A teacher and leader dedicated to improving Ohio schools

Akron Beacon Journal
December 8, 2006
Tom Mooney A teacher and leader dedicated to improving Ohio schools Ohio lost a passionate advocate for public education with the sudden death of Tom Mooney at age 52 on Sunday. As the president of the Ohio Federation of Teachers the past six years, Mr. Mooney sought to ensure that all those with a responsibility for public education, from state lawmakers to classroom teachers, lived up to the mission of serving the best interests of students. He worked to give substance to goals that often remain abstractions, such things as ``accountability'' and ``high quality.'' Mr. Mooney proved unrelenting in exposing the flaws of the community school experiment, demanding these charter schools be held to the same standards and scrutiny as traditional schools. He didn't gloss over the shortcomings in the teaching profession, either. He recognized that if teachers didn't take the lead to improve the quality of their performance in the classrooms, others outside the profession would eagerly take up the task. As president for 21 years of the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, Mr. Mooney established innovative practices such as the peer assistance and evaluation program, enabling expert teachers to apply their skills and experience to the benefit of colleagues. Another initiative, the Career in Teaching Program, altered the traditional path for professional advancement, reducing the need for the best teachers to leave the classroom for administrative positions. Mr. Mooney knew all too well the frustrations with public education. In a speech earlier this year, he voiced some of those concerns: ``Parents are alienated by the rigid, impersonal, bureaucratic nature of our school systems. They are frequently told we can't do this, or you can't enroll here, or the school can't offer this course or program anymore.'' In the face of many challenges, Tom Mooney made his priority clear -- to equip teachers and schools to do their best work. He sought common ground among competing interests. The drive to improve Ohio schools has lost a tireless champion.