We look forward to working with Board President McGuire and Vice President Dackin, new members Brandon Kern and Richard Chernesky, and the rest of the state school board members to address the immediate challenges that Ohio students and schools are facing, including labor shortages, public health precautions, and increased student behavior issues.”
Columbus, OH — Melissa Cropper, President of the Ohio Federation of Teachers, and Scott DiMauro, President of the Ohio Education Association, released the following joint statement in opposition to HB 454, a bill that would ban gender affirming mental and physical healthcare for minors in Ohio. The bill would also prohibit educators and school counselors from keeping students’ feelings about gender identity confidential.
Librarians and other workers at Worthington Libraries voted 80-10 (89%) to form their union with the Ohio Federation of Teachers, according to election results that were released today by Ohio’s State Employment Relations Board (SERB). The organizing campaign was driven by concerns that too many library policies, including health and safety concerns and paid leave policies, were being made without any input from library employees.
"The safety and education of our students is our highest priority. We haven’t even passed Labor Day and we already have thousands of Ohio students, teachers, and staff who have missed school due to COVID-19 infection or exposure. This has already led to school closures in multiple school districts. We need to keep our students in the classroom, and the best way to do that is with a statewide mask mandate."
Today, Innovation Ohio and the Ohio Federation of Teachers co-hosted a virtual "speak out" against deceptive attacks on honesty in education which aim to prohibit schools from teaching accurate history about racism, sexism, prejudice, and other issues. Educators, parents, and allies spoke about the dangers of curriculum bans and urged Ohioans to stand for honest, accurate, diverse education in schools.
Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper release the following statement on the passing of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka: "Today, we mourn for AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, a relentless champion for workers’ rights and people-powered democracy. Rich began his work in the labor movement as a coal miner before rising to become the leader of the United Mine Workers of America and then the AFL-CIO. He never forgot where he came from, providing critical support to workers in struggle throughout his career."
"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."