Although 12 of the 125 Columbus City Schools have ranked best in the nation, the dropout rate is close to 30% because of the significant achievement gap.

With more than 51,000 students, Columbus is the largest district in Ohio. Its schools have performed fairly well, compared to other urban schools in the state, with 12 of their schools ranking high on the U.S News & World Report list. However, nearly 30% of students fail to graduate, and significant gaps between minority students and their white peers persist. While the district has acknowledged the need to improve its schools’ performances, it has only embraced marginal reforms.

Ohio was selected as a Race to the Top winner, but has upheld local control when it comes to determining changes to teacher evaluations, turnarounds, and many other components of its plan. So achieving bold changes will likely require a long and difficult battle with local unions. Ohio also has the Educational Choice Scholarship program (EdChoice), which provides a limited number of scholarships to students who attend persistently under-performing public schools. In addition, the city has a number of high-performing charter models.

Be a part of the local movement by getting involved with your local Waiting for “SUPERMAN” campaign.