The mission of the Coalition is to secure high quality educational opportunities for all Ohio school children without diminishing opportunities for students who reside in high capacity districts.

The Ohio Coalition for Equity & Adequacy of School Funding is organized as a council of governments pursuant to Chapter 167 of the Ohio Revised Code. The Coalition was organized in 1990 to challenge the constitutionality of the Ohio school funding system. The Coalition is governed by a Steering Committee of 90 school district representatives. Though most of the members are superintendents, some treasurers, board members and administrators also serve. Several persons serve as ex officio members. Steering Committee members serve without stipend or expense reimbursement from the Coalition.

View the bio of our Executive Director, William Phillis

The Steering Committee holds monthly business meetings. The meetings are held on the third Friday of each month at 10:00 AM at Bricker & Eckler LLP with the exception of November. In November, the meeting is held on the second Monday in association with the OSBA Capital Conference held at the Columbus Convention Center.

The Coalition filed the DeRolph case in December 1991. The Court ruled in favor of the Plaintiffs on March 24, 1997, May 11, 2000, September 6, 2001 and December 11, 2002. After the December 11, 2002 ruling, the Court no longer retained jurisdiction. The Coalition began to pursue school refinance via initiative petition. Currently the Coalition is working with ten other statewide education organizations to draft and promote a comprehensive constitutional amendment that would create a high quality public education system throughout Ohio with funding predicated on student needs. 

Attorneys at Bricker & Eckler LLP have represented the Coalition since its inception in the pursuit of school funding reform in Ohio.