EDUCATION

Education is widely accepted to be a fundamental resource, touching every American and every resident of Lorain County. Quality education can often be a route to wealth accumulation, especially for marginalized groups. While obtaining higher education does not ensure that all will be unaffected by economic inequality, college degrees are regarded as a primary vehicle for reducing poverty and closing the wealth gaps in evidence between Black and Brown people and Whites. Yet, racial and ethnic disparities are evident at every level of the education and higher education systems.

This Education section of the larger Lorain County Racial Equity Agenda is intended to highlight the Education Pipeline (Prekindergarten through Post‐Secondary). Two of the sections, early childhood education and middle and high school education, include a reference to a local example of educational excellence occurring in our community now which is contained in the Appendix. The intent is to share information AND spark a deeper discussion about where the ‘leaks’ in the pipeline exist so that we can help move the community toward actionable solutions that will make a lasting positive impact on all children.

Contextual statistics demonstrate an adverse disparate impact on educational attainment between districts in Lorain County with majority Black and Brown students compared to districts with majority White students.

There are 14 public school districts in Lorain County. As shown in the chart on page 16 of the report, most school districts in Lorain County are not racially or ethnically diverse. Districts where less than half of the students are White include Clearview (35%), Elyria (48%). City of Lorain (21%), and Oberlin (48%).

The Ohio Department of Education provides an overall letter grade for schools and districts to how well its students are performing. This grade is determined by calculating six components: Achievement, Progress, Gap Closing. Improving At‐Risk K‐3 Readers, Graduation Rate, and Prepared for Success.

The Performance Index is used as part of the Achievement component score and measures the achievement of every student, not just whether the group as a whole reach Proficient or above. Districts and schools receive points for every student’s level of achievement (“Advanced”, “Accelerated”, “Proficient”, “Basic”, or “Limited”). The higher each student’s level, the more points the school earns toward its index. This rewards districts and schools that improve the performance of higher‐ and lower‐ performing students.

The Performance Index Score is out of a possible 120 points. We have intentionally selected 2018‐19 data in an attempt to mitigate potential and unknown disruptions in assessment data from the two most recent school years due to COVID‐19. [View complete chart on page 17 of the report.]

Out of the 14 public school districts in Lorain County, eight (57 percent) received a “C” letter grade for their performance index for the 2018‐19 school year, three received a “B” and another three received a “D”. A larger proportion of students in Elyria (27 percent) and Lorain City School Districts (38 percent) had levels of achievement that fall in the “Limited” (lowest) category, compared to the other categories of state test achievement. The three schools with a “D” rating all had larger shares of Black and Brown students compared with the other districts in Lorain County.

As reported above, Elyria and Lorain City Schools have the largest overall enrollments and the largest number of Black and Brown students in Lorain County. Data on proficiency rates will be reported for those two districts as proficiency rates by race/ethnicity in other districts in the county are suppressed due to lower populations of Black and Brown students.

In general, White students performed at higher proficiency rates in Elyria and Lorain City Schools in grade 3 ELA (English/Language Arts) and Math and grade 8 ELA, Math, and Science. Exceptions are seen in grade 3 Math in Elyria and grade 3 ELA in city of Lorain, where Hispanic students performed slightly better than White students. [Significant findings can be found on page 18 of the report.]

The Graduation Rate component looks at the percent of students who successfully finish high school with a diploma in four or five years. Class of 2019 is the most recent pre‐COVID data. [View chart on page 19 of the report]

Economically‐disadvantaged students generally graduated at rates lower than the overall rate in eleven of the fourteen districts.

Black students graduated at rates lower than their White and Hispanic peers in Lorain City Schools. Hispanic students in Elyria graduated at lower rates than their Black or White peers. White students in Clearview Local Schools graduated at rates lower than both Hispanic and Black students.

(Note: In many of the districts, graduation rates by race/ethnicity were suppressed due to lower populations of Black and Hispanic/Latinx students. No data was available for American Indian and Asian students due to even smaller populations.)

Chronic absenteeism has been identified as an additional measure of student success because there is a significant body of research around the impact of chronic absenteeism on academic performance. Research supports that chronic absenteeism, defined as missing at least 10 percent of the instructional time for any reason – excused or unexcused absences, is one of the primary causes of low academic achievement.

COVID‐19 brought negative impacts to attendance during the 2020‐21 school year, with 24 percent of Ohio students in K‐12—close to 380,000—being chronically absent. Disparities in absenteeism exist across racial demographics, as Black and Brown students often experience more absences from the classroom than their White peers. Economic and social factors can also contribute to decreased school attendance, as disadvantaged communities with concentrated poverty may experience poorer mental, emotional, and physical health, lack of transportation, lack of safety, and other issues that can negatively impact attendance.

In Lorain County, absenteeism rates increased from the 2018‐19 school year to 2020‐21. Lorain City School District had the highest rate of chronic absenteeism (63 percent) in the 2020‐2021 school year. There were no notable differences in absenteeism across gender, however, disparities did exist across race and for economically disadvantaged students. Rates of chronic absenteeism were higher for Black and Hispanic/Latinx students in the majority of districts. Black students generally had the highest rate of absenteeism across most districts. Rates of chronic absenteeism in economically disadvantaged students were also generally higher than rates for the district overall.

Racial disparities in discipline are in evidence in K‐12 schools, and they persist in the criminal justice system. Black and Hispanic/Latinx students are more likely than White students to be suspended in Lorain County’s two largest school districts—Elyria and Lorain City Schools. In Elyria, Black students are 2.8 times more likely than White students to be suspended, while Hispanic/Latinx students are 2.9 times more likely. In Lorain, Black students are 1.9 times more likely to be suspended. (School discipline data for Hispanic/Latino students in city of Lorain was not available.)

Black youth and Hispanic/Latinx youth are overrepresented in the juvenile justice system. Black youth make up just 11% of the population, but 45% of the justice‐involved population in Lorain County. Hispanic/Latinx youth make up just 15% of the population, but 30% of the justice‐involved population in Lorain County.

The disparities were even wider for youth who were incarcerated in juvenile detention in 2020. Black youth also spent 14 more days incarcerated, on average, than White youth. (There was not a statistically significant difference between time spent in detention between Hispanic and non‐Hispanic youth, so that data is not included. [View chart on page 21 of the report]

Disparities in educational achievement often result in lower educational attainment for Black and Brown residents. The chart on page 22 of the report demonstrates that these disparities are in evidence in high school graduation rates and become even more pronounced among individuals in Lorain County who hold a Bachelor’s degree or higher.

Living in areas with concentrated poverty can have negative effects on reading skills and academic success in school, which can negatively impact future earnings potential. In Lorain County, Black children are four times more likely than White children to be living in poverty. Hispanic/Latinx children are three times more likely to be living in poverty.

There is a correlation between poverty and educational attainment. Lorain County residents with only a high school degree were ten times as likely to be living in poverty than residents with at least a Bachelor’s degree.

Median income is the level of income at which half of all households earn income below it and half earn income above it. The median income for all households in Lorain County was $58,427, but there is a wide gap between households where the householder is a person of color and White households. The median income for non‐Hispanic White households was more than double the median income of Lorain County’s Black households.

Median income is the level of income at which half of all households earn income below it and half earn income above it. The median income for all households in Lorain County was $58,427, but there is a wide gap between households where the householder is a person of color and White households. The median income for non‐Hispanic White households was more than double the median income of Lorain County’s Black households.

As we examined the educational pipeline, we note that the emphasis on quality pre‐K is important and serves as a foundation for the educational pipeline from pre‐K to postsecondary education. In this section, we examine the postsecondary education sector, educational attainment, and its connection to poverty levels in Lorain County. Finally, we look specifically at Lorain County Community College’s impact of educational attainment on the citizens of Lorain County. Lorain County ranks seventh in educational attainment out of northeast Ohio region’s 18 counties. The current census data indicates that 38% of Lorain County adults, ages 25‐64 years old hold an associate degree or higher. African Americans make up 9% of the Lorain County population and comprise 13.47% of the Bachelor’s degree holders.


Lorain County is a suburban, urban and rural county. A deeper look at the two largest suburban and urban cities in the county show a stark difference in poverty, median household income, and educational attainment. [View chart on page 25]

If there is agreement that educational attainment has an impact on household income and poverty rates then we must examine opportunities to access postsecondary educational attainment. Lorain County is home to one 2‐year public college, one Ohio Technical Center, and one 4‐year private college.

This section will focus on Lorain County Community College and the opportunities for Lorain County citizens to obtain postsecondary education. Postsecondary educational attainment does start in high school for some high school students who are eligible for dual enrollment programs such as Early College High School and College Credit Plus.

Students in Early College have an opportunity to earn both their high school diploma and their Associates degree at the same time. The criteria that are considered for enrollment in Early College are factors such as school attendance, school discipline history, grades and motivation.

Additionally:

* Priority given to first‐generation college‐going students (parents do not have a college degree) 


* Students must be proficient on the seventh‐grade reading and math measurements: the Next Generation Assessment (NGA) – formerly the Ohio Achievement Test (OAT). 


* For students transitioning from eighth grade to high school 


College Credit Plus (CCP) is Ohio’s dual enrollment program that provides students in grades 7‐12 the opportunity to earn college credit and high school credit for free or very little cost to students and their families. 
Although there have been overall increases in CCP participation at a state level, data indicates relatively flat and overall lower participation for African American students and among students who are not considered to be economically disadvantaged.

Overall, 45.2% of Lorain County high school graduates earn college credit from Lorain County Community College, including 24% of African American students. While there are opportunities to obtain postsecondary education through dual enrollment in high school, additional work is still needed to increase participation in these important programs.

Increasing the educational opportunities and degrees earned for the adult population in Lorain County is of importance as well. Degrees and certificates awarded by Lorain County Community College almost doubled between 2011 to 2021 and almost tripled for African American students. Some of this growth can be attributed to expansion of short‐term and fast‐track credentials that lead to employer pathways.

Team NEOs Misaligned Opportunities Report examines economic and employment data across our population in Northeast Ohio. Ohio has three major employment sectors: Healthcare, IT and Manufacturing. Team NEO’s report indicates that Black and Brown people are more concentrated in the lower wage occupations within these sectors and/or are not largely represented based on their percentage of the population. [View chart on page 26 of the report]

Educational attainment has the potential to lift individuals and families out of poverty. There are additional opportunities to increase awareness about many of the postsecondary pathways available to traditional and non‐traditional aged students. Also, more emphasis should be placed not only on access, but also on earning credentials in high demand, high wage occupations.

1. Build a better narrative to understand what the community is saying ‐ Broaden the conversation to include those doing the work, current and retired Black and Brown teachers, as well as nonprofit practitioners. 


2. Rebuild the education system with equity as a focus. Learning gaps are widening, disparities are growing, and students continue to struggle, especially in light of COVID‐19’s disparate impact on communities of color. 


3. Increase preschool enrollment throughout Lorain County. Establish a baseline and create realistic growth goals for preschool enrollment. We recommend beginning the learning process with Lorain County’s three existing early childhood collaboratives (Oberlin Kids, Ready Set Go to Kindergarten, and Rising Titans). 


4. Make pre‐school through college (P‐20) education advocacy a priority. P‐20 is used to describe an integrated education system that extends from pre‐school through higher education. The goal of P‐20 is to help create a more seamless and integrated education experience for all students that extends beyond high school – whatever that is – college or a certificate/licensure (i.e., employability credentials) that lead to in high‐demand, high‐paying jobs or careers. 


5. Recruit and hire more educators of color. In order to increase the number of teachers and administrators that “look like” the students they serve, we must first increase the number of Black and Brown students pursuing careers in education.