District adopts 2007 motto
Copley-Fairlawn City Schools Board of Education
By Pam Lifke
“Learning Today, Leading Tomorrow” was adopted by the Copley-Fairlawn City Schools Board of Education as the district’s 2007 motto at the board’s April 17 meeting.
The motto’s creator, Fort Island Primary School second-grader Kelley Jatich, was awarded a $250 savings bond for winning the district-wide motto contest. Jatich is the daughter of Kim and Jeff Jatich.
Runner-up Savannah Griggs, a fourth-grader at Fort Island Primary, contributed “Dream, Believe, Achieve.” Griggs, daughter of Tracey and Rodney Griggs, received a $200 savings bond.
All district students were invited to submit entries for the contest, said Superintendent Roger Saurer. Entries were judged first at each building, and building winners were submitted for a vote by all district students. The winner and runner-up were decided in a run-off vote by students.
Also at the meeting, following a short public hearing, the board rehired Gary Novak as principal of Arrowhead Elementary School. Novak is retired, and state law requires a public hearing before districts can hire a retiree. Karen Martin, parent of an Arrowhead student, was one of the speakers who favored Novak’s hiring.
“We live in fear of the day he retires,” she said.
No one spoke against his hiring, although one parent asked if the board had a policy on hiring retirees. Board President Kenneth Calderone said the board does not seek to hire retirees, but will when the right person applies for the job. Novak and Copley-Fairlawn Middle School Principal JoAnn Berkowitz are good examples of retirees who have been excellent hires, he said.
The board also approved the director of technology services job description and hired Lance Green for the position. His contract expires July 31, 2009.
Students of the Month for March also were honored at the meeting. They include:
• Arrowhead Primary School: fourth-grader Shareena Shaik, daughter of Sadikha and Sharif Shaik, of Copley. She was nominated by teacher Nikki Kocsis.
• Fort Island Primary School: Nathaniel Holland, son of Andrew and Suzanne Holland, of Fairlawn. The fourth-grader was nominated by teachers Mariah Cadnum and Erin Burtoft.
• Herberich Primary School: fourth-grader Sarah Damron, daughter of Lori Damron, of Copley, and Bill Damron, of Wadsworth. She was nominated by teachers Kathy Casper, Holly Walton and Cathy Wooley.
• Copley High School: 12th-grader Nabriel “Billy” El-Gendy, of Fairlawn. He was recommended by teacher Mark Boesch.
Copley-Fairlawn Middle School student of the month Lacey Jeong will be recognized at the board’s May meeting.
Donald Davis, the parent of a high school softball player, told the board he found out his daughter no longer was eligible to play softball only after receiving her grades for the last grading period. He said his daughter dropped a class earlier in the year, leaving her short of the credits needed for athletic eligibility. He said a counselor failed to send him a permission slip before his daughter was allowed to drop the class and failed to inform him that dropping the class would affect his daughter’s eligibility. Calderone asked Saurer to investigate.
In other business, the board: • accepted a $3,000 donation from OMNOVA Solutions for Arrowhead Elementary’s SMART Board project;
• established a rate for the 2007-08 preschool program of $120 a month for nine months;
• accepted the resignations for retirement of Alice Rote, Mary Beth Palmer and Carol Griffen. Rote will retire at the end of the school year. Palmer and Griffen will retire May 31;
• approved continuing and one-year contracts for certified personnel; and
• employed classified personnel.
The board’s next regular meeting will be May 15 at 7 p.m. in the main office conference room at Copley High School, 3797 Ridgewood Road.
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