MAHONING VALLEY Education campaign is launched

A goal is to increase the number of local districts with excellent ratings.
By JoANNE VIVIANO
VINDICATOR EDUCATION WRITER
LIBERTY -- When the Western Reserve Local Schools earned an excellent rating on the recent Ohio Department of Education Report Cards, Superintendent Charles Swindler received two congratulatory phone calls.
That compares with a number too high to count when it comes to the high school's football team.
"If we're going to get to an excellent rating in the Valley, we have a mind-set to change," he said. "When we, as educators, are still getting the phone calls for what happened Friday night and not for what happens five days a week, we have to make a change."
Swindler made the comments Thursday to a group of Mahoning Valley business, civic and education leaders who gathered at the Holiday Inn MetroPlex for the unveiling of a three-year "From Steel to Scholars" campaign launched by the business community.
Their goal is to launch a series of media and at-work campaigns to let the community know what is happening in the schools and to persuade residents to become involved with what's happening in the classrooms Monday through Friday.
Bearing a logo that combines a flame and a pencil tip to create a torchlike icon, the campaign seeks to promote academic excellence and encourage businesses, parents and others to become involved in improving Valley schools.
"Is there any reason that anyone here can think of why our young people can't be as the best scholars in the nation?" asked Jeff Hedrich, president of the Prodigal Media Co. "We have the ability to change the minds of this culture. The transition is not going to be easy ... but it is going to happen."
Plans are to stress the value of education on billboards, in radio, television and newspaper advertisements, on workplace posters and through media events. The initiative also will have awards ceremonies for school districts that perform well or achieve excellent ratings on school report cards.
Receiving awards
From Steel to Scholars presented awards Thursday to school districts that received excellent ratings on most recent report cards. Besides Western Reserve, those receiving trophies were South Range, Canfield, Boardman, Poland, Lowellville and Howland. Organizers said they hope to one day present trophies to all 45 Valley school districts.
"This region was known for steel, so we're taking that next step and saying, 'If we could be the best in class in steel in the last century, what can we be best in class in this century?'" said Thomas M. Humphries, president and CEO of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber. "It all starts with education. If we are going to be the best in class in any one thing in the 21st century, it has to be driven by knowledge."
Benefits include a work force that can succeed in an economy driven by technology and companies that seek to locate near those workers, increased real estate values, lower crime rates, a stronger tax base, and graduates with a greater appreciation for and participation in the arts provided by local cultural institutions, said Thomas A. Clark, regional president of First Energy.
Among the state's 88 counties, Mahoning County ranks 13th, Trumbull County 23rd, and Columbiana County 28th when ranked by the percentage of school districts rated an effective or excellent level by the state, Clark said. Ratings are based on state proficiency test scores and other data.
"It's not bad but is it good enough? Can it be better? Should it be better?" Clark asked. "We must do something. ... There is a sense of urgency before another generation is left behind."
From Steel to Scholars is a "crucial campaign for the prosperity of this region," said keynote speaker Roderick G.W. Chu, chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents, which oversees the state's universities and colleges.
Chu said Youngstown still has the "iron will to persevere."
While yesterday's schools -- and jobs -- required only general, basic skills and relied on tedious repetition of tasks, the 21st century school and work worlds require advanced skills, a knowledge of technology and "more brain than brawn," Chu said. "In short, this is not your father's economy."
Despite the percent of Ohioans with a bachelor's degree rising from 17 percent to 21.1 percent from 1990 to 2000, Ohio still ranks 39th among states in higher education, he said.
"From Steel to Scholars will provide a new way of life in a new economy with a new emphasis on education," Chu added.