Ohio Excels

03/11/2026

We’re so honored to host Ohio policymakers, education leaders, and workforce advocates at today’s “Connecting the Data” briefing on Senate Bill 328 and Ohio’s new Education and Workforce Return on Investment (ROI) Initiative.

The briefing examines how Ohio can better connect education and workforce data across state agencies to answer critical questions about student outcomes, program effectiveness, and the return on investment for taxpayers and employers. We’ll be hearing from Sen. Kyle Koehler (R-Springfield) about Senate Bill 328, his ground-breaking workforce-readiness legislation meant to transform how Ohio uses education and workforce data to drive improved results, including the production of annual reports tracking graduation outcomes and the needs of in-demand industries. We’re exploring the legislation’s ROI Initiative that will require state agencies to link and analyze data across education, workforce, and economic development systems. Finally, we're diving into data exploration and learn how more stakeholders can get involved in this exciting opportunity!

03/10/2026

Ohio Excels applauds Governor Mike DeWine for his strong leadership and steadfast commitment to improving outcomes for Ohio students and strengthening our state’s future workforce.

03/05/2026

Ohio Excels VP of Strategic Partnerships and Government Affairs Cassie Palsgrove was honored to join today’s Accelerate ED panel discussion, When Sectors Align, to talk about what it takes to strengthen career pathways and expand high-quality pathways for students across the state.

03/03/2026

Today, Ohio Excels’ Kevin Duff and Cassie Palsgrove testified before the Senate Education Committee in support of SB 328, strengthening career exploration and career-connected learning so more students graduate with a clear path to opportunity.

Ohio Excels convened the Career-Connected Learning Coalition, made up of a broad range of stakeholder groups, including teachers, school counselors, superintendents, and career-tech leaders, along with business groups, state agencies, regional partnerships, and other advocates, to help develop the legislation.

SB 328 also includes an important accountability measure: the Education & Workforce Return on Investment (ROI) Initiative, designed to make better use of the data we already have (and data yet to come) so Ohio can identify which programs deliver the most value and should be replicated.

Read Ohio Excels’ full testimony: https://bit.ly/4aNjP8p and learn more about SB 328 at https://www.ohioexcels.org/sb328

03/03/2026

Reality Check: Higher education is and will remain a significant training component necessary to meet job requirements, especially when 66% of Ohio’s jobs in 2031 will require some postsecondary education.

These future jobs need skills that demand education beyond high school, and most will require an associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, or higher. The state’s higher education options must be affordable, structured to ensure completion, and aligned with employer needs.

The good news: Ohio’s primary need-based financial aid program, the Ohio College Opportunity Grant (OCOG), supports Ohio residents with financial needs and other educational expenses at public, private, and nonprofit colleges and universities across the state. OCOG is a critical resource for many students in Ohio, helping them access higher education by reducing the financial barriers to degree completion.

https://bit.ly/3LRX759

02/26/2026

In today’s Dayton Daily News, State Senator Kyle Koehler makes the case for SB328 — helping students explore careers earlier, build professional skills, and graduate with a clear plan.

Thank you to Sen. Koehler for leading on this issue. Let’s help all Ohio students find pathways to great careers.

I grew up in a town of 60,000 people where 6,500 workers were employed at the two International Harvester plants in Springfield, Ohio. If your father or mother didn’t work there, then they worked at a facility that supplied parts or at a business that sold groceries, clothing, or housewares to som...

02/25/2026

Congratulations to Learn to Earn Dayton for its inclusion in a $7.5 million grant award from the Pathways Impact Fund, a national initiative of Strive Together. The grant recognized Learn to Earn’s development of a career-connected learning sequence known as Pathways for Accelerated College and Career Expeiences, developed for Montgomery County and now being adopted statewide. The Pathways Impact Fund grants recognized five regional organizations working to maximize high school students’ options after graduation.

The Pathways Impact Fund, a national initiative of StriveTogether, today announced the award of $7.5 million across five regional organizations working to maximize high school students' options after graduation. These regional intermediaries are doing the critical work of coordinating school distric...

02/24/2026

Ohio Excels Vice President of Strategic Partnerships and Government Affairs Cassie Palsgrove was honored to testify today before the House Education Committee in support of Senate Bill 19, a bold, multi-layered approach to improving math outcomes in Ohio.

With 45% of students not proficient in math, SB 19 takes important steps to expand access to Algebra I, strengthen interventions for struggling students, increase transparency around curriculum, and reinforce teacher math competency.

In today’s economy, math is not optional. It is foundational to success in college, career, and life.

Read her testimony: https://bit.ly/4rKblF5

02/18/2026

Reality Check: Students who accumulate college credit in high school are more likely to continue their education because they are academically ready and well-positioned to reduce their time and cost to a degree.

Earning college credit in high school enables learners to accelerate degree completion, which is critical given the certificates, credentials, and degrees needed to fill Ohio’s jobs over the next six to 10 years. Moreover, taking college-level courses in high school is a crucial strategy in helping Ohio meet the 3.7 million jobs coming over the next decade that require postsecondary education.

The good news: Participation in College Credit Plus has grown significantly since the program was created. In the 2022–2023 academic year, more than 80,000 high school students participated, marking a steady increase in enrollment each year.

https://bit.ly/3LRX759

02/02/2026

Ohio ranks 7th nationally in insurance career opportunities, so with National Insurance Careers Month underway we’re highlighting tools to prepare next-generation professionals, including career pathway info and classroom-ready resources. Learn more:

Insurance impacts many aspects of our lives, from the homes we live in and our means of transportation to the businesses and venues in our communities. And the insurance industry includes nearly every type of job too, with a role available for any skill set.We’re here to connect you with the insur...

01/28/2026

Congrats to Oliver Yetman and Randy Marker, grandson and grandfather who recently took and passed the same Ohio State calculus class together.

What a tribute to the importance of family bonds, lifelong learning, and the acquisition of foundational skills at a time when Ohio’s 21st-century economy requires a renewed emphasis on math ability for hundreds of in-demand, high-tech jobs.

The experience of both students illustrates the diversity of learning options in the state, with Yetman, a high school senior, taking the class through Ohio State’s College Credit Plus arm, while Marker audited through the university’s tuition-free Program 60 initiative. Marker called it “The experience of a lifetime,” and we couldn’t agree more!

Thanks to a couple of different programs and serendipitous timing, one local grandfather-grandson duo got to enroll at Ohio State together.

01/26/2026

It’s National School Choice Week, a reminder that students learn differently and families deserve real options. Students benefit from quality choices that put them first, empower families, and support different learning needs.