Hello Worthington! Here's your recap of what happened at September 14th's Board of Education meeting. Below are brief summaries of the most significant discussions. For those interested in the full details, we've included links to longer articles where appropriate.
New attendance law changes how the district reaches families
A new Ohio law, House Bill 96, is changing how Worthington Schools handles attendance, moving away from a court-driven truancy system toward earlier, less punitive outreach. Assistant Superintendent for Academics Jennifer Korn told the board that families will now hear from the district once a student misses 5% of the school year (roughly 45 to 50 hours) for any reason, excused or unexcused. She shared that the district's chronic-absence rate reached 15.2% last year, still well below the statewide 25%, and set a goal of trimming each school's rate by about two points this year. "Students return to people," Korn said. "They don't return to programs".
School libraries: the Superintendent responds to book concerns
Several residents used the visitor-comment period to raise concerns about books in the district's school libraries. Superintendent Trent Bowers addressed the subject directly in his report, framing it as a question of parental choice. "We fully respect that parents are the primary decision makers for their own children," he said, and pointed families to a concrete tool: parents can review what their child is reading through the student's InfOhio digital library account at any time, and can ask the district to place a direct restriction on any specific book or series on that child's account.
Bowers said the district does not remove books from shelves. Library media specialists select titles using professional guidelines from the American Library Association, he said, and the collections exist "to give kids choices" rather than as required reading. He noted that middle school is a period of wide developmental range. As he put it, "a book that makes complete sense for a 14 year old might raise eyebrows for the parent of an 11 year old". The district wants to keep "the door open for honest dialogue," he said, while respecting each family's authority to make choices for their own children.
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In Other News
In the Schools
- Ohio Directed Admission Program. Worthington is participating this year in a state program that can send high school seniors direct college-admission offers based on academic records the district already keeps. Families of seniors received information recently and choose whether to opt in.
- State report cards. The district expects to hold at four stars on the Ohio report cards released the day after the meeting; the underlying data gets an in-depth presentation at the September 28 board meeting.
- Both high school theaters now open. Thomas Worthington's theater space is open alongside Kilbourne's, and the first black-box performance was held the prior weekend.
Money & Spending
- Employee insurance premiums rise 8%. The board approved an 8% increase in employee medical-insurance premiums. Treasurer TJ Cusick explained that actuaries recommended 10%; a change counting all prescription drugs toward co-pays and deductibles brought it to about 9%, and reserves and interest earnings brought the committee's recommendation to 8%, the cap set in the district's collective bargaining agreements.
- From the Superintendent's blog: no operating levy in 2026. The district says it will not return to the ballot for an operating levy this year. Careful spending and projected savings from retirements have stretched the 2022 voter-approved dollars to at least 2028, Bowers wrote. The district's five-year forecast lays out the longer picture.
Notable
- From the Superintendent's blog: Flock cameras being removed. The district is canceling its contract for Flock license-plate reader cameras at the high schools, Bowers wrote, concluding the limited benefit was not worth the potential loss of public trust; standard cameras will maintain the same coverage.
- Joint meeting with City Council in the works. The board and City Council are trying to schedule a joint meeting, tentatively a Tuesday or Wednesday in October.
Upcoming Dates
- Monday, September 28, 6:30 p.m. — Board of Education meeting at the Worthington Education Center, presenting 2025-26 student achievement results.
- Monday, October 12, 6:30 p.m. — Board of Education meeting at the Worthington Education Center, with a school community engagement update.
- Through October 15 — Worthington Education Foundation grant application window; educators may apply, and the foundation assists first-time applicants.
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Thanks for reading this summary of the Board of Education meeting, you can watch the original full video here