COLUMBUS, Ohio — At last night’s Columbus school board meeting, several teachers from Independence High School spoke during public comment laying out their concerns about an influx of students and a lack of staff at the school.
Multiple teachers say they sent emails to each board member in October expressing concerns, which prompted the board to address them and visit the building.
At Independence High School, 829 students are enrolled and have 43 staff members. High school staff members say the class sizes are 34 students on average and one teacher being responsible for 44 students.
“For comparison, Centennial has 42 teachers yet 170 fewer students, and Independence High School has the highest student-to-teacher ratio. Independence administration tried to manage the situation,” Hally Shah said.
Teachers say they’ve experienced overwhelming amounts of stress.
“The incidents of behavior have also increased, this is due to the number of students being enrolled in independence without additional support,” Shah said.
The Columbus Education Association says this is not just a local but rather a statewide issue with public schools.
“What the district needs to do is make sure they are planning something out and need to coordinate with the city, county and state,” said Columbus Education Association President John Coneglio.
While teachers acknowledged the district adding more teachers for support, the current teachers say it’s still not enough.
A spokesperson with the school district said leaders were aware of the issue and held meetings and visited schools to offer support.
Three positions have been added to help current staffing, according to the district. Teachers have also been moved from other positions within the school