The Momentum Award from the Ohio Department

A recognized leader in education, Craig Hockenberry has served as superintendent of Manchester Local Schools and Three Rivers Local School District. In 2016, under Craig Hockenberry’s leadership, Three Rivers received the Momentum Award from the Ohio Department of Education (ODE).

Presented by the State Board of Education, the Momentum Award recognizes schools and districts that exceed student growth expectations during a given year. To be considered eligible, a school or district must have at least two of three value-added subgroups of students. These subgroups include students with disabilities, gifted students, and students with the lowest 20 percent in achievement.

Schools or districts must also score an A on each applicable measure included in the Ohio School Report Card to qualify for the award. The four possible measures correspond to the three subgroups described above and a fourth category that consists of all students.

All information that schools submit to the State Board of Education is subject to review by ODE.

“Oyler - One School, One Year”

Craig Hockenberry has an extensive background in Ohio public education and was principal of the Oyler School at a time when the pre-K-12 Cincinnati institution achieved a successful turnaround. Craig Hockenberry was featured in the one-hour documentary “Oyler: One School, One Year,” which depicted, from his perspective and those of a high school senior, his innovative efforts at transforming a school that serves an urban Appalachian neighborhood.

As featured in a 2016 Washington Post article, the film has broad applicability to districts across much of the nation, as it delves into “economic, social, and emotional challenges” that confront students, teachers, and administrators as they strive to instill success among communities at the margins. The efforts at Oyler represented a leading-edge approach to confronting paradigm shifts in America’s public education, with an increasing number of children now raised in areas of concentrated poverty.

The approach highlighted in the documentary includes targeted, volunteer-driven mentoring and tutoring, which prepared teens to excel in the ACT college admissions examination. Mr. Hockenberry also set in place a yearly college day the involved students gaining insight into various institutions of higher learning and connecting with former graduates currently attending college. Just as important, school faculty and community members engaged in continuous dialog, as they found ways to resolve seemingly intractable issues in holistic ways that benefited the local neighborhood.

The Life of William Henry Harrison

Cincinnati, Ohio, resident Craig Hockenberry earned a master’s degree in education administration from Xavier University and has worked in that field for more than two decades. Craig Hockenberry has won numerous awards throughout his career and personal life, including the William Henry Harrison Award from the Boy Scouts in 2017.

William Henry Harrison was born in 1773 to a well-off family on a Virginia plantation. His father was a member of the Continental Congress who signed the Declaration of Independence. While he studied medicine in college, Harrison decided to enlist in the military in 1791 and served with the Regular Army’s First Infantry.

After his time with the army, Harrison began his political career, which took off in 1801 when he started serving as governor of Indiana, holding the position until 1813. The War of 1812 saw Harrison make a name for himself, which would help his political career. From 1816 to 1828 he served in positions including the Ohio senate, US House of Representatives, and the US Congress.

Harrison ran for president in 1836 but came up short, yet ran again in 1840, winning the popular vote by a narrow margin. He was the oldest president ever elected into office at the time, and, unfortunately, caught pneumonia. On April 4, 1841, President Harrison died from his illness, the first US president to die while in office.

 

The Highlights of the ESSA

With a school administration career spanning more than two decades, Craig Hockenberry has a passion for the education of youth. Craig Hockenberry serves as superintendent of the Three Rivers Local School District in the Cincinnati area.

In December 2015, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was put into place. ESSA was designed to replace the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and to shift to less federal authority in education. This replacement law eliminated a number of things that NCLB brought into effect that some considered burdensome, including Adequate Yearly Progress and Highly Qualified Teacher requirements. It also eliminated the need for teacher/principal evaluation systems that linked results to student test scores and reduced the authority of the US Secretary of Education. School Improvement Grant funding requirements were also eliminated.

The main focus of ESSA is transferring the control of the public education system to the states and school districts. This allows for more flexibility so that states and local school authorities can more effectively tailor their systems to meet their specific needs. States also consult with a variety of stakeholders to make decisions.