News

Jun 11, 2024

Local schools awarded Stronger Connections grant

COLUMBUS — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine recently announced $33.3 million was awarded to 747 districts and schools across the state to provide students with safer and healthier learning environments through

COLUMBUS — Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine recently announced $33.3 million was awarded to 747 districts and schools across the state to provide students with safer and healthier learning environments through the Ohio Department of Education’s Stronger Connections Grant.

This grant opportunity complements Future Forward Ohio, which prioritizes student wellness, including addressing barriers that prevent students from engaging in learning. Districts and schools can use Stronger Connections Grant funds to support their local health and safety needs, including student wellness and mental health.

Archbold Area Schools received $5,000 from the grant. Superintendent Jayson Selgo said the district has no immediate plans for the funds. He said the administrative team will discuss qualifying programs and determine how the funds can best serve the district.

Evergreen Local School District received $60,000 in funding. Treasurer Brian Carroll said there is a plan in place for the funds, but it is awaiting approval from the Department of Education.

Fayette Local School District received $5,000 from the grant, which will go toward employing a behavioral specialist from the Educational Service Center, Superintendent Angela Belcher said. The behavioral specialist will work with teachers on implementing behavior plans as part of the district’s One Needs Plan.

Liberty Center Local Schools was awarded $5,000 through the program. In using the funding to provide students with tools and resources to improve learning, LC Treasurer Jenell Buenger said teachers discussed “cooldown corners” for the students to utilize.

These areas include items such as headphones and calming music, stress balls, kinetic sand and a privacy screen to relax students so they are in more of a focus for learning. The program is all-encompassing for the grades in the district, but Buenger said this concept leans more toward the students in the elementary grades.

Buenger added each class in the district will be looked at, and the district will equip as many rooms with these materials as it possibly can within the funding limits.

Napoleon Area City Schools was awarded $33,499.05 through the grant program. District treasurer Michael Bostelman said the district’s plan is based around family engagement, with the first step being a family engagement audit with the help of an outside agency.

Following the audit, the district plans to create a Wildcat Advisory Committee that will help with providing feedback to the schools about parent engagement within the district and come up with ideas on what topics to bring in for families to participate in. The district would also work with the committee to host various family engagement opportunities for families around social-emotional learning supports they can do at home, such as suicide prevention, preventing the use of alcohol and tobacco and mental health strategies.

Additional plans for the funds include community events in collaboration with the city and various local agencies to share information and build a stronger school and community partnership, as well as providing professional development opportunities for administrators and staff on what family engagement truly means in order to build capacity after the grant.

Patrick Henry Local Schools was awarded $8,592.38 in funding.

PH Superintendent Dr. Josh Biederstedt reported the district intends to use these funds to cover some of the costs of its school resource officer (SRO). Dylan Woods of the Deshler Police Department currently serves as the district’s SRO.

Pettisville received $5,000 in funding from the grant. Treasurer Chris Lee said the money will be used to purchase curriculum and educational materials, specifically ones that support social and emotional education and needs.

Swanton Local School District received $11,152.81, which it will allocate into two categories: professional development for staff and support services for students, Superintendent Chris Lake said. Specific programs within these categories have yet to be decided.

Wauseon Exempted Village Schools was awarded $6,325.26 from the grant. Superintendent Troy Armstrong said the district has been implementing its Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports/mental health programming that goes along with its Safe and Healthy Schools goal in its State of Ohio approved One Plan.

The district plans to use these funds to add a Rule Our Experience (ROX) program, which is a research-based program for empowering young girls in a positive and healthy way that aligns to social emotional learning standards and improves communication, decision making and critical thinking. Armstrong said the district will use the funds to provide ROX programming to groups of girls in fifth grade.

Pike-Delta-York Local Schools will receive $5,000. The district will use the funds for training professional educators about trauma-informed practices which could include how to identify trauma in students, as well as know what resources are available to help manage the situation.

The Stronger Connections Grant is a supplement to the Title IV, Part A, Student Support and Academic Enrichment program.

“The Stronger Connections grant strengthens our commitment to ensuring students are safe and have the resources they need while addressing the mental and physical health needs that are critical to ensuring students are ready to learn and be successful in the classroom and in life,” DeWine said.

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