Conor Morris
Reporter/ProducerExpertise: Education reporting, public records, general assignment, investigative reporting
Education: Wooster High School
Ohio University - Bachelor of Science, journalism
Favorite spot in Northeast Ohio: Upper Edgewater Park
Experience:
Conor Morris covers education in Northeast Ohio. A 2014 Ohio University alum, he previously worked at The Athens NEWS in Southeast Ohio, covering criminal justice, education and more. He moved to Cleveland in 2020 to work with the Northeast Ohio Solutions Journalism Collaborative as a reporter and Report for America corps member, where he covered poverty and the pandemic's impact on Northeast Ohio. Conor volunteers his time to run the Unsilenced Voices of CMSD, a blog for Cleveland Metropolitan School District students. He was born in Marietta, Ohio.
Highlights:
- Won numerous statewide press awards for his investigative and feature reporting on higher education, criminal justice and poverty with The Athens NEWS in Southeast Ohio.
- 2023 Ohio Associated Press Media Editors Award, First Place Best Digital Project & Ohio Society of Professional Journalists Award, Best Medical/Science/Health Care Reporting - “Redlining is affecting Northeast Ohio's children's ability to breathe. Here's what we can do”
- Past stories featured on the Solutions Journalism Network's Solutions Story Tracker, which highlights stories that dig into both a problem and its solution.
Why trust Ideastream Public Media?
The mission of Ideastream Public Media is to be a trustworthy and dynamic multimedia source for illuminating the world around us. Our highest priority is providing news and information that is reliable and accurate, that is gathered with integrity and professional care and that is presented with precision and respect for the intelligence of our audiences. We are transparent about how we discover and verify the facts we present and strive to make our decision-making process clear to the public. We disclose relationships, such as with partners or funders, that might appear, but will never, influence our coverage.
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School districts saw mixed results at the ballot, as they contend with headwinds like inflation and voters wary of further taxes after seeing property values jump from Ohio's sexennial property reappraisals.
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Conotton Valley Union Local Schools' financial challenges come as other districts have said they were left in the lurch from another pipeline crossing Ohio fighting its tax valuation
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Superintendent Michael Robinson listed his accomplishments in his first year and responded to criticism about his strained relationship with the teachers union and one school board member, among other issues during his 2024 State of the Schools speech at the Akron Press Club.
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The NEO Voter Voices survey finds reticence for supporting increased school funding with districts facing more challenges in recent years getting levies approved.
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The local GOP group's PAC has paid for mailers and a website to try to defeat the levy, arguing the district hasn't been a good steward of the funds it's been given.
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Years of declining enrollment have left the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, and urban districts like it across the country, with challenging questions about what the "right size" is for them.
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Two officers forcibly arrested the student after he tried to push past them near Firestone Community Learning Center's metal detectors on Oct. 16, video shows.
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The high school's staff and others say the building badly needs replacement, with a failing roof and problems with technology, heating and cooling.
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Bay Village school officials say their annual pumpkin launching event for middle schoolers is meant to reinforce learning about science, technology, math and engineering.
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CMSD says there's currently only a small number of tracks at its schools. That means students often are forced to find other places to practice throughout the city.