December 7: District offers separation plan
Nearly 300 teachers sign up for the employee separation plan offered to CTU  members that could bring back more laid-off teachers and save the district money. Initially, the district and union agree to a cap of 250 but later allow all 278 applicants to participate  as long as they meet eligibility criteria. Participants must have over 25 years of experience and 10 consecutive years with the district.  Teachers will receive $25,000 and paraprofessionals will receive $10,500.  The payments  are to begin in July and will be spread over two years. The district says that given declining student enrollment, not all  of the newly open  positions will be filled.  This is the first time the district has offered a separation plan since 1985. 

January 9: CEO steps down early
Schools chief Barbara Byrd-Bennett announces she will leave the district in February after seven years to be an executive-in-residence at Cleveland State University.  The next day, district chief of staff Lisa Ruda is named interim CEO.  Byrd-Bennett had announced her resignation in August but agreed to serve until a replacement had been named.  Hazard, Young & Attea, the search firm hired for that job, has not begun interviewing but says a replacement will be found by March.  At CSU, Byrd-Bennett will work on developing the school's leadership program for educators, its teaching curriculum and its relationships with foundations.  She will also help establish a national leadership group focused on school reform. Byrd-Bennett will see her salary drop— she was paid $278,000 as schools chief, but will receive up to $88,000 in her new role. 

January 25: Taft proposes school reform
Gov. Bob Taft, in his final State of the State address, proposes a high school reform bill that calls for more rigorous graduation requirements designed to better prepare Ohio youth for college and employment.
Taft points to research that shows just one in three state high school graduates take the classes necessary to succeed on a job.
Beginning in 2011, Taft's proposed "Ohio Core" would require all high school students to take:
- Four years of math;
- Three years of science-biology, chemistry and physics;
- Two years of language.
Taft says the proposal will mean that the state must hire more math and science teachers. House Speaker Jon Husted had called for tuition incentives for college students who study those subjects.

Feb. 23: Mayor Jackson calls for regional schools
In his first State of the City Address, Mayor Frank Jackson calls for regional magnet schools as one approach to school improvement.  Partnerships among schools, colleges and local businesses can create schools that benefit Cleveland students while attracting students in outlying suburbs, Jackson says.  He adds that Cleveland must not only increase the quantity of graduates — about 50 percent, according to the district — but also the quality of graduates. He notes that upcoming contract negotiations with the Cleveland Teachers Union need to address work rules on the length of the school day.  Jackson also calls for a review of tax abatement polices in Cleveland and its suburbs, saying that competitive bidding for businesses between neighboring cities needs to end. “We've been trained to work against one another," he says.  

Mar. 14: Enrollment drops, numbers questioned
Enrollment in the Cleveland Municipal School District drops dramatically to 58,623 this school year from 62,546 last year, the district reports to the School Board. The Average Daily Membership (ADM) count, taken annually in October, represents a decline of almost 20,000 students since 1998, less than 10 years ago. The district says the decline is due to increasing charter school enrollment. For 2007, the district projects enrollment of 53,000 to 57,000 students.
A state audit of attendance at two schools released in February pointed to faulty reporting. Auditors call into question 79 of the 344 excused absences at A. B. Hart K-8. At Collinwood High School, the audit finds that 228 excused absences of 728 reported should have been unexcused.

Mar. 14: Cleveland picks Toledo schools chief
The School Board votes unanimously to hire Eugene Sanders, superintendent of the 35,000-student Toledo school district. A day later, Mayor Frank Jackson concurs with the selection, as is required by the 1997 state law that gave the mayor authority to appoint the Board. Sanders has been at the helm in Toledo for six years, pulling the district out of "academic watch" into "continuous improvement" in the state's ranking system. A former teacher and assistant principal of a Lorain high school, Sanders was also director of the Doctoral Program in Leadership Studies at Bowling Green State University. Sanders brings experience working with charter schools, seen as challenging traditional public schools. In Toledo, he negotiated a teachers union contract that included extended work days at charters and rules for staff selection based on interviews instead of seniority.

April 24: Jackson names education chief
Four months after taking office and declaring education his No. 1 priority, Mayor Frank Jackson appoints a supervising superintendent as the first cabinet level education advisor in the city's history. Tracy Martin's duties will include developing Jackson's education agenda. She will also work with new district CEO Eugene Sanders and the School Board to build a bridge between the community and the schools. Martin began her career as a district elementary teacher and, after six years, was hired as the principal of Charles H. Lake Elementary. She has also held positions as senior executive of academic affairs and district strategy manager. Martin has a master of education degree in administration and supervision from John Carroll University and a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Ohio University.

May 9: Oversight panel resumes
The School Board passes a resolution to reinstate the Bond Accountability Commission, the oversight panel created to monitor spending for the district's $1 billion construction plan for which voters approved a $335 million capital bond in 2001. Efforts to restart the commission began with member John Moss, who presented a restructured proposal at the March 14 Board meeting. After months of debate, School Board members voted to restart the 15-member commission. With the approval of Mayor Frank Jackson new members of the commission will be appointed by Board Chairman Larry Davis. The BAC will communicate to the School Board and the community fund activity and any revisions to the district's master facilities plan. Dates will be announced for BAC quarterly review meetings, which are open to the public. 

May 9: Board of trustees at Science school
The district announces that the Cleveland School of Science and Medicine, one of three new small schools opening in the renovated John Hay High, will establish a board of trustees. The move gives businesses, non-profits and colleges an unprecedented official role in a district school. It's 10 members will include John Hay Campus Administrator Kathleen Freilino and a parent representative, as well as representatives from the Cleveland Teachers Union, Cleveland Clinic Foundation,  University Hospitals, MetroHealth System, Case Western Reserve Medical School, the Greater Cleveland Partnership, and an appointee of Mayor Jackson's. The board will have control over any money it raises and will be allowed to make recommendations to the district CEO for changes to the school.

September 11:Revived BAC meets  
The resurrected Bond Accountability Commission holds its first meeting, after nearly a year and a half without public oversight of funds from the $335 million capital bond issue that voters approved in 2001. The 12-member panel, led by Chairman Alfonso Sanchez, a retired vice president of Turner Construction, will review spending on previous and current construction as well as monitor changes made to the district's Master Facilities Plan. At a November retreat, panel members plan to examine projects in more detail. The district shells out $150,000 general fund dollars for the commission’s operating costs, but aims to identify independent sources to fund it. The original BAC committee was funded by private foundation grants, but closed down after funds ran out. Open meetings are held at Cuyahoga Community College, Metro Campus, and neighborhood locations (TBA) the second Monday of every month.   

October 10:Central office trimmed
As part of CEO Eugene Sanders's plan to streamline operations and increase efficiency and productivity, 15 central office administrators are laid off.  Forty food service jobs and 19 vacant positions are also cut. An outside construction consultant that was paid $2 million a year to oversee school construction projects also gets the axe. The district retains $5.7 million, with the central office cuts totaling a little over $1 million. Salaries for the central office positions ranged from $78,246 to $130,193. Positions eliminated included Anthony Masevice, a director in the finance office, John Eby, director of arts education, James Wingo and Paulette Poncelet, both directors of research, evaluation and assessment, and legal counsel Ronda Porter.  "We have taken initial steps to streamline our administration and reduce cost," says Sanders. "Efforts will not end today but continue throughout the school year."  

October 24:Universal pre-K to begin
Ohio announces its first universal preschool program with plans to enroll 1,000  3- and 4-year-olds beginning next fall. Cuyahoga County Commissioners sign off on the program estimated to cost $9.4 million over the first two years. Most funding will go to qualified child-care and home-based providers who will receive $2,500 to $3,200 per child per year. The new program requires teachers at home-based preschools to have an associate's degree and lead teachers at child-care centers to be working toward or have a bachelor's degree in early childhood education. The program will also limit teacher-student ratios to 1 to 10, with plans to reduce ratios to 1 to 9 by 2009. To qualify, a family’s income can be up to 400 percent of the federal poverty level, which is about $20,000 for a family of four. By 2019, the program may provide up to 27,000 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds a preschool subsidy.