Two northeast Ohio organizations will help lead a new statewide effort aimed at helping young people succeed from early childhood through school and into the workforce.
Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jim Tressel announced 12 new Regional Education Partnerships across Ohio. In Northeast Ohio, the designated groups are the Educational Service Center of Northeast Ohio and the Summit Education Initiative.
The goal is to get organizations that already work with children and families, including schools, colleges, employers, workforce agencies and community groups, working more closely together. State officials say those groups often do good work independently, but may not always be using the same data or focusing on the same priorities.
Under the new model, each regional partnership will identify local challenges, study what is causing them, look at what programs already exist and then bring together the organizations best suited to respond. The partnerships will also track results and adjust their approach over time.
Possible areas of focus include kindergarten readiness, third-grade reading, school attendance, high school graduation, college or career training and stronger connections into the workforce.
The state says the goal is not to create another stand-alone program, but to better connect the people and organizations already doing the work so fewer needs and opportunities are missed.
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