Background
The Toledo school district in northwest Ohio is Ohio’s fifth-largest school district. During the 2010-11 school year, more than 22,000 students attended its 56 schools. The majority of students, 77 percent, were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. Forty-five percent of Toledo students were African-American, 40 percent were white and 9 percent were Hispanic.
Looking at Toledo’s graduation rates, 63 percent of students who entered high school in 2006 had graduated by the end of the 2009-10 school year.
In the 2010-11 school year, 56 percent of fifth graders had basic, grade-level reading skills and 45 percent had basic, grade-level math skills, according to the district’s state report card. For eighth graders, those figures were 69 percent for reading and 46 percent for math.
The district’s current superintendent is Jerome Pecko. He was appointed in August 2010. Pecko previously served as superintendent of the Springfield Local Schools and Barberton City Schools.
Starting in the 2011-12 school year, the Toledo school district eliminated middle schools and created a series of new K-8 neighborhood schools that replace existing elementary and middle schools. District officials have said that the change will improve student performance and also use school buildings more efficiently.
The union that represents Toledo teachers is the Toledo Federation of Teachers. In fall 2011, Kevin Dalton was the union president.
