Efficient and effective schools
Ohio has set itself a difficult task. State leaders have committed to education reforms designed to give Ohio students the skills and knowledge they will need for success in the 21st century. But difficult economic times have put the state's education system under financial constraints that make implementing new approaches difficult.
We are leading a new initiative called Ohio Smart Schools that will help Ohio’s education system fundamentally rethink how it operates with a goal of improving learning for all students while looking to save tax dollars in a tough economic environment.
Through Ohio Smart Schools, we are taking the lead in helping the state look for innovative ways to improve learning for Ohio’s 1.8 million students.
We are working with the Ohio Department of Education, legislators from both parties and education stakeholders, including administrators, teachers, students, community and business leaders and foundations. The collaboration will ensure that a full range of interests are involved to advise the state on achievable goals for modernization and efficiency in our education system in the near- and long-term future.
The collaboration will examine best practices from throughout the country to look at inefficiencies and encourage innovation in Ohio’s schools.
KnowledgeWorks, which is paying for the work along with other private funders, has been asked to report back on its findings by December 2010 for consideration in the next biennial budget and next school year.
Press release from Gov. Strickland »
KnowledgeWorks to help Ohio fundamentally re-imagine education, operate more efficiently amid economic challenges
CEO Chad Wick says work to improve education is Ohio’s ‘most important public responsibility’
CINCINNATI -- (May 26, 2010) – KnowledgeWorks, a national leader in developing and implementing innovative approaches to education, will help the state of Ohio’s education system fundamentally rethink how it operates with a goal of improving learning for all students while looking to save tax dollars in a tough economic environment.
In a statement today, Gov. Ted Strickland called KnowledgeWorks “a respected national leader that understands the importance of innovation in education” and is the “best entity to take on this challenge.”
KnowledgeWorks CEO Chad Wick said he is encouraged that the governor has asked the organization to take the lead helping the state look for innovative ways to improve learning for Ohio’s 1.8 million students.
“ Gov. Strickland is demonstrating forward-thinking leadership on what I believe is our most important public responsibility – ensuring the children of Ohio receive the best education in the nation in spite of the economic challenges we face,” Wick said. “KnowledgeWorks looks forward to working with ODE, key education stakeholders and listening to the citizens of Ohio as we explore the best ideas and systems available to help seed innovation and reimagine how to deliver learning in our state at a time of financial challenges.”
KnowledgeWorks, which is paying for the work along with other private funders, has been asked to report back on its findings by December 2010 for consideration in the next biennial budget and next school year.
Ohio, like other states across the country, is facing a fiscal crisis. The state is facing a projected $8 billion hole in the next budget for fiscal 2012-13, and the shortfall is compounded by recent news that Ohio’s income tax revenues have dropped below budgeted expectations.
KnowledgeWorks will work with the Ohio Department of Education, legislators from both parties, and education stakeholders, including administrators, teachers, students, community and business leaders, and foundations. The collaboration will ensure that a full range of interests are
involved to advise the state on achievable goals for modernization and efficiency in our education system in the near- and long-term future.
Andy Benson, a KnowledgeWorks vice president and executive director of its subsidiary, Ohio Education Matters, a public policy research organization, said the collaboration will examine best practices from throughout the country to look at inefficienciesand encourage innovation in Ohio’s schools.
“Ohio’s survival is very much contingent on creating an exemplary education system that facilitates its transition from an industrial to a talent-driven economy,” Benson said.
Wick said the work will begin immediately, starting with a series of public listening tours throughout the state to gather recommendations from citizens and other key education stakeholders. Wick believes it’s time for Ohio to make a bold leap into the future and think about new ways to deliver education.
“We have committed significant time and effort to develop research-based approaches on what the future of learning looks like, and we know today’s education system, with its industrial-age assumptions, no longer works,” Wick said.