COLUMBUS, Ohio – The state’s new report cards were a dash of cold water for a lot of school officials in Ohio.
For the first time, the grades were released by the state using a new A-F scale in nine important educational categories.
Columbus school officials say the F grades they received were unacceptable and promised changes.
Some typically high-performing school districts, like Bexley, Hilliard, New Albany and Worthington were stunned by a sprinkling of C, D and F grades.
One area where there was widespread improvement was graduation rates: Columbus and 32 other districts fared better than last year.
State Superintendent Richard Ross said tougher performance standards would make Ohio’s schools better and the state more competitive.
Ross said no district received all A’s on Thursday’s reports, but none received all F’s.
Other districts that usually perform well in evaluations found themselves humbled with some C’s, D’s and F’s, including the Kings, Lakota and Walnut Hills schools in southwest Ohio and the Westlake, Solon and Strongsville districts near Cleveland.
The Ohio Department of Education says its website was overwhelmed with visitors seeking access to the report cards, causing delays but Ross provided an additional path to the data.