Delphos Vantage board member sworn in

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent writer

The Vantage Career Center Board of Education has a new member.

Tony Wiechart was sworn in for a three-year term during Thursday night’s monthly meeting. He’ll represent Delphos City Schools, which became an official member of Vantage earlier this year. He’s been a member of the Delphos school board since January of this year and is an intervention specialist at Elida Elementary.

The addition of Wiechart means the Vantage board now has 12 members.

During his report to the board, High School Director Mike Knott noted that, due to various factors, enrollment is down between 8 and 10 percent this year; he said the previous school year, which was affected by COVID-19, is still being closed out.

“We have some graduates who are still doing credential testing for us,” Knott explained. “We actually had two students take and pass their Class A CDL test, with one more set to test yet, and we have cosmetology students from last year testing in October and early November for their state boards.”

Knott also said he’s working on special events for the current school year, including the annual fall eighth grade trip to Vantage.

“We host every one of your eighth graders for a career day and we understand that’s obviously going to look different this year,” Knott told the board. “Our student services staff and myself are working are working hand-in-hand with our counselors and principals on how we can still get that career exposure to your eighth graders in a different way this year.”

Knott commended career tech supervisors Paul VanTillburg and Ted Verhoff for getting nearly all students in Vantage uniforms in a very short amount of time.

Adult Education Director Kit Tyler told the board the adult-ed department is in the same boat as the high school, with some students finishing up credential work from last school year, but she added fall enrollment is looking good.

Tyler also told the board that firefighter program training coordinator Brian Ankney was able to secure a key grant through the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

“It allows us to pay for the tuition for Fire I candidates, and this is big because the departments don’t have to apply or pay, then wait to get reimbursed by the state,” Tyler said. “This money comes directly to Vantage and it makes it a lot easier for our departments to have people come into the program, so I think we’re going to see a big increase (in students).

“It’s a real benefit to our local small departments because it’s a pretty big burden to send them through the training program,” Tyler added.

Superintendent Rick Turner commended teachers, staff, and students for making the start of the new school year a successful one, and he said a campaign is under way to renew Vantage’s 0.7-mill, five-year permanent improvement levy in November. He noted it won’t result in new taxes, except in Delphos, and he said the levy provides critical funding to keep equipment and facilities current.

The board approved a list of personnel items including Peg Bollenbacher, floating substitute teacher; Jessica Hoyng, Practical Nursing director; Sara Beining, practical nursing instructor; Kevin Gehres, EMT instructor; Brian Heitkamp, CDL instructor; Michael Miller, CDL instructor and vehicle/CDL truck maintenance; and Kendra Sentelik, secretary.

Supplemental contracts for virtual learning graders were approved for Ashley Cline, Katie Drerup, Jaime Kipfer, Sarah Koch, Theresa Mengerink, Angie Shellabarger, and Linda Stocksdale, along with a $3,000 stipend for carpentry instructor Jerry Robinson.

The board was introduced to two new employees — Warehouse Manager Tabitha Maag and Auto Collision instructor Dan Edwards.

Board members accepted a BroadbandOhio Connectivity grant worth $10,500, $2,121 in CARES Act money from the Department of Higher Education, and $20,000 in Perkins grant funds through Apollo Career Center.

The board also met in executive session to discuss personnel matters, but no action was taken afterward.

The next meeting of the Vantage Career Center Board of Education will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, October 1.