Board of Education Update — June 11, 2024 Regular Meeting

The June 11, 2024, meeting of the Board of Education included presentations on the following topics:

District highlights

Superintendent Robert Hunt, Ph.D., welcomed recent Upper Arlington High School graduate Allie G., who won the CAPA Marquee Award for best actress in a leading role for her portrayal of Cady in the UAHS production of Mean Girls. As the winner, she will travel to NYC to participate in the Jimmy Awards, a national high school theater program akin to the Tony Awards. The UAHS cast and crew of Mean Girls was also nominated for: best musical; backstage excellence and best student designers (Josh B. and Corinne S.). Three other student performers — Abi S., Julia T. and Jimmy Z. — were also semifinalists for the best actor and actress awards.

Dr. Hunt shared the following district highlights:

• Upper Arlington High School’s girls 4x400 relay team — Maggie R., Elaina S., Elizabeth P., and Maren D. — are state champions after finishing in first place at the state meet on June 1. This same relay team also placed 11th in the 4x200 relay, and Elizabeth placed fifth in the open 400 meter. They are currently competing at a national meet in Oregon.

• Upper Arlington Schools celebrated its 100th graduating class on May 26 at the Schottenstein Center. Approximately 480 graduates make up the 100th graduating class.

• Our elementary schools and middle schools celebrated the end of the school year with traditions such as clap-outs and ceremonies in honor of the 5th grade and 8th grade classes.

• Our 8th grade students made lots of memories on the Washington, D.C. trip in May. Our students and staff chaperones stopped along the way to see the Flight 93 Memorial and tour the Gettysburg battlefield in Pennsylvania, and visited Arlington National Cemetery and many of the museums, memorials and sites in D.C.

• Jones and Hastings 7th and 8th grade students kicked off summer in the Windy City — performing at the Field Museum, participating in clinics at VanderCook College of Music and enjoying all the sights they could see in three days! 

Dr. Hunt also paused to share the passing of former Board of Education member Mary Ann Krauss, who served on the Board for eight years beginning in 1982. She had a lasting impact on our schools and the community as a founding member of the Upper Arlington Education Foundation and by helping to create Burbank Early Childhood School and the Upper Arlington Community Foundation. She was appointed to the City Council in 2003 and was re-elected to two additional terms. She was pivotal in the project to save and restore the historic barn now known as the Amelita Mirolo Barn and was passionate about creating a community center.

He also acknowledged and thanked the Board of Education for attending their annual retreat on June 9 and 10. 

 

Calendar updates

Dr. Hunt shared the following calendar updates:

• Board of Education special meeting at 9 a.m. on Friday, June 28 at the Municipal Services Center, lower level meeting room

• The updated 2024-2025 school year calendar, with early release dates, the spring election date and the commencement date

 

Strategic planning update

Dr. Hunt shared an update on the strategic planning process. Since the start of the year, more than 75 student, staff, parent/guardian and community volunteers have been working together to develop the next strategic plan and define the future of education in the Upper Arlington Schools. They have drawn on the innovative and collaborative vision of nearly 9,000 stakeholders through feedback opportunities over the past two years. He thanked the volunteers for their service.

The next phase is implementation planning, during which time the district will be working to identify goals, action steps and timelines for the strategic recommendations. During the fall, Dr. Hunt will be going to every building in the district to gather feedback from staff on implementation planning, with the goal of having an implementation plan finalized by the end of the year.

 

Human Resources update

Chief Talent Officer Matt Jordan introduced the following administrative candidates who are on the Board agenda for approval:

 

• Nichole Cooper for the position of Barrington Elementary School principal

• Dr. Cathy Ely for the position of director of well-being, prevention and intervention

• Shannon Gagel for the position of gifted coordinator

• Matthew R. Jordan, current UAHS assistant principal, for the position of UA Hub principal

 

Teaching and Learning update

Chief Academic Officer Keith Pomeroy and Director of Data & Accountability Tammy Yockey, Ed.D., shared an update from the Teaching & Learning Department regarding a number of data points that the district closely monitors — graduation rate, elementary literacy, PSAT (11th graders), SAT scores, ACT scores, AP/IB enrollment and passage rates, college remedial coursework and performance index. They shared a comparison of the most recent years’ data for the district with that of similar districts as identified by the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce and state averages. 

They also shared a look at the U.S. News and World Report High School Rankings for 2024, based on the Class of 2022. They offered a comparison of Upper Arlington High School, ranked #21 in the state by U.S. News and World Report, to Bexley High School, ranked #2.

Pomeroy also shared two items for Board of Education approval - a list of existing curriculum resources and a list of new resources for the 2024-2025 school year.

 

Retire / Rehire notice

Pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 3307.353, the Upper Arlington City School District Board of Education gave notice that Computer Science Teacher Diane Kahle and Teacher on Special Assignment Jeanne Beaver will retire under the State Teachers Retirement System, effective May 24, 2024, and are seeking employment with this Board thereafter in the same position. The Board will hold a public hearing on July 15, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. at the Municipal Services Center at 3600 Tremont Rd. Upper Arlington, OH 43221 on the issue of their re-employment. 

 

Voucher Lawsuit Discussion and Possible Action

Each member of the Board of Education shared their thoughts on the voucher lawsuit. Following their comments, the Board of Education approved a resolution to join the voucher lawsuit.

 

Treasurer’s update 

Treasurer/CFO Andrew Geistfeld shared monthly financial statements reflecting May 2024. He also shared items on the Board agenda, including two transfers, a Capital Projects Reserve Fund Resolution and a memorandum of agreement with UA Crew, Inc.

You may visit our Upper Arlington Schools Board of Education page to access the June 11 meeting agenda and video recording. To view the meeting presentation, please click here. For meeting dates and more information about the Board of Education, please visit www.uaschools.org/board.