JACKSON CENTER — School districts in the state of Ohio experienced a great deal of change in 2015. Academic standards were called into question; some of the testing companies that were charged with “raising the bar” on the state tests have now been relieved of their duties. In addition, just like many aspects of modern education, technology is playing a key role and state testing was completed online.

“Jackson Center Schools tried to model the behaviors that we would want to see in our students,” said Superintendent Bill Reichert. “We joined the fight to try and correct many of the inadequacies of the new systems and tried to roll with the changes that were not hindering student learning. There are still more challenges (including not having a complete report card at this time), but we must teach our students that there will always be challenges in life. Our responses must be thoughtful, non-reactive and steady.”

His reprot continues:

Being “steady” for Jackson Center Schools means continuing our commitment to early childhood education, academic specialization in the primary grades and developing a more individualized plan for each student as they mature into middle and high school students. Our students have varying interests so the goal must be to equip them with basic skills in reading, math, science and civics while they pursue more personalized interests in engineering, music technology, agricultural science, psychology, financial planning and American Sign Language. We are always striving to open more doors to our students whether they struggle academically, have been deemed “gifted” or are somewhere in between.

In 2015, planning for our new facility was in high gear and we have been able to share high level drawings of the building and grounds with our community so far. We are currently taking steps towards completing the more detailed parts of the classrooms, offices, cafeteria, gymnasium and outdoor amenities. While the new facility is needed for safety and practical purposes, it will also enable us to continue down the path of being more specialized and innovative in our academic programs. The plan will be to start a 1-to-1 computer to student program and provide more “hands-on,” practical applications both inside and outside the building. Finally, because of taking advantage of some positive market conditions, we were able to shorten the life of our building loan by 10 years and save our taxpayers approximately $3 million in interest payments.

Our general fund has also experienced a steady increase over the past few years due to a positive local economy and some fiscal reduction opportunities within the district. The general fund along with some private individuals and organizations will hopefully help us complete the parts of the building project that the state does not co-fund. The end goal will be to “finish the job” started in 2001.

Continued academic success and progress towards completion of our building project will make 2016 a year full of great challenges and promise for Jackson Center Schools. The administrative team, in cooperation with the teaching staff and parents, will be focusing on the continued growth and progress of all students no matter how diverse their abilities may be.

We will do this by:

• Providing a safe, friendly environment filled with high expectations that parents and students will recognize as soon as they enter the building.

• Partnering with the village of Jackson Center and local businesses to provide opportunities for students to explore their varied interests.

• Continuing to monitor the academic growth of students as well as their development into contributing members of society.

• Ensuring that our staff is prepared for the challenges that come with educating students in the 21st century.

Please visit our webpage at www.jackson-center.k12.oh.us to discover all that Jackson Center schools has to offer.