News

February 1, 2024 - It’s time to nominate a teacher to the 2025 Ohio Teacher of the Year program! Nominations are open through March 31, 2024. The Ohio Teacher of the Year program annually identifies exceptional teachers and celebrates their effective, inspiring work inside and outside the classroom. The program also provides opportunities for professional growth and gives teachers voices as leaders and advocates for public education. To find out more, click HERE.

November 1, 2023 – The ESC of Lake Erie West applied for and has received the High Performing ESC designation from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce. A High Performing ESC has generated total cost savings of at least 5% for its client school districts for primary services secured from the ESC instead of another source. The ESC of Lake Erie West far exceeded this 5% benchmark, with a total savings of over 20% in 2023. This is the eighth year in a row that the ESC of Lake Erie West has been designated as a High Performing ESC,

 

“Ohio’s educational service centers provide exceptional cost savings to their school districts in addition to all of the other services and support they offer,” says Craig Burford, Executive Director of the Ohio ESC Association (OESCA). “Over the past seven years, Ohio ESCs have averaged 36% savings to districts per year, for a total of nearly $587.6 million in savings statewide for primary services since 2016.” 

 

The Ohio Department of Education & Workforce evaluated each application based on the total percentage of cost savings the ESC generated for its client districts calculated based on the price charged to the client by the ESC for a primary service. 

The Cenovus Energy Challenge Grant was awarded to ESCLEW.  The intent of this Grant is to provide schools and youth-serving organizations an opportunity to experience Challenger Programming.  ESCLEW will use the funding to continue the Challenge Grant that provides funding (typically 50%) for schools or groups to attend simulated missions in person or for outreach programming.

Schools Forward Grant - Community Schools
This grant, guided by Ohio House Bill 169, Future Forward Ohio, encompasses the state’s strategic priorities to
use federal funds to help students recover from the impact of COVID-19. Our focus with this program is literacy. Over 30 participants from our identified sponsored schools will participate in a multi-year Structured Literacy Certification training provided by the AIMS Institute for Learning and Research. Additionally, professional development will be provided to these schools in structured literacy vocabulary, phonemic awareness, advanced training on sound wall implementation, and training geared toward helping leaders understand and implement literacy best practices.

This grant is focused on raising awareness and delivering evidence-based best practices to district personnel on how to select curricular materials.

This grant is focused on raising awareness and delivering evidence-based best practices to district personnel on how to select math materials.

This grant is focused on Sources of Strength, a best-practice youth mental health promotion and suicide prevention program. The grant will fund training a consultant in Sources of Strength and implementing the program in selected elementary schools.

Tutor Ohio Kids Tutoring Grant - In partnership with the ESC of Central Ohio, the ESCLEW has secured funding to support a new state-wide tutoring program called Tutor Ohio Kids. Through this initiative, the ESCLEW has the ability to aid local districts and schools in the recruitment and placement of high-quality tutors. These tutors specialize in providing academic support to students in reading, math, science, and social studies. 

 

Foundations of Effective Instructional Coaching  - This Grant researches and reviews instructional Coaching models for common criteria of effectiveness in developing learning modules for Ohio’s Foundations of Effective Instructional Coaching training.