Columbus City Schools Explained

Columbus City Schools
Grades:K-12
Location:Columbus, Ohio, United States
Coordinates:39.9833°N -141°W
President:Christina Vera
Vice-President:Dr. Tina D. Pierce
Superintendent:Angela Chapman
Students:46,686 (2020-2021 average)
Teachers:4,166 (Oct 2007)
Staff:7,181 FTE (Oct 2007)

Columbus City Schools, formerly known as Columbus Public Schools, is the official school district for the city of Columbus, Ohio, and serves most of the city (portions of the city are served by suburban school districts). The district has 46,686 students enrolled, making it the largest school district in the state of Ohio as of June 2021. At its peak during the 1971 school year the district served 110,725 students.

The first school built in the area which is now part of Columbus was a log cabin school-house built in Franklinton, in 1806. It was not until 1845 that the state of Ohio Legislature entrusted the management of Columbus schools to a Board of Education. Two years later the school board elected Dr. Asa Lord as the district's first superintendent. Dr. Gene T. Harris served as the 19th superintendent of Columbus City Schools and was succeeded by Dr. Dan Good. For most of its history, the district has been referred to as "Columbus Public Schools". In August 2007, the district decided to begin using its official name of "Columbus City Schools."

1977 desegregation

Although technically the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case made segregation in schools illegal, some schools were still segregated by the neighborhoods they served. In March 1977 Federal District Court Judge Robert M. Duncan ruled in Penick v. Columbus Board of Education that the school boundary methods used by Columbus Public Schools promoted segregation by sending black students to predominantly black schools and white students to predominantly white schools. The result was desegregation busing to desegregate all schools in the Columbus Public School district.

Before the 1978-1979 school year the Columbus Public School district petitioned Supreme Court Justice William Rehnquist for a stay on the forced busing, and the petition was granted. However, in April 1979 the Supreme Court made their decision and upheld the original Duncan decision.

Before this landmark decision was handed down, the district had a peak of 110,725 students enrolled in 1971 and operated 20 high schools. Many parents moved their children out of the Columbus district to the suburbs to avoid the desegregation. As a result, district enrollment significantly declined, forcing two high schools, Central High School (In 1982) and North High School (In 1979) to be closed, as well as several elementary and middle schools.

School enrollment

Enrollment figures in the school district have significantly increased in the past and recently decreased. Following is a list of school enrollments over the years.[1]

District Enrollment
Year Enrollment
1920 32,442
1947 40,000 (estimate)
1962 93,000 (estimate)
1971 110,725 (all-time peak)
1976 95,571
1980 72,698
1995 62,812
1996 63,610
2007 55,235
2012 50,784
201948,982[2]
202346,345

Board of education

There are seven members on the Board of Education. Current members are listed below:[3]

Schools

There are approximately 118 active schools in the district. Schools include:[4]

Elementary schools

Middle schools

K-8 Alternative schools

High schools

Former schools

2021-2022 Report Card

The Ohio Department of Education adopted a new 5-star rating system for the 21-22 Ohio School Report Card system. After a hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic, school districts received scores for the first time since the 2018-2019 school year. Although Columbus City Schools' "Graduation" ("the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate and the five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate") and "Early Literacy" ("measure of reading improvement and proficiency for students in kindergarten through third grade") were rated at 1/5 stars, the district's "Progress" ("growth all students are making based on their past performances") and "Gap Closing" ("the reduction in educational gaps for student subgroups") were rated at 3/5 stars.[6] The district also scored 2/5 stars in "Achievement" ("whether student performance on state tests met established thresholds and how well students performed on tests overall"), with all selectable grade level data falling short of those similar districts and the state of Ohio.[7] Looking at "Gap Closing" data, the most growth occurred in English Language Arts.[8]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: Jacobs. Gregory S.. Getting Around Brown: Desegregation, Development, and the Columbus Public Schools. 1998. Ohio State University Press. Columbus, Ohio. 9780814207208.
  2. Web site: CCSD². ccsdashboard.eastus.cloudapp.azure.com. 2020-02-17.
  3. Web site: Columbus Board of Education, 2016. Columbus City Schools. 20 January 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160124231305/http://www.ccsoh.us/BoardofEducation.aspx. 24 January 2016. dead.
  4. Book: Centennial History of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio . 9780832828300 . Taylor . William Alexander . 1909 .
  5. News: Sebastian. Simone. Completed Schools Set for Students. 15 August 2015. The Columbus Dispatch. GateHouse Media. January 5, 2009.
  6. Web site: Columbus City Schools: District Overview . Ohio Report Cards . Ohio Department of Education . 11 October 2022.
  7. Web site: Columbus City Schools: Achievement . Ohio Report Cards . Ohio Department of Education . 11 October 2022.
  8. Web site: Columbus City Schools: Gap Closing . Ohio Report Cards . Ohio Department of Education . 11 October 2022.

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