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Ohio Auditor Warns of Unexpected Problems of Open Enrollment

photo of Dave Yost
ANDY CHOW
/
STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU

The state’s auditor is sending a message to all of Ohio’s school districts to beware of the pitfalls that can come with open enrollment, which can cost schools up to $1 million. 

When a student decides to leave one school district and enroll in another, state funding follows the student to the new district.

But state auditorDave Yost says his office found that some districts over-extend their open enrollment by taking in too many students and, therefore, need to invest in more resources.

“When open enrollment first came in it was like ‘well let’s get these other people in and the state is gonna send us a check for more kids’ and that’s true up to a point but you gotta watch that tipping point very closely.”

For example, Yost says Coventry Local School Districtin northeast Ohio could save $1.6 million by reducing open enrollment, which right now makes up 37% of its roster.

Andy Chow is a general assignment state government reporter who focuses on environmental, energy, agriculture, and education-related issues. He started his journalism career as an associate producer with ABC 6/FOX 28 in Columbus before becoming a producer with WBNS 10TV.