Olentangy Local School District

The Olentangy Local School District is a large, rapidly growing school district centered in southern Delaware County, with a small, southern portion (one cul-de-sac) in Franklin County in the U.S. state of Ohio. The Olentangy Local School District comprises 95 square miles (250 km2) and serves students from all or parts of numerous municipalities, including the unincorporated community of Lewis Center and the cities of Columbus, Delaware, Powell, and Westerville. The district also serves students from Berkshire, Berlin, Concord, Genoa, Liberty, and Orange townships in Delaware and Franklin counties. As of 2020, it operates 16 elementary schools, five middle schools, and four high schools. Also, there is an online high school called OASIS for selected students at the OASIS headquarters, plus a school for STEM students.

Olentangy Local School District
Location
Lewis Center, Ohio
Midwest
United States
District information
TypePublic-Suburban
MottoFlourish Here
GradesK-12
Established1952
SuperintendentMark Raiff[1]
Students and staff
Students22,293 (20-21, May)[2]
Athletic conferenceOhio Capital Conference
ColorsOlentangy:    
Berlin:    
Liberty:    
Orange:    
Other information
Websitewww.olentangy.k12.oh.us

Olentangy is the largest district in Delaware County. In 1998, the district had an enrollment of 4,812. By fall of 2021, it had grown to the 4th largest district in Ohio, behind only Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati.[3]

The 7.9 mill bond issue passed on Tuesday, May 3, 2011 and therefore made it possible for all co-curricular and extra-curricular activities to stay in the schools. Had the levy not passed, serious athletic, extracurricular, co-curricular, and academic cuts would have been made. This issue was up for renewal on the March 17, 2020 ballot and it passed by a 15-point margin.[4][5]

The Olentangy district was graded an "A" overall by the Ohio Department of Education in the most recent (2018/19) ODE report card, earning three "A"s, two "B"s, and one "C".

Allegations of racism

In 2018, Olentangy high school students complained of racism in their high school, and told the school board that their teachers dismissed their concerns and did not punish the use of racial slurs.[6] Olentangy's superintendent admitted to the Columbus Dispatch that the racist incidents had occurred, and school board president Mindy Patrick reportedly responded by saying that she was "disappointed and saddened" to learn of the racist harassment.[6]

Censorship of Dr. Seuss

During the taping of a "Planet Money" radio segment for NPR News,[7] Olentangy's assistant director of communications Amanda Beeman interrupted and forbade the reading of the Dr. Seuss book "The Sneetches."[8] She did so in response to students identifying Seuss's themes opposing racism, and saying that she wanted to keep the classroom "discussion that we wanted around economics." Students protested, saying that they "want to read it"[7] but Beeman forbade them from reading it.[8] Beeman later admitted that she "wish[ed] she had handled the situation differently."[8]

Schools

Elementary
  • Alum Creek Elementary School (ACES)
  • Arrowhead Elementary School (AES)
  • Cheshire Elementary School (CES)
  • Freedom Trail Elementary School (FTES)
  • Glen Oak Elementary School (GOES)
  • Heritage Elementary School (HES)
  • Indian Springs Elementary School (ISES)
  • Johnnycake Corners Elementary School (JCES)
  • Liberty Tree Elementary School (LTES)
  • Oak Creek Elementary School (OCES)
  • Olentangy Meadows Elementary School (OMES)
  • Scioto Ridge Elementary School (SRES)
  • Shale Meadows Elementary School (SMES)
  • Tyler Run Elementary School (TRES)
  • Walnut Creek Elementary School (WCES)
  • Wyandot Run Elementary School (WRES)

Grades: K-5

Middle
  • Olentangy Berkshire Middle School (OBMS)
  • Olentangy Hyatts Middle School (OHMS)
  • Olentangy Liberty Middle School (OLMS)
  • Olentangy Orange Middle School (OOMS)
  • Olentangy Shanahan Middle School (OSMS)
  • Olentangy Berlin Middle School (OBLMS)

Grades: 6-8

High

Grades: 9-12

References
  1. "Office of the Superintendent".
  2. "Olentangy Schools Enrollment Report May 5, 2021" (PDF).
  3. Davis, Dillon (October 19, 2021). "OLSD 4th largest in Ohio". Delaware Gazette. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  4. "The Issue ยป Olentangy for Kids". www.olentangyforkids.org.
  5. Jim Fischer (April 29, 2020). "Olentangy Schools' three-part ballot issue finds strong voter support". This Week Community News. Archived from the original on September 27, 2021.
  6. Narciso, Dean. "Olentangy students tell of racism in schools". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  7. "The economics lessons in kids' books : Planet Money". NPR.org. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  8. "Olentangy Schools official cuts off reading of Dr. Seuss book during NPR podcast". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
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