NORTH ROBINSON, OH (CRAWFORD COUNTY NOW)—On Monday evening, the Colonel Crawford FFA Chapter opened the board of education meeting.
Sydney Stirm, president; Bri Wiparina, vice president; Gracie Stirm, treasurer; Brooke Schieber, secretary; Trace Skaggs, sentinel; Haylie Kovach, reporter; Ashlynn Beck, historian; Alyssa Crank, parliamentarian; and Karra Bowin, student advisor, ran through the traditional FFA opening ceremonies following National FFA week last week.
Ben Holt, the district’s Special Education Director, spoke to the board on the success of all those within the district’s special education program, stating that he wants to continue to cultivate an environment in which individuals are happy to come in every day. Holt also stated one of his favorite parts of the job is that they will pull the kids into the offices to praise them and discuss their growth, and then make positive phone calls home to families.
“When you think about the number of kids that are trying to get into the school district, whether you’re on an IEP or you’re not, it tells you the culture that people feel is within these walls, and that’s created because of you guys [the board], it’s created by those who came before us, and we’re trying to continue and keep that going,” Holt said. “It’s a neat thing to know that people outside of the school district feel that Colonel Crawford is at a high level with academics, with the arts, and with our athletics. We have all-stars from the top down. It starts with the culture, and it starts with an intentional approach every single day to give people the opportunity to want to come in.”
Cody Knapp, head of maintenance within the district, spoke to the board about different projects within the district, including replacing lights in the junior high gym, old high school cafeteria, eventually replacing the lights in the high school gym, looking into occupancy light sensors in hallways, repairing the HVAC system, and roof repairs. Repairs will lead to cost savings for the district.
Josh Dyer, who has elementary kids in the district and who coaches basketball and softball for 4th, 5th, and 6th-grade girls, presented frustrations to the board over the use of, or lack thereof, all gyms for practices.
Dyer stated that with the addition of the auxiliary gym, he thought he would have more opportunities to get his athletes into the gym more to develop skills, only to be told that the old high school gym was not available for use and that the old nets for softball and baseball were being sold, despite the need for them with the younger kids.
“I thought that was why the new gym was constructed, to provide opportunity, and as I look at it now, it almost seems like there is less opportunity,” Dyer said. “I just wanted to express my displeasure that we, as taxpayers, as somebody that wants to develop and help, are being denied an opportunity to help those athletics.”
Board president Norm Huber informed Dyer that board members will see what they can do.
Treasurer David Sheldon informed the board that the district received a clean audit.
The board approved Jake Bruner for head football coach; Jordan Kiess for head cross country coach; Nathan Hill for head boys’ golf coach; and Jamie Valentine as head volleyball coach.
The district’s membership into the Ohio High School Athletic Association for grades 7-12 for the 2025-2026 school year was approved.
The academic calendar for the 2025-2026 school year was approved and will be posted to the school’s website in the upcoming weeks.
The next board meeting is March 17 at 7 p.m.