Jonathan Alder’s school board met in Plain City Elementary School’s auditorium Monday night, and were greeted to a room packed with parents and students ready to give presentations and performances. The second grade students demonstrated their skills learned through the reading program Fundations. Later, the crowd was entertained by students playing bucket drums to popular music. Pictured above is second grade student Ben Gordon leading his peers on how to pronounce vowels, while his long-term substitute teacher, Eileen Snyder, watches. The students reciting their vowels while seated are, left to right, Kenzie Buckley, Nate McCain, Kirsten Hostetler, Ben Skorich, Alex Moore and Lane Rowe.
(Journal-Tribune photo by Jacob Runnels)
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Jonathan Alder Junior High School (JAJHS) is getting some help with donations.
At Monday night’s meeting, the district accepted a total of $18,300 from the Jonathan Alder Education Foundation (JAEF) for JAJHS. The district also accepted $6,800 from Donnie Glick and Glick Grading, Monsei Trucking and Retherford Trucking to pay for new cheer mats at the junior high school.
While working with John “Doc” Adams at the JAEF, Assistant Superintendent Misty Swanger said he was persistent on finding out what programs the junior high was doing, and wanted to fund them. With that, $3,300 will go toward remedying anxiety and the rest of the $15,000 will have other applications.
“Doc Adams, who manages the foundation, has been talking to us about coming up with innovative projects that wouldn’t typically be funded by the school district,” Swanger said. “We worked with the Junior High’s principal and assistant principal and decided the one thing that would really help them would be if they did some video editing for their morning and afternoon announcements, and to highlight their programs.”
She said part of the $15,000 was spent on iMac computers, 10 iPads, a green screen and teleprompter.
Superintendent Gary Chapman said the district plans to split up the rest of the $15,000 to donate $2,000 of it to the Plain City Police Department. He said whatever is left could go toward the security vestibule project for JAJHS.
Swanger said she hopes the materials will be shipped in before December, so the school can make thank-you videos for the JAEF in February.
The JAEF was also interested in funding other programs. Swanger said $3,300 was given to the school to pay to show the movie “Angst,” as well as fund other supplemental materials.
Jennifer Korn, the district’s director of student services, said showing the movie will help students deal with anxiety. Due to licensing issues, the school can only show the movie twice.
Korn said she plans on screening it in February to staff first so they can have a panel discussion with them and mental health service professionals.
“We would like for staff to see it first so that when parents see it and call with questions, staff have already seen it and are prepared to have those conversations with them,” Korn said.
Swanger said the school is learning from districts like Dublin on how it’ll lead its panel discussions. She said the school plans to hand out promotional materials and “swag” for students.
“We have been putting the groundwork in place in our schools with our teachers to be talking more about anxiety and to be addressing it,” Swanger said.
Board member Shannon Foust expressed concern for the amount of money that will be spent on the movie showing and promotional services.
He said though the program, which Swanger called a “conversation starter,” sounds good for students. However, he “encourages the district” to explore other options that would be cheaper than $3,300, and to not settle on one thing.
Also discussed, Chapman said construction of the vestibule will start Dec. 10, and is planned to be completed before Christmas.
The next meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 10 at Canaan Middle School.