Tens of thousands of Columbus City Schools students were asked Wednesday to log on to classes remotely for their first day of school this year as members of the Columbus Education Association entered their third day of striking.
For some, that proved challenging.
“It’s currently just running real slow,” Ashley Shepherd said of the district’s virtual learning system around 10 a.m. at Barack Community Center, one of nine city recreation centers serving this week as student support centers.
“That’s because so many babies are trying to login at the same time,” she added. “My two kids have been trying to log in since 7 o’clock this morning and its not going very well.”
Prior to Wednesday, district officials had said that about 600 substitutes had been tapped to take the place of the more than 4,000 teachers, librarians, nurses, counselors, psychologists and other education professionals who voted Sunday to strike for the first time since 1975.
Meanwhile, parents and students across the district were forced to decide whether to cross the “virtual picket line.”
Follow our live updates on Columbus City Schools’ first day of school:
Hours after the school day ended on Wednesday, Columbus City Schools spokesperson Jacqueline Bryant released updates on first-day statistics, as well as a note clarifying student attendance procedures.
Bryant said that throughout the day, more than 2,000 students were helped with device and hotspot needs, and 10,000 grab-and-go meals were distributed in a district that has some 47,000 students.
“Tomorrow, we will have additional tech support at our meal site locations,” Bryant said of Thursday.
And as the day wound down Wednedsay, several parents reached out to The Dispatch wondering why their students had been marked as present when they did not log into class on Wednesday.
Bryant acknowledged the confusion that surrounded students and families all day regarding attendance.
Bryant wrote that student attendance data will be behind by a day due to the virtual learning procedures the district implemented. She added that the student information system the district uses, Infinite Campus, by default marks student present until someone (the substitute teachers) manually marks them as absent.
“This is typical no matter the learning environment, online or in-person,” Bryant wrote. “Many schools are still in the process of completing the manual attendance procedures for today, as synchronous check-ins were staggered throughout the day. We do not expect attendance reports to be completed until tomorrow.”
Students who wanted to be marked present had to have attended a synchronous Zoom session, and if they do not have access to a computer but are working on getting access, the parent must call the school’s attendance line to get an excused absence.
“If a parent indicates to the school that their student is not participating in asynchronous learning, they will be marked with an unexcused absence if they do not have a legitimate excuse as provided by state law and/or the District’s policies,” Bryant wrote.
The note also doubled as a reminder to parents that students are still required to attend school during the strike per its attendance procedures, and that kindergarten students will begin class on Aug. 29 and will not have online learning activities during the week.
In a message released Wednesday evening on the Columbus City Schools website, Superintendent Talisa Dixon wrote that the first day of school brought some unexpected challenges and acknowledged that the district fell short in some areas. Some students had difficulty logging in for virtual school, with the portal running slowly, while others were unable to log in at all. Still other students refused to log on, supporting teachers and refusing to cross the “virtual picket line.”
Some parents were frustrated because their students didn’t have and couldn’t get laptops or Wi-Fi hot spots for their students to log on and were told to return Thursday to locations where they could that equipment.
Dixon said she was able to interact with students and families at several of the district’s 25 grab-and-go meal sites earlier in the day and that students utilized the city of Columbus’ student support centers where Wi-Fi was available.
“I want to assure you that our team is working hard to improve the systems and processes in place as we move forward in this unique environment,” Dixon said in the message. “We are adjusting how we distribute technology resources and how we monitor attendance while improving access to our online resources. We will continue to work until we solve these problems.”
The Dispatch filed a request with Columbus City Schools under the Ohio Public Records Act for its attendance on Wednesday, but the district said that information would not be available until Thursday.
Parents and students will have the chance to express how the first day of school Wednesday went during a virtual family engagement session Thursday from 6-7 p.m. People can sign up at ccsoh.us/rsvp.
Dixon did not give an update on contract negotiations or when students will be able to return to in-person classes. As of Wednesday evening, there was no word from Columbus City Schools or the Columbus Education Association on the status of negotiations. A federal mediator began meeting with the two sides at 1 p.m. Wednesday at a secret location that spokespeople for both sides said they did notknow.
-Micah Walker
Despite the first day of school being online only Wednesday, Columbus City Schools buses were still seen on the roads. This is due to the district offering transportation to charter and non-public schools, with many of them starting school last week, district spokesperson Jacqueline Bryant said.
Some of those schools include A+ Arts Academy, A+ Children’s Academy, Arts and College Preparatory Academy and Bridge Gate Community School, according to the Ohio Department of Education website.
Bus drivers are also part of a different union than teachers. The Columbus School Employees Association represents about 3,300 custodians, bus drivers, secretaries, instructional assistants and cafeteria workers.
-Micah Walker
For those who wish to contact the school district regarding concerns about the strike or remote schooling, they can call Columbus City Schools’ main switchboard at 614-365-5000.
Other numbers that may be useful to parents include:
-Micah Walker
Businesses in and around Columbus have shown their support for striking educators in various ways.
According to the Columbus Education Association’s newsletter:
Vegan restaurant Willowbeez Soulveg posted pictures online of its employees walking picket lines.
Columbus Keto Treats on Facebook said striking educators can stop in for a free drink and baked good at its Grove City location.
And Too Good Eats provided popsicles to hungry teachers. A co-owner wrote on Instagram that she taught fourth and fifth-graders at Columbus City Schools for three years before jumping full time into her business.
According to the district, the latest offer proposed by the Columbus City Schools Board of Education includes:
The union previously shared that it is seeking:
Earlier in negotiations, CEA was asking for an 8% increase at each step of the salary scale for 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25, according to a copy of the unfair labor practice charge the school board filed against the union on Aug. 3 and obtained by The Dispatch.
On Monday, CEA President John Coneglio declined to confirm to The Dispatch that an 8% wage increase is still what the union is seeking.
– Monroe Trombly, Sheridan Hendrix and Michael Lee
On Tuesday afternoon, a federal mediator called the Columbus Education Association and Columbus City Schools back to the bargaining table. The two sides were set to meet 1 p.m. Wednesday for what would have been their 23rd bargaining session since March.
No location for the talks was identified publicly.
During the last marathon bargaining session on Aug. 18, the board presented what board President Jennifer Adair then called its “last best, and final offer.“
– Monroe Trombly
City Council President Pro Tem Elizabeth Brown picketed recently with her children, indicating on Twitter that they did it because “we know they’re sacrificing a lot to fight for our students.”
“We drove home w/ grateful hearts for that sacrifice AND for all the hugs they got,” she tweeted.
City Council President Shannon Hardin said on Twitter: “Our teachers and students should be in class starting the school year today. It’s clear, Columbus supports our teachers, our students, and the negotiations today that will hopefully bring resolution so our babies can be back in school.”
– Monroe Trombly
Twenty-five schools across the district are serving as sites where children and parents can pick up meals. Joe Brown, director of food services for the district, was on hand at Columbus Global Academy on Wednesday morning.
“We know that regardless of the strike, we still have hungry students,” he said.
Brown couldn’t say how many meals his staff prepared, but acknowledged it was less than half of the number of the district’s 47,000 students.
“We know all of our students won’t come and take advantage of this opportunity, but we want to make sure we have for the ones who really need it,” Brown said. “We know within our community that there are a lot of hungry children and a lot of those children depend on the meals they get in schools so they can grow and learn.”
– Megan Henry
Columbus City Schools Superintendent Talisa Dixon on Wednesday morning said the district has had “technology challenges” and asked for patience.
“We know this is not ideal,” Dixon said. “We know our families are stressed and not happy with the decisions to move forward, but we have to open up schools and provide additional supports to our students and our families. I understand their frustrations. I am very optimistic that we will resolve this as soon as possible to get them back in school face-to-face with their teachers.”
Dixon, speaking outside Columbus Global Academy Wednesday morning where parents picked up meals for students, said she doesn’t know what the sticking points are that led 94% of Columbus Education Association members to strike.
“We can’t discuss this at this time,” Dixon said. “We are hopeful that all those sticking points will be resolved as soon as possible so we can get our students back in the classrooms.”
– Megan Henry
Studio 35 Cinema and Drafthouse in Clintonville is showing The Muppet Movie for free this week. The screenings are geared toward the thousands of educators who are on strike and parents.
“Whether you need to chill in the AC, grab a much needed beverage, or a break from the picket line, come in and enjoy a classic laugh, with a timeless favorite,” the event’s Facebook description reads.
Showtimes are 1 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
– Monroe Trombly
The sound of cowbells and bleating car horns filled the air as picketers spent part of their Wednesday morning marching up and down Karl Road in front of Columbus Spanish Immersion Academy in North Linden.
“Escucha escucha, estamos , en la lucha!” they chanted, which translates to “listen, listen, we are in the fight!”
Others brought camping and lawn chairs for breathers, with plenty of chips, fruit and donuts to snack on.
Outside Whetstone High School, dozens of students picketed along the sidewalks in support of their teachers. Many of them were student athletes, who expressed frustration with the board of education for affecting their sports seasons.
“Why do they have to be so difficult?” said Daylan Barnes, a 17-year-old Whetstone senior. “If I was a football player, I’d be so disappointed. A lot of us get out of here because of sports.”
Striking educators clapped for and hugged their students, thanking them for coming out to support them.
At Centennial High School, where Corey Fontalbert is going into his senior year, he said that while he understands some may benefit from remote learning, he feels the quality of education is less than that of in-person learning, especially when sessions are run by substitute teachers.
“There are plenty of students out there who are not as technologically literate, which makes it even more difficult for them to get their education,” Fontalbert said. “And teachers, too, with the online learning, they just aren’t taken seriously.”
– Michael Lee and Sheridan Hendrix
Back inside the Linden Community Center, eight-year-old Jeri Lankford struggled with the first day of school.
She loves school, and just got a brand-new lunch box and dress — a black jumper that has the words “Good Vibes Only” written in multicolored bubble print.
Lankford had a 9 a.m. Zoom meeting with East Columbus Elementary School’s principal, Jaime P. Spreen, where Spreen informed students and parents where they could pick up meals and how to access the asynchronous learning schedule. But when her mom, Tenelle McGrew, left the center, Lankford wasn’t sure what to do.
She opted to watch YouTube math videos that helped her practice her times tables. A Dispatch reporter lent the eight-year-old a pair of headphones to listen to the video.
When McGrew came back to the Linden Community Center, she had someone from East Columbus Elementary on the phone, and tried to guide her daughter to the city’s “Back-to-School” hub to access a computer coding lesson from Code.org.
“This is ridiculous,” McGrew said, while searching through links on Lankford’s Chromebook. “Our kids deserve to be able to go to school — that should be a frickin’ no-brainer.”
– Ceili Doyle
At Barack Community Center on Columbus’ South Side, seventh-grader Ethan sat at a computer, waiting to get into his virtual classroom. The screen read “waiting for host to join.”
“I have Spotify on in the background, so it’s alright,” Ethan told a reporter.
Other students at the community center also were having trouble logging into their classes.
Soon after dropping her children off, Ashley Shepherd was back at Barack Community Center to pick them up.
“It’s not working. … I feel like they picked the wrong time to be on strike,” Shepherd said, referring to members of the Columbus Education Association.
– Megan Henry
Sipping a Minute Maid apple juice box with a furrowed brow, Chernor “CJ” Bah shook his head.
The 13-year-old was supposed to start his first day of ninth grade at Columbus Alternative High School on Wednesday.
Instead, the frustrated teenager toggled through a series of portals and Google Classroom links on his Columbus City Schools-issued Chromebook inside the Linden Community Center — impatiently tapping his keyboard as the internet connection lagged. He couldn’t access any information about the new school year, including his class schedule.
“I just want to get this day over as soon as possible,” Bah said.
By 8:30 a.m. — an hour after high school officially starts — the Sierra Leon native was no where closer to figuring out who his new teachers were; who, if any, classmates were also logged in and what the American high school experience was supposed to be like.
Bah’s mom, Zainab Kalokoh, dropped her son off at the Linden Community Center, one of nine city recreation centers that opened early for Columbus City Schools students forced to virtually log in, because she had received an email from the district informing parents that someone at the rec center could help their kids sign in.
“I didn’t understand what was happening,” Kalokoh said. “So I brought him here specifically to know what the process is going to be like. We have internet at home, but I thought this would be helpful.”
So far, that’s been far from the case for Bah.
– Ceili Doyle
On Friday, union spokesperson Regina Fuentes said the Columbus City Schools Board of Education’s most recent contract offer was “substantially unchanged” from its previous one at the end of July. The union previously shared that it is asking for:
Educators are picketing outside 20 sites around Columbus. They are:
Early Wednesday morning, siblings Noelle and Nathan joined their mother Michelle Manko on the picket lines outside Centennial High School on Columbus’ Northwest Side.
“The two of them and us as a family decided, we’re gonna support our teachers, show the board that we’re serious that we need improvements for the school,” Manko told a reporter.
Noelle, a third grader at Winterset Elementary, doesn’t like learning online. She would rather be with her teacher, Mr. Abernathy, in his classroom.
And her brother Nathan is also out picketing for a simple reason.
“We love our teachers,” Nathan said.
– Michael Lee
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