Proponent Testimony on Senate Bill 1 — Michael Tisovic, Plant Manager, Wieland Chase
Summary
Memo dated March 24, 2023, from Michael Tisovic, giving proponent testimony on Senate Bill 1 to the Economic and Workforce Development Committee. The memo says Tisovic is the Plant Manager of Wieland Chase in Montpelier, Ohio, has worked in manufacturing for more than thirty years and is vice-president of the Advanced Manufacturing Consortium in Northwest Ohio. It states that in 2018, 53% of high school graduates go to college but only 31% graduate. It argues that a good education should be defined as being prepared to enter the workforce no matter what career path is chosen.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
Cite this document
“Proponent Testimony on Senate Bill 1 — Michael Tisovic, Plant Manager, Wieland Chase.”
Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2023-03-28-econ-workforce-dev-testimony-sb1houseproponenttestimony-mic-9d26a2e8fe/
, SHA-256 66e7967d61ce0c6dd2cbf39527c55e11461ec3f3b4ddea7a324c7223df8df963.Full text
From: Michael Tisovic
Date: March 24, 2023
RE: Proponent Testimony: SB 1
Chairman Swearingen, Vice Chair Santucci, and Members of the Economic and Workforce
Development Committee, thank you for allowing me to provide proponent testimony on
Senate Bill 1. I would like to share with you some of the issues where our current educational
system does not meet the needs of today’s children or the current and future workforce
requirements in our community. We owe the children the means to a strong education that
allows each and every one of them to succeed in their chosen career path. The world is
changing more each day. We must have an educational system that is more adaptable and
accountable to the needs of the community.
My background is in manufacturing and currently the Plant Manager of Wieland Chase in
Montpelier, Ohio. I have worked in manufacturing for more than thirty years. I have been a
member, currently vice-president of the Advanced Manufacturing Consortium in Northwest
Ohio since 2015, actively working to address the work force issues in the six-county area.
We have all heard that the only way to be successful is to have a college degree. In 2018,
53% of our high school graduates go to college but only 31% graduate 1. If the measuring
stick for a good education is finishing college, why do 47% of our students not even attempt
to go and another 22% do not finish. In today’s world, going to college should not define a
good education. A good education should be defined as being prepared to enter the
workforce no matter what career path is chosen. Today’s society needs worker in all fields
from doctors to assembly line workers and our educational system lacks the ability to create
the workforce that is needed. We need more options for the 69% of our students that do not
go to or finish college. Only 7% of Ohio students graduate with technical credentials1. 62% of
our graduating high school seniors are not prepared to enter the workforce. The lack of
qualified workers for today’s workforce handicaps our state’s economy. Bill 1 would give our
legislature the control needed to create and hold accountable programs that target these
underserved graduating seniors
College credit plus, a program that allows any high school student to take free college
classes, has been around since 2015. This program greatly benefits the low-income student
so why do more students not take advantage of the program. The answer is that our public
education system lacks accountability. The Ohio auditor’s office determined that even though
state law requires districts to hold meetings about the program there is no enforcement and
districts freely confess that they were not holding meetings. The schools that do offer the
program restrict the number of classes that can be taken in various ways. While most
1 https://www.ohiobythenumbers.com/#student-achievement-national-exams
Wieland Chase, LLC I 14212 Selwyn Drive I Montpelier, OH 43543 I USA
P +1 419 485 3193 I wieland-chase.com
colleges will allow high school students to take any class that they have met the requirements
for, the local high school will limit which classes are available to their students. The program
allows each high school student to take up to 30 college credits per school year. Some high
schools discourage students from taking more than 15 college credits by restricting the
student’s participation in after school activities if the student takes more credits at the local
college than they take at their high school. Most high school student will choose sports and
other high school activities over taking that extra course at the local college. In the current
2022-23 school year at Northwest State Community College, 2052 class seats are being filled
by CCP students. Of those 2052 class seats, only 48 (2.34%) of them are in a technical
discipline. How are we going to build the workforce of tomorrow if today’s students are not
taking advantage of the opportunities that have been created for them. How many of today’s
students are aware of all the different electives they can take within the current system. The
current system lacks accountability and needs to change. College credit plus is an example of
a great program that benefits our high school students in many ways that is not fully
supported by our current educational system. With Bill 1, we would have the resources and
processes necessary in government to hold schools accountable to support a program like
CCP.
The evidence shows there is a need for systemic change at the state level to our education
system to ensure accountability to taxpayers and for our kids. Transparency at the state level
is necessary now more than ever, so that we can ensure schools have the support they need
from the state and students can access the academic and workforce skills they need to be
well-educated, career-ready adults. SB 178 addresses this need by refocusing our system at
the state level on what matters most: our children and their future.
SB 1 restructures the Department of Education to create a state cabinet-level agency called
the Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) that will have a dual focus on primary
and secondary education as well as preparing students for the workforce. This cabinet-level
agency will be led by a Director appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the
Senate. This creates a system similar to other states that have found world-class talent to
lead their states into the 21st century and develop structures that have significantly increased
student achievement through state-level actions.
In summary, I believe educational leadership, both college and career oriented, need to
communicate with industry leadership. I believe we owe the 69% of our kids not finishing
college an opportunity to be prepared for a rewarding career. I believe we can solve the
workforce issue by coming together and working as one for the benefit of our children.
Therefore, it is time for us to refocus and reenergize the state’s system of administering
education in Ohio. In this changing world, it simply is not working. Senate Bill 1 is about
ensuring accountability for our kids, our schools, our taxpayers, our economy, and our future.
Currently, there is none. Real change and bold action are necessary more than ever to create
an educational culture that prioritizes our children’s success in the real world. It is time for a
change that works for our kids, who deserve our best efforts for their success.
Chairman, thank you, and I welcome questions from the committee on this proposal.
Wieland Chase, LLC I 14212 Selwyn Drive I Montpelier, OH 43543 I USA
P +1 419 485 3193 I wieland-chase.com
File and source
- File
- 2023-03-28_econ-workforce-dev_testimony_sb1houseproponenttestimony-michaeltisovic.pdf
- Size
- 199,471 bytes
- SHA-256
- 66e7967d61ce0c6dd2cbf39527c55e11461ec3f3b4ddea7a324c7223df8df963
- Original
- No public link identified.