Nineteen individuals have expressed interest in the open position on the Marysville Board of Education. “We’re thrilled to have the number of applications we received,” Board President Sue Devine said. The diverse batch of candidates come from occupations in a wide range of areas, including law, accounting, education, business owners and homemakers. Many are parents of students in the district and some have interests in particular segments of the district, such as opportunities for special needs students or sports. A handful currently volunteer on administrative level committees within the district. “The qualifications of the candidates is outstanding,” Devine said. The…
Author: Chad Williamson
Thursday’s school board meeting was a lesson in arithmetic for the Marysville District. During the span of one meeting, the district subtracted two days from the school calendar, added five years to the superintendent’s contract and watched the ratio of board members-to-seats become a fraction. Board member Amy Powers tearfully announced that she would be stepping down from the five-member board effective Monday. The 10-year member said she and her husband are moving and their new home will not be within the boundaries of the district, making her unqualified for the seat. Powers explained that work on the home, which…
All the police, EMTs and security guards in Houston could not have prevented the situation at the Astroworld music festival last weekend. With nine dead and hundreds injured, people have been quick to point fingers in every direction and a handful of lawsuits were filed the very next day. The tragedy was created when the crowd, estimated at 50,000, pushed toward the stage as singer Travis Scott performed. Experts, and the lawsuits, allege that event organizers did not include protocols for dangerous crowd surges, like those experienced during the show. Nobody reading this column has probably ever experienced such a…
For the first time in more than 50 years, the village of North Lewisburg is working to put a noise ordinance on its books. At Tuesday night’s village council meeting, Police Chief Scott Bodey introduced a preliminary version of the ordinance, comprised of regulations not enforced in the North Lewisburg since 1970, according to Mayor Cheryl Hollingsworth. “No person shall make, cause, suffer, allow or permit to be made within the Village of North Lewisburg, Champaign County, Ohio any unreasonably loud, disturbing, and unnecessary noise or noises of such character, intensity or duration as to be detrimental to the life,…
Schools across the state are experiencing shortages in substitute personnel and Marysville is no different. “There is a shortage of substitutes in our school district for various positions,” Marysville Assistant Superintendent Jonathan Langhals told the board of education at a recent meeting. In order to make the district more attractive to potential fill-in workers, the board voted recently to increase the compensation for those jobs. The move is intended to entice new substitutes, but also to help the district retain the ones it currently utilizes. “Not only are we challenged with recruiting new members to our team but also too,…
Marysville linebacker Gabe Powers (36) bats down a pass at Olentangy on Friday. The Monarchs won 35-13 to finish the regular season at 9-0. (Journal-Tribune photo by Chad Williamson) In Friday night’s 35-13 win, the Marysville football team delivered what fans expected – in the game and in the season. The Monarchs easily dispatched the three-win Braves, but more importantly claimed sole possession of the OCC Cardinal Division title and wrapped up the school’s first undefeated season since 2000. “They are playing, man,” MHS coach Brent Johnson said. “They are locked in.” That 2000 squad reached the state Final Four…
Beginning Monday, masks will be optional for students and staff in the Marysville School District, despite the results of a parent survey that found a slim majority of families supported a continued mandate. The Marysville Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday night to implement Superintendent Diane Allen’s recommendation that masks become optional for students and staff in Marysville school buildings. “We firmly believe in parent choice,” Allen said after the meeting. The superintendent explained that the goal of masking was never to be a permanent solution, but rather to be a tool to mitigate virus spread. Marysville started the school…
Editor’s note: All candidates for seats on the Marysville Board of Education were asked to submit personal information about themselves, as well as their stances on issues facing the district. The three candidates running as “Monarch Parents for Marysville School Board” chose to send a joint statement on their stances, but separate personal information. Because of this, the portion of the article about those individuals will read differently than the remaining candidates. ––– Six candidates are vying for three open seats on the Marysville Board of Education. Two of the candidates, Dick Smith and Nan Savidge, are current board of…
North Lewisburg Village Council handled a number of routine issues at Tuesday night’s meeting. Mayor Cheryl Hollingsworth reported that the village has received a total of $153,460 in American Rescue Plan Act-Coronovirus Local Fiscal Recovery Funds. The money has been isolated in the general fund and Village Administrator Andy Yoder will be developing a plan for spending the money. Council also learned that the 2020 Census numbers show the village population at 1,636, up from 1,490 residents during the 2010 Census. Leaf pick-up in the village will begin the week of Oct. 25 and will continue for roughly a month.…
There should be consumer protections in place to protect children from purchasing junk in gift shops. The knick knacks kids will purchase with the small amounts of money adults entrust them with are bizarre. If a child walks into a gift shop with $2 and the only thing available at that price is paper mache mask of Rick Flair – Wooooooo, clear a spot on the mantle. I’m not taking aim at such time tested items as refrigerator magnets, snow globes or shot glasses. Those are classics, and also staples of the Williamson family. My mom has quite an array…
The story of Marysville’s 34-0 Friday night blowout against Dublin Jerome can be seen in the photo and two inset images above. Jerome QB Zakk Tschirhart was hammered by the Monarch defense all night, leading to just 68 yards through the air despite 17 pass attempts. In the left inset photo, Colton Powers (32) drills Tschirhart from behind as Erryl Will (40) prepares to hit him in the chest. In the main photo, Tschirhart tries to rollout to give himself time, but is run down by Will and teammate Richard Nielsen. Even when Tschirhart was able to get a pass…
Due to a lack of beds, Memorial Hospital was forced to enact its diversion plan Wednesday afternoon. As part of the plan, non-critical EMS patients were to be taken to other area facilities. The diversion status was canceled this morning. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell) For only the second time in recent memory, Memorial Hospital had to turn patients away overnight on Wednesday. At 3:45 p.m., the hospital alerted regional first responders that it would be going on EMS diversion. As patient volume dipped, that diversion status was canceled at 7:45 a.m. today. Under Memorial’s EMS diversion program the hospital…
Monarch assistant coach Steve Devine and members of the Marysville football team, including Gabe Powers and Erryl Will, pray as medical professionals administer aid to a family member of one of the Marysville assistant coaches following Friday night’s overtime win against Hilliard Darby. The woman experienced a medical emergency during the on-field celebration following the game. (Journal-Tribune photo by Chad Williamson) The importance and irrelevance of football were both displayed for all to see at Marysville Friday night. In one instant, music soared from a Marysville scoreboard showing the Monarchs had pulled off a gritty 21-14 overtime win over Hilliard…
Colton Powers of Marysville follows the block of older brother Gabe, left, as he scores the overtime touchdown against Hilliard Darby on Friday. (Journal-Tribune photo by Chad Williamson) On the field, the matchup paired to very similar squads – both aggressive and quick. Darby’s smallish, fast defensive front was a near mirror image of Marysville. “Listen man, they play our style of football,” said MHS coach Brent Johnson. As you would expect from two even teams, the matchup was a series of ebbs and flows with Marysville having the first half momentum and a 14-0 lead before Darby snatched it…
Memorial Hospital’s frontline workers are being physically worn down by the current COVID surge and are taking an emotional beating from a portion of the community, according to CEO Chip Hubbs. “Our nurses are very focused on taking care of very sick people and debates about masks, vaccines and politics at work are distractions they cannot afford,” Hubbs said after Thursday’s Memorial Board of Trustees meeting. The increase in patient volume has led to staff members taking on additional hours or working different shifts, Hubbs said, but the interactions that do not involve direct patient care are wearing them down.…