ADJUSTED GRADING SCALE … In his JH/HS Report, Principal Adam Wagner (far right) reviews an updated grading scale to go into effect at the start of the 2024-2025 school year.
By: Amy Wendt
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
amy@thevillagereporter.com
Pettisville Board of Education met for its regular February meeting on Monday the 12th with Brent Hoylman, Scott Rupp, Justin Rufenacht, Pam Skates, and Barry Hoylman in attendance. Superintendent Josh Clark, Treasurer Chris Lee, and Junior High/High School Principal Adam Wagner were on hand for the meeting as well.
Following a brief opening prayer led by Mr. Rupp, the board addressed the consent agenda and approved the meeting minutes from January 2024, authorized the payment of bills, and approved the financial reports as presented by Treasurer Lee.
In personnel matters outlined in the consent agenda, the board approved the appointment of Chris Richer and Steve Hastings to serve as co-head coaches for the girls’ varsity softball team. They will be replacing former head coach Lexie Kelley who stepped down from that position.
The board also adopted a resolution authorizing the district’s membership in OHSAA for 2024-2025.
Presenting the treasurer’s report, Mr. Lee began by recommending to the board that it approve an annual resolution to accept the amounts and rates determined by the budget commission, authorizing the necessary tax levies and certifying them to the county auditor so that taxes can be collected on behalf of the district. The board adopted the measure.
Lee went on to highlight that the district received its quarterly income tax settlement at the end of January noting that for the fiscal year, so far the district is up $37,000 or 7% over January 2023.
The treasurer added that $15,628 was also received in casino tax funds and the property tax settlement should be received by the end of the week.
In the Junior High/High School Report, Principal Adam Wagner shared with the board details of the initiative to adjust the grading scale. The purpose of the scale adjustment is “to ensure we are providing all our students with the best possible opportunities to be successful at the next level,” whether it be moving on to a vocational school, the workforce, or college.
Earlier this year, a committee consisting of five staff members, three parents, and the Student Leadership Team was formed to investigate the current grading scale.
The committee also reviewed scales from other schools served by the Northwest Ohio Educational Service Center for comparison.
Wagner noted that Pettisville is one of only two area schools using a 10-point scale. “Meaning 100-90 is an A, 89-80 is a B – so on and so forth.”
Wagner also clarified that while some area schools employ a weighted scale to factor in College Credit Plus and AP courses, Pettisville does not.
Before considering any change, feedback was sought from the admission departments of many colleges including Ohio State, Grace College, Taylor University, Bowling Green State University, University of Toledo, University of Findlay, and Bluffton University.
Nearly all colleges responded that high school grading scales do not hold much weight in admissions determination.
Most colleges indicated that a combination of GPA, rigor of course load, and leadership roles taken throughout a high school career help determine admission.
For some colleges, ACT and SAT scores are not relied heavily upon however for Ohio State, those test results are more important.
Adjusting the grading scale to be more in line with other schools in the area may not only benefit students planning to attend a traditional college but also those students who wish to attend a vocational school in their junior year.
“This whole idea about the grading scale is not just about college…it’s more and more competitive to get to Four County – more than it ever has been,” noted Wagner.
“When we look at our grading scale, and we compare it to other schools, we have to take a step back and say ‘Are we leveling the playing field for our students or not?’ In my opinion, I would say it’s not a level playing field,” the JH/HS Principal added.
Pointing out to the board the differences between the current and adjusted grading scale, Wagner noted “It’s not a huge shift. We’re talking about a couple of percentage points.”
“But I think this could have some substantial impacts on some GPAs.” He also added that he hopes the new grading scale will foster a growth mindset in students and encourage them to take more challenging classes.
The updated grade scale will be built into the 2024-2025 handbook and will take effect upon the Board’s approval of the next year’s handbook.
Wagner emphasized that the new scale would apply from the 2024-2025 school year onwards, with no retroactive changes to any students’ grades.
Pointing out other items of interest happening in the Junior High/High School, Wagner shared that 100% of students from the 11th-grade class will be participating in Junior Job Shadow Day.
Students will have the opportunity to experience vocations at many businesses across the Northwest Ohio area, some of which include Fulton County Health Center, UTMC, Wauseon Machine, Lake Erie Electric, D&G Welding, and Toledo Dermatology to name a few.
It was shared that one local business would like to explore the possibility of launching an internship or apprenticeship program with the school contingent upon the success of the job shadowing experience.
The 12th-grade class will participate in a range of specialized instructional activities in the upcoming months including the “Real Money, Real World” workshop presented by the OSU Extension.
Per a new Ohio law recently passed, School Resource Officer Deputy Steve Schlosser will be teaching seniors a session on proper interactions with police officers during traffic stops and other in-person encounters.
Guidance Counselor Ms. Wagenhauser will be speaking to the class on suicide awareness, and Mr. Delphia, the art teacher, will be working with seniors to create ceramic tiles featuring each student’s name, which will then be integrated into a senior mural.
Also in administrative reports to the board, Superintendent Clark delivered the elementary report on behalf of Principal Jason Waldvogel who was unable to attend the meeting.
On February 6, the Northwest Ohio Educational Service Center hosted the Annual Fulton County Spelling Bee. Representing Pettisville were Gage Short from the fourth grade, Lainey Bishop from the fifth grade, and sixth-grader, Landon Clark.
Kindergarten registration is currently underway, and screenings will be held on April 5. Current kindergarten students will not have classes on April 5.
During his own report, Superintendent Clark shared the opportunity to consider a new math teacher candidate to replace Greg Waidelich who accepted a new post within the district to serve as the school’s STEAM educator beginning in the 2024-2025 school year.
The new math teacher candidate is Tanner Rufenacht, a Pettisville graduate who is currently serving his 6th year as an educator in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
According to Clark, Rufenacht is very excited about the possibility of working at his home school. The Board approved Tanner Rufenacht as a JH/HS math teacher effective August 1, 2024.
Continuing with his report, Clark unveiled the 2025-2026 District Calendar noting that it is customary to approve two school years at a time to stay ahead. Clark noted that the public will have the opportunity to weigh in on the calendar before it is officially voted on at the next board meeting.
Clark then opened the floor to JH/HS Science teacher Donna Meller who spoke to the board about the potential addition of an outdoor pavilion classroom space.
Pettisville native, Meller, has taught a variety of science courses at the school over the last 25 years of her career with the district.
“This isn’t a recent vision or idea. Actually, John Poulson and I had talked for quite some time over the years about this idea…There’s a number of us that have seen a lot of opportunities if we could develop some things to make things more accessible over on the south side of County Road D,” Meller continued.
“I always have felt that anytime you can connect the standards that any of us teachers – pre-k to 12 – to real life, that you can make some really genuine connections of application of whatever it might be across the curriculum.”
After conversations with other teachers, specifically from urban and suburban areas, Mueller found that a common misconception lies where some assume because Pettisville is situated in a rural area, students are automatically connected with the outdoors, agriculture, and natural resources.
However, Meller disagrees with the notion citing that since students are busier now more than ever, they are unable to get outside to explore and learn about the world around them.
“Bottom line is if you are getting out there, getting them interacting, they’re going to develop a value for those natural resources…and then hopefully as a citizen, they’re helping make decisions that impact the community they live in.”
Meller added that an outdoor education area would not be “just about science.” It could also be utilized by other teaching departments such as Art, Family and Consumer Science, Ag, and even elementary classes. Outside of the school year, the outdoor education area could also be used by the community Meller pointed out.
The final item that Mr. Clark presented to the board was the request to purchase an additional school bus.
“We would like to expedite our cycle to get ahead of the ‘25 emissions law changes to purchase another 2024 bus.” The board approved the resolution to authorize the purchase of one 83-passenger conventional school bus.
In its last order of business, the board entered into an executive session for the purpose of preparing for, conducting, or reviewing negotiations or bargaining sessions with employees. No action was expected after the session.
The March 2024 Pettisville Board of Education meeting previously scheduled to take place on March 11 has been rescheduled for March 18 at 7:00 p.m. in the conference room.