I am a Disability Advocate and I was very disappointed after reading “Dewine Announces the Largest Rainy Day Fund in Ohio’s History” published on Jan. 17. I believe Governor Dewine shouldn’t be worried about having the most savings in his rainy day fund when vulnerable and disabled constituents are in crisis situations with a lack of adequate care, due to the nursing and direct support professionals crisis in Ohio. It’s not just a crisis for disabled people whose physical and mental well-being are severely impacted - it is also a crisis for staff who do not even earn a living wage. Their physical and mental well-being are also being negatively impacted. Low wages and poor working conditions are driving workers away from the field. Some providers are working 48 hours+ in a row, without sleep, to avoid leaving their client without the care they desperately need. Advocates have been asking Governor Dewine and state representatives to raise wages to help improve the Care Crisis for years. Our lives are still being put at risk, when clearly there are funds available that can help. It’s been raining for a long time for disabled Ohioans and their caregivers. We are left to drown.
- Mahala Howard, Fairborn
Thanks for the recent article on the days off schedule at the CTC on Selma Road, Springfield, Ohio. The educational jargon used by the school’s representatives hold about as much water as a bucket full of holes. Just what is the expectation for many seventeen- and eighteen-year-old young people? What goals are established? What measures are used to assess what was attempted and most certainly was accomplished? It has long been a tradition that seniors who have a level of proficiency in their chosen field especially the second semester of there senior year can spend the afternoon during the lab period, employed, and paid in their chosen field of study. What is this release from accountability on Friday have to do with job preparation or additional education after graduation? The teaching staff cannot be blamed for such a situation. Just what is expected of them with a Friday without instruction of students?
- Larry P. Workman, Springfield