Columbus City Schools is speaking out about proposed changes Ohio wants federal education officials to approve that could close as many as 15 of their schools or convert them to charter schools.
The Dispatch previously reported that the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (ODEW) is seeking federal approval to allow schools stuck on a list of underperforming buildings for more than three years to face a range of actions, starting with methods like replacing instructional materials and undergoing a comprehensive academic review, before moving on to more controversial tactics.
Those methods include converting the traditional public school into a charter school, handing over management to a third party or closing the school.
According to the
list, Columbus has 15 schools considered underperforming. In a statement, Board President Antoinette Miranda said that the government has already tried many of these strategies during No Child Left Behind, which she said "at best provide mixed results."
"Simply changing who technically controls the school," she said, doesn't appear to work and also targets urban schools already facing deep cuts to their budgets.
"A school takeover can change leadership or governance but it cannot automatically solve the underlying resource problem," Miranda said. "Takeovers are not a substitute for adequately funding schools that serve students with greater needs."
The new methods are included in Ohio's request for more flexibility in how it spends federal education dollars. Ohio must obtain a waiver to deviate from requirements under the Every Student Succeeds Act, which replaced No Child Left Behind. President Donald Trump's administration is expected to approve Ohio's changes.
What ultimately happens to a struggling school will be "dependent on local context" and conversations between state and local officials, according to Ohio's waiver request, although the state would have the final say.
The proposal lists 16 ways to improve the state's lowest-performing schools, which include high schools where at least a third of students do not graduate.
The following Columbus City schools are considered underperforming on the list:
- Fairmoor Elementary School
- Columbus Africentric Early College Middle School
- Columbus Online Academy
- Linden-McKinley STEM Academy
- Livingston Elementary School
- Eastgate Elementary School
- Columbus Scioto 6-12
- Starling PK-8
- West High School
- Westmoor Middle School
- Briggs High School
- Mifflin Alternative Middle School
- Marion-Franklin High School
- Oakland Park Alternative Elementary
- South High School
Four schools, including South High School, Marion-Franklin High School, Briggs High School and Linden-McKinley STEM Academy have been on the underperforming schools list since 2018. The other nine were added in 2025.
In an interview, CCS Superintendent Angela Chapman said that the district administration is monitoring the situation and said many of the challenges underperforming schools face stem from challenges outside the classroom, such as housing insecurity, economic instability and other factors.
"We recognize that there are no simple solutions for to the complex challenges that our schools, particularly those who serve more vulnerable populations, face," Chapman said.
USA Today Ohio Politics reporter Jessie Balmert contributed to this report.
Cole Behrens covers K-12 education and school districts in central Ohio. Have a tip? Contact Cole at cbehrens@dispatch.com or connect with him on X at @Colebehr_report
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio could close or convert struggling schools. CCS says that's a bad idea
