Cleveland Metropolitan School District

Teacher aides, part of a broader group called paraprofessionals, provide one-on-one care to students and vital classroom support to students, but many must balance working two jobs and say they struggle to make ends meet.

A new component on Ohio's annual report cards now measures how well schools are preparing students for college, the military and the workforce after they graduate, and it's impacted some districts' overall scores.

It's still not clear exactly when the Cleveland Metropolitan School District will make a decision on which schools to close and consolidate, but it might not happen until 2026 or beyond.

The district says a decision on consolidation is coming sometime this school year, with changes to schools coming in the 2026-2027 school year.

In Akron, the leader of the teacher union says the shortage is more pronounced than in recent years. In Cleveland, it's unclear how many more teachers the district should hire due to looming school consolidation plans.

The district board of education voted to close Newton D. Baker in April 2025 citing issues with the structure. The lawsuit alleges years of water leaking into the building caused mold growth that made students and staff sick.

The increase comes after other administrators in the district got increases on top of their annual raises. Morgan did forgo a raise last year citing the district's financial challenges.

The college scholarship program has placed a social worker in every Cleveland school, but says budget issues may challenge that model.

Cleveland Metropolitan School District officials say the $2.5 million increase will bump up salaries but also increase the pay scale for administrators more broadly, even as the district says it needs to cut back over the next three years.

The Cleveland Board of Education approved an agreement with the state calling for sharing costs to demolish eight schools and build one new high school.