For Immediate Release
March 10, 2026
Contact: Neil Bhaerman, nbhaerman@oft-aft.org, 412-266-4899
A Disconnect Between Governor DeWine’s Words and Actions
OFT President Melissa Cropper Responds to Dewine’s Final State of the State Address
COLUMBUS — Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper released the following statement on Governor DeWine’s State of the State Address:
“For the past seven years, we’ve seen a disconnect between Governor DeWine’s words and the end result of the policies and funding decisions he has put into place. Nowhere is this contrast more striking than in education policy.
We agree with Governor DeWine’s focus on literacy education, student health centers, chronic absenteeism, and career tech education. As teachers, intervention specialists, counselors, paraprofessionals, speech language pathologists, librarians and library media specialists, and other educators, our members know that tackling each one of these issues is critical to improving public education in Ohio.
Those are Governor DeWine’s words.
His actions however have completely undermined school districts’ ability to accomplish these goals. After supporting the bipartisan Fair School Funding Plan for four years, DeWine and statehouse Republicans abandoned that plan in the current state budget and underfunded Ohio’s public schools by more than $2.7 billion (compared to what schools would have received if the Fair School Funding Plan was fully implemented as planned).
We are already seeing the impact of these budget cuts in school districts across the state: fewer teachers, fewer support staff, larger class sizes, fewer electives, and a higher burden on local taxpayers as districts try to make up the difference with additional levies.
Governor DeWine, in his seven years in office, has also overseen an absurd expansion of private school vouchers which now cost the state more than $1 billion per year. Investing in private schools, which are less accountable, does not result in better academic outcomes for students. All it does is harm our ability to fully and equitably fund public schools.”