Cleveland Heights-University Heights Board of Education special meeting highlights 5-29-2020

MAY 29, 2020

 

  • Resolution to enter EdChoice lawsuit

 

After an executive session, the meeting was called to order at 4:10 p.m. and adjourned at 4:45 p.m. The meeting was conducted remotely, with each attendee joining the meeting from their individual homes. Board President Jodi Sourini, members James Posch, Dan Heintz, Malia Lewis and Beverly Wright were present. Superintendent Elizabeth Kirby and Treasurer Scott Gainer were also present. 

Resolution to enter EdChoice lawsuit

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss a resolution to enter a lawsuit challenging the State of Ohio's EdChoice voucher funding, its administration, and its impact on the CH-UH community. For the 2020-2021 school year, the EdChoice cost to the district is projected to exceed 9 million dollars, equaling about 40 percent of the state's funding to the district.

Board members discussed their reasoning for entering the lawsuit. They described how the present system is not sustainable, how the board has tried to address financial problems engendered by EdChoice, and how the EdChoice funding mechanism exacerbates the unconstitutionality of Ohio's means of funding public schools. Board President Sourini further expressed concern that the present system does not allow a school district to remove itself from the list of EdChoice-eligible schools.

Each member of the board presented their reasons for supporting the resolution and the lawsuit. The superintendent and treasurer also expressed their support for the resolution. The board passed the resolution unanimously. The resolution is on BoardDocs, which can be accessed from the school board web page (www.chuh.org/BoardofEducation.aspx). 

Virtual meetings are streamed directly on the district’s YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/CHUHSchools ). They can also be viewed at: https://stream.meet.google.com/stream/8f442366-4bbd-4160-aaeb-ece0f7ab6534.

LWV Observer: Robin Koslen.

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