Public Education Matters

For students to be successful in the classroom - and in life - they need to learn to identify and manage their emotions. But, teaching about abstract ideas like emotions with abstract concepts like color-coding just wasn't working for the students in Erin Nusker's Lake County kindergarten class. So, she got creative and came up with a new system - and a whole research-backed book series - to turn...

History's unsung heroes have been getting their long-overdue moments in the spotlight in Ben Purdy's Rocky River Middle School classroom, thanks to a totally made-up holiday that has delivered very real results by getting students excited about learning social studies. On this episode, the teacher who invented a day to celebrate T he U n- F amous P eople O f H istory (aka TUFPOH) tells the story o...

Growing up in a neighborhood known as "Drug City USA," Judge Marilyn Zayas never imagined she would one day run for Ohio’s highest court. In this episode, the OEA member-recommended State Supreme Court candidate shares how the power of education and a belief in opportunity and fairness helped shape her journey, and why judicial independence and the decisions of the Ohio Supreme Court are so import...

What happens in Congress makes a big impact on Ohio's public school students and educators, and when Rep. Greg Landsman is re-elected to represent the people of Ohio's 1st Congressional District, he has big plans for ensuring Ohio's public school students and educators can get what they need to succeed. The Cincinnati-area Congressman joins us for this episode to share more on the Every Child Educ...

Every student deserves to walk into school with confidence, dignity, and the tools they need to learn. In this episode, Chardon High School teacher Kelly DiCato shares the story of the Chardon Care Closet and the community effort that is changing lives one backpack, toothbrush, notebook, and tube of chap stick at a time. SUPPORT THE CHARDON CARE CLOSET | If you would like to make a donation to sup...

What happens when one of the key legislative champions behind the Fair School Funding Plan sets his sights on statewide office? In this episode, OEA member-recommended candidate Jay Edwards reflects on his record of fighting for public schools in the Ohio legislature and explains how, as Ohio's next state treasurer, he would use the office's influence to strengthen educator retirement security, el...

Ohio is now spending more than $1 billion in public taxpayer dollars each year on private school vouchers, but how much do we really know about where that money goes and whether it delivers any real results? In this episode, State Sen. Kent Smith (D-21st District) and State Sen. Bill Blessing (R-8th District) discuss their bipartisan efforts to bring transparency and accountability to Ohio’s near-...

***This is a special video and audio episode of this podcast - The full episode video is available at the bottom of these show notes or by clicking here .*** When it comes to public education and workers' rights, there is a clear choice in the race for Ohio's next governor. While Vivek Ramaswamy has repeatedly said he wants to eliminate teachers' unions and has pushed proposals that would slash pu...

As the new school year gets underway, Ohio's educators are renewing their focus on delivering on the promise of the great public schools our students deserve. So much of that - for better or for worse - hinges on what happens at the ballot box in November. Ohio Education Association President Jeff Wensing kicks off Season 7 of the podcast with his takes on what's at stake in the upcoming election...

OEA Locals are not one-size-fits all franchises, like chain restaurant locations - Each Local faces unique circumstances, challenges, and opportunities. And, they each have different needs for support from the state organization. That's what OEA President Jeff Wensing has been hearing as he's talked to members across the state during his ongoing listening tour. Now, in this season finale episode,...

OEA Locals can amplify the impact of their members' dues dollars through OEA grant programs - especially now, with the new Local Capacity Grants that are available just for completing a Local Capacity Toolkit assessment. The Tallmadge Teachers Association let the needs identified in that self-assessment drive their decisions not only to create a political action committee for their local, but also...

Tiffin Columbian High School teacher Chris Monsour is the first person to tell you he never thought he'd be a teacher. Now, 27 years later, he's the Ohio Teacher of the Year. In that role, he has spent the 2025-2026 school year traveling around the state and the country, representing Ohio's public school educators, lifting up the positive stories about the power of our public schools, and sharing...

Although we're heading into the final weeks of the school year, learning should never stop. OEA members have the opportunity to learn from each other, improve their practice for their students, and build their skills and relationships at this year's OEA Summer Leadership Academy June 22-24 in Columbus. In this episode, we're sitting down with two OEA members who are presenting at SLA about why thi...

Teacher Appreciation Week is May 4-8 this year, and across the country, we are celebrating the amazing educators who make a big difference for their students every day. This Teacher Appreciation Week, the host of this podcast is showing her appreciation for one educator in particular: Dr. Steve Kucinski, the high school English teacher who taught her how to find her voice and really think for hers...

Ohio's public schools are facing an existential threat. If a measure to eliminate property taxes in Ohio makes it to the ballot and passes this fall, the results would be catastrophic for all of our public schools, students, communities, and local economies. Schools would close and consolidate, class sizes would balloon, programs would be eliminated, and we'd see massive layoffs of educators acros...

Public education is not partisan, but it is political. Politicians in the statehouse make decisions that impact Ohio's public school classrooms every day. That's why it is so important that our lawmakers hear directly from the educators who know what these policy decisions mean in our schools. Trotwood Madison Education Association President David Graham wasn't sure what to expect when he had a ch...

OEA's grant programs empower Local associations to do incredible things for educators, students, and their communities. The Twinsburg Education Association has taken those opportunities and put that funding to work to build engagement and support. In this episode, we hear from 14 members of the TEA Grant Committee - yes, 14 guests on this episode! - about some of the amazing events, initiatives, a...

Janaya Foster used to hate afternoons in her elementary school classroom in Columbus. Too often, something would happen during lunch and recess that would leave students distracted or distressed. But, bringing yoga and other mindfulness tools into her classroom - along with rewards like treats from her grant-funded smoothie machine - has made a big difference for Janaya's students and her own well...

Vouchers are 'the new kid on the block' for public education threats, but the executive director of the Network for Public Education says while everyone's eyes are on vouchers, harmful charter school legislation has continued to pass nationwide, taking those publicly-funded schools farther and farther from the promise of what they were supposed to be. NPE is shining a spotlight on the charter scho...

Student loans are a fact of life for many educators who relied on that support to make their education career path possible, or who are now on Parent Plus loans to help their own children achieve their college and career dreams. But, so much has changed with the federal student loan programs over the last year, it can be really hard to keep track of what any of us need to be doing to stay on track...

Ohio Rep. Sean Patrick Brennan (D-Parma) knows if you're not at the table, you get the scraps. After a 30-year career in a public school classroom, he's now at the table in the General Assembly, serving as the Ranking Member on the House Education Committee. He joins us for this episode for a deeper dive into House Bill 523, a bill he has co-sponsored to allow paid student teaching and remove othe...

David Grimes wears many hats. By day, he's a middle school science teacher in Westerville. He's also a leader in his local union and has spent the last two years as a community leader serving on Westerville's city council. In 2026, he added Westerville Mayor to that list. In this episode, he takes a look back at some of what he has accomplished in city government already, a look ahead at what he h...

As Ohio continues to spend more than $1 billion each year of public taxpayer money on unaccountable private school voucher schemes, more than 325 Ohio school districts are standing together in the Vouchers Hurt Ohio lawsuit to force the state to stop cutting those checks. In June 2025, a Franklin County Common Pleas Court judge sided with the coalition on three counts, declaring vouchers unconstit...

The hundreds of Ohio Education Association locals across the state come in all sizes, ranging from 4,000+ members in big Locals like the Columbus Education Association to just eight members in the Bay Individual/Small Group Instruction Teachers Association (BISGITA), which represents 8 of the 9 hourly certified educators working as intervention specialists and reading specialists in Bay Village Ci...

She was the Ridgewood High School band director. He was a football coach for the Riverview High School team. She dropped her papers in the end zone. He helped pick them up. She eventually got his friend - the band director for Riverview - to have him finally call her to ask for a date. That was beginning of Bill and Cheryl Graham's love story; one that has endured through their combined 112-year t...