The sunshine days of August are bringing back the school bells as area students prepare to return to the classroom.

Fort Loramie Schools

The first day of school for students attending Fort Loramie Schools will be Wednesday, Aug. 16. Open houses are planned for Monday, Aug 14, from 6:30-8 pm.

There are four new staff members in the district for the 2023-24 school year. They are Clair Albers, first grade; Jocelyn Tangeman, second grade; Logan Kaiser, elementary intervention; and Lindsey Gasson, high school math.

New classes and programs for the students include Construction Engineering, Design & Modeling, Intro to Engineering. These classes will be done with the satellite instructor from Upper Valley Career Center.

The district resurfaced the high school parking lot and renovated the football playing surface. Also, the shop area was reconfigured with new furniture and a new layout. The project was done in partnership with UVCC.

The Wall of Honor ceremony is planned for Sunday, Oct. 15.

Hardin-Houston Schools

Hardin-Houston Local School District students will begin the 2023-24 school year on Aug. 17. An open house will be held Aug. 15 from 5-7 p.m.

New staff members are Cara Stephey, elementary intervention specialist; Bethany Wical, elementary intervention specialist; Kyle Borchers, junior high and high school English; and Jeanie Riethman, director of student services.

“Over the summer we placed an elastic membrane coating on the 1978 gymnasium roof. We also installed a new playground kickball field with the use of federal grant money. We are currently constructing a new playground on the athletic complex which is also be paid for by federal grant money,” said Superintendent Ryan Maier.

Anna Schools

Anna Local School District’s students will return to the classroom on Tuesday, Aug. 22. An open house will be held Wednesday, Aug 16. The elementary open house for grades K-5 will be held from 5-7 p.m. The middle school and high school open house for grades 6-12 will be held from 5:30-7:30 p.m. The sixth-grade grientation will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the Milliette Auditorium. The 12th grade meeting will be held at 6:45 p.m. in Milliette Auditorium for seniors attending CCP and UVCC. “Meet Your Bus Driver Night” will also be held during the open house.

New staff members for the district are Kelsie McKinney, kindergarten; Kelly Inkrott, first grade; Lauren Burch, third grade; Leslie Heintz and Amy Seger, intervntion specialists; Britny Spaugy,, elementary special needs unit; Keaton Metz, athletic director; Morgyn Shoffner, instructional specialist; Kim Car, classroom aide; and Amanda Delaney and Cheryl Lightle, cooks.

Jackson Center Schools

Wednesday, Aug. 23, will be the first day of school for students attnding Jackson Center Local School. An open house will be held Monday, Aug. 21, from 6:30-8 p.m.

New staff members are Holly Middendorf, intervention specialist; Cris Sidde, technology director; Ashley Leasure, vocal music; Cindy Monin, intervention specialist; Tiffany Miller, interpreter for the deaf; Casey Dietz, educational aide; Emily Turner (UVCC), agricultural education; Brittany Johnson (Shelby Hills), pre-school teacher; Tina Nuss (Shelby Hills),pre-school aide; Jackie Ledley (Shelby Hills, pre-school aide; Abby Pence (MRESC), school nurse and Heather McGowan (MRESC), speech therapist.

New lockers have been installed in the high school, a new roof over the older part of the building was completed and the district upgraded its cameras and security system.

Versailles Schools

A new superintendent will greet the students at Versailles Exempted School District on the first day of school on Monday, Aug. 28.

David Harmon is the new superintendent. He will be joined by other new staff members, Mikayla May, kindergarten; Caritlyn Schmackers, Maker/Tech Lab; Jessica Niekamp, gifted coach; Elly Puthoff, intervention specialist; Jacqueline Nomaou, high school/junior high family consumer science teacher; and Mindy Gigandet, educational aide.

An elementary school Meet Your Teacher Night will be held Thursday, Aug. 24, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. The fifth-grade and new middle school student orientation is Tuesday, Aug. 15, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Freshmen and new high school student orientation is Monday, Aug. 14, at 7 p.m.

The Versailles K-12 building is and has been updated with new spaces to serve the students and community for many years to come. There is an expanded FFA space, a new STEM space, new band room, New weight room. Additional storage that will serve many departments. The district will host a “grand opening” later in the fall after everything is completely finished.

A portion of the building will be finished in time for the students first day, but there is a second portion that will be made available right around the end of the calendar year (near December).

Minster Local Schools

Minster students will return to the classroom on Aug. 23. An open house will be held on Aug. 21 from 6-8 p.m.

New staff members are Sarah Regedanz, Natalie Leatherman, Melissa Schmackers and and Mike Ketner.

“In the high school we are starting ‘Ref Preps,’ an OHSAA approved online official’s training course for multiple sports. This will be included in our Lifetime Sports curriculum,” said Superintendent Josh Meyer.

“Our custodial and maintenance crew did an excellent job getting the buildings ready for the start of the school year. They performed numerous preventative maintenance projects. The bus fleet passed inspection on the first attempt and is ready to go for the school year as well,” he continued.

The school is planning a Veteran’s Day program, but the date hasn’t been selected yet.

“We are looking forward to a great year at Minster. Our expectations are high and we know that our students and staff will rise to meet them” said Meyer. “I encourage you to follow Minster Schools on Social Media. Facebook: Minster Local Schools Instagram: Minster Schools Twitter: @MinsterSchools.”

Fairlawn Local Schools

The first day of school for students in the Fairlawn Local School District will be Wednesday, Aug. 23. An open house is planned for Monday, Aug 21, from 4-7 p.m.

New staff members are Melyssa Conley third-grade teacher; Jenni Francis, pre-k teacher; Amy Baker and Robin Carr, bus drivers, Mikayla Pierce, instructional aide; and Shennon Boyer, learning loss teacher.

In preparation for the new school year, the district has installed new exterior security cameras on the main building and outdoor facilities. They have also upgraded the security camera software and added rubber mulch to the playground. A new large play structure on the playground will be installed this fall.

There is also a new traffic pattern around the maintenance building, ball diamonds and track. New safety and security upgrades on the interior of the building have been completed. A new youth baseball field has been added west of the main building and was installed by the Fairlawn FFA. New equipment has been added to the weight room.

A Back to School Bus Tour is planned for Aug. 17. Meet the Teams Night will be held Aug. 18 at 6 p.m. in the high school gym. After the introduction of the fall teams, the Lady Jets volleyball team will face off against the alumni team. The annual alumni banquet will be held Aug. 26.

Botkins Local Schools

Botkins students are getting ready for their first day of school on Thursday, Aug. 17. An open house will be held Tuesday, Aug. 15, from 5-7 p.m.

Cal Miller has joined the district as a sixth-grade teacher.

Safety upgrades have been completed at the school and includes additional electronic doors, updated camera system and ballards on the playground.