Public education in Ohio

K-12 education in Ohio

Education facts

State superintendent: Paul Craft

Number of students: 1,580,547

Number of teachers: 95,198

Teacher/pupil ratio: 1:16.6

Number of school districts: 615

Number of schools: 3,136

Graduation rate: 82%

Per-pupil spending: $13,805

See also

Ohio Department of Education and Workforce • List of school districts in Ohio • Ohio • School boards portal

Public education in the United States Public education in Ohio Glossary of education terms

Note: These statistics are mainly from government sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. Figures given were the most recent as of October 2022.

The Ohio public school system (prekindergarten through grade 12) operates within districts governed by locally elected school boards and superintendents. In 2022, Ohio had 1,580,547 students enrolled in a total of 3,136 schools in 615 school districts. There were 95,198 teachers in the public schools, or roughly one teacher for every 17 students, compared to the national average of 1:16. In 2020, Ohio spent on average $13,805 per pupil. The state's graduation rate was 82 percent in the 2018-2019 school year.

General information

See also: General comparison table for education statistics in the 50 states and Education spending per pupil in all 50 states

The following chart shows how Ohio compares to the national level for the most recent years for which data is available.

Public education in Ohio
State	Schools	Districts	Students	Teachers	Teacher to pupil ratio	Per pupil spending*
Ohio	3,136	615	1,580,547	95,198	1:16.6	$13,805
United States	90,323	13,194	47,755,383	2,783,705	1:16	$13,494
*Per pupil spending data reflects information reported for fiscal year 2020. Sources: Education statistics in the United States U.S. Census Bureau, "U.S. School System Current Spending Per Pupil by Region: Fiscal Year 2020" National Center for Education Statistics, "Fast Facts: High school graduation rates"

Academic performance

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Education terms
For more information on education policy terms, see this article.
School board elections portal Glossary of education terms School choice on the ballot Education on the ballot

NAEP scores

See also: NAEP scores by state

The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The table below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during school year 2012-2013. Compared to three neighboring states (Indiana, Michigan, and Pennsylvania), Ohio had the second highest share of eighth graders who scored at or above proficient in reading.

Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013
	Math - Grade 4	Math - Grade 8	Reading - Grade 4	Reading - Grade 8
Ohio	48%	40%	37%	39%
Indiana	52%	38%	38%	35%
Michigan	37%	30%	31%	33%
Pennsylvania	44%	42%	40%	42%
United States	41%	34%	34%	34%
Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables"

Graduation, ACT and SAT scores

See also: Graduation rates by groups in state and ACT and SAT scores in the United States

The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Ohio and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.

In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT, and 1498 out of a possible 2400 for the SAT.

Ohio schools reported a graduation rate of 82.2 percent, second lowest among its neighboring states.

In Ohio, more students took the ACT than the SAT, earning an average ACT score of 21.8.

Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013
State	Graduation rate, 2013		Average ACT composite, 2013		Average SAT composite, 2013
	Percent	Quintile ranking**	Score	Participation rate	Score	Participation rate
Ohio	82.2%	Third	21.8	72%	1,635	17%
Indiana	87%	First	21.7	38%	1,470	70%
Michigan	77%	Fourth	19.9	100%	1,782	4%
Pennsylvania	85.5%	Second	22.7	18%	1,480	71%
United States	81.4%		20.9	54%	1498	50%
**Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally. Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013

Dropout rate

See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states

The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades nine through 12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Ohio was higher than the national average at 4.4 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 4.6 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.

Educational choice options

See also: School choice in Ohio

School choice options in Ohio include charter schools, voucher programs, intra-district and inter-district open enrollment policies and online learning programs. In addition, about 11.3 percent of school-age children in the state attended private schools in the 2011-2012 academic year, and an estimated 2.7 percent were homeschooled in 2012-2013.

Developments

Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue (2020)

Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue
Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue
Media coverage and commentary
U.S. Supreme Court 2019-2020 term
Blaine Amendment (U.S. Constitution)
Blaine amendments in state constitutions
School choice on the ballot
Education on the ballot

See also: Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue

On June 30, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, which concerned whether the government can exclude religious institutions from student-aid programs. The case related to Article X, Section 6 of the Montana Constitution, also known as Montana’s Blaine Amendment.

In its 5-4 opinion, the court held that the application of Article X, Section 6 violated the free exercise clause of the U.S. Constitution. The majority held Article X, Section 6 barred religious schools and parents who wished to send their children to those schools from receiving public benefits because of the religious character of the school.

The case addressed the tension between the free exercise and Establishment clauses of the U.S. Constitution—where one guarantees the right of individuals' free exercise of religion and the other guarantees that the state won't establish a religion—and the intersections of state constitutions with state law and with the U.S. Constitution.

Ohio is not one of the states with a Blaine Amendment.

Education funding and expenditures

See also: Ohio state budget and finances

Breakdown of expenditures by function in fiscal year 2013
Source: National Association of State Budget Officers

According to the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO), states spent an average of 19.8 percent of their total budgets on elementary and secondary education during fiscal year 2013. In addition, the United States Census Bureau found that approximately 45.6 percent of the country's school system revenue came from state sources, while about 45.3 percent came from local sources. The remaining portion of school system revenue came from federal sources.

Ohio spent approximately 17 percent of its budget on elementary and secondary education during fiscal year 2013. School system revenue came primarily from local funds. Ohio spent the second lowest as a percentage of its total budget on public education when compared to its neighboring states.

Comparison of financial figures for school systems, fiscal year 2013
State	Percentage of budget	Per pupil spending	Revenue sources
			Percent federal funds	Percent state funds	Percent local funds
Ohio	17%	$11,197	7.9%	41.4%	50.7%
Indiana	30.8%	$9,566	8.2%	62.6%	29.2%
Michigan	27.2%	$10,948	9.4%	56.9%	33.7%
Pennsylvania	14.9%	$13,864	7.6%	36.1%	56.3%
United States	19.8%	$10,700	9.1%	45.6%	45.3%
Sources: NASBO, "State Expenditure Report" (Table 8). U.S. Census Bureau, "Public Education Finances: 2013, Economic Reimbursable Surveys Division Reports" (Table 5 and Table 8).

Revenue breakdowns

See also: Public school system revenues in the U.S. to compare all states.

According to the United States Census Bureau, public school system revenues totaled approximately $598 billion in fiscal year 2013.

In Ohio, the primary source of school system revenue was local funding during fiscal year 2013, at $11 billion. Ohio reported the second highest total public education revenue when compared to its neighboring states.

Revenues by source, fiscal year 2013 (amounts in thousands)
State	Federal revenue	State revenue	Local revenue	Total revenue
Ohio	$1,721,213	$8,990,516	$11,019,419	$21,731,148
Indiana	$980,013	$7,503,451	$3,505,091	$11,988,555
Michigan	$1,636,904	$9,882,361	$5,861,099	$17,380,364
Pennsylvania	$2,049,113	$9,764,558	$15,210,613	$27,024,284
United States	$54,367,305	$272,916,892	$270,645,402	$597,929,599
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "Public Education Finances: 2013, Economic Reimbursable Surveys Division Reports" (Table 1)

Expenditure breakdowns

See also: Public school system expenditures in the United States

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, public school system expenditures totaled approximately $602 billion in fiscal year 2012.

Public education expenditures in Ohio totaled approximately $23.2 billion in fiscal year 2012. Ohio reported the second highest total public education expenditures when compared to its neighboring states.

Expenditures by type, fiscal year 2012 (amounts in thousands)
State	General expenditures	Capital outlay	Other	Total expenditures
Ohio	$19,701,810	$2,467,639	$1,016,716	$23,186,166
Indiana	$9,978,491	$943,637	$490,288	$11,412,416
Michigan	$16,485,178	$1,376,616	$1,195,005	$19,056,799
Pennsylvania	$23,190,198	$1,822,157	$1,584,480	$26,596,835
United States	$527,096,473	$48,773,386	$25,897,123	$601,766,981
Source: National Center for Education Statistics, "Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary and Secondary Education: School Year 2011–12 (Fiscal Year 2012)" (Table 5)

Personnel salaries

See also: Public school teacher salaries in the United States

Note: Salaries given are averages for the state. Salaries may vary between a state's urban, suburban, and rural districts and should be adjusted for cost of living. For example, a MacIver Institute study of average teacher salaries in 60 metropolitan areas found that salaries in New York City were the third-highest in absolute figures but 59th-highest when adjusted for the cost of living.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average national salary for classroom teachers in public elementary and secondary schools declined by 1.3 percent from the 1999-2000 school year to the 2012-2013 school year. During the same period in Ohio, the average salary increased by 2.6 percent.

Estimated average salaries for teachers (in constant dollars**)
	1999-2000	2009-2010	2011-2012	2012-2013	Percent difference
Ohio	$56,626	$59,732	$57,659	$58,092	2.6%
Indiana	$57,192	$53,357	$51,357	$51,456	-10%
Michigan	$67,023	$61,867	$62,585	$61,560	-8.2%
Pennsylvania	$66,035	$63,146	$62,965	$63,521	-3.8%
United States	$57,133	$58,925	$56,340	$56,383	-1.3%
**"Constant dollars based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to a school-year basis. The CPI does not account for differences in inflation rates from state to state."

Organizations

State agencies

See also: Ohio Department of Education and Workforce

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce manages the state's public education system. Specific responsibilities include

• "Administering the school funding system"
• "Collecting school fiscal and performance data"
• "Developing academic standards and model curricula"
• "Administering the state achievement tests"
• "Issuing district and school report cards"
• "Administering Ohio’s voucher programs"
• "Providing professional development"
• "Licensing teachers, administrators, treasurers, superintendents and other education personnel"

The Superintendent of Public Instruction is the chief administrator of the Department of Education. The Superintendent of Public Instruction is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the State Board of Education. Paolo DeMaria was sworn in to the position in 2016.

The State Board of Education sets K-12 education policy in Ohio. The board's vision statement reads:

“

The State Board of Education’s vision is for all Ohio students to graduate from the PK-12 education system with the knowledge, skills and behaviors necessary to successfully continue their education and/or be workforce ready and successfully participate in the global economy as productive citizens. Ultimately, all students will graduate well prepared for success.

”

The board is composed of 19 members, 11 of whom are elected by district and eight of whom are appointed to serve at large by the governor.

Unions

In 2012 the Fordham Institute and Education Reform Now assessed the power and influence of state teacher unions in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Their rankings were based on 37 different variables in five broad areas: resources and membership, involvement in politics, scope of bargaining, state policies and perceived influence. Ohio ranked 12th overall for union power and influence, or "strong," which was in the second of five tiers.

The main unions related to the Ohio school system are the Ohio Education Association (OHEA), an affiliate of the National Education Association (NEA), and the Ohio Federation of Teachers, an affiliate of the American Federation of Teachers. For the 2003 tax period OHEA had: $50.9 million in total revenue, $46.9 million in total expenses and $43.78 million in total assets. For the 2003 tax period Ohio Federation of Teachers had: $1.11 million in total revenue, $974,268 in total expenses and $1.24 million in total assets.

List of local Ohio school unions:

• Ohio Education Association
• Ohio Federation of Teachers
• Cleveland Heights Teachers Union
• Cincinnati Federation of Teachers
• Columbus Education Association
• Southwestern Ohio Education Association
• Akron Education Association

Government sector lobbying

See also: Ohio government sector lobbying

The main education government sector lobbying organization is the Ohio School Boards Association.

Transparency

In the 2007-2008 General Assembly regular session, the legislature approved House Bill 420, which proposed making statewide expenditures available on an online spending database.

Studies and reports

Quality Counts 2014

See also: Education Week survey

Education Week, a publication that reports on many education issues throughout the country, began using an evaluation system in 1997 to grade each state on various elements of education performance. This system, called Quality Counts, uses official data on performance from each state to generate report cards for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The report card in 2014 uses six different categories:

1. Chance for success
2. K-12 achievement
3. Standards, assessments and accountability
4. The teaching profession
5. School finance
6. Transitions and alignment

Each of these six categories had a number of other elements that received individual scores. Those scores were then averaged and used to determine the final score in each category. Every state received two types of scores for each of the six major categories: A numerical score out of 100 and a letter grade based on that score. Education Week used the score for the first category, "chance for success," as the value for ranking each state and the District of Columbia. The average grade received in the entire country was 77.3, or a C+ average. The country's highest average score was in the category of "standards, assessments and accountability" at 85.3, or a B average. The lowest average score was in "K-12 achievement", at 70.2, or a C- average.

Ohio received a score of 78.6, or a C+ average in the "chance for success" category. This was above the national average. The state's highest score was in "standards, assessments and accountability" at 96.1, or an A average. The lowest score was in "K-12 achievement" at 71.3, or a C- average. Ohio had the fourth highest score in the "standards, assessments and accountability" category in the country. The chart below displays the scores of Ohio and its surrounding states.

Note: Click on a column heading to sort the data.

Public education report cards, 2014
State	Chance for success	K-12 achievement	Standards, assessments and accountability	The teaching profession	School finance	Transitions and alignment
Ohio	78.6 (C+)	71.3 (C-)	96.1 (A)	76.4 (C)	77.2 (C+)	78.6 (C+)
Indiana	77.3 (C+)	72.8 (C)	97.8 (A)	63.1 (D)	71.6 (C-)	89.3 (B+)
Michigan	75.3 (C)	63.8 (D)	91.6 (A-)	74.8 (C)	74.9 (C)	82.1 (B-)
Pennsylvania	82.6 (B)	75.6 (C)	77.7 (C+)	74.6 (C)	82.0 (B-)	78.6 (C+)
United States	77.3 (C+)	70.2 (C-)	85.3 (B)	72.5 (C)	75.5 (C)	81.1 (B-)
Source: Education Week, "Quality Counts 2014" A full discussion of how these numbers were generated can be found here.

State Budget Solutions education study

See also: State spending on education v. academic performance (2012)

State Budget Solutions examined national trends in education from 2009 to 2011, including state-by-state analysis of education spending, graduation rates and average ACT scores. The study showed that the states that spent the most did not have the highest average ACT test scores, nor did they have the highest average graduation rates. A summary of the study is available here. The full report can be accessed here.

School districts

See also: School board elections portal

District types

Ohio has a number of different types of school districts, including:

• City school districts
• Local school districts
• Exempted village school districts
• Joint vocational school districts

City, local and exempted village school districts are governed by elected school boards with the power to levy taxes and issue bonds with voter approval. Joint vocational school districts are established by two or more regular school districts. The joint vocational school district board can either be governed by members from the participating school districts' boards or, if it located within one county, by the county's educational service center board.

School board composition

School board members are most often elected to their positions, although there are some cases, such as a vacancy on a board, in which a member will be appointed to the position. Most school boards have five members, but larger school districts have seven. They are elected during odd-numbered years, and serve four-year terms. The terms are staggered so that nearly half of the members are up for election each election year.

Term limits

Ohio does not impose statewide term limits on school boards.

Elections

See also: Ohio school board elections, 2025

The table below contains links to all school board elections covered by Ballotpedia in 2025 in this state. This list may not include all school districts with elections in 2025. Ballotpedia's coverage includes all school districts in the 100 largest cities by population and the 200 largest school districts by student enrollment.

Editor's note: Some school districts choose to cancel the primary election, or both the primary and general election, if the number of candidates who filed does not meet a certain threshold. The table below does not reflect which primary or general elections were canceled. Please click through to each school district's page for more information.

2025 Ohio School Board Elections
District	Primary	General Election	General Runoff Election	Regular term length	Seats up for election	Total board seats	2022-2023 enrollment
Berea City School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	5,551
Canal Winchester Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	3,801
Cincinnati Public Schools	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	4	7	35,585
Columbus City Schools	5/6/2025	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	7	45,338
Dublin City Schools	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	16,525
Euclid City School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	4,748
Gahanna-Jefferson City School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	4	5	7,961
Groveport-Madison Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	6,242
Hamilton Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	3,082
Hilliard City Schools	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	16,082
Maumee City School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	2,160
New Albany-Plain Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	5,101
Olentangy Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	2	5	23,281
Pickerington Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	11,370
South-Western City Schools	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	21,766
Sylvania City School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	7,662
Toledo Public Schools	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	21,814
Washington Local School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	6,877
Westerville City School District	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	14,571
Worthington Schools	N/A	11/4/2025	N/A	4	3	5	10,810

Path to the ballot

In order to qualify as a school board candidate in Ohio, an individual must be:

• A U.S. citizen
• At least 18 years old
• A resident of the state and the corresponding school district for at least 30 days before the election
• A registered voter in the school district the candidate seeks to represent

To get on the ballot, a school board candidate must file a petition by the 90th day prior to the election with the local board of elections and pay a filing fee.

Campaign finance

Candidates must file itemized statements disclosing campaign contributions and expenditures. In addition to that, any member or candidate of a school board that has 12,000 or more students enrolled in the school district must file an annual financial disclosure statement with the Ohio Ethics Commission. This statement is due by April 15 each year for members not up for election and due 30 days before the election for those running, both new candidates and incumbents.

Recent legislation

The following is a list of recent education bills that have been introduced in or passed by the Ohio state legislature. To learn more about each of these bills, click the bill title. This information is provided by BillTrack50 and LegiScan.

Note: Due to the nature of the sorting process used to generate this list, some results may not be relevant to the topic. If no bills are displayed below, no legislation pertaining to this topic has been introduced in the legislature recently.

Education ballot measures

See also: Education on the ballot and List of Ohio ballot measures

Ballotpedia has tracked the following statewide ballot measures relating to education.

1. Ohio Organization of Boards of Education Amendment (September 1912)
2. Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction Amendment (September 1912)

In the news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Ohio education policy. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Public education in Ohio - Google News

See also

• Historical public education information in Ohio
• Ohio state budget and finances
• Ohio Department of Education and Workforce
• List of school districts in Ohio
• School choice in Ohio
• Charter schools in Ohio
• Ohio
• Education Policy in the U.S.

External links

• Ohio Department of Education and Workforce
  • School funding
  • Open enrollment
  • Non-chartered non-tax schools
  • Accountability resources
• Ohio State Board of Education
• Ohio Superintendent of Public Instruction

Footnotes

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