Rich Rhodes is shown passing out a copy of a letter that Congresswoman Jackie Walorski sent Don Bokhart regarding a memorial for Hooiser Second Lieutenant Harry J. Michael. Rhodes was adamant that the school and the board push forward with the memorial and take action in favor of building the memorial wall. Photo by Caleigh Byrer.

By Caleigh Byrer
InkFreeNews

SYRACUSE — Superintendent Dr. Steve Troyer gave his official recommendation on Milford Middle School at the Wawasee School Board meeting Tuesday, Nov. 8.

Troyer stated that after gathering data and hearing from community members, he believes the best course of action for Milford Middle School at this juncture is no action. Troyer stated the discussion should be tabled until the new members join the board in January, per the community’s request.

Troyer said he does not want to rush the decision and would like to open the floor to other parts of the community to hear their thoughts on the matter. All board members expressed they were in agreement with Troyer and did not wish to take any action until the new board members are part of the decision-making process.

In addition to the recommendation, the board received more information on future housing from representatives of Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation.

KEDCO representatives Greg Fitzloff and Terry Sweeney spoke to the board regarding the residential projects that will soon be underway.

Fitzloff stated that by mid-2023, phase one of the project in Milford, which consists of 17 new homes, should be active. He claimed people are already inquiring about pre-sale of these homes, which speaks to what this project may do to boost school enrollment rates.

Additional projects that may affect the Wawasee School District as a whole are expected to conclude by 2025 if all goes as planned. One such project is a new manufacturing plant in Milford that would employ roughly 100 people in administrative and production positions.

The meeting opened with time for patron comments, during which Rich Rhodes stated there has been no word on the Harry J. Michael veteran memorial wall for quite some time. He also stated the issue of the wall was tied to the potential action against Milford Middle School in that each issue consists of broken promises from the board.

Although patron comments are not usually addressed during meetings, Troyer provided clarification on Rhode’s concerns. Troyer stated that a committee had met a few times to discuss building the wall and that at this time, he is just waiting to hear from the designer the group had selected.

Troyer noted during his good news items that the school had received numerous donations, many of which were brought in by the school super mileage vehicle.

The Kosciusko Community Foundation donated $637 and $563.50; Wawasee Property Owners Association donated $5,000; North Webster Church of God donated $500; Knights of Columbus donated $500; Nathan and Troy Ousley donated $500; and Brandy Swope donated $2,500. Douglas and Jeannine Schrock also donated $3,000 to be split among athletics, the super mileage vehicle and the band program.

Troyer also recognized the FFA team of Jared Beer, Coltin Bucher, Wyatt Schafer and Gabe Ihnen for placing 21st out of 51 teams at the state soils contest. Preston Miller, an eighth grader at Milford Middle School, placed ninth individually out of 71 participants in the junior division.

North Webster Elementary now has a 12-hole disc golf course that Troyer attributed to the support of the community. The course is unique to the area because five of the baskets are located in the woods. It is open to the public from 3:30 p.m. to dusk when school is in session and from dawn to dusk on non-school days. It may be accessed from the parking area for the North Webster Elementary walking and nature trails.

George Blessing and Levi Martin had approached Principal Lee Snyder about the idea and donated their time to help plan and install the course.

Circle Disc Golf in Warsaw donated 50% of the cost of the baskets. Troyer stated they will be seeking further donations to help improve the course.

Dr. Shelly Wilfong presented the Indiana Learns program the school will now be participating in. The program targets fourth and fifth graders who did not pass the English Language Arts or math portions of ILEARN and qualify for free and reduced lunch. The school currently has 56 students who would be eligible.

The program provides $500 for tutoring by an approved learning partner. As the school plans to become a Champion Plus School District, funding will be increased to $1,000 per student. The program will operate outside school hours. Wilfong noted that transportation for these students is an issue they are aware of and are actively working toward a solution.

A BCBA Supervision Contract was approved, as well as the tentative 2022-2023 Collective Bargaining Agreement that was discussed at the Thursday, Nov. 3, meeting. A requisition for gift cards was also approved to recognize Mike Genau and Byran Baylor for their help with the sailing class.

During other business the board approved:

Recommendations of employment, appointments, resignations and terminations for support services and staff personnel.

• Employment of Austin Dunithan as temporary swimming assistant; Amy Judy as an early learning center paraprofessional for 4- and 5-year-olds; Betsy Spiegel as a part-time CTE administrative assistant; and Annette Swich as temporary Milford seventh to eighth grade social studies teacher.
• Appointments of David Seyler and Garet Becker to the North Webster Community Public Library Board.
• Resignations of John Glover, third shift custodian; and Melissa Kelly, WELC paraprofessional.
• Termination of Kelsy Shepard, cafeteria worker; and Beth Stoltzfus-Ball, WELC paraprofessional.