine Is Not a Bargaining Chip
“Our school districts include some of the communities in Ohio that have been hit hardest by the deadly effects of COVID-19. Our members, our students and their families, and our cities will face dire consequences if schools are pressured to reopen before it is safe to do so."
Miguel Cardona’s Cabinet Nomination Will Move Ohio Schools Forward
Connecticut Education Commissioner Miguel Cardona is expected to be nominated as Secretary of Education for the Biden Administration, fulfilling the President-Elect’s campaign pledge to name a former educator to the position. Cardona was an AFT member, educator, and administratrator in Meriden, Connecticut before becoming Connecticut’s Education Commissioner.
OFT President Melissa Cropper released the following statement in response: “Ohio Federation of Teachers congratulates Miguel Cardona on his nomination to be the next Secretary of Education. His insight and experience as an educator will be invaluable in shaping a Department of Education that can meet the growing needs of our students."
Ohio Federation of Teachers Urges Senate Passage of the Fair School Funding Plan
COLUMBUS, OH — Following the Ohio House of Representatives' passage of HB 305, Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper released the following statement: “Ohio’s public schools have gone decades without a constitutional school funding formula and are currently operating with no funding formula at all. That is too long for us to fail to meet our obligations to the 90% of Ohio children who attend our public schools."