Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Governance And Operations topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Northern Local board elects officers, approves contracts, personnel actions and SRO MOU
Summary
At the Jan. 9 meeting the Northern Local School Board elected Dale DeRolph president and Patrick Hogan vice president, approved organizational resolutions and a set of contracts and personnel actions including a Memorandum of Understanding with the Perry County Sheriff's Department for a school resource officer.
During its Jan. 9 organizational and regular meeting, the Northern Local School District Board of Education elected officers, approved standing resolutions and voted on multiple contracts and personnel items.
Elections and appointments: The board elected Dale DeRolph as board president (motion by Patrick Hogan; roll call recorded with DeRolph abstaining from his own election) and Patrick Hogan as vice president (Mrs. Cains moved; Mr. Dupler seconded; Hogan abstained from his own election). The board also approved its 2025 meeting schedule to meet at 6:30 p.m. on designated dates at the Northern Local Board Room, and made several OSBA appointments: Megan Miller as OSBA Legislative Liaison and Sharon Cains as OSBA Student Achievement Liaison.
Organizational resolutions: The board unanimously approved a package of standing resolutions including establishing a service fund (minutes list $11,000 within 2024–25 appropriations), authorizing payment of bills by the Treasurer, approving an interim investments policy under Ohio Rev. Code §§135.14 and 135.142, authorizing the Superintendent to make employment offers pending board ratification, and naming Scott Scriven LLP as legal counsel.
Contracts, donations and program items: The board accepted a long list of community donations to district schools and recommended approval of a technology provider agreement with Lexia Learning Systems, LLC. It approved a three-year Medicaid Program Audit contract with Julian & Grube and a Memorandum of Understanding with the Perry County Sheriff's Department for a School Resource Officer; those recommendations were approved as part of the board's business and finance actions. The minutes also record approval of an asset disposal (a broken laminator at Somerset Elementary).
Personnel actions: The board accepted the retirement of elementary music teacher Susan Ballantine effective June 30, 2025, and the resignation of Missy Appenzeller effective Dec. 12, 2024. The board approved several non-certified hires including bus drivers Stefani Swartz (effective Jan. 6, 2025) and Jill Donnelly (effective Jan. 13, 2025), substitute staff, and student teacher placements for James Weeks at the middle school. Administrator contract-expiration notices were also authorized for individuals including Jay Hickman.
Other business: The board approved the first reading of the 2025–26 school calendar and entered an executive session at 7:05 p.m. for matters required to be kept confidential by federal or state law; the board returned at 7:40 p.m. The meeting adjourned following the executive session.
John Fleming, a School Resource Officer candidate recognized at the start of the meeting, told the board he seeks to create the “Gold Standard” for school resource officers by focusing on relationship-building and positive experiences between students and law enforcement.
Votes at a glance: officer elections and organizational resolutions carried with recorded roll-call votes; the tax-budget resolution and the personnel and contract approvals were recorded as approved in the minutes (see timeline).
