MANSFIELD — Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center Superintendent Kevin Kimmel recently made a statement regarding future events scheduled at the center and other operations.

On Thursday, March 12, Gov. Mike DeWine announced that all K-12 schools in Ohio will be closed for a period of three weeks, from March 17 through April 3. Based upon Governor DeWine’s comments, as well as current circumstances, Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center administration has instructed the following to our MOESC personnel and operations.

Mid-Ohio Conference Center

  • All MOESC student events have been either postponed or cancelled starting Tuesday, March 17 through at least Friday, April 3. Specific information on several events will be given below.
  • Public access to the facility will be restricted during this period and any questions should be directed to Steve Earnest, Executive Director at 419-774-2503.

Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center Offices

  • MOESC offices will remain open and operations will continue except for fingerprinting services which will be suspended starting Monday, March 16 through April 3 or until further notice.

Academic Challenge Meets

All MOESC-sponsored March Academic Challenge Tournaments have been postponed with the hopes that the May tournaments can happen. The fourth- and fifth-grade AC tournaments have been tentatively rescheduled for the evenings of May 12 (fourth grade) and 13 (fifth grade). In addition, the high school AC tournament has been tentatively rescheduled for May 11. Clearly, this is still a fluid situation, so please await further announcements or plans regarding these May tournaments.

Artapolooza

The Artapolooza art festival which includes Cabaret Night has also been cancelled. Due to conference center scheduling and the inability to predict the future situation, MOESC is unable to reschedule this event for this year. There is the possibility of rescheduling the middle school student art workshop for a date in May. Students who are submitting art portfolios for review for a gifted identification may still do so. Given the uncertainty of school schedules, etc., there is not yet a new submission date established. More information regarding the new submission date will be released when it is known.

I know that we have a dedicated staff working hard to continue to serve their students, and I am proud of what they are doing to minimize disruption, while maintaining physical safety. Since this is uncharted territory for all of us, we thank you in advance for your understanding and flexibility during this difficult time. Anyone can also follow the most up-to-date information regarding any of our student events by accessing our website (moesc.net) or finding us on Facebook.

Mid-Ohio Educational Service Center provides specialized academic and support services to 10 school districts and over 17,000 students in Crawford, Morrow and Richland Counties. Client districts receive services from curriculum, gifted and special education consultants, speech pathologists, psychologists, special education teachers, occupational therapists and physical therapists.