Huffman cites St. Thomas Aquinus and Cleveland scholarship program amid record school funding increase

Speaker Matt Huffman pointed to a historic increase in school funding and used a recent visit to St. Thomas Aquinus to illustrate how nontraditional school options serve families in challenged neighborhoods.

Huffman noted the budget included what he described as a record or historic $700 million increase for schools. He recounted visiting St. Thomas Aquinus on East Broadway in east Cleveland, calling the 126-year-old building a community anchor. He named the school's principal as Rachel Dangler (the transcript also references a former name) and said the student body is 100% African-American with no Catholics enrolled.

Huffman praised Partnership Schools, which he said helps operate several turnaround schools, and defended the Cleveland scholarship program, a local program he said has been operating for about 30 years. He said critics who attack the scholarship program are missing the program's role in giving low-income families options: "It's just beyond me why someone would do that," he said of a columnist's criticism.

Huffman also said the school's enrollment rose roughly 30% during the pandemic as families sought in-person options when many households lacked internet or devices, and he said many of those students have remained.

The interview did not record any formal changes to school policy or new legislation; Huffman discussed funding levels and his observations from school visits and community interactions.