Mantua – At the first Board meeting of 2023, the Board elected Karen Schulz School Board President and Kristen Cavanaugh as Board Vice President for 2023. During the meeting, the board adopted the budget for Fiscal Year 2023 and established the dates for regular meetings. (Visit https://go.boarddocs.com/oh/cwlsdoh/Board.nsf/Public to see the complete list of meeting dates.)
In their regular board meeting that followed, Superintendent Dr. David Toth introduced Crestwood Primary Principal Cindy Ducca shared information about the math program at her school. She introduced Math Coach Kristin Patton and first-grade teacher Jolene Reese to share some of the successes they were invited to present at a recent conference held by the Ohio Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Through the brief presentation to the board, the two educators shared how they changed students’ perceptions of math from, “hard, boring, stressful, and scary” to instilling them with “a passion and love for math”. At the end of the year, math skills improved as students’ perceptions were altered. According to Reese, students blossomed when accepting that the classroom was a safe environment to share, take chances and make mistakes. Throughout the year, Patton and Reese instilled the idea that their students are mathematicians, which helped dispell students’ fear in approaching this important subject.
In the public comment portion of the meeting, a representative from Crestwood Revitalization updated the board on the group’s progress. She noted that each building principal was on board with the group conducting facility tours, pending approval of the district superintendent. She also asked the board for clarification on a policy regarding the group’s ability to administer a survey on the district’s behalf. Board members will review the policy and let the group know how to proceed. In other business, the board accepted a donation of $200 from American Legion Post 193. They also accepted several book donations from private citizens Tiffany Litke (12 books) and Levi Morgan (1 book).
In other news, it was noted that the district will be hosting several community events in the next few months. On February 16th, from 4 – 6 pm, Nutrition Night will be held at Crestwood Intermediate School. That evening, representatives from University Hospitals, Haymakers Farmers Market will be present to share how good nutrition can positively impact health. Portage County master gardener Lori Babbey will provide garden demonstrations as well. Staff, students, and community members are invited to attend this event to learn more about nutrition, participate in giveaways, and receive tokens for free produce at the Haymakers Farmers Market.
On March 29th from 7:30 – 10:30 am, community members are invited to attend a Coffee Talk at Crestwood Administration Building. At that time, individuals are welcome to ask questions or share comments with the district’s superintendent and treasurer while enjoying coffee and donuts. And on April 12th, a Health, Wellness, and Safety Fair will be held at Crestwood Intermediate School. Staff, students, and the community are invited to attend. Details on this event will be forthcoming.
The next regularly-scheduled board meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 14th at 7 pm. Those interested may attend the meeting at the Administration Building in person or view online; visit crestwoodschools.org for more information.
