Pink Rose Society

Education Politics in Ohio

From kindergarten classrooms to public universities, Ohio's Republican Statehouse has spent 2023–2025 remaking who controls education, what it can teach, and where the money goes. Every one of those fights is unresolved heading into the 2026 election.

Higher education — SB 1

The "Advance Ohio Higher Education Act" (Mike DeWine signed it March 28, 2025) bans DEI offices and programs at public colleges, mandates "intellectual diversity" reviews, requires posting syllabi with instructor names, bans faculty strikes, and lets post-tenure review end in termination. It also bars institutions from taking positions on "controversial" matters — a term critics call deliberately vague. A referendum to repeal it fell short of the ~248,000 signatures required.

Vouchers on trial

Ohio's 2023 budget made EdChoice vouchers near-universal (families up to 450% of the poverty line get full vouchers), at roughly $1 billion a year. In June 2025 a Franklin County judge ruled the program unconstitutional, finding the state funneled over $700 million into private schools in violation of the Ohio Constitution's guarantee of a "thorough and efficient system of common schools." The "Vouchers Hurt Ohio" coalition (600+ districts) won at trial; the state's appeal reached the Tenth District Court of Appeals (oral argument May 2026) and is expected to land at the Ohio Supreme Court — making the court's balance directly relevant to the voucher system's survival.

Who governs the schools

The 2023 budget reorganized the Ohio Department of Education into a Department of Education and Workforce run by a governor-appointed director, stripping most K-12 authority from the partly elected State Board of Education. A State Board lawsuit failed to stop the transfer, so the office the governor now controls sets K-12 policy.

Targeting LGBTQ+ students

Two measures make schools a front in the LGBTQ+ rights fight:

  • HB 8, the "Parents' Bill of Rights" (effective April 2025), requires schools to notify parents of a change in a student's gender identity and of "sexuality content," and bans sexuality content in grades K-3 — which critics say forces staff to "out" LGBTQ+ students.
  • The 2025 budget carried a provision requiring libraries to hide material on sexual orientation or gender identity from patrons under 18. DeWine line-item vetoed it, but the Ohio General Assembly can override with three-fifths through December 2026. The same budget cut the Public Library Fund by roughly $25 million.

The money — Fair School Funding

The bipartisan Fair School Funding Plan (2021) was a six-year phase-in to full, formula-based funding by FY2027. The 2025 budget abandoned the formula for a temporary "guarantee." Policy Matters Ohio estimates schools are underfunded by ~$2.86 billion against the formula's target, hitting high-poverty and urban districts hardest.

Why it matters in 2026

  • Governor: Vivek Ramaswamy backs vouchers and a "results-first" funding posture; Amy Acton wants to fully fund public schools to ease reliance on property taxes and questions the voucher program's growth (Ohio 2026 Governor Race).
  • Legislature: the Ohio General Assembly supermajority drove SB 1, HB 8, universal vouchers, and the funding retreat — and controls whether the FSFP is restored and whether the library provision is overridden. Those seats are on the ballot.

Sources