Ohio education officials are looking into irregularities with the state tests students took this spring at more than 50 schools, including three Cleveland public schools and a dozen charters in Cuyahoga County.
Schools now have two weeks to answer questions from officials. Their responses will decide if a deeper investigation — that could void students’ test scores or prompt disciplinary action against educators — is needed.
Next week’s school report cards will also be impacted. For the 52 schools where the state found “significant testing anomalies,” the report cards will include a note that scores are still under review.
The department launched a statewide review of the spring 2026 testing data after Columbus City Schools reported unusual trends at two high schools.
Those inconsistencies can include things like a test that was completed very quickly or an exam where a lot of wrong answers were switched to correct ones at the last minute, according to a letter the department sent to districts on Sept. 4.
Students typically take their state tests online, and in the case of the two Columbus high schools, students may have used cell phones during testing, which is not allowed.
How have schools responded?
In the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, three elementary schools, Clark, Paul L. Dunbar and Robinson G. Jones, were flagged. Right now, CMSD is “cooperating fully” with the state education department, district spokesperson Darrielle Snipes told Signal Cleveland.
India Ford, the superintendent at T2 Honors Academy, a Cleveland charter school that was on the list, questioned the methods of state officials. Since Friday, her school has reviewed how it administered tests and found no misconduct, she wrote in a statement to Signal Cleveland.
“Ohio should investigate credible evidence of testing misconduct,” she wrote. “At the same time, statistical atypicality should not become a presumption of wrongdoing, particularly where there is documented multi-year growth.”
Ford believes that her school’s focus on helping struggling students opened it up to being flagged. She said students at the school often improve a lot from one year to the next — one of the reasons a test can be considered irregular.
Harvard Performance Academy, another Cleveland charter school that was flagged, told Signal Cleveland it’s cooperating with the state education department, but has “full confidence in the veracity of our quality student achievement results.”
The other charter schools that were flagged in the Cleveland area are all managed by ACCEL. In a statement, Courtney Harritt, a spokesperson for the company, told Signal Cleveland its schools are working with the state to review the issues.
“Conclusions about individual schools or educators should not be drawn on abstract statistical review before the full review process is complete,” she wrote.
What issues were flagged by Ohio education officials?
So far, the department has only looked at testing data – it hasn’t interviewed school staff members or reviewed testing procedures at individual schools.
In letters sent to schools and districts, the department listed four different issues a test can be flagged for. They include:
- Answers that are changed from wrong to right at a higher-than-average rate.
- Student answers that don’t line up with their ability – for example, a low-performing student gets a lot of hard questions right.
- Student scores that are significantly higher than last year.
- Abnormally long or short test-taking times.
A test is only flagged if it is far outside of normal test results. For example, a test that was completed so quickly that over 99% of the other exams given took longer to finish would be flagged.
What schools in the Cleveland area were flagged?
Besides the three Cleveland public schools, 12 charter schools in Cleveland and the Cuyahoga County suburbs, got letters from the state about their tests.
Charter schools get public money, but they aren’t operated by the traditional public school district. Instead either a nonprofit or for-profit organization manages the day-to-day operations of the school.
All but three of the 12 flagged schools are managed by ACCEL, a for-profit charter management company that helps run the schools under its umbrella by providing things like curriculum and teacher training. The schools have a mix of sponsors — organizations that are approved by the state to oversee charter schools. They are:
- Cleveland Arts and Social Sciences Academy, managed by ACCEL and sponsored by the Ohio Council of Community Schools.
- Cleveland Preparatory Academy, managed by ACCEL and sponsored by the Office of Ohio School Sponsorship.
- Cleveland Sports Academy managed by ACCEL and sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage.
- Thompson School for Girls, managed by ACCEL and sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage.
- Harvard Avenue Performance Academy, managed by Performance Academies and sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage.
- Northstar School of Innovation & Leadership, managed by ACCEL and sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage.
- Ohio College Preparatory School managed by ACCEL and sponsored by the Ohio Council of Community Schools.
- SMART Academy, no management company and sponsored by the Office of Ohio School Sponsorship.
- STEAM Academy of Warrensville Heights managed by ACCEL and sponsored by the Ohio Council of Community Schools.
- T2 Honors Academy no management company and sponsored by the Ohio Council of Community Schools.
- Broadway Academy, managed by ACCEL and sponsored by St. Aloysius Orphanage.
- Lincoln Park Academy, managed by ACCEL and sponsored by the Buckeye Community Hope Foundation.
What happens next?
The state gave schools two weeks to provide more information about the testing irregularities. After they do, the Ohio education officials will take a look at the responses and decide whether further investigation is needed.
If future investigations find cheating by students or wrongdoing by educators the consequences could include disciplinary action for school staff and the voiding of students’ scores.
In Columbus, the district took the step of invalidating all test scores at the two schools that had issues. That meant students who needed to take the tests to graduate had to retake their tests over the summer.
The three CMSD schools on the list all serve elementary school students, but some of the charter schools, like T2 Honors and the Thompson School for Girls, serve high schoolers. If those students have their scores invalidated they may need to retake the exams in order to graduate.
For educators who are found responsible for wrongdoing, the state board of education will determine the consequences, which could include being fired or losing a teaching or principal’s license.
