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Ohio Retirement for Teachers Association
Fighting for Ohio's teachers since 1947!
The mission of ORTA is to monitor, advocate for, and protect the pensions and benefits of its members. ORTA demands accountability from the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio andlobbies Ohio's legislators to provide a strong and sustainable retirement system for all Ohio educators, Pre-K through higher education. We rely on membership dues to continue our work.
STRS Board Elections 2026
Thank you to our members who collected signatures for Elizabeth Jones to be placed on the ballot for the 2026 STRS Board election for one retiree seat. Julie Sellers will be running for the contributing (active) seat on the Board. The elections will take place in April. Elected Board members will serve a four year term beginning September 1, 2026.
Weekly Update - February 22, 2026
As you are probably aware, Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Karen Held Phipps rendered her decision in the Wade Steen and Dr. Rudy Fichtenbaum case. The decision was that both breached their fiduciary responsibilities and are prohibited from serving on the STRS Board. This ruling means that Dr. Rudy Fichtenbaum is immediately removed from the Board and that Wade Steen can never be appointed to the Board. This decision is appealable. The decision on whether or not to appeal will be at the discretion of Wade, Rudy, and their attorneys.
ORTA stands by Rudy Fichtenbaum and Wade Steen. Many of our members know the character of these gentlemen and their intention to improve our pension system for STRS members. We believe they were trying their best to restore lost benefits responsibly. To be blunt, if the Ohio Legislature had been responsibly funding our pension, our Board would never have been put in the position of trying to make up the funding gap.
Going forward, ORTA’s Executive Council will hold an emergency meeting this week to assess the unexpected court ruling and develop a plan. We’ll send you an update next weekend, or sooner.
Lastly, a thank you to our members for responding to help Liz Jones acquire the needed signatures to appear on the STRS Board ballot.
Thank you,
Dean Dennis, Chair
ORTA Executive Council
ORTA Pension Defense Fund
Please consider making a donation to the Pension Defense Fund to help pay legal fees and expenses to defend and protect our pension and retirement benefits from current and future legal attacks.
Judge grants preliminary injunction in lawsuit over Ohio teachers retirement system
On October 15th, the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas issued a preliminary injunction preventing changes to the composition of the STRS Board while litigation is in progress.
ORTA wishes to thank the organizations and individuals who have engaged in our fight to retain elected teachers on the STRS Ohio Retirement Board.
The Ohio Federation of Teachers, Ohio Education Association, and Ohio Conference of American Association of University Professors funded the injunction to stop the removal of elected teachers to the STRS Ohio Board. They released this statement:
“We are thankful for Judge Aveni’s ruling to grant a preliminary injunction. This determination confirms what retired and active members of STRS have known since June: this is an unconstitutional power grab by the legislature. Educators, just like all other public employees in Ohio, deserve a meaningful voice in our pension plan.” — Statement from OEA President Jeff Wensing, OFT President Melissa Cropper, and OC AAUP Executive Director Sara Kilpatrick.
Colleen Marshall, NBC4 Columbus, has reported factually and without bias on STRS Ohio since the Governor's failed attempt to remove Wade Steen from the STRS Board in May 2023. Watch her report on Judge Aveni's decision to support the preliminary injunction.
David Pepper has dedicated many of his Substack articles to the state's ongoing attack on members of the STRS Ohio Board.
"I have detailed the saga of how Ohio’s always lawless lawmakers have spent years attempting to steal the power of teachers and retirees over their own ($100B) pension fund. And how a number of their attacks have been in clear violation of Ohio law and the constitution." - David Pepper
And above all, we want to thank all of Ohio's teachers who contacted their legislators, asking them not to support this attempt by a small group of politicians to remove democratically elected members from our pension Board.
Join ORTA today! Take advantage of all of our member benefits!
Free AMBA Webinars
ORTA has partnered with AMBA to offer a series of short webinars about important topics like long term care, Medicare, medical transportation, and more. The talks are educational and informative. Join us for the next one, and invite a friend!
Each webinar begins with an ORTA update by Dr. Robin Rayfield, Executive Director.
ORTA County Chapters
Join your local county chapter of ORTA for social, educational, and volunteer activities, as well as presentations about STRS Ohio and your retirement benefits. Check our list of county chapters for links to chapter websites and Facebook groups. If your county doesn't have an active chapter, contact ORTA about starting one!
ORTA Facebook Group
We created this new Facebook group to make Ohio's retired and active teachers aware of all of the opportunities available to them at our county chapters throughout the state. Chapters can submit posts about monthly meetings, classroom grants and student scholarships, volunteer opportunities, events and activities.
AMBA Benefits
ORTA has partnered with Association Member Benefits Advisors, to offer our members exclusive group rates on health, Medicare supplement, life, dental, vision, and professional liability insurance. AMBA focuses on providing customized coverage through top-rated insurance providers, with options often available to members who may not otherwise qualify for group rates.
ORTA Video Library