Spring Edition 2017

Panther Pause

TWIN VALLEY COMMUNITY LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWSLETTER

SUPERINTENDENT’S CORNER – Robert Fischer (bfischer@tvs.k12.oh.us)

It's hard to believe that spring is here and

the 2016-2017 school year is almost

completed. As we look ahead to the future,

we have a number of projects that are on the

horizon, and we are looking at potential

opportunities that will only enhance the

school district to our community and the

area. The first opportunity is our upcoming

roof replacement project. Because of the

generosity of the community in March of 2016, the district started

working with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission

(OFCC) to formulate a plan to replace our 22-year-old roof. As

the school year has progressed, TVS Schools are now in the final

process of the decision-making step and look to start construction

in June.

We are looking at several scenarios for the roof replacement

which include complete replacement or, at a minimum,

replacement of just the flat areas. During the week of April 10th,

the district had a nuclear scan completed of the roof. Once the

information from that scan comes back, we will have a much

clearer picture of the total scope of our project.

In addition to our roof project, the District is looking into the

Guaranteed Clean Energy Program (GCE). The GCE is a

program that pays 100% of an energy savings project with no up-

front cash payments and guarantees a positive financial return

immediately on the replaced energy efficient items. In other

words, the GCE will pay the costs for the school district to up-

grade/update/replace items in our buildings that will increase

energy conservation. The re-payments of the project costs are

made over time, typically 15 to 20 years, through the school

district’s property assessment. The project is secured by the

guaranteed energy savings and paid as an addition to the building

property tax bills. The benefit of this project is it will not cost our

tax payers any additional monies!

If the school district pursues this program, we could

potentially replace some of the following items:

Exterior doors and windows

Replacement of interior light fixtures (LED lights)

Replacement of the football stadium lights

Replacement/addition of outside parking lot lighting

Boiler replacement

Addition of energy efficient light switches/sensors

The District Safety Committee put together an

improved/updated safety plan and practiced several scenarios in

the event of an emergency. Special thanks to the members of the

committee for helping us make this a meaningful and

collaborative initiative. Twin Valley South will be holding a

second safety scenario on June 20th, in conjunction with the

Sheriff’s Department to continue to find ways to make TVS safe!

As the year has progressed, we have been busy releasing

wonderful stories about our students and updating school

activities through our various communication formats. If you

have not yet taken time to connect to any of these resources,

please do not delay. My number one goal is to make sure ALL

are aware of what is happening at TVS!

TREASURER’S CORNER – Tearalee Riddlebarger (triddlebarger@tvs.k12.oh.us)

Twin Valley leaders have been working

hard to protect your tax dollars while

continuing to meet our students’ needs. As

you can see below, it has been a busy year

with a number of significant initiatives we

want you to be aware of:

During the 2016-2017 school year, the

district continues to stay ahead in revenues

and behind in expenditures of the projected

forecast. What does this mean? We have balanced our budget.

During the school year, the administration and staff maintained a

conscientious approach of their spending while still managing to

serve the students’ and improve on the communities’ investment.

At this point, the school’s 2017-2018 projected budget is a bit of

a challenge due to the State of Ohio’s budgeting process.

Governor Kasich’s budget plan is still making its way through the

House and the Senate and we hope to have more concrete

information shortly. As a result of the unknown, the district will

continue to plan conservatively when budgeting for the next

several years in order to keep the district in the black. Our current

5-year Forecast was approved in October of 2016 and will be

amended at the May Board of Education Meeting. Up-to date

financial figures can be found on the Ohio Department of

Education website.

Additionally, we were able to implement fair raises for our

staff to improve the District’s ability to retain and attract staff. All

of the above items were accomplished while keeping the district’s

financial health bottom line in mind.

The community should be aware of one change that may be

taking place with the Current Agricultural Use Value (CAUV) in

Ohio. Recent legislation reduces the increase for property holders

heavily impacted by the most recent CAUV adjustments. If the

projected change takes place, the tax bills for those citizens who

do not have agricultural land could increase. The district wants to

make taxpayers aware that any possible change in taxation is not

due to the addition of new levies, taxes or bonds. This proposed

impact on tax bills will be a result of needing to meet the generated

amount previously voted on by the community while complying

with reduced agricultural contribution. Our goal is to make sure

we keep our citizens informed and want to be as forthcoming as

possible. If at any point you have ANY questions, please feel free

to contact me.

HIGH SCHOOL/MIDDLE SCHOOL – Scott Cottingim, 7-12 Principal (scottingim@tvs.k12.oh.us)

The last nine weeks of 2016 - 2017 school year is underway. Several student groups recently returned

from trips over spring break. The H. S. Band performed at Disney World and the 8th grade went to Washington

DC. The 7th grade students are excitedly planning their trip to Camp Campbell Gard in May. Spring Sports

are well underway and participation numbers are the highest that we have had in years.

State testing is under way; we will be administering the ACT, ELA, Science, Math, and Social Studies

tests this spring. Scheduling for next year has begun and will be finalized in the next few weeks. TVS will

host a mock accident on Friday, April 21st as part of prom week activities. The dangers of drinking and

driving are the point of emphasis along with prom and graduation safety issues. Special thanks to the West

Alexandria Emergency Squad, West Alexandria Fire Department, West Alexandria Police Department, and Preble County Med

Copter! The junior class once again sponsored our Junior/Senior Prom which will be held at Miami University on April 22nd. The

junior class parents will host the after prom at TVS High School.

Please mark your calendars for the 8th grade promotion ceremony on May 19th at 6:30 PM in the TVS Auditorium and the

High School Graduation on May 30th at 7:00 PM at the Princeton Pike Church of God.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL - Patti Holly, K-6 Principal (pholly@tvs.k12.oh.us)

This has been a remarkable school

year for Twin Valley South Elementary.

The staff and I want to thank you for all

the support and patience shown these past

10 months. We had some great

accomplishments and faced our

challenges head-on as we strive to create

an environment that will support all

students in meeting their maximum academic and social

potentials.

Journey’s was adopted by TVES this year as the new

English Language Arts program. Introducing a new academic

program always presents challenges, but we were able to work

through these issues and look forward to Journey’s in 2017-

2018 school year.

Positive Behavior Interventions and Support program

(PBIS) is a program that we began to implement this year that

has helped build a positive learning environment for our

students. This program has encouraged our students to focus

on expectations that reinforce responsibility and respect.

Three elementary students were invited to share their Panther

Paw Charms at our school board meeting. Each student was

able to identify and explain the reason they received their

individual charms. Students were honored quarterly for

perfect attendance and straight A’s. Weekly, a student in each

classroom was honored with a Panther Paw award for their

“Responsible, Respectful and Ready” behavioral

expectations.

Under the direction of

Mrs. Weldy, K-6 Art teacher, a

new event was shared with

families that featured our

student’s art masterpieces

matted and framed for their

parents to both admire and

purchase. This is an event we

would like to continue for

years to come.

Mid-year students in grades second through sixth began a

keyboarding program. Each day students eagerly looked

forward to challenging themselves to reach the next level. The

skill of keyboarding will tremendously help students with

online testing responses as well as developing an important life

skill.

There are not enough words of gratitude for all the

volunteers who were in classrooms and outside of them

supporting our teachers in every way possible. Your presence

and support makes a much stronger Twin Valley South

Elementary.

TECHNOLOGY CORNER - Derrick Myers (dmyers@tvs.k12.oh.us)

During the 2016-2017 school year, we are continuing to find ways to make communication a priority.

This year we started grade level email groups for parent communication. You can add yourself by visiting

tvs.k12.oh.us, parent menu, “Join an Email Group”. Also, please remember to check us out on Facebook,

Twitter @superintendent1tvs. Teachers can be reached directly via email. If you know the teacher name,

you know their address! Example would be John Doe,”jdoe@tvs.k12.oh.us”. We also highly encourage

regular use of our online Gradebook. Don’t wait until the final week of the quarter to check out your

students grades! If you had an account last year, it’s the same this year.

Stay up to date with school or athletic calendar events on your phone. Check out our “Mobile

Calendar Sync” instructions under the Calendar menu on our website.

We hope you use some of these methods to be better informed of school news!

FOOD SERVICE – Mrs. Megan Fields (mperry@tvs.k12.oh.us)

For families that feel they would

be eligible for free or reduced priced

meals, please note that you may submit

an application at ANY time during the

school year. Only ONE application is

required per household. Application

forms can be found in any of the

building offices or on the school

website. If you would like an

application mailed to you or need assistance completing

your application, please contact my office at 839-5691.

Breakfast is available for all students every

day. Students receiving a free lunch may also receive a free

breakfast. Students who qualify for a reduced lunch rate

will also qualify for a reduced breakfast price of

$0.40. Please note that breakfast will not be served on days

that school is delayed.

Students with special dietary needs should consult with

our school nurse, Mrs. Unger. Food service will work with

the nurse to modify breakfast and lunch menus based on

written orders from the student’s family physician.

In order to help families, sack lunches are available for

any student participating in a class field trip. One day

notice is appreciated. Please call the food service office, or

send a written request with your child.

We would also like to remind Elementary

parents/guardians that you are welcome to eat lunch with

your child at any time. We ask that ALL visitors contact

the school office and pick up a visitor’s pass in the office

before proceeding to the Commons for Lunch.

During the 2017-2018 school year, Elementary

students will be eating breakfast in the cafeteria instead of

the classroom. This change gives our students more

opportunity to feed their brains for learning! Please feel

free to join us down in the cafeteria! We will have samples

available for new breakfast items! Also, we look forward to

offering “Taco Thursday” in all buildings next year!

SOUTH STRONG – PANTHER PROUD

TVS REACHING OUT & KEEPING IN TOUCH

Need more information about Twin Valley South? You can find us on any of the following…

Facebook:

Twin Valley Community Local School District

Twitter: @Superintend1Tvs – Mr. Fischer, Superintendent

@TVS_Athletics – TVS Athletics

Website: tvs.k12.oh.us Phone: HS – 937-839-4693

MS – 937-839-4165

ES – 937-839-4315

DO – 937-839-4688

TRANSPORTATION & MAINTENANCE - Mr. Jeff Tully (jtully@tvs.k12.oh.us)

The 2017-18 school year has gone well. As the building continues to age, we are constantly looking at

ways to increase safety and looking for projects to keep the building as the “crown-jewel” of the community.

Recent projects include, turning the HS office desks to face the front doors which also gave us an opportunity

to update the carpet in that area. We added locks that require visitors to be buzzed into each office, added

gates to the ES playground and additional rubber mulch to bring it to the required depth, made repairs to

several fan motors, milk coolers, as well as replaced light ballast, lights, lockers, loose countertops and water

leaks around the building. We have continued to add fresh paint to the building including several of our

student and activity bathrooms. As a cost savings measure, we are taking advantage of a DP&L rebate to

replace the house lights in the auditorium with LED bulbs. We plan to remove the 500 watt bulbs and replace them with 18-watt

bulbs which will give us the same amount of light while saving 14,460 watts of power and cutting down on maintenance issues.

Transportation is up and running thanks to Mr. Snyder’s hard work. Due to replacing our aging fleet with new buses as grant

money becomes available, we have only had a minor number of maintenance issues. We will be adding one new bus as the year

comes to a close. Despite the time spent on maintenance issues with transportation and facilities, Mr. Snyder managed to obtain

his OBI certification. This certification will allow us to train new drivers and sub drivers in house at a savings to the district.

Mr. Don Strebig will be leaving TVS this year after 9 years of driving for the district. We would like to thank him for his

service and wish him well in his future adventures.

BUTLER COUNTY SUCCESS PROGRAM – Mrs. Allie Shafer (ashafer@tvs.k12.oh.us)

The Success team continues to work

diligently advocating for our students and

program at the State level. On March 17th,

we had the opportunity to speak to

Representative Rezabek and Senator

Beagle. During this meeting, we

discussed the positives of the program and

the upcoming funding concerns. We

traveled to Columbus on March 22nd to testify in support of

continuation of the Healthier Buckeye Grant. Additionally, I

recently met with the West Alexandria Council to educate

them on the program and the work we are doing in the school

to help students and families. If you feel your family or

students need help breaking down the socio-economic barriers,

please do not hesitate to contact me!

Statistics:

Number of referrals: 52

Active families: 23

Success Stories:

Provided support to homeless student. Able to connect

her with JFS to begin receiving Medicaid and Food

Assistance.

IEP was signed for and ES student

Included on support strategy for chronically truant MS

student

Working closely with cafeteria staff to address students

who do not have funds in their lunch accounts on a

regular basis.

PUPIL SERVICES – Daniel Lewis (dlewis@tvs.k12.oh.us)

I have had a chance to get to know a lot of students and parents in my first year here at TVS. It has been

a very positive experience and I would like to thank everyone for making it so. One thing parents often tell

me is that they don’t know how to go about getting help for their child besides communication with the

classroom teacher. I would like to share information about the Intervention Assistance Team (IAT) process

as a starting point to getting additional support.

The IAT team is a group of teachers that meet to discuss students that have been referred to the committee

by parents or staff. The team collects information and progress data on the students in order to suggest

strategies and structures that could help the student in the general curriculum. The classroom teachers then

implement those strategies and structures into their classroom planning. After a few weeks, the IAT team collects more data to

determine if the suggestions have been beneficial. The IAT team revisits the plan and makes new suggestions if needed.

If you would like more information on the IAT process, please contact the classroom teacher, the Guidance Office, or the

Office of Pupil Services.

Congratulations to the TVS staff members who will be retiring at the end of the 2016-2017 school year:

Mr. Glen Mabry - HS Social Studies Mrs. June Creech - TVS Cafeteria

Mr. Don Strebig - TVS Bus Driver Mrs. Joyce Kimball - TVS Cafeteria

Best wishes and thank you for your service to the students of the Twin Valley Community Local Schools.

PANTHER PAUSE

Twin Valley Community Local Schools

100 Education Drive

West Alexandria, Ohio 45381-1184

POSTAL CUSTOMER

West Alexandria, Ohio 45381

MISSION STATEMENT of Twin Valley Community Local School District

“…is to provide a safe learning environment where all children are challenged to achieve their maximum

potential, based on individual needs and abilities, utilizing a team effort among parents, educators, staff, and

community.”

BOARD OF EDUCATION

Mike Randolph Jason DeLong Tim Beneke Sean Maggard Jim Pemberton

President Vice President Member Member Member

Mark Your Calendars

May May

May 4 & 5 – FFA State Convention

May 5 – 5th grade return from Camp Kern

May 6 – Special Olympics

May 8 – 3rd grade Field Trip

May 9 – 4th grade Field Trip

May 9 – Percussion Ensemble

May 12 – HS Engineering Day Field Trip

May 22 – Band Concert

May 23 – 3rd grade field Trip

May 23 – Underclassmen Awards

May 23 – MS Awards

May 23 – HS Athletic Awards

May 24 – Students Last Day

May 30 – High School Graduation

May June / July

May 12 – MVCTC Senior Last Day

May 13 – CCC Track Meet

May 15 – Band Concert

May 16 – MVCTC Juniors Last Day

May 16 – 5th Grade Talent Show

May 17 – 7th Grade Camp Campbell Gard

May 18– 1st Grade Cincy Zoo Field Trip

Jun 26 - Board Meeting

Jul 4 – Holiday – District Office Closed

Jul 24 – Board Meeting

District Office Summer Hours:

Open: Mon-Thu – 6:30am-4:30 pm

Closed Fridays during June & July

April / May May

Apr 22 – Prom & After Prom Activities

Apr 25 – Senior Citizens Dinner

Apr 27 – 6th grade Earth Day Field Trip

Apr 27 – Rotary Honors Banquet

May 2 – Election Day

May 3 – 5th grade to Camp Kern

May 3-5 – Kindergarten Screening

May 18 – Kindergarten Field Trip

May 18 – Choir Concert

May 19 – 7th grade return from Camp

May 19 – ES Field Day

May 19 – Senior Activities/Grad Practice

May 19 – 8th grade Promotion/MS Dance

May 22 – 2nd grade Field Trip