Letters to the Editor: Readers react to DPS transportation issues, cell phone ban and more

A Dayton Public School bus sits in the bus lot on James H. McGee Blvd. in Dayton. JIM NOELKER/STAFF

Credit: JIM NOELKER

Credit: JIM NOELKER

A Dayton Public School bus sits in the bus lot on James H. McGee Blvd. in Dayton. JIM NOELKER/STAFF

Only in government could you create a rule so backwards it forces public school parents to pay $30 a day just to get their kids to class — while still providing buses for private and charter students. Dayton families are getting crushed, and Columbus politicians are pretending it’s “policy.”

Let’s be clear: this isn’t about buses, it’s about priorities. You don’t strand thousands of public school kids because you can’t manage routes or drivers. You don’t punish working parents while cutting deals for everyone else. This is leadership failure, plain and simple.

The fix is obvious—change the law, restart the buses, and put kids ahead of bureaucrats. If Dayton’s leaders won’t demand it, then the people will have to elect new ones who will.

Dayton deserves better. And the rest of Ohio is watching.

- Thomas Maddox, Cincinnati

Day one of the new school year. Due to the governor’s order to eliminate cell phones for children in the school, other issues arise. The school tell me via text my son is absent this morning. I called four different extensions and was able to reach no one at the school. I called the school board office and was transferred back to the school. After much frustration, the school tells me my son is there. “In loco parentis” means the school is acting in my place, but they fail to take that seriously. There are numerous secretarial staff at the school, yet no one can answer a phone. I have had this discussion numerous times over the years to only be disappointed. Until the staff are held truly accountable for the care and education provided, the schools will continue to fail our children’s safety and future growth. I believe in the school phone bans that have been put in place but feel it has not been taken far enough. I volunteer and work inside the school on a regular basis. Too many staff are standing or sitting around the building staring at their phones instead of the precious cargo they have been entrusted to care for.

- Patrick Bittner, Harrison Twp.

When the head of Premier Health Network praises One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) and Ohio’s senators for their contributions to it, I have to wonder which economists he is listening to. The Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) points out that Ohio will lose $37 billion overall from its Medicaid program in the next 10 years. That dwarfs the $1.3 billion Mike Riordan touts as the state’s one-time increase from OBBB. What’s more, KFF estimates that the bill would result in 440,000 Ohioans losing healthcare coverage, forcing them into emergency rooms to get primary care and causing serious overcrowding. Nineteen of 20 leading Ohio economists recently surveyed said that the reductions to Medicaid in Ohio “will have significant economic ramifications beyond loss of health insurance for current Medicaid recipients.” I just don’t see how the head of a major health network in our area can spin this as a win for us, the people who depend on his excellent organization for care.

- Charla Hatton, Middletown

In 1960, President Eisenhower asked Congress to raise the federal debt ceiling. By fall 2025, 78 debt ceiling increases and $37 trillion in debt later, Congress will soon be asked to raise it again.

Horrific consequences come when executive and legislative branches continue to “kick the debt can” down the road. We’re running out of road with no solutions offered.

Congress, unfettered by term limits, has proven itself unable to rein in spending.

The way to save us from out-of-control federal spending? Require fiscal responsibility via our Constitution! A state convention for proposing amendments per Article V of our Constitution allows for this. Nineteen states have already called for an Article V convention.

The 28 percent of Ohio’s population aged 60 or older needs assurance they won’t face drastic Social Security benefit cuts come 2033. It’s time for the Ohio General Assembly to act, pass HJR2 and SJR3, and join this effort to rein in federal government excesses.

- Susan K. Dunn, West Chester


This is an aerial of downtown Dayton skyline looking northeast. The warm early autumn weather will continue until cool weather moves in over the weekend. JIM NOELKER/STAFF

Credit: JIM NOELKER

icon to expand image

Credit: JIM NOELKER

Interested in submitting a letter to the editor? Email your submission to edletter@coxinc.com.

What makes a good Letter to the Editor?

Our Letters to the Editor are generally collected and published once a week, based on the volume and quality of submissions we receive. Letters to the Editor are short, focused submissions that quickly address a single topic. They can run up to 250 words in length.

Letters to the Editor can respond to specific issues in stories we’ve reported, other contributed columns or syndicated columnists. They’re a quick and easy way to add your perspective to the discussion of any topic.

Learn more about how to get involved with our Ideas & Voices section.