By Jordan Studer
CCN Reporter
CRESTLINE — Crestline High School junior Devon Reed presented to Crestline Board of Education regarding his experience at the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Seminar, also known as HOBY, recently.
Reed passionately explained to the board that because many community members had supported him financially, the leadership camp made a large positive impact on him and all of those in attendance.
After his positive experience, he now has a desire to attend the World Leadership Conference, as he feels it will help him grow even more into becoming an even better leader for the community.
However, attending the World Leadership Conference does have a cost of $1,800. Reed is planning on starting a GoFundMe page in hopes of receiving some financial help to send him to experience a leadership conference at a larger level.
Reed then discussed how he is already in the works of putting his leadership skills to use to better the school district. Last year, Reed started a Student Honors Board within the high school to work on matters to better their school. This year, Reed would like to create a branch of the Student Honors Board completely devoted to anti-bullying.
Reed explained that bullying is a problem everywhere that just isn’t being solved and he believes if different punishments were in place, things might change. He explained that students see more of the bullying than teachers do, therefore, if students could come up with ideas of some possible punishments such as community service or the like, then maybe bullying may decrease.
“I think we should make a new section in the handbook for Student Honors Board, placing certain punishments under them, minor ones,” Reed stated.
Driving Reed to start this committee is his own personal experience of being bullied throughout school. Reed is passionate to end bullying and feels is will better the school and the safety and well-being of his fellow student.
“As a child, in first grade, I was bullied all the way up to high school. I had been beat up. I had been called names. I had been put down. I won’t lie, that has put me where I am here today, being able to do all of this (start the board),” Reed explained.
Superintendent Noreen Mullens has already been in collaboration with Reed last school year from the start of the Student Honors Board and is very passionate to help the anti-bullying student movement to succeed as well.
In other board business during the meeting, many approvals and agreements were made by the board. One of those being, several supplemental contracts for the 2018-2019 school year. Those positions and individuals included the following:
Tyler Sanders – Boys Varsity Basketball Coach
Rob Glaze- Marching Band
Melissa Sensemier- Flag Corp Advisor
Niki Baker- Majorette Advisor
Bev Payne- Preschool Coordinator
The press release introducing Sanders as the boys’ basketball coach is below:
Multiple classified one-year contracts were also approved for the 2018- 2019 school year:
Diane Worley – Part-time Bus Aide
Michele Lester- Part-time Cook
Lucas Maynard- Full-time Custodian
Stacy Berry- Part-time One-on-one Aide
Several resignations also were approved by the board, but with heavy hearts. Those included:
Travis Minnear
Amy North
Keith Strickler
Erika Burkhart
The retirement of Linda Hoffman was also approved and will be effective beginning August 1, 2018.
Two other one-year contracts were approved to fill a few of the positions available from the resignations. The first contract approved was for Jamie Masi as the new high school principal. It was mentioned that Masi will be present at the July board meeting for the board, as well as the public, to meet him. The second contact approved was for Jaclyn Schag to become the new high school Language Arts/English teacher.
The last step of phasing in 1-to-1 initiative, purchasing Chromebooks for the entire school, was approved. After this last phase is complete, all students in grades second through twelfth will have a Chromebook of their own. Students in pre-K through first grade will have iPads in which the school already has.
The solicitation of bids for the purchase of two school buses for the 2018-19 school year was approved. Mullens explained that the district is in dire need of new buses, after inspection it was concluded that two buses need to be replaced this year, with at least two more that will require replacing next year.
“We are in high need of buses… Inspections were today… We’re walking on our last leg keeping the buses on the road,” Mullens said.
In other board news, a contract was approved for 2018 Summer School for two students with Imperial Autism Connections LLC at $160 per day, per student. According to Superintendent Ms. Mullens, the summer program is 6 weeks in length and must be specifically written in the student’s IEP. It would have to be shown that the student had been losing knowledge in the summer in order for the summer program to be available through Imperial Autism Connections LLC.
An agreement with River Education Services, LLC (LEAP Program) for the 2018-2019 school year at a rate of $130 per student.
In other agreements, an approval was made between Management Council-Ohio Education Computer Network and Crestline Exempted Village School District for HR Kiosk Application Hosting Services at no cost.
It was also discussed and agreed to allow the deposition of Public Funds-Ohio between Huntington National Bank and Crestline Exempted Village School District effective July 24, 2018- July 23, 2019. Treasurer Alina Nemec explained to the board that this is something the State of Ohio is requiring.
A few other approvals were made. One was an MOU between Catalyst Life Services and Crestline Exempted Village School District for Audiologist services during the 2019 fiscal year. A one-year agreement with Julian & Grube for Medicaid Audit services for the 2015-2016 cost report was also approved.