PHOTO BY BRIANNA BALOGH / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
STUDENT PRAISE … Guidance Counselor Dr. Kim Stark shares insights from her recent dissertation and offers praise for the student body during Monday’s board meeting.
By: Brianna Balogh
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
The Edgerton Board of Education met on Monday, May 18, with a full agenda to close out the 2025–2026 school year. Board President Robert Siebenaler called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Following the Pledge of Allegiance, roll call was taken.
Board members Lyn Bowsher, Nick Hug, and Gary Plotts were present, while member Dawn Fitzcharles was absent.
Also attending were CFO/Treasurer Bill Blakely, Superintendent Ben Wilhelm, Elementary Principal Lucas Smith, High School Principal Brett Grieser, Jan Busdeker, president of the OSBA Northwest Region, Guidance Counselor Kim Stark, and Josh Bragg, incoming boys basketball coach.
The first motion was to accept the agenda for the meeting. Plotts moved to accept the agenda with Bowsher seconding. All members approved.
The next item was approval of the minutes from the previous meeting, with Hug motioning to approve. Plotts provided a second and the motion passed unanimously.
Superintendent Wilhelm then introduced Jan Busdeker. Busdeker started by introducing himself and his goals as president of the Ohio School Board Association Northwest Region. One goal was to reach out into the northwest area of the northwest region.
Part of his plan included OSBA recently holding an open house at the NWOESC as well to connect with local districts. Busdeker emphasized OSBA is there to serve the district with whatever questions or conflicts they face from legislative to legal.
Upcoming events will be a legislative open house held in August at the Sandusky Yacht Club for the Northwest and Northeast region, fall conference in October at North Baltimore School District, and Capital Conference in November. Siebenaler added, “Oh yeah, we go every year.”
Busdeker also informed the board of special recognition that can be awarded to different individuals, groups, or businesses that step up to really make an impact.
Awards include excellence in community service, humanitarian, and outstanding leadership. He left some information for the board on the award.
Closing out, Busdeker encouraged the board and public to get informed on upcoming candidates and issues in the general election.
With all the controversial legislation being proposed, Busdeker said, “public education is under attack.” Busdeker had the opportunity to speak with gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton on public education.
COUNSELOR’S RESEARCH
Wilhelm thanked Busdeker before introducing newly minted Dr. Kim Stark, guidance counselor. Stark spoke to the board about the impressive students enrolled at Edgerton, and support they receive from parents, staff, and the board itself.
She stated the board may not always get to see that side of things and described the students and staff as “amazing.”
Stark welcomed any questions or discussion from the board now or in the future, but warned if you get her started on her dissertation she may not stop.
Siebenaler asked about her dissertation to earn her degree. Stark provided a brief synopsis. “What I did was take Williams County data from our adolescent population and I took a look at the number of adverse childhood experiences our kids were exposed to, things like divorces or parent incarceration or drugs in the home or mental illness in the home. And then, we know because research has told us when kids are exposed to a lot more ACES they tend to make a lot riskier behaviors.”
She continued, “My question is based on our data from Williams county, do the relationships that our kids make in the community, or in the home or in school. Do those sorts of relationships impact the type of risky behaviors that the kids are making? It does and it was so cool.”
“For every one school relationship it reduces the kids’ risk taking behaviors by 30%. So that is massive. So every time we can get kids or adults to pour into our kids’ lives, we’re seeing huge impacts.”
Siebenaler added that he agrees how great our kids are. He participated for the first time in mock interviews and was blown away by the freshman and sophomore preparedness for the interviews.
Siebenaler also commended Stark on her help with the Buckeye Boys and Girls State in conjunction with the American Legion, which Siebenaler is a representative of. Bowsher also added congratulations to Dr. Stark on her recent achievement.
TREASURER’S REPORT
The board then turned its attention to the treasurer report, presented by Blakely. Blakely went through five discussion topics and four recommendations.
The first item was the customary general fund report, detailed in slides. Revenues were up by approximately $233,000, around 2.78%. Expenses were up as well around $172,000, approximately 2.49%.
Overall the district is tracking $61,000 better than this point last year. Blakely noted the unrestricted grant aid has now gone negative, which he expected and previously discussed with the board.
The second item was again a customary report of the year-to-date versus forecasted budget. Cash and revenues were both up over the forecasted, revenues by approximately 2%.
Expenses were down from the forecast by around 3%. Blakely expects by year end, in a few months, year-to-date will outperform the forecast.
Blakely continued to the third discussion topic, the food service report. Cash increased by $11,000 from March to April.
Lunch participation was steady at 76.35%. Breakfast participation saw a boost to 39%, mainly due to elementary state testing where breakfast is provided in room to students. Food service will decrease in May and June.
Blakely then alerted the board to a potential financial issue stemming from the planned purchase of Hicksville Bank by a credit union. He explained that according to Ohio Revised Code, district funds cannot be held in a credit union.
CDs are only allowable through a CDARS (Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Service) account. He has already begun exploring alternative banking options.
Blakely noted that several district funds are currently secured at Hicksville Bank, ranging from CDs to student lunch accounts, and said he is strongly leaning toward moving the district’s accounts to another bank.
The sale is not expected until January or February so there is ample time to get funds transferred to another institution.
The last discussion topic was brief, with Blakely noting that when the June 29 meeting time is set he would like to schedule the public records meeting either before or after. The required attendees are Blakely, Wilhelm, and Siebenaler.
Moving into treasurer recommendations, the financial reports were first. Blakely ran through the current account figures as follows: STAR Ohio at $3.5 million yielding 3.87%, RedTree $3.3 million at 4.23%, WesBanco money market at $450,000 at 3.85%, State Bank CD at $237,000 at 3.35%, and the Hicksville Bank CD at $883,000 at 3.5%.
The next two recommendations were to facilitate a new bus purchase. First was to approve the purchase bids and second was to approve the actual purchase from Cardinal Bus.
The 77-passenger bus would be purchased for $141,908. Plotts noted the included heated seat as a nice feature.
Last recommendation was to approve a three-year contract with Julian and Grube for $3,300 annually. Blakely explained this CPA firm is used to prepare financial documents for state audit purposes.
Bowsher motioned to approve all recommendations and Plotts seconded. The motion passed unopposed.
SUPERINTENDENT’S AGENDA
Wilhelm followed with the superintendent’s agenda. He started with a few informational items before moving into recommendations.
First he provided the Four County Career Center report to the board from the April meeting.
Wilhelm continued with updates on the bus barn which is nearing completion. Final inspections are taking place and paving will be completed once the weather provides sustained dry conditions.
Wilhelm hopes the building will be turned over in a few weeks and they can begin putting buses into bays.
A separate project to add a gravel drive and parking in front of the wrestling room is scheduled for summer break.
This will be added to a few other summer projects on the list. Wilhelm listed new terrazzo floors in the STEAM room and football field bathrooms.
A special thanks to the Athletic Boosters for the new record board, to be installed over the summer as you enter the high school commons.
The last informational item was the upcoming June board meeting. As school is not in session, it was agreed to hold the meeting on June 29, at 7:00 a.m. with the public records meeting to follow.
Wilhelm then moved into administrative recommendations, starting with student commendations.
He provided a brief write-up for each of the following student groups: Scholastic Quiz Bowl, Speech and Debate, Log of E, FFA, Band, Choir, and Elementary, Junior High, and High School Art.
Wilhelm especially thanked the advisors and principals who have highlighted these groups throughout the year, especially with the Breakfast with a Bulldog program.
The second recommendation was to approve the Edgerton High School Class of 2026 graduates, contingent upon completion of all local and state requirements. Wilhelm noted the ceremony will be held Sunday, May 24, at 2:00 p.m.
The next recommendation was approval of an agreement with Joy D. Fruchey and Associates to provide mental and behavioral health services to students. The contract will run from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027.
Wilhelm moved quickly through the remaining administrative recommendations, which included: approving the 2026–2027 instructional fees at $35 for grades pre-K through 6 and $100 for grades 7–12; approving an overnight cross-country athletic camp to Hocking Hills for the 2026–2027 school year; approving the 2026–2027 curriculum guide; approving a shared-services contract with Edon Northwest Local Schools for speech services for 2026–2027; approving the 2026–2027 all-sports passes and ticket prices; approving the 2026–2027 sports physical packet; approving the 2026–2027 athletic handbook; approving the 2026–2027 student handbooks; approving the district-wide faculty handbook for 2026–2027; approving the 2026 Summer Jump Start Program for elementary students, to be held Monday through Thursday, July 27–30 and August 3–6, from 8:30–11:00 a.m.; accepting a donation of flowers and plants valued at $70 from Nye’s Greenhouse; and approving an educational agreement with the Northwest Ohio Juvenile Detention, Training, and Rehabilitation Center, effective July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027, on an as-needed basis.
PERSONNEL ACTIONS
Personnel recommendation followed. Wilhelm started with approval of the current NWOESC substitute list for paraprofessionals and teachers.
The next item was approval of a resignation of Gary Beck, custodian, effective at the end of the 2025–2026 contractual school year.
Another resignation followed, Michael Gilliland’s resignation from teaching, boys’ golf coach, and baseball coach effective at the end of the contractual 2025–2026 school year.
Wilhelm elaborated that Gilliland accepted a position close to home and he would be missed.
Wilhelm continued to discuss a new hire, Josh Bragg. First Principal Grieser spoke about Bragg, stating he has an extensive sports and coaching background.
Grieser personally connected with Bragg’s drive to build the program from the youth up to high school. Bragg himself thanked the board and stated he was very excited to get started. The board welcomed Bragg.
Wilhelm continued through the final personnel recommendation with approval of the summer school staff at a rate of $30 per hour. Staff members include Angella Burklo, McKayla Swank, Abby Wood, and Danielle Yoder.
Approval for select staff extended days for the 2026–2027 school year followed. The following staff: Kim Stark 15 days, Chris Herman 10 days, Jodi Landel 10 days, Nora Jackson 10 days, Sarah Sargent 5 days, Zoe Scott 5 days, and Alicia Krill 5 days.
A lengthy list of non-renewal spring supplemental contracts for coaches and advisors followed, a customary action at the end of the school year.
Approval of 2026–2027 supplemental contracts and volunteers pending requirements. Supplemental contracts for Casey Everetts and Carrie Zeedyk both for junior high girls basketball.
Volunteers included Corey Leppelmeier for athletic department girls basketball, and Cole Meyer for athletic department cross country.
The next recommendation for approval was 2026 summer workers as follows: Gary Cooley at current custodial rate, Sonia Flower, Chanda McNalley, and Krista Pahl all three at a rate of $16.48 per hour.
2026–2027 certified teaching contracts were next for approvals, pending completion of certification requirements.
One-year contract for Jordan Culler, three-year contract for Sarah Sargent, Alesha Archer, and Zoe Scott and finally five-year contract for Alisha Nugent, Jacob Adams, and Nicholas Archer.
The lengthy recommendation agenda continued with a one-year contract for the 2026–2027 school year for Jenni Heisler as a retire-rehire for English language arts teacher for grades 7-8.
A one-year contract for Melinda Thiel at the current hourly rate of $20.47 per hour as a district substitute teacher.
Several non-certified contracts for 2026–2027 school year followed, again pending completion of certification requirements.
Two-year contracts for Lauron Adkins, Kierstan Brown, Tacha Rohrer, Jessica Wehri, Patrick Rendleman, James Walker, Leslie Pool and Andrew (Scott) Heater.
Continuing contracts for Gary Cooley and Camie Hicks. Bowsher motioned to approve all recommendations thus far and Hug seconded, with all members approving.
The final recommendation was to approve a non-certified two-year contract for Patrick Bowsher.
Hug motioned to approve and Plotts seconded. The motion was passed with Bowsher abstaining.
PRINCIPAL REPORTS
Principal reports followed with Elementary Principal Lucas Smith first. He joked that they didn’t even realize school was almost over. Jokes aside, Smith presented several updates highlighting recent student achievements and activities.
First up kindergarten screening has been completed and they will be finalizing rosters soon.
The PTO again put on a very successful Daddy daughter dance. Bulldog Best assembly was recently held with several students taking home awards.
Nurse Tracy Cape put on a recent Health Walk for students. The big news for elementary was the recent EDGE (Edgerton Developing Greatness Everyday) competition where 30 students competed in several categories from public speaking to dinner etiquette. 22 judges from the community participated.
In the final round, students had to identify a problem within the community and how to address it. The final winner will be announced at the upcoming awards ceremony, being held the next day on May 19.
Turning out to be a very busy Tuesday, sixth-grade graduation, 3-5 grade awards, kindergarten graduation, and bulldogs with ties dinner. Smith closed with a hope for good weather for field day on the final day of this school year, May 22.
Bowsher stated she wanted to publicly thank Smith for starting the EDGE competition and felt that it could be very beneficial to the students. Siebenaler was curious about the problems the students identified. Smith stated they ranged from sidewalk repair to an animal sanctuary at the old Dollar General building.
Principal Grieser took over with the junior high and high school report. Grieser first highlighted the record-breaking senior banquet, where $1.3 million in scholarships were awarded to graduating seniors.
Grieser continued touching on the recent mock interviews and the way the program has grown. The neatest part, according to Grieser, is that four different organizations reached out to share the noticeable difference it has made.
A more enjoyable night for students was prom which Grieser noted was a success and thanked the prom committee.
Grieser continued with the recent Snack with a Bulldog, a replacement for Breakfast with a Bulldog which was changed due to mock interviews. The quiz bowl team was highlighted where they faced off against students and staff. The quiz bowl team has attended nationals two years in a row.
Grieser said at one point he told the all-time quiz bowl scoring leader Ben Thompson to just put the buzzer down and give the other team a chance.
Moving into athletics, OHSAA tournament action is underway. The boys baseball team recently played a special game against Bryan at Parkview Field in Fort Wayne, home of the TinCaps, through Parkview Sports. Two Edgerton students will represent Edgerton at Buckeye Boys State.
While highlighting recent athletic accomplishments, Grieser noted the contributions of this year’s exchange student who he expressed will be greatly missed.
Grieser stated she was dying to give the Pledge of Allegiance on a Monday morning, which was realized that very morning.
Lastly Grieser reported the recent local history tour, a tradition for Mr. Matt Krill’s senior government class. He highly recommends Mr. Krill as a knowledgeable guide and an enjoyable tour.
Only a handful of upcoming events remain for the last week of the school year. Senior week had just kicked off, with Monday being senior service day where students performed community service acts.
Throughout the week students would participate in self-defense classes, CPR classes, senior fun day, and graduation rehearsal.
Grieser closed with a special picture of several boys playing hacky sack at lunch. One goal was to get students detached from technology and instead socializing.
Board games and cards were purchased and used during lunch periods. The picture perfectly encapsulates that goal.
Siebenaler then asked for a motion to move into executive session to discuss personnel employment. Hug motioned and Plotts seconded.
With all members approving, the meeting moved into executive session at 6:55 p.m. with no action expected to follow. The next meeting will be held Monday, June 29, at 7:00 a.m.
