COLUMBUS, Ohio — State representatives Paula Hicks-Hudson and Stephanie Howse introduced legislation to implement a statewide Loving Cities Index, which would prodive a framework to ensure all students have the opportunity to thrive.
The index is a tool that would provide a comprehensive analysis of local systems of love and support in order to address racial disparities in learning outcomes and provide better opportunities for brighter futures.
“It is clearly necessary that we address factors outside the classroom that negatively impact our children's success inside the classroom. This legislation will move those factors to the forefront. And it will help us keep the Ohio Promise that our students can learn and grow here in Ohio,” said Rep. Hicks-Hudson.
The Index framework draws from communities and a large body of evidence-based research to identify 25 indicators that represent the supports needed for students to have the opportunity to learn and achieve academic and economic success.
The Loving Cities Index would help create a system of local and state policies and practices that provide all children and families with the following:
- CARE – Through access to mental and physical health services from birth, nutritional food, and healthy community spaces;
- STABILITY – Through consistent expectations and practices that reinforce a culture of inclusion and healing among students and adults;
- COMMITMENT – Through economically and civically empowered communities that democratize access to healthy living and learning environments;
- CAPACITY – Through well-resourced learning climates that meet the physical, emotional and academic needs of students.
A new study by the CDC shows that racial and geographic gaps persisted as K-12 students returned to their classrooms during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study found a racial disparity in most states for whether students were learning online or in-person.
The highest racial disparities were in Ohio and Pennsylvania, where on average, students of color were 21% and 23% less likely to have access to full-time, in-person learning. The gap between which students were learning virtually and which were learning in-person last year could exacerbate some of the educational disparities that already existed.
The Loving Cities Index is currently used in 10 major cities across the U.S., and Ohio would become the first state to adopt the Index statewide.
The legislation now awaits a bill number and referral to a House committee.
