The Stark County ESC had its inception in 1914 with the establishment by the Ohio Legislature of county boards of education.
Currently, the ESC provides shared services to 15 local and 6 city school districts, 1 exempted village, and one career center in Stark, Carroll, Summit, and Tuscarawas counties. Together these districts enroll over 60,000 students.
The Stark County ESC is experienced in meeting the needs of a diverse population of students. There is a range in size of districts from 711 to 9,536 students with equally large ranges in minority population, special education population, and district wealth. Serving the needs of such diverse learners and districts in an age of scarce resources requires all of the constituents to collaborate and share services.
Shared services provided by the Stark County ESC include special education and pre-school classes, psychologists and other related service providers, curriculum development and supervision, and professional development. The Stark County ESC serves as the fiscal agent for Help Me Grow, CARE Teams, the Stark/Portage Area Computer Consortium, Stark County Family Council, Stark County Schools Council of Governments and State Support Team 9.