Olentangy Local Schools must provide instruction teaching students that finishing high school, working full time and marrying before having children reduces the likelihood of poverty.
The requirement comes from Senate Bill 276, which took effect Tuesday, Oct. 6, according to NBC4. Gov. Mike DeWine signed the bill July 7.
The law directs the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (ODEW) to maintain a list of approved curricula and resources for students in grades 6 through 12. Districts can choose from that list, use a different curriculum aligned with the framework, or weave the instruction into existing required courses such as health education.
The Ohio School Boards Association (OSBA) said districts must comply during the 2026-27 school year because the bill did not include a separate implementation date. Olentangy's school year began Aug. 20.
For Olentangy, Ohio's fourth-largest public district with more than 24,000 students as of spring 2025 district testimony, the mandate touches all four high schools and six middle schools.
How SB 276 came together
The bill started as a measure to join the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists. The Ohio House Education Committee amended it before the legislature's summer recess, folding in the success sequence provisions from Senate Bill 156 and the Student Athlete Mobility Act from House Bill 625.
The OSBA advises school boards to work closely with legal counsel to establish compliant policies.
Extracurricular access across district lines
SB 276 also requires each district operating a high school to adopt a policy allowing students from neighboring districts to petition to join extracurricular activities their home school does not offer. The provision, called the Student Athlete Mobility (SAM) Act, covers all extracurricular activities, including clubs.
No spot is guaranteed.
Students who petition must meet the same academic, financial and other requirements as enrolled students. If an activity has tryouts, the petitioning student must try out. Students in districts with multiple high schools must first seek the activity within their own district before petitioning a neighbor.
Neighboring Westerville City Schools presented a draft SAM Act policy at its Sept. 14 board meeting, as first reported by The Westerville News. That policy lists Olentangy as one of Westerville's neighboring districts. Scott Reeves, Westerville's chief personnel and policy officer, told the board at the Sept. 14 meeting that participation "is not automatic" and requires approval from both districts' superintendents.
Under the law, Olentangy must also adopt its own SAM Act policy for the current school year. Families looking for details on the district's plans should watch for upcoming Board of Education meeting agendas at olentangy.k12.oh.us.
