2026
March
Morale slump for Ohio’s public educators, March 9, 2026
- "When we looked at the reasons why [teacher morale declined], the top two reasons were, one, increase in student behaviors and problems in the classroom that need to be dealt with, and then two was just a lack of autonomy, lack of respect that teachers feel." — OFT President Melissa Cropper
Rural History Teachers Choose Education Over Politics, March 5, 2026, Greg Wickenkamp, Barn Raiser
- "It’s heartbreaking to have that lie of indoctrination perpetuated. We’re not the ones in that business. There is a whole business of indoctrinating but it’s not in schools. It’s on phones. We just want to love them, and teach them, and enable them to live wonderful lives." — Heather Stambaugh, HS History Teacher and President of Greenon Federation of Teachers
Cincinnati educators, health care workers protest Ohio Republican ICE 'cooperation' bills, March 4, 2026, Marlena Lang, WCPO
- "Today we are standing together to fight for our students, patients and colleagues... You make communities safer by building trust with that community, not by intimidating them by force and violence" — Theresa Kulbaga, English professor and president of the Faculty Alliance of Miami University
Teacher, health care unions push back on Ohio legislation aiding ICE, March 4, 2026, Nick Swartsell, WVXU
- "We know [cooperation with ICE] will have big impact for our students' attendance — we are already seeing that. That's not fair to any child, to have to live their lives in fear. " — Julie Sellers, President of Cincinnati Federation of Teachers
Cincinnati Edition: We discuss the future of public school funding, March 2, 2026, WVXU
- OFT President Melissa Cropper interviewed about HB 671, a bill moving through the statehouse that puts Ohio school districts on notice: if they sue over private school vouchers, the measure could allow the state to withhold funding.
February
Nationwide Children’s rolls out literacy screenings for young children, Feb. 28, 2026, Lexi Lepof, WCMH
- “If they come into school in kindergarten, maybe lacking in some foundational skills, that gap just increases as the years go by. Teachers are seeing that in the classroom in terms of language and literacy skills, where they lack vocabulary and background knowledge.” — Jean Hribar, Executive Director of Learning Lighthouse (organization founded by OFT).
What comes next for the Ohio teachers’ pension fund after a judge removed its chair?, Feb. 23, 2026, Morgan Trau, Ohio Capital Journal
- “They made drastic changes to the composition of the retirement board, and those changes are completely unnecessary…And I would say that our members are much more fearful of decisions of the legislature than they are of decisions made by the people that they chose to serve them.” — OFT President Melissa Cropper
January
Leading Edge | Toledo Federation of Teachers Pres. on changes at TPS, Jan. 18, 2026, WTOL
As ACA tax credits expire, Ohio families face rising health costs, Jan. 5, 2026, Farah Siddiqi, Heartland Signal
- “We’ve seen SNAP benefits cut so that families with needy children are not able to get the food and assistance that they need. Currently, all the benefits are going towards corporations and not going to the people who actually need help getting by.” — OFT President Melissa Cropper
2025
December
Ohio bill requires free tutoring, extra help for students with lowest test scores, Dec. 22, 2025, Laura Hancock, cleveland.com
- "Educators are already stretched thin, with large classes and students who need more support than ever. It is not reasonable to add another new unfunded mandate, especially one with this many specific requirements for an improvement plan.” — OFT President Melissa Cropper
November
Workers at one of Ohio’s largest library systems set to unionize, Nov. 18, 2025, Susan Tebben, Ohio Capital Journal
- “I feel like library communities are a reflection of statewide issues that the greater community is experiencing...If Columbus is experiencing issues with housing and people struggling to find jobs and access to food, they need help connecting to things that might help, and we’re needed even more.” — Rahaf Fares, Customer Service Specialist at CML and Organizing Committee member
- “I was at my library every chance I got. It was a place where I felt safe when that wasn’t necessarily the case in other places...Libraries are an essential part of a functioning democracy,” — Jude Virostko, Adult Services Librarian at CML and Organizing Committee member
Employees for 23-branch Columbus library announce campaign to unionize, Nov. 18, 2025, Dean Narciso, Columbus Dispatch
- "We can't rely on our administration or the government to protect our labor rights or the most vulnerable of our customers or co-workers. We need to have solidarity ... to use the power that we have in our numbers to organize and demand that our rights and our dignity as employees are upheld." — Phoebe Chung, Customer Service Specialist at CML and Organizing Committee member
October
Ohio Federation of Teachers endorses Sherrod Brown for 2026 Senate election, Oct. 8, 2025, WSYX
- In a statement, OFT President Melissa Cropper said Brown has “spent his career fighting for the dignity of work and economic justice for Ohio families.”
September
Chronic absenteeism challenges Ohio education system with 25% absence rate, Sep. 30, 2026, Jack Krumm, WTOL
- “If students are missing instruction, it's going to impact how well they perform on the state tests. The state test scores are impacted, which again makes the district look worse than what they actually are…I think our education system has become so test-heavy that many students don't see the relevance of learning anymore. When they feel like the only reason to be in school is to learn information for a test and they don't see how that impacts their futures, they don't really see a need to be there.” — OFT President Melissa Cropper
3 major teachers’ unions sue Ohio, blame Republicans over STRS takeover, Sep. 16, 2025, Eileen McClory, Dayton Daily News
- “Statehouse politicians have underfunded our public schools, rolled back our collective bargaining rights, fully eliminated Ohio’s elected State Board of Education, and told us what we can and can’t teach. Now they’re taking away our representation on our own retirement board.” — Glenetta Krause, member of Cincinnati Federation of Teachers
July
The Worker’s View: SB1 throws Central Ohio Technical College union contract into turmoil, July 31, 2025, Mandy Shunnarah, Matter News
Ohio public school leaders blast budget, saying it moves districts backward even with vetoes, July 1, 2025, Jo Ingles, Statehouse News Bureau
- Melissa Cropper with the Ohio Federation of Teachers said she doesn't believe Republican lawmakers who tout the budget as funding public education adequately. “It’s really hard for us to accept that when we have money that went to a sports stadium and money that’s going back in the form of tax reform."
- Cropper said this budget is disrespectful to public school teachers in ways other than school funding. “We are taking away their voice in the classroom. We are taking away their voice on policy on the state board of education. And now we are taking away their voice in their own public pension system."
June
United Faculty/Central Ohio Technical College union holds rally against SB 1, June 13, 2025, Columbus Dispatch
Citing Ohio’s Sweeping Higher Ed Law, College Refuses to Sign Union Contract, June 12, 2025, Ryan Quinn, Inside Higher Ed
COTC faculty union files unfair labor practice claim, alleging college reneged on new contract, June 11, 2025, Josué Perez, Newark Advocate
- “Ohio law is clear. Since we ratified the contract and our administration didn’t vote on ratification within the allotted time, our contract is officially approved. It’s outrageous that our board is ignoring the law and acting as if we’re still in negotiations. It’s time for the board to sign the contract so we can move forward together.” — United Faculty / Central Ohio Technical College President Martin Schmerr