Vantage board welcomes new director

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

The Vantage Career Center Board of Education received some good financial news from Treasurer Laura Peters, while new High School Director Tony Unverferth attended Thursday’s meeting in his new capacity for the first time.

Peters noted that she recently received notification from the Ohio School Facilities Commission that it will reimburse Vantage for $425,000 of the $623,000 spent by the district on locally funded initiatives (LFIs) during the school’s 2009 facilities project.

Normally, the entire cost of LFIs are paid for by a local district, but the OSFC has the option to provide funding if a project is under budget and funds remain from the dollars allocated by the state for a project.

Superintendent Staci Kaufman also said she was pleased with the OSFC’s decision, noting that a substantial amount of LFI money was spent to correct a problem with an exterior wall.

“That was an expensive fix,” she said, adding that she felt good about the fact that Vantage was receiving reimbursement from the state for nearly two-thirds of the money spend on LFIs.

Also during her report, Peters noted that Vantage’s coffers are healthy, noting that nearly three-fourths of district revenues come from either state foundation and local tax dollars. Peters said approximately 37 percent of Vantage’s funding comes from state foundation dollars, while real estate tax dollars account for 34 percent of district revenues.

Nearly 80 percent of expenses in the district are related to personnel costs, she added, with 55 percent going to salaries and another 24 percent to benefits.

Peters also noted that state auditors would be coming into the district next Thursday, and also update the board on training she is receiving on the new MUNIS financial software the district is expected to implement sometime in early 2017.

Unverferth was hired by the board in July to replace Ben Winans, who left Vantage to become superintendent of Wayne Trace Local Schools.

The new high school director talked about recent and upcoming events at the school, including the Vantage picnic next week, while also providing enrollment figures for the upcoming school year. Unverferth said Vantage currently has 440 students enrolled, although he noted that figure is likely to change somewhat as the new year unfolds.

Unverferth, who was a teacher at Vantage before becoming director, said he was excited about his new role at the school.

“The last six years I have worked here have been an amazing experience,” he said, adding that he wants to help keep Vantage moving in a positive direction.

In personnel action, the board approved hiring Ray Gibson as a social studies teacher, Diane Font in the Medical Office Management program, Lisa Enyart as a part-time cook and custodian, Reesa Rohrs as high school secondary program STNA coordinator and the primary instructor for clinicals, and Karen McGilton as a summer maintenance worker.

The board also accepted the resignation of Paula VanTilburg as Medical Office Management instructor.

Those hired for the Ohio Technical Center include the following: Shirley Jarvis, Angie Shellabarger, Tammy Keller, Diane Meringleo-Dirksen, Jourdan Tomlinson, and Kristina Byrd as instructors, Cynthia Krizan as transitions coordinator, Michael DeMoss as Trucking Academy maintenance worker, and Annette Klinger as an OTC proctor.

In other action, the board:

• Appointed Board President Lonnie Nedderman as Vantage’s Ohio School Boards Association Capital Conference delegate and Pat Baumle as the alternate delegate.
• Authorized compensation for Font for Medical Office Management program laboratory set-up and class preparation.
• Approved a revised job description for the warehouse maintenance position.
• Accepted the donation of a 1979 Dodge B-200 three-quarter ton pickup truck, valued at $2,500, from John Gamble of Van Wert for the Vantage FFA program.
• Approved preschool parent and police handbooks.
• Approved a Bilateral Articulation Agreement with Rhodes State college.
• Accepted the following grants: $1,000 from the Patricia L. Lichtensteiger Memorial Fund of the Van Wert County Foundation for Vantage’s literacy program; $53,835 from the Van Wert County Foundation (Rothacker-Lampe Bequest) for electricity program equipment.
• Approved the Ohio Technical Center catalogue and student handbook for the upcoming school year.
• Approved a Community Reinvestment Area request from Gregory Amstutz, 1304 Woodland Ave. in Van Wert.
• Authorized training compensation for Ohio Technical Center instructors.

The next meeting of the Vantage Board of Education will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, September 1, in the district conference room.