We fully understand that starting the school year online is not what any of us expected. We have been asked why the district didn’t change the school start date once the CEA voted to strike. Under our labor agreement with the CEA, any changes to the school calendar require an agreement between the District and union, and the Ohio Department of Education requires a 30-day public notice of the changes. Unfortunately, due to timing, we were unable to make any changes to the start date.

Principals are sharing grade-level specific guidance ​and resources directly to families about attendance and expectations for students during online learning. The district’s Department of Academic Services has developed a comprehensive Online Learning Resource Guide that includes assignments and access to online platforms students typically use throughout the year. The resource guide also includes virtual experiences designed by community partners that can serve as “brain breaks” while keeping students engaged and learning. 

The social-emotional well-being of our students is just as important as their academic needs, and we don’t want students or families to feel overwhelmed by the resources available to them. During the daily student check-ins, our CCS staff will engage students in SEL activities, conversation around wellness, and answer any questions that students may have around school expectations or resources needed. These asynchronous days are an opportunity for students to take more ownership of how and what they learn, and we want them to use this time to focus on those content areas where they excel or need some extra work. We also want students to know they’re encouraged to establish a learning routine that works best for them, as well as includes breaks.

As CEA has filed a strike notice, the District began the school year with online learning with asynchronous resources. Our academic leadership team has developed a resource guide to support students across all grades. To ensure safety, the District’s buildings will be closed to students and community members during the strike, with the exception of our 25 grab-and-go meal sites and the accompanying Chromebook support centers.

The District Administration will send parents and students correspondence regarding the procedures to begin the online learning program before the first day of school. Online learning has started on the first day of classes for students, Wednesday, August 24.

The District has many capable full-time substitutes who have been supplied with the curriculum, which has already been prepared, so that students may smoothly enter into the online learning experience. In addition to our substitutes, the District’s own administrators and those teachers who choose not to strike may provide online instruction to their students.

Yes. Ohio law requires students to attend school unless they have a valid excuse. An employee strike is not a valid excuse for a student absence. The District is providing instruction through live, synchronous check-ins and asynchronous online resources. All Columbus City Schools students are expected to participate in all online learning for the duration of the strike and attendance will be taken daily. Students who fail to participate without a legitimate excuse may be subject to appropriate interventions as required by state law and the Board’s policies. For additional information about student attendance requirements, please review the 2022-2023 Guide to Student Success.

The Department of Specialized Instruction and Inclusion is committed to ensuring that all students receive their legally mandated SDI/special education service minutes during the strike.  

Asynchronous learning opportunities will be made available to afford students the opportunity to work on academic and social-emotional areas of need.  This will include access to online resources and intervention programs. 

Intervention Specialists and Related Service Providers (SLP, OT, PT, APE) who opt to work through the strike will provide synchronous specially designed instruction for students as outlined in Section 7 of their IEP.  Services will be provided virtually.   

Once all CCS students and staff return to school, opportunities for after-school tutoring, Saturday academies, summer tutoring, and summer experience will be offered to students in order to make up any remaining missed minutes of SDI.

Unfortunately, these activities will be rescheduled and, in some instances, cancelled. Our teachers make up almost 60% of our coaching staff and extra-curricular advisors, so we will not have the ability to provide appropriate supervision to maintain the safety of our student-athletes and our other extra-curricular participants. Our buildings will be closed to conditioning and other practices. The coaches and advisors that will still be working will provide activities/resources for students to continue their activity while in online learning. This will allow those students to be prepared for the return of their activities once the strike is over.

Our school administrators will continue to plan their back-to-school events. Principals will provide families with the most up-to-date information related to back-to-school events. Please continue to check the school website, Parent Portal, and social media pages for any updates.

Meal service will continue with daily “grab-and-go” meal service at designated sites across the city. These sites will be open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day for families to pick up hot and cold meals. Please click here for more information on grab-and-go meals, including a list of all sites.

Newly enrolled students and families who need a Chromebook can pick up a device at any one of the District’s 25 Grab and Go Meal Sites.

Chromebook repairs and replacements will also take place at the Grab and Go Meal Site locations. Technology specialists will be available to provide technical help.

Technology questions? Call or text the CCS Help Desk at 614-365-8425.

Technology support will be available in the following ways: 

1. Help Desk – Parents can call 614-365-8425 or text that number for help with their technology questions. 
2. Food Sites – For repairs and replacements that cannot be made at a school building, technology specialists will be available at food sites to provide technical help.

Yes. The Nationwide Children’s school clinics will remain open offering well visits, sports physicals, sick visits, and other health needs. Please call (614) 355-2590 for an appointment.

The ESL staff, Family Ambassadors, and bilingual engagement liaisons will be available to help support students and families.

Many of our community partners have already expressed their willingness to open their doors to reactivate Student Support Centers that were helpful for students during the early stages of the pandemic. These Student Support Centers are safe, adult-supervised, welcoming spaces where students are supported while learning virtually during the day. Students have access to the internet, learning devices, and school supplies to assist them in online learning (if they need more than the Chromebook supplied by the District).

We will keep families, students, and staff informed with regular updates through our typical communications channels including auto dial calls, emails, website, and social media. Families can also reach out to Customer Relations, the Factline, and/or their school’s Family Ambassador for information or questions.

Columbus City Schools (CCS) and the Columbus Education Association (CEA), the teachers union, have been negotiating a new contract through the collective bargaining process. On August 11, CEA filed a 10-day strike notice with the State Employment Relations Board to begin a strike on August 22. At their August 21 meeting, CEA voted to strike, which officially began on August 22.

A lot of time has been invested in listening to teachers’ concerns and working collaboratively on creative solutions. Negotiations began in March of 2022, and there were 22 bargaining sessions held.

No, our team consistently bargained in good faith working to reach a resolution. CEA’s unwillingness to bargain in good faith was a roadblock to resolution. On August 18, the Board presented a last, best and final offer for their consideration, and this concludes the bargaining process.

The Board filed an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) against CEA. To the extent the terms of the offer are detailed in the ULP, they are now public.

The offer includes generous economic benefits reflecting our respect for the hard work of our teachers. The offer includes guaranteed annual 3% salary increases for three years, in addition to automatic raises already in place, a $2,000 stipend (bonus) paid out over four payments, a creative approach to paid leave for new parents, and much more. 

By the end of the contract, a teacher who in the most recent school year earned the district’s average salary of $74,000 will earn more than $91,000 – a 23% increase from the start of the contract. Starting teachers will earn over $50,000 in the first year of the contract – with that paycheck quickly growing from the guaranteed annual raises.

The Board is committed to providing comfortable, safe schools that encourage learning.  Well before contract negotiations began, CCS initiated extensive HVAC improvements, installing air conditioning in several buildings. Additional dollars are prioritized for this purpose, and work is underway in several of the remaining buildings in need of air conditioning.

The average class size in the District is currently 22 students, which is competitive with or better than state averages. In the final offer, the Board proposed to continue a phase-in of further reduced class sizes up to the 5th grade. For most of our high school teachers, in the offer itself we have affirmed the agreement that they will instruct no more than 150 students per day, not including study halls.

Investing in our teachers is investing in the success of our students. That is why our offer includes a continuing education program in which teachers can complete coursework, paid for by the Board, for high-needs licensure, certification and/or endorsement areas. The offer also builds in more flexibility and opportunity for ongoing professional development.

While we remain focused on resolution, our school community should know that CCS is prepared during the strike. School began online on August 24 without disruption and to ensure our students have ample opportunity to learn and grow. The District will be in further communication with parents and families about alternative opening plans going forward.

Each individual teacher will have to decide whether to strike or to teach our students. Ohio law states that striking teachers are not entitled to “pay or compensation.” Therefore, striking teachers will not be paid during the strike. Fringe benefits, such as health insurance, are forms of compensation, so striking teachers will not remain on the District’s health insurance plan. Teachers who choose to work during the strike will retain pay and benefits.

We hope that any strike ends as quickly as possible, but that decision is up to CEA.

The Board of Education is committed to providing an education to all of our students and is prepared to do that even during a teachers’ strike.