DISTINGUISHED BOARD MEMBER AWARD … Ohio School Boards Association Northwest Regional Manager Martha Rothey (left) presents Swanton Local School District Board of Education Member Kris Oberheim (right) with a Distinguished Board Member Award, recognizing her 15 years of service on the board.
PHOTOS BY JESSE DAVIS / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
PURPLE STAR AWARD … Ohio School Boards Association Northwest Regional Manager Martha Rothey (right) presents Swanton Middle School Assistant Principal Bailey Langenderfer (left) with a Purple Star Award, recognizing the school for its commitment to the veteran community.
By: Jesse Davis
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
jesse@thevillagereporter.com
The Swanton Local School District Board of Education was presented with a pair of awards from the Ohio School Boards Association during its meeting Monday evening.
OSBA Northwest Regional Manager Martha Rothey presented a Distinguished Board Member Award to Kris Oberheim for serving on the board for 15 years.
“Fifteen years ago, my kids were what, 4 and 9, they attended several school board meetings because my husband worked, he did flip hour shifts.”
“So sometimes I didn’t have a sitter, and I had someone say to me they said once you have a district that you have good people that run your district it will run itself, and your board people do what they’re supposed to do, and that’s policy and procedures and you’ll meet once a month and you’ll be informed when you need to be informed, and your people that are paid to run the district will run the district, and we have that, so thank you,” Oberheim said. “It’s a team effort.”
Rothey also presented Swanton Middle School Assistant Principal Bailey Langenderfer with a Purple Star Award for the school, an annual award for “schools that show a significant commitment to serving students and families connected to our nation’s armed forces.”
There are 20 counties comprising 143 school districts in the northwest region of the OSBA.
OTHER BUSINESS
The board approved a contract for new School Resource Officer Troy Stewart with the Swanton Police Department.
The board approved early graduation for Terek Black, Autumn Collins, Cheyenne Alexander, Ava Friedman, and Dominick Hummel.
The board approved personnel changes including substitute teachers, a grounds and maintenance substitute, a wrestling volunteer, a supplemental for a girls freshman/assistant basketball coach, and the retirement of High School Secretary Pamela Raab.
Superintendent Chris Lake praised Raab for her years of service as well as her community involvement, which includes her being “a big part of Christmas in Swanton.”
The board approved a pay raise to $10.70 per hour for the library aide and bus mechanic helper to keep the positions above the upcoming Ohio minimum wage increase to that amount, occurring in January.
The board approved a Neola, Inc., recommended policy update protecting “individual beliefs, affiliations, ideals, or principles of political movements and ideology.”
The board accepted donations of $84.62 from Ohio Pyle to the high school, $500 from Sampsel’s Body Shop for baseball, $2,000 from North Star BlueScope Steel for the Swanton 7 statehouse field trip, $500 from Goodwill Industries to the high school for the Goodwill Challenge winners, $100 from Dental Excellence to the elementary school for the candy return contest, $500 from North Clinton Church to cover negative lunch balances, and $550 from the Swanton Parent’s Club to the elementary school for Fall Fest.
The board named current Vice President John Schaller as president pro tem for the upcoming organizational meeting.
The board ended regular business by going into executive session to consider the compensation of a public school employee. No action was anticipated as a result of the executive session.
The 2025 organizational meeting of the Swanton Local School District Board of Education is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, at 108 N. Main Street, to be immediately followed by a regular board meeting.