Akron Public Schools

The Akron Board of Education voted to join a coalition that's filed a lawsuit alleging Ohio's school voucher system is funneling money the public education system needs toward private schools.

The decision comes a week after the district approved "belt tightening" measures, including cutting 285 jobs.

The report contracted by Superintendent Michael Robinson, who took the helm in August 2023, assesses the current landscape and offers recommendations for improvement as the district transitioned leadership.

Teachers and community members protested outside the school district's headquarters Monday, before the board voted to approve the cuts as the district tries to downsize after years of enrollment decline.

While many positions will be removed via attrition, almost 170 employees could be terminated, including dozens of teachers.

The ban was expanded to 13 middle and high schools in the district in August.

Some students in the Akron Public Schools can expect changes next year after the Akron Board of Education voted during a special meeting Wednesday night to approve a redistricting plan.

Akron Public Schools Superintendent Michael Robinson says the district is moving to offer all-day pre-kindergarten starting with the next school year beginning fall 2024.

Akron Public Schools will lose out on a $156,000 grant from the state of Ohio which would have funded a contract with a private company to provide after-school reading tutoring.

Once, as a cub reporter, I got the bright idea of printing out Ohio’s entire 145-page Sunshine Law manual and made my own binder. I lugged that thing (it felt like it weighed as much as me) around for years, poring through it as I did rhetorical combat with public agencies to compel them to release information the public has a right to know.