In Columbus City School District v. State of Ohio, (OH App., Oct. 15, 2026), an Ohio state appellate court held that Ohio's Education Choice Scholarship Program, which is available to almost all Ohio K-12 students, regardless of family income or quality of their public school district, violates Ohio's state Constitution. The court said in part:
EdChoice, as presently structured and funded, secures with taxpayer funds a competing system of uncommon schools that is not subject to the same obligations imposed on Ohio’s system of common schools. This system of uncommon schools violates the mandate of Ohio Const. art. VI, § 2 to secure “a thorough and efficient system of common schools throughout the state.” Although statutes are entitled to a strong presumption of constitutionality, that presumption has been overcome here. Participating non-public schools are subject to materially less extensive state oversight, they cherry-pick students from public schools, they are geographically isolated in Ohio’s urban centers, and they receive taxpayer funding in a manner that operates at the expense and detriment of Ohio’s public schools, and, consequently, the children who depend on those public schools for instruction, support, and opportunities that shape their future.
The court however stayed enforcement of its decision pending an anticipated appeal to the state Supreme Court.
AP reports on the decision.
