Issues

Jocelyn Rhynard, candidate for the Ohio 6th Senate District, is a mom, a small business owner, a board member of Dayton Public Schools, and a board member of Planned Parenthood Southwest Ohio. She believes that every child has the right to a high quality education, that women should have the ability to make decisions about their own bodies, and that we all deserve to live and thrive in a safe, healthy community.

Education

Every child in Ohio, regardless of their race, class, religion, gender, or immigration status, has the right to a high quality education. Ohio must adequately fund our public schools, support teachers so they can deliver instruction based on the needs of the student, and ensure that our schools are safe and supportive environments for students and staff. We cannot spend billions of public tax dollars on unregulated non-public schools that are not held to the same testing metrics or fiscal transparency, and the universal school voucher program will erode our strong public schools where 90% of Ohio children receive their education.

Jocelyn has seen first hand the dedication our teachers have in the classroom; we must support those teachers, pay them accordingly, and give them opportunities for professional development and continued educational opportunities, so the effects of the national teacher shortage are mitigated in our state.

Creating environments that are safe and welcoming means that teachers cannot carry firearms in the classroom, that students are free from harassment and bullying, that they are welcome and supported in their LGBTQ+ status, and that discipline policies are centered around restorative justice and follow the national guidelines on school discipline.

Abortion/Women’s Rights

Medical decisions should be made by the patient, not the government. Ohio overwhelmingly codified the right to abortion in 2023 when we passed Issue 1, and we must continue to protect that right to bodily autonomy. Citizens in Ohio should have access to comprehensive education about their bodies, birth control, and access to abortion services, with no fear of discrimination or prosecution.

Easier access to birth control will allow women and people who can become pregnant the ability to choose if and when they have children, and that includes contraceptives and emergency contraceptives in addition to abortion.

Jocelyn has served on the board of Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio since 2019 and led the campaign for Issue 1 in Montgomery County last year. She has a proven history of being fully pro choice and will continue that work in the State Senate.

LGBTQ+

Q+ folks are a valued part of our community. We welcome all, and believe that nobody should experience harassment or discrimination based on their gender or sexual identity. They have the same rights to bodily autonomy and health decisions as everyone else, and Jocelyn is firmly opposed to legislation like HB 68 that prevents access to health care and doesn’t follow medical science or best practices.

Health

Americans pay more for health care with lowered life expectancy and health outcomes than almost every other developed nation. Universal health care, in many different forms, can provide much needed access to health care, both preventative and treatment, that many Ohioans lack. Jocelyn supports universal health care and in the meantime supports policies that make prescription drugs affordable and health insurance more accessible.

We must encourage health behavior as much as possible while not removing the ability to make individual decisions. Providing students in public schools with health meals every day, raising tobacco and vape product taxes, supporting smoke cessation bans, and offering nutrition and physical activity outlets to communities will lead to better health and well being.

Public Safety

The ultimate goal of public safety is to reduce crime and offer the ability for restorative justice and decrease recidivism. Police forces should have clear policies limiting use of force and offer social service supports in emergencies as much as possible rather than armed responses.

Public safety also includes bail reform, sentencing reform, juvenile justice reform, and opportunities for record expungement.

Dayton and Montgomery County have felt the effects of gun violence; we do not have to live in a society where fear of gun violence is an undercurrent of everyday life. As state senator, I will work with organizations like Moms Demand Action to guide policy and legislation such as safe storage laws, criminal background checks, magazine capacity restrictions, red flag laws, and banning assault weapons.

When it comes to gun safety, we cannot have a full conversation until we acknowledge the connection between mass violence and domestic violence, between mental health disparities and lack of access to mental health services, and the intersection of the ease of access to firearms.

Social Services

We have a responsibility to care for those who cannot care for themselves. Many of those in marginalized populations lack access to food, shelter, health care, job services, childcare, and drug rehabilitation programs. Programs that provide prenatal health care will reduce the health disparities and the maternal mortality rate of black women, in addition to providing our youngest citizens with a healthy start to life. We must provide affordable housing for the young and the elderly, because this is a critical issue in Ohio.

Universal early childhood childcare offers not only a much needed assist to lower income families but early intervention services that are often overlooked and undiagnosed, which in turn prepare our children for a lifetime of educational success once they enter kindergarten.

Civil Rights

We follow Dr Martin Luther King Jr’s quote: “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” We value freedom, individual liberty, basic rights, privacy, freedom from discrimination, and equal opportunity under the law.

No matter your race, religion, Q+ status, immigration status, or gender, you have a right to live and thrive in Ohio. We must ensure that our laws reflect those values, continue to protect the marginalized, and pass policy and legislation that provides equity for those who face barriers to full civil rights.

Environment

Ohio is a beautiful state, full of rivers and lakes and caves and hills that bring us value and joy and should be protected for their value now and for generations to come. Public parks should be protected, our water and soil should be regularly monitored and kept clean, and we should be designing our communities with environmental justice in mind. Everyone deserves to live in a beautiful environment, with walkable streets and sidewalks, free from pollution, particularly those in marginalized or low income neighborhoods that are dominated by lack of trees and an overabundance of cement and paving.

Solar and green energy should be the basis of our energy policy, because they simultaneously create jobs while reducing ongoing environmental damage. Reducing greenhouse gases will help combat climate change and help Ohio meet the federal Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act standards.

Voting and Elections

Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy, and we should be doing everything in our power to encourage civic participation and voter access. Jocelyn supports automatic voter registration, same day voter registration, increasing the number of ballot boxes across counties, and opposes prison gerrymandering and registration purges.

Corruption/Good Governance

Ohio is one of the most gerrymandered states in the nation, and our unconstitutional statehouse and Congressional maps have led to the extremism and dysfunction we see in the General Assembly today, as well as the largest corruption scandal in the nation’s history. Jocelyn knows that gerrymandering is bad for both parties, and that our government cannot properly function if we lack fair statehouse representation. Jocelyn supports the ongoing citizen redistricting ballot initiative and knows that we deserve districts that represent the voters and we should choose our representatives, not the other way around.