Even in crisis, students must earn their diplomas

May 3, 2020

A recent Vindicator story, “Seniors get green light to graduate,” reported that Youngstown schools CEO Justin Jennings expects all district seniors to graduate this spring. That comment is both startling and disturbing coming from the leader of a school system that has long struggled to ensure all its students are ready for college and careers. According to last year’s report card, just 3 percent of Youngstown students achieve college-remediation-free scores on their ACT or SAT exams. Only 1 in 10 has been earning any kind of college degree within six years of exiting high ...

CARES Act preserves cultural soul of America

April 19, 2020

On March 27, Congress passed the CARES Act, the stimulus relief program to shore up the U.S. economy that has ground to a halt in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Tucked within that $2 trillion package is $75 million for the National Endowment for the Humanities designated to provide emergency support for historical societies, art museums, colleges and other centers of cultural activity. A portion of that $75 million appropriation will be distributed to 56 state humanities councils to help local organizations preserve jobs and keep the lights on. Long before the CARES Act was ...

New program is lifeline for Ohio’s small businesses

April 12, 2020

Small Businesses are the backbone of Ohio’s economy, and during this time of crisis many small business owners are feeling the strain of social distancing with many Ohioans having found themselves either sick, out of work, or taking care of a loved one. In this difficult time, it is crucial that small businesses are able to to keep their doors open and maintain payroll as much as possible. With small business stepping up to help their communities, President Trump and Ohio Republicans have taken aggressive action to ensure they are also getting the relief they need. One important step ...

Ohio makes strides but can do more to help stroke patients

March 1, 2020

In March 2015, I was at home with my father. Nothing was out of the ordinary when he started showing signs of a stroke. At the time, I didn’t know what was going on, so I called for an ambulance. The paramedics came to the house and confirmed my dad was having a stroke. His speech was slurred. He had some drooping on the side of his face. His balance was off, and he couldn’t walk on his own. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital. At the hospital, my dad’s condition became worse, yet he sat in the emergency room for several hours with the same symptoms he had in front of ...

Tech helps find time to be a good father

February 23, 2020

There’s not enough time. Time to work. Time to exercise. Time to reconnect with my wife. Time to think about all the things we’ll never have time to do. Oh, and time to be a good parent. Most of my dad-friends agree there’s never enough time for that. We want to be good dads, but it takes time — good, quality time. For me, being a good dad means spending “some” time every day with my kids. That’s not always quality time, but I do try to talk to them about their days. When time permits, we stray into conversations about deeper issues about life. Yes, this makes ...

House takes important step to rein drug prices

February 2, 2020

In December the House of Representative took a critical step to lower prescription drug costs and passed the Lower Drug Costs Now Act. This bipartisan bill offers real relief to the millions of Americans who struggle to afford their needed medications. The bill allows Medicare to use its buying power to negotiate lower drug prices, creates an out-of-pocket cap for seniors in Medicare Part D, and cracks down on excessive drug price increases. AARP has been tracking drug prices for 12 years. For each year, the price for prescription drugs has increased much faster than inflation. ...