Axios Columbus

Ohio's K-12 school report cards were released Thursday, shining a spotlight on pandemic-related challenges that include spiking absenteeism and a significant drop in statewide test scores.

Why it matters: The state's annual reports provide families and taxpayers a snapshot of their district's academic achievement, spending and demographic data, while also shaping instructional decisions.

• Having baseline data is especially important for identifying ways to help helping struggling students.

What's happening: A striking 24% of Ohio's students were chronically absent in 2020-21 academic year, defined as missing more than 18 days of school, or 10% of the year. The figure is a 7.3% increase from the 2018-19, the most recent data available.

• The issue was more pronounced among economically disadvantaged students (38%).
• In Columbus City Schools, nearly 75% of students were chronically absent.

Quick take: The data accompanying the report cards includes other takeaways.

• The Class of 2020's four-year graduation rate was 87.2%, up from the Class of 2019's 85.9%, though 2020 graduates were given more flexibility.
• Three Franklin County districts — Groveport Madison (80.7%), Columbus (81.2%) and Whitehall (84.3%) — were below the state average and local rates were fairly comparable to 2019.
• The statewide performance index, which measures overall student achievement on state assessments, declined from 84.7 to 72.5 between 2018-19 and 2020-21.

Yes, but: The state notes that not all students took assessments in the spring, especially vulnerable students, which could impact results.

The big picture: While proponents say report cards hold districts accountable, critics say they're misleading, overly simplistic and mostly reflect factors such as poverty.

Yet the report can have serious consequences:

• Typically, low-performing districts are subject to a state takeover if they consistently fail to meet certain thresholds.
• Students are eligible for tuition vouchers for private school if they live near a low-performing school, a hotly debated issue.
• Report cards won't be used punitively this year, though, nor were they in 2020.

What's next: The state will overhaul its report card system yet again before 2022, including switching to a 1-5 "star" scale rather than A-F grades, which haven't been used the past two years anyway.

Tim Weah's shot went off the goalkeeper's hands, hit the goalpost and spun in, giving his team a 2-1 lead and sending the 19,000 fans at Lower.com Field into a frenzy.

• But it wasn't black-and-yellow-clad Columbus Crew fans cheering on Wednesday. It was a sea of spectators dressed in red, white and blue who celebrated the U.S. Men's National Team earning a crucial World Cup qualifier victory over Costa Rica.

Driving the news: Columbus has become what ESPN calls the "spiritual home" for the USMNT.

• The national team has now played a dozen matches in Columbus, including seven World Cup qualifier wins — the most of any American city.

What they're saying: "When I moved to Columbus, it was my dream to make this city a soccer town," former MLS and USMNT player Frankie Hejduk told ESPN.

"I knew it was a [college] football town. I thought, 'Let's make this a soccer town.' "

State of play: It's been three years since the successful Save the Crew campaign, and the Crew followed a championship 2020 season with the opening of Lower.com Field in July.

• The Crew has played nine MLS regular season games at the new stadium, in addition to a 2-0 win over Mexico's Cruz Azul on Sept. 29 to earn the Campeones Cup.
• Columbus returns home to face Inter Miami CF tomorrow at 6pm, with seats still available on Ticketmaster.

🏫 The State Board of Education repealed an anti-racism resolution its members had passed during the summer of 2020 following allegations of its divisiveness. (Columbus Dispatch)

🍳 Chapman's Eat Market in German Village earned a spot on The New York Times' list of 50 "most vibrant and delicious restaurants in 2021." (NYT)

🛒 GN International Grocery, reportedly the largest Nepali-owned grocery store in the U.S., is now open in Pickerington. (614 Magazine)

A Columbus Division of Police officer has died of COVID. (WBNS)

Startup funding in Columbus has officially rebounded from a pandemic drop-off last year.

• Investments of more than $250 million have gone to area tech companies in Q3 2021, per data from Pitchbook.

Why it matters: The investments range from seed money to later stage rounds, indicating young established companies are benefiting as well as new startups.

• Deals range from a $100M Series C investment in robot manufacturer Path Robotics to a $1M angel investment for contactless alcohol ordering service Refill Technologies.

By the numbers: The $255 million invested in Columbus companies in Q3 is a 554% increase compared with the same quarter last year.

🍂 Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens will display hundreds of jack-o'-lanterns and fall plants at its annual Pumpkins Aglow event, which kicked off this week.

• Tickets range from $12-22. Wednesdays-Sundays in October, 5-9pm.

🍩 Donut and Beer Fest takes over Huntington Park on Saturday, with dozens of vendors lined up to serve sweet treats and local brews from 2-7pm.

• $35 admission comes with ample donut and beer tokens, with non-alcohol tickets available. Kids 12 and under enter free.

🎃 All Hallows' Eve at Ohio Village offers fall-themed activities including pumpkin carving, fortune telling, kid-friendly crafts and a retelling of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow."

• $16 adults, $12 for kids 4-12. Each Saturday in October, 5:30-9:30pm.

In yesterday's newsletter, we invited readers to guess the location of a small, triangle-shaped park somewhere in Columbus.

✅ Many of you correctly identified Christopher Columbus Park, seen from a different angle above in Italian Village next to the Wonder Bread sign.

👏 Our congratulations to Mark Krugman for being the first correct response.