BY: NATE CALVIN
The Pike-Delta-York School Board met on Wednesday, April 19th 2017 at the Board of Education office. After roll call and the Pledge of Allegiance, Superintendent Dr. Ted Haselman informed the Board that the school district spring newsletter had just been mailed out. After the approval of minutes from the March meeting, the “Students of the Month” from each building were in attendance and recognized. These students were selected based on the recommendations of their building principal and staff members. The selected students were Hayden Boulton, a 3rd grader from Delta Elementary, Morghyn Tippens, a 5th grader from Delta Middle School, and Lydia Yoder, a 9th grader at Delta High School. Each student received a certificate for their accomplishments.
The next student to be recognized was senior Mary Miller, recipient of the Franklin B. Walter Scholarship Award. This award was established by the Ohio’s Superintendent Educational Service Center to promote student achievement and recognize outstanding students. To be eligible, the student must be a high school senior in one of Ohio’s counties, have a high GPA and test scores, must be involved in several extracurricular activities, and have good attendance. Only one senior from each of Ohio’s 88 counties can win. In addition to the eligibility requirements, the student must write a letter about a teacher who has had the most positive influence in their academic success. Miller chose teacher Jane Foor for her tribute letter, which she then read the letter to the Board.
Kathy Miller,the Delta Chicken Festival chairperson, approached the Board seeking their help. The festival, which runs July 7th-9th, is in need of volunteers. Miller was hoping with the help of administrators, that the festival would be able to get the word out that they’re looking for volunteers, including high school and middle school students. Volunteers are needed the week prior to the event, the week after the event and everything in between. In the past, the committee has had to hire local organizations to come in and do some of the work. People interested in helping should contact Kathy Miller at 419-583-6979 or Millerkathleens47@yahoo.com.
The Treasurer Report was then presented by Matt Feasel. In his report, Feasel indicated everything financially was on target with the fiscal year plan. He said he has been in communication with administrators about getting supplies ordered now for next school year so he can give the board a better idea as to where things stand financially before the next school year begins. He indicated meetings need to be held and decisions made regarding tax abatements and future tax rates because the five year fiscal forecast is coming up soon.
After approval of the treasurer report, Superintendent Haselman provided the following:
He stated safety barricade devices for classroom doors have been purchased and are ready for installation. He said these devices were recommended by Delta Police Chief Nathan Hartsock and then showed a video to the Board demonstrating how the devices work and their effectiveness. Haselman then alerted the Board that two new school buses are being purchased to replace two that are going to be traded in. The school will receive $4500 for the two buses being traded in. The buses being replaced are a 2002 and 2003, prompting Board president Chad Hoffman to inquire about in the future looking into a lease program since the buses don’t have a huge trade in value.
Recommendation from the Superintendent to approve the following:
-Retirement of Tom Hicks has a custodian after 33 years effective July 1, 2017.
-Jessica Gilbert for maternity leave, placing her current contract on hold for one year.
-Athletic supplemental contracts for Brock Waugh and Dom Mattimore has JV baseball coaches for 2016-2017
-Non-athletic supplemental contract for Wait Steele has assistant high school musical director for 2016-2017.
-Non-renew all supplemental contracts at the end of the 2016-2017 school year, as required by law.
-Authorize the Superintendent and Treasurer to enter into an agreement with the NwOESC for Resident Educator Mentor trainings and services as required by the Ohio Department of Education.
-Purchase of two 78 passenger Blue Bird buses from Cardinal Bus Sales in Lima, Ohio, permanent improvement funds will be used for the purchase.
-Cafeteria prices for the 2017-2018 school year.
-Overnight trip for Pike-Delta-York FFA students who will be attending the Ohio FFA Convention in Columbus, Ohio. Students, who will be attending with Mr. Leininger, will leave on May 3rd, 2017 and return May 5th, 2017. Funds are provided through fundraisers, donations, and student contribution.
-Overnight stay for the students of the three Destination Imagination teams who qualified for Global Finals in Knoxville, Tennessee on May 24th through May 29th, 2017.
The meeting then proceeded to building reports:
High School: Principal Kristie Reighard reported that Juniors have completed the state-mandated ACT. She attended the Career Explorations Day with six seniors. The event, sponsored by the Fulton County Economic Development, allowed students to interview with local companies, attend workshops, and talk with local hiring personal about summer and full-time employment. The Student Council lock in was a success with 124 students participating. Money that was raised, $700, and canned goods collected from the event supported Cory’s Backpack program. The pep band will perform the National Anthem at the Toledo Mud Hens game on April 25th. Senior Success Day is scheduled for Thursday May 11th, with Prom on May 13th, and graduation set for Sunday, May 28th at the football field (weather permitting).
Middle School: Principal Doug Ford passed along that they have applied for the Ascend Math Gold Medal Award. State testing will finish up next week with Math; Science and Social Studies will be the first week of May. Schedules are being finalized for next year along with roster verification (links students to teachers for value added scores). He also said teacher evaluations in eTPES (state of Ohio evaluation database) are being finished up also. Spring conferences were successful with 93% of parents signing up making it to their designated conference. May 16th will be the Spring Fling family event for anyone in grades 4-8. Six teams competed in the Destination Imagination state competition in Mt. Vernon, Ohio.
Elementary School: According to Principal Ellen Bernal, Parent-Teacher conferences that were held on March 16th and March 21st had an 85% attendance rate. The school was visited by Jodi Stiriz Bird, a Delta graduate, and she shared her book with the students and also talked about the writing process and how she became an author. WTOL channel 11 visited the school on April 19th to do a story on the new 2 year Kindergarten class. Kindergarten screening will take place on April 27th and 28th, with currently 67 students registered to attend the screening which is consistent with where numbers have been in the past. Fourth grade students will be taking the Social Studies state test next week, with both third and fourth graders taking the Math portion of state testing during the first week of May. One team from the elementary school advanced to the Destination Imagination global competition in Knoxville, Tennessee at the end of May.
During Board comments President Chad Hoffman congratulated Superintendent Haselman on achieving his Doctorate degree. Hoffman also expressed his concern about the tax abatement issue and its impact on the upcoming 5-year fiscal plan. He said he would follow up with the city regarding scheduling a meeting with them about the issue. He stated that contact was made with the city a couple of weeks ago but they have heard nothing back from them. Board member Mike Ford also said he has been approached on a few occasions by Delta residents expressing their concern over the tax abatement issue and what it will mean for the district going forward.
The Board then adjourned at 7:40pm into executive session with no action being taken following. The next Pike-Delta-York School Board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 17th 2017 at 6:30pm in the Board of Education office.
