by Jodie Emerson, Ariel Miller, Kyle Vath, Jeanie Zoller
As Episcopalians, we are called to bear witness to God’s love, justice, and mercy in all aspects of our lives, including the public square.
We make a promise at every baptism and at several moments throughout the church year: to “strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being.” It is the heart of our Christian vocation. As Episcopalians in Ohio, this commitment to justice extends to our schools, helping ensure that all children thrive with dignity and opportunity, not just those in our own families or school districts.
This month, Ohio children urgently need our advocacy: the Ohio House-passed version of our next state budget (HB 96) would deeply cut funding for Ohio’s public schools which serve almost 90% of the children in our state. This comes on top of anticipated federal cuts in funding essential to serving children with disabilities and other special needs.
As parents, grandparents, educators, and Episcopalians, we’re asking for your help. There is an urgent need to contact the members of the Senate Finance Committee and urge them to reverse the injustices in the House K-12 funding provisions. The Ohio Senate will be working in early May to draft its version of the budget.
This overview provides a summary of the concerns in the House budget, outlines solutions to present to Ohio Senators, and details a church-governance basis for our Episcopal advocacy for public schools. It includes the names and contact links for key decision-makers in the Ohio Senate who serve counties in our diocese.
Areas of concern:
- The House budget deviates from the bipartisan Fair School Funding Plan (FSFP), which was developed by parents, educators, and local leaders to correct Ohio’s unconstitutional funding disparities. FSFP was scheduled to be fully funded, at last, in the biennial budget the legislature is working on now.
- The House budget increases funding for private school vouchers. If that happens, Ohio taxpayers’ total cost for private school subsidies is projected to exceed $2.4 billion over the next biennium.
- The Ohio Legislature massively expanded vouchers in the last budget, making every family eligible regardless of income. The overwhelming majority of new voucher recipients are not low-income families, but wealthier families whose children were already attending private schools.
- Private schools receiving vouchers are concentrated in urban and affluent areas, siphoning resources from rural and low-income districts that have few, if any, nonpublic schools.
- The House budget would prohibit districts from carrying over reserves of more than 30% of their operating budget, threatening schools’ fiscal resilience and bond ratings.
- The combination of inflation and state cuts will force school districts to rely more heavily on local levies, placing an unfair burden on property owners and deepening inequalities between communities.
These authors agree with this summary from the Ohio Federation of Teachers:
“Ohio’s last two state budgets included partial funding for the Fair School Funding Plan (FSFP), a hard-won fix to Ohio’s old unconstitutional school funding system that had forced districts to over-rely on local property taxes. Now it’s time for legislators to fully fund our public schools, using data based on the current costs of school district expenses.
“Speaker Matt Huffman is claiming there isn’t enough money for the Fair School Funding Formula. His budget proposal provides only 10% of the fair school funding increase that school districts were expecting and budgeting for. By completely throwing out the bipartisan, vetted Fair School Funding Plan formula, the House budget eliminates the stability and predictability that school districts need so they can make long-term plans that benefit students and communities. Instead, the money is going to expand vouchers to non-chartered private schools that operate with little accountability. Claims that there isn’t enough funding for public schools while expanding vouchers to schools with little accountability is absurd.”
The Ohio Legislature has cut state income tax multiple times since 2004, delivering “an average tax cut of $52,000 a year to those in the top 1% of the income spectrum: those making at least $647,000 a year…while those in the bottom 20%, who make less than $24,000 a year, actually pay $80 more on average than they did before,” reported Policy Matters Ohio economist Zach Schiller in testimony on HB 96, citing the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. This is a transfer of public resources away from the common good and toward private interests, often at the expense of the very children who most need our collective support.
Requests to Ohio Senators:
- Restore and fully fund the bipartisan Cupp-Patterson Fair School Funding Formula.
- Base state funding on cost data from the most recent school year in order to account for inflation.
- Do not expand private school vouchers or add tax credits for homeschooling.
- Remove the 30% cap on school district reserves. Schools need reserves to survive inflation and threatened cuts in federal funding.
The Episcopal Church’s Commitment to Public Education and Religious Liberty:
We recommend sharing with legislators that our Christian faith requires us to advocate for excellent education for every child. Legislators may not have heard from Christian voters who support public schools.
The Episcopal Church has long affirmed the centrality of public education as a matter of faith and justice. Our General Convention – the highest governing body of our church – has repeatedly called for adequate and equitable funding for public schools and for the protection of children’s rights and dignity. Convention resolutions include:
- Resolution 2015-B005 endorsing church-school partnerships to address educational inequality. It encourages collaboration with the All Our Children National Network to support local public education initiatives.
- Resolution 2006-B018 urges Episcopalians and the Church at every level to work to ensure that governments provide adequate funding for programs that combat social and economic conditions that place children at risk or diminish their ability to achieve their full potential.
- Resolution 2000-B036 commends those committed to and involved in public school education within our communities. It also states that the Episcopal Church is opposed to private school vouchers.
- Resolution 1988-A116 declares that the church supports improving public school education and urges dioceses and congregations to consider programs with local public schools.
Further, the Ohio Constitution is clear: “no religious or other sect, or sects, shall ever have any exclusive right to, or control of, any part of the school funds of this state” (Article VI, Section 2). The expansion of vouchers and the diversion of public funds to private, often religious, schools not only undermines public education but also violates the constitutional principle of church-state separation.
Just this month, the Most Rev. Sean Rowe, presiding bishop of The Episcopal Church, joined other interfaith leaders in signing a “friend of the court” brief opposing government funding of religious charter schools in a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. The brief argues that public funding of religious schools erodes both public education and the constitutional safeguards that protect true religious liberty. Presiding Bishop Rowe and others have warned that government entanglement with sectarian interests threatens our democracy, our schools, and our shared future.
Who to contact:
Key policymakers to urgently contact are the Senate President, Rob McColley (R-Napoleon), and the members of the Senate Finance Committee. Seven Finance Committee members represent counties in our diocese. Three of our senators also serve on the Senate Education Committee:
- Vice Chair Brian Chavez (including Washington, Athens, and Meigs Counties).
- Louis Blessing, III (Hamilton County), Vice Chair of the Senate Education Committee.
- Andrew Brenner (Delaware County). He also chairs the Senate Education Committee. Senator Brenner has served on the Vestry of St. Peter’s, Delaware.
- Hearcel Craig (Columbus, Franklin County).
- Catherine Ingram (Cincinnati), Ranking Member on the Senate Education Committee. George Lang (Butler County, including Hamilton and Middletown).
- Shane Wilkin (Fayette, Gallia, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Pike, Ross, and Vinton Counties).
Further actions to consider:
As Episcopalians in Ohio, we can:
- Pray for our children, teachers, and public schools, and for wisdom and courage for our leaders.
- Encourage your local public school board of education to join the Vouchers Hurt Ohio Coalition if they have not already, and thank them if they have already joined.
- Share with your congregation about these issues, drawing on the teachings of our faith and the General Convention resolutions of The Episcopal Church.
- Model Christian love by building partnerships with local schools, offering support, and showing our youth that they are valued and cherished.
- Contact Kyle Väth at kyle@vathconsulting.com if you are willing to work together as Episcopalians to advocate for excellent public schools across Ohio.
In this moment, there is an urgent concern about the future of public education in Ohio. These authors challenge us to rise to the occasion, united in faith, hope, and love, showing our youth, our neighbors, and the world that the Episcopal Church in Ohio stands for justice, equity, and the flourishing of every child.
May God grant us the courage to act, the wisdom to discern, and the compassion to serve.
Jodie Emerson
Member, St. Patrick’s, Dublin, Ohio
Parent of public school students and principal of a public school
Ariel Miller
Member, Ascension and Holy Trinity, Wyoming, Ohio
Grandparent of public school students
Kyle Väth
Member, Church of the Advent, Cincinnati, Ohio
Parent of public school students
Jeanie Zoller
Member, Ascension and Holy Trinity, Wyoming, Ohio
Parent of two public school teachers, grandparent of public school students, retired public school teacher, and current president of her district’s board of education
