Posted on 03/24/20 by Will Petrik (he/him) in Basic Needs + Unemployment Insurance
As families, communities, and lawmakers in Ohio and Washington grapple with the COVID-19 crisis, child care remains a central pillar for family security and stability. Child care is also critical to our nation’s economy. Yet, for decades, state and federal policymakers have failed to ensure all parents can get high-quality, affordable child care. They also have failed to make sure that those providing child care are paid enough to live with dignity. This is the result of a lack of public dollars and political will.
COVID-19 is exposing major gaps in our child care infrastructure. Congress must take immediate action to... read more
Posted on 02/25/20 by Piet van Lier (he/him) in Education & Training
The ongoing debate between the Ohio House and Senate about the future of vouchers in our state has brought into sharp focus a critical aspect of the statewide general education voucher program known as EdChoice.
Should... read more
Posted on 02/18/20 by Hannah Halbert (she/her) in Work & Wages
Hello Ohio. If you’ve followed Policy Matters for a while, you may know me as the policy liaison, the work and wages researcher, or project director. This week, I took on a new job. I... read more
Posted on 02/05/20 by Wendy Patton in Privatization
Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, Ohio’s Medicaid system got funding to improve administration by replacing an old information technology system. Originally this sounded like a good deal: The federal government covered most of the... read more
Posted on 01/29/20 by Will Petrik (he/him) in Education & Training
State policies that support affordable, high-quality child care are common sense. Child care can help set up kids for success in school and later in life. It gives parents with young children the opportunity to... read more
Posted on 01/20/20 by Jasmine Ayres in Health & Health Equity
Martin Luther King Jr. famously said, “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” He knew bending the arc would take hard work and commitment from activists, community organizers, policymakers,... read more
Posted on 01/09/20 by Piet van Lier (he/him) in Education & Training
Public schools prepare Ohio children to be thoughtful, curious adults ready to meet future challenges. They build strong communities. But lawmakers have weakened Ohio’s public schools with the EdChoice program, which directs public dollars to... read more
Posted on 12/04/19 by Intern Writer in Justice Reform
By Colleen Gravens
As Ohio considers efforts to move away from its punitive approach to criminal justice, we can learn from Oklahoma. Last month, Oklahoma took a bold step toward reforming its justice system by commuting... read more