News: A City That's Good for Kids

Election 2005

The most remarkable solution for addressing education and youth issues in Cincinnati comes from State Sen. Mark Mallory (D-West End).

"I want to banish them out of the city, send 'em to Green Township," he says, laughing as he considers the cost savings to be realized without having to fund a school system.

Not surprisingly, the candidates for mayor are concerned about the challenges faced by young people in the community. Suggestions of more extensive mentoring programs, business/school partnerships, better recreational activities and more extensive employment opportunities are standard fare for campaign literature.

What differentiates Mallory, City Councilman David Pepper and the Rev. Charlie Winburn is the way in which they would approach the solutions. Vice Mayor Alicia Reece did not respond to requests for an interview.

Strengthening the schools
Pepper wants the mayor to bring together various groups to improve education, utilizing existing organizations.

"The mayor needs to be a partner with the system," he says.

After studying education reform in other cities, Pepper met with local educators, parents, at-risk youth, the school superintendent and others to prepare a comprehensive plan to guide his proposal. He's posted on his Web site a 23-page description of his approach.

"I don't agree with an outright takeover of the schools," Pepper says. "That's a radical step, and I'm not convinced the city is managing its own affairs well enough to do that."

Mallory says his plan doesn't call for the city to run the schools but rather to appoint a more fair and balanced board. Voters pick members of the school board under the existing system.

Mallory proposes an 11-person nominating committee, chaired by the state superintendent of education, consisting of a school principal, a business leader, a person from outside the city of Cincinnati but in the Cincinnati School District, a university president, three members appointed by the mayor and members appointed by the PTA, city council and the teachers' union.

The mayor would appoint the school board from the list of candidates picked by the nominating committee. The board would set overall policy, and the superintendent would run day-to-day operations. After four years, voters would have the opportunity to keep the new system or return to the old way of doing business.

Mallory says this kind of plan was implemented in Cleveland and voters approved its renewal after four years.

"People have given me a variety of reactions," he says. "The most common reaction is, 'City Hall is in such chaos, I can't imagine allowing anybody there having anything to do with education.' "

He explains why he thinks this plan is the right option.

"The board would set the broad policy and the vision, not the mayor," Mallory says. "It's an opportunity to effectively design a board that is truly representative of the community. It builds in a level of accountability not present in the current system. No single entity or interest group could run away with the policy in the schools. If people don't like my plan, that's fine. But we need to have a real and honest discussion about education in Cincinnati, and that's the whole concept."

'Keep 'em off the street'
Winburn talks about the need for GED programs as a means to get young people off the street but he seems to be more interested in programs that address youth crime.

"I'm concerned about all of these youth right now who are hanging around on the corners," he says. "The youth that are excelling and doing well ought to be commended. What went right there? Something went right there. Those that have been locked out are the ones I really want to help. I think they're on the verge of making a decision to do crime to survive."

Winburn proposes a youth forum as a means for the mayor to involve young people in preparing plans to bring about change in education, employment, recreational activities and other issues. He also points to his "Violent Crime Reduction" strategy as part of his approach. It calls for an "increase in the number of arrests involving juveniles and guns by 50 percent and a toughening of juvenile court sentences."

Pepper is concerned about what he calls the "keep 'em off the street" mentality that suggests youth are "just about to be criminals."

"We rob them of the opportunity to find a passion in life," he says. "They need to find out what they're good at and what they're excited about."

In addition to a Mayor's Youth and Education Council, Pepper would like to create a new position in city government to review youth programs and challenges, such as transportation for getting kids to available programs, and to coordinate communication to make sure people are aware of what's available.

Employment, increased parental involvement, access to college information and better early childhood education are just a few of the topics covered in Pepper's plan.

Similarly, Mallory says his approach is to look at "the entire spectrum" of the youth experience. He doesn't outline a specific plan but offers instead a general principle.

"We absolutely have to invest in children," he says. "You invest in children in several ways. You invest in them through education, their ability to find and maintain employment, by having real recreational outlets for them."

Developing the "how to" would be done in conjunction with the youth.

"There will be a strong component for young people to give input to the mayor on a number of issues, not just on issues specific to youth," Mallory says. "Young people experience most of the other parts of our society that (adults) experience. They catch buses, they go to events, they interact with the police. It's always good to get an additional perspective on how we're doing and what we could do to make things better."

Election 2005

The most remarkable solution for addressing education and youth issues in Cincinnati comes from State Sen. Mark Mallory (D-West End).

"I want to banish them out of the city, send 'em to Green Township," he says, laughing as he considers the cost savings to be realized without having to fund a school system.

Not surprisingly, the candidates for mayor are concerned about the challenges faced by young people in the community. Suggestions of more extensive mentoring programs, business/school partnerships, better recreational activities and more extensive employment opportunities are standard fare for campaign literature.

What differentiates Mallory, City Councilman David Pepper and the Rev. Charlie Winburn is the way in which they would approach the solutions. Vice Mayor Alicia Reece did not respond to requests for an interview.

Strengthening the schools
Pepper wants the mayor to bring together various groups to improve education, utilizing existing organizations.

"The mayor needs to be a partner with the system," he says.

After studying education reform in other cities, Pepper met with local educators, parents, at-risk youth, the school superintendent and others to prepare a comprehensive plan to guide his proposal. He's posted on his Web site a 23-page description of his approach.

"I don't agree with an outright takeover of the schools," Pepper says. "That's a radical step, and I'm not convinced the city is managing its own affairs well enough to do that."

Mallory says his plan doesn't call for the city to run the schools but rather to appoint a more fair and balanced board. Voters pick members of the school board under the existing system.

Mallory proposes an 11-person nominating committee, chaired by the state superintendent of education, consisting of a school principal, a business leader, a person from outside the city of Cincinnati but in the Cincinnati School District, a university president, three members appointed by the mayor and members appointed by the PTA, city council and the teachers' union.

The mayor would appoint the school board from the list of candidates picked by the nominating committee. The board would set overall policy, and the superintendent would run day-to-day operations. After four years, voters would have the opportunity to keep the new system or return to the old way of doing business.

Mallory says this kind of plan was implemented in Cleveland and voters approved its renewal after four years.

"People have given me a variety of reactions," he says. "The most common reaction is, 'City Hall is in such chaos, I can't imagine allowing anybody there having anything to do with education.' "

He explains why he thinks this plan is the right option.

"The board would set the broad policy and the vision, not the mayor," Mallory says. "It's an opportunity to effectively design a board that is truly representative of the community. It builds in a level of accountability not present in the current system. No single entity or interest group could run away with the policy in the schools. If people don't like my plan, that's fine. But we need to have a real and honest discussion about education in Cincinnati, and that's the whole concept."

'Keep 'em off the street'
Winburn talks about the need for GED programs as a means to get young people off the street but he seems to be more interested in programs that address youth crime.

"I'm concerned about all of these youth right now who are hanging around on the corners," he says. "The youth that are excelling and doing well ought to be commended. What went right there? Something went right there. Those that have been locked out are the ones I really want to help. I think they're on the verge of making a decision to do crime to survive."

Winburn proposes a youth forum as a means for the mayor to involve young people in preparing plans to bring about change in education, employment, recreational activities and other issues. He also points to his "Violent Crime Reduction" strategy as part of his approach. It calls for an "increase in the number of arrests involving juveniles and guns by 50 percent and a toughening of juvenile court sentences."

Pepper is concerned about what he calls the "keep 'em off the street" mentality that suggests youth are "just about to be criminals."

"We rob them of the opportunity to find a passion in life," he says. "They need to find out what they're good at and what they're excited about."

In addition to a Mayor's Youth and Education Council, Pepper would like to create a new position in city government to review youth programs and challenges, such as transportation for getting kids to available programs, and to coordinate communication to make sure people are aware of what's available.

Employment, increased parental involvement, access to college information and better early childhood education are just a few of the topics covered in Pepper's plan.

Similarly, Mallory says his approach is to look at "the entire spectrum" of the youth experience. He doesn't outline a specific plan but offers instead a general principle.

"We absolutely have to invest in children," he says. "You invest in children in several ways. You invest in them through education, their ability to find and maintain employment, by having real recreational outlets for them."

Developing the "how to" would be done in conjunction with the youth.

"There will be a strong component for young people to give input to the mayor on a number of issues, not just on issues specific to youth," Mallory says. "Young people experience most of the other parts of our society that (adults) experience. They catch buses, they go to events, they interact with the police. It's always good to get an additional perspective on how we're doing and what we could do to make things better."