Vantage BOE OKs contract for Winans

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

Vantage Career Center High School Director Ben Winans has a new contract.

The three-year contract was unanimously approved during Thursday night’s Vantage school board meeting. Winans was hired by the board in May of 2022. Prior to that, he served in the same role until 2016, when he left to serve as superintendent of the Wayne Trace Local Schools.

One other administrative contract was approved during Thursday’s meeting – it was a one-year retire-rehire contract for Ted Verhoff, career-technical supervisor. Other personnel items were given approval, including Scott Shardelow, culintary arts instructor; Sara Beining, LPN-RN instructor; Megan Burgei, part time PNP instructor, and Harley Pajari, full time LPN-RN instructor/PNP instructor. The board accepted the resignations of Chad Conklin, culinary arts instructor; Lynda Ragan, family and consumer science satellite instructor, and Brook Crosby, adult education nursing instructor.

During his monthly report to the board, Winans said 429 sophomores have applied to Vantage for the next school year, approximately 30 more than last year.

“Our administrative team is working together to begin to sort through the applications as our priority deadline was February 28,” he said. “The priority deadline simply sets an end date for any program that might be oversubscribed, which allows us to then determine which students will get in their first choice program and those that will be offered a spot in their second choice program, and put on the waiting list for their initial program.”

“With the large number of applications and large number of juniors that we expect to return, we will again be at or near capacity,” Winans added.

Adult Education Director Angie Fahy said a 12-week fire instructor class is underway at the Van Wert Fire Department. The class has a dozen students and will run for four weeks. She also said a volunteer fire class with 13 students will begin on March 11 and will go for five weeks.

Superintendent Rick Turner updated the board on the status of the fire training facility and the timeline for delivery by American Fire Training Systems.

“The facility has been built and they are currently adding doors and stairways,” Turner stated. “They anticipate it being completed and ready for delivery in mid to late May.”

He also said planning continues for the All-Boards Dinner on April 3, and said instead of a keynote speaker, Vantage will have a panel of four businesses that will answer questions regarding their workforce needs and how they are working with the schools. Music for the evening will be provided by the Crestview Jazz Band.

Board members heard a brief presentation by carpentry instructor Jerry Robinson, machining and engineering technologies instructor Larry Ray, and students Cody Ricker of Lincolnview and Austen Kinder of Paulding. Ricker and Kinder made a pair of gavels and explained the process in detail.

The board also went into executive session to discuss personnel matters but outside of adjournment, no action was taken.

The next meeting of the Vantage Career Center Board of Education will be held at 5:15 p.m. Thursday, April 3, in the district conference room. The annual Vantage All-Boards program will follow at 6 p.m. in the Commons Area.