HIRAM, Ohio — Editor's Note: The above video features previous reporting
Hiram College has announced that it is ending its College Credit Plus (CCP) partnership with the Hudson City School District and New Philadelphia City Schools.
"With the ever-changing student landscape, Hiram recently completed a program-wide evaluation and made the decision to discontinue College Credit Plus partnerships with Hudson City School District and New Philadelphia City Schools based on the return on investment of the courses offered and the resources used to support the offerings," said Hiram College Director of Strategic Marketing and Media Relations Jenelle Bayus in a statement to 3News. "Courses will continue to be offered on each high school campus through the end of the academic year, with a discontinuation at the end of the spring semester."
The move comes several months after controversy erupted at Hudson High School over the content of book used by a teacher in a CCP class. The content of "642 Things to Write About” included prompts about sex and drinking.
After saying he had received multiple phone calls from parents about the book, Hudson Mayor Craig Shubert called for all five Hudson School Board members to resign during a contentious meeting on September 13, 2021. “It has come to my attention that your educators are distributing essentially what is child pornography in the classroom. I've spoken to a judge this evening; she's already confirmed that," Shubert said. "So I'm going to give you a simple choice. Either choose to resign from this Board of Education, or you will be charged.” No board member was charged and Shubert was criticized by Summit County Prosecutor Sherri Bevan Walsh for "reckless" comments.
The controversy over "642 Things to Write About" was not mentioned in Hiram's announcement about the ending of its partnership with Hudson City Schools.
According to a spokesperson from Hudson City Schools, the district will be looking for a new CCP partnership for the three classes taught at the high school. The district adds that the book controversy was not discussed as part of the decision by Hiram to end the partnership.
Bayus says College Credit Plus students from Hudson and New Philadelphia still have the opportunity to enroll in courses offered through Hiram College either on campus or online. "We have valued our partnership with both districts and commend them for their continued excellence in education," she added.
Previous Reporting:
- Summit County investigation criticizes Hudson mayor for 'reckless' comments about controversial writing prompt book
- Hudson school board responds after mayor calls for their resignation due to controversial writing prompt book
- 'A prompt about a fictional writing is not child pornography': Hudson police, Summit County prosecutor investigating writing prompt book controversy