© 2024 Ideastream Public Media

1375 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44115
(216) 916-6100 | (877) 399-3307

WKSU is a public media service licensed to Kent State University and operated by Ideastream Public Media.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Ohio Senate Introduces Amendment to Aid Incoming Seniors in Danger of Not Graduating in 2018

photo of empty desk
STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU

Next year’s graduating high school seniors must get a good score over seven different final tests or on a college entrance exam, or earn an industry credential. As many as 47,000 high school juniors are potentially on track to fail to meet those standards.

An amendment that may be attached to the budget in the Senate seeks to help those students.

Republican Sen. Peggy Lehner of Kettering says she’s proposing that seniors who can’t meet those standards do two of following: have a 93% attendance rate, get a 2.5 GPA, do a final project, complete 120 hours of community service or work experience with a recommendation, or a college credit plus course. Lehner says lawmakers will be watching for changes in the state test scores.

“Last year was the very first time, and the passage rate was not good. Now that teachers have a chance to maybe better prepare students for it, they’re more comfortable with the format, etc., we’re hoping that we’re going to see those test results increase,” she said.

Lehner says employers were complaining graduates didn’t have basic skills, so the rigor of K-12 education has to be increased.

Karen is a lifelong Ohioan who has served as news director at WCBE-FM, assignment editor/overnight anchor at WBNS-TV, and afternoon drive anchor/assignment editor in WTAM-AM in Cleveland. In addition to her daily reporting for Ohio’s public radio stations, she’s reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio News and other news outlets. She hosts and produces the Statehouse News Bureau’s weekly TV show “The State of Ohio”, which airs on PBS stations statewide. She’s also a frequent guest on WOSU TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, a regular panelist on “The Sound of Ideas” on ideastream in Cleveland, appeared on the inaugural edition of “Face the State” on WBNS-TV and occasionally reports for “PBS Newshour”. She’s often called to moderate debates, including the Columbus Metropolitan Club’s Issue 3/legal marijuana debate and its pre-primary mayoral debate, and the City Club of Cleveland’s US Senate debate in 2012.