Superintendent highlights attendance, safety lessons and expansion of all-day kindergarten
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Summary
Superintendent Dr. Trent Bowers updated the board on district priorities including attendance, state-required suicide-prevention lessons (Sandy Hook Promise), enrollment growth to 10,831 students, and the addition of universal all-day kindergarten supported by 3.5 new teachers and one Title I math teacher.
Superintendent Dr. Trent Bowers presented his report to the board, emphasizing the district mission “to empower community of learners who will change the world” and outlining four vision statements guiding district work.
On attendance, Bowers said the district joined the Stay in the Game attendance network and encouraged families to ensure regular school attendance to support student success. On safety and prevention, he described Ohio’s legal requirement to provide lessons on suicide awareness and prevention for grades 6–12 under the safety/violence education statute referenced in the meeting as the Save Students Act. Bowers said the district will use state-approved materials and plans to use curriculum from the Sandy Hook Promise program for required lessons during nationally recognized awareness weeks; families may opt students out and students who do not participate will be given an alternative activity.
Bowers reported operational and staffing changes for the 2025–26 school year. The district added universal all-day kindergarten and, to implement that change, “we added 3.5 kindergarten teachers.” He noted the district also added one Title I math teacher at Worthing Way funded by federal dollars. Enrollment for the year stood at 10,831 students, about 100 students higher than the previous year, and the district began the year with four more teachers than it ended with.
Bowers also reminded the board that staffing costs are the district’s largest expenditure and that federal funding streams such as Title I could be uncertain in future budgets. The superintendent closed by noting statutory requirements for schools to recognize Patriot Day (Sept. 11) and Constitution and Citizenship Day (Sept. 17), saying families would see those recognitions across district schools.
The board asked questions about the opt-out process and how the district will provide alternatives for students not participating in the lessons; Bowers said families may choose to opt their students out and alternative activities will be provided. No formal policy vote was taken during the report.
