Columbus City Schools just laid off 112 employees — including 104 full-time building substitutes — because the state of Ohio has failed to give the district the money it needs to keep its doors open and fully staffed.

The Columbus City Schools board didn't want to make these cuts. They were forced to. After closing school buildings, eliminating administrative positions, and cutting busing for thousands of students, the district still faced a $50 million shortfall for the upcoming school year. The reason, according to district leaders: the Ohio General Assembly and Governor Mike DeWine have not provided adequate funding for public schools.

Here's what that means in real terms for students: with only 25 building substitutes left to cover 113 school buildings, when a teacher is absent, children get split up into other classrooms for the day. "Quality instruction comes to a halt," said Kim Maupin, a retired Columbus City Schools teacher and senior faculty representative for the substitutes who were laid off.

Columbus isn't alone. Cincinnati Public Schools is also considering cutting more than 100 positions for the same reason: not enough money from the state.

Ohio already has a solution on the books. The Fair School Funding Plan — a bipartisan formula passed by the legislature — was designed to fix how Ohio funds its public schools. But it has not been fully implemented. Until it is, districts across Ohio will keep making the same painful choices: close buildings, cut staff, and ask students to do more with less.

We are calling on Governor Mike DeWine and the Ohio General Assembly to fully implement the Fair School Funding Plan now — and to restore the funding that districts like Columbus and Cincinnati need to educate Ohio's children.

Our students deserve classrooms that are fully staffed. Our communities deserve schools that are fully funded. Sign this petition to demand that Ohio's leaders stop the disinvestment and fulfill their obligation to public education.