The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
CEO Ring reports on listening tour in district
Lorain teachers and parents had a number of suggestions for ways to improve Lorain City Schools for their students.
On Feb.
26, Lorain Schools Interim CEO
Greg Ring published his written summary of discussions that started Jan. 3.
Ring began visiting the 14 school buildings and held a Listening Tour with stops at the three middle schools which were open to the public.
The summary included points Ring had discussed in Lorain Schools Board of Education meetings.
There were issues dealing with specific grade levels and with the district overall.
Some of the concerns are perennial issues for the district and some were specific about new systems or methods authorized by CEO David Hardy Jr. during his tenure.
Some of Ring’s findings pointed to things that could change for the 2020-2021 school year.
For example, Ring reported standard based report cards were poorly implemented for staff and parents.
Instead of a traditional grade point average method, students receive “D” grades based on a scale of 1 to 5 to indicate how they are learning in reading, math, science and social studies.
Teachers began using that method in the 201819 school year, prompting some public confusion and criticism.
Starting in March, committees with elementary school teachers will review the standards based grading system and make recommendations for the 2020-2021 school year report card format.
Ring reported concerns that eighth graders are not as prepared as they should be for ninth grade.
The district will “explore retention, summer school, going back to “A-F” grades, and current remediation practices to support student readiness for high school.
The district also needs to improve student orientation for all new students.
A study committee of faculty, parents and students will make recommendations for improvement, to be implemented in August 2020.
Ring already has hinted at changes coming to building administrators in the upcoming school year.
The Listening Tour findings stated Lorain Schools had “too many administrators, many not fully licensed through the state.”
A plan to reduce and reorganize administrative staff and assure professional licensure will be announced in March, Ring said.
It appeared the dean positions will be eliminated at Lorain Schools buildings for the 2020-2021 school year.
New, fewer positions will be posted as assistant principals and candidates with five-year principal licenses will be encouraged to apply.
The information was part of an email that Southview Middle School Turnaround Principal Tim Jama sent to members of the Lorain Administration Association.
It was published online by the grassroots group It Takes a Village to Tackle House Bill 70.
That group has opposed the state law that authorized state-appointed academic distress commissions to hire CEOs who oversee struggling school districts, including Lorain.
Jama confirmed the information was included in an email he sent to his colleagues, but deferred further comment to Ring about the future administrative structure.