The Cincinnati Educational Justice Coalition, a local public education advocacy group, is hosting a series of community listening sessions over the next few months to gather input from Cincinnati Public School families about what the district should prioritize in the future.
The group says it wants to engage with parents, caregivers, students, and educators in the school system in an accessible way by holding sessions in different neighborhoods around the city at convenient locations and times.
The first session will be held on Saturday, Aug. 24, at the Price Hill Public Library from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Each session will be focused on the school district's fiscal budget and where CPS should invest its resources in the future.
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CPS has a growing population of students facing homelessness and students who don't speak English as their first language. According to data from Project Connect, a program that serves children experiencing homelessness in the district, 2,861 CPS students were identified as housing insecure in the 2023-24 school year. That's up from 2,311 students in the 2022-23 school year. Cincinnati Public Schools' interim manager of English Language Acquisition and Access Adam Cooper says the school system has 6,000 students who didn't grow up speaking English as their primary language.
Abby Friend, an organizer for the Educational Justice Coalition, says she wants families of students who need the most support to share their ideas and be more involved in the district's decision-making processes.
"We need to be more proactive about where our revenue is coming from, how our schools are being funded, and ensure that with this increased need — and as our district grows just in general — that we're meeting the moment and making sure we're providing students with what they need," Friend said.
In a statement to WVXU, CPS said: "Cincinnati Public Schools is committed to fostering meaningful and authentic engagement, and values input from students, staff, families, partners and the community. In May, the District formed a Budget Task Force including District, school and union leadership to address necessary budget reductions, and looks forward to a continued, collaborative process to create the FY26 budget. CPS appreciates community feedback, and remains committed to working together with its stakeholders to continue providing high-quality learning and equitable opportunities for every student."
CPS recently finalized its fiscal year budget after holding in-person and virtual community budget roundtables in late 2023 and early 2024, followed by months of discussion between administrators and the school board.
Still, community advocates and some board members criticized the district's effort to engage with families on the budget after it received strong pushback over the administration's initial budget cut proposals, saying the sessions failed to reach the majority of the school community.
According to CPS, 347 people participated in the sessions and more than 50% of them were white, despite white students making up around 20% of the CPS student population.
Friend says now, the Coalition can help the district get input from those who don't regularly attend district meetings and events due to schedules or language barriers.
"We're hoping that we can have a better picture of what families in our district need," she said.
The Cincinnati Educational Justice Coalition will have a Spanish-language interpreter at its listening sessions.
The group plans to hold three more sessions, one in Avondale, one in Madisonville, and one virtual session. Dates and locations have not yet been determined.
