This fall on Election Day, our school district will have a renewal emergency operational levy on the ballot.  This levy will have no new taxes but is simply the renewal of an existing 4.15 mill tax levy that has been in existence since 2012.  Again, this renewal levy will appear on the November 2, 2021 ballot as approved by the board of education and it represents no new taxes, just a continuation for another ten-year cycle for what exists in our current operational cycle.  This renewal levy would also allow the homestead reduction factor to continue for qualifying residents.

 

The election day renewal levy will appear on the ballet as issue 17.  This levy was first approved in March 2012.  This levy represents no change in taxes, since it receives no inflationary increases with values.  It brings approximately $1,640,000.00 to the district annually and supports education within our district. 

 

The levy is for general operations.  This money has always been spent for district maintenance, school buses, school books, technology, salaries, and daily operations.

 

Some additional facts to consider:

 

We are fortunate at Greenville City Schools to have a community and administration who supports and encourages a blended approach of teaching and learning.  In this blended approach it is essential that teachers reach the wide range of student needs.   At Greenville Middle School we follow the Ohio Department of Education guidelines for highly able students found through the Office for Exceptional Children.  http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Other-Resources/Gifted-Education/Teaching-Gifted-Students-in-Ohio  

 

Considerations when educating Gifted students are scheduling, enrichment, social and emotional needs as well as academic skill development.  At GMS we take each of these aspects to heart as we create a learning environment for the children of our school district.  

 

Scheduling:  When students are scheduled, we deliberate on the unique aspects of how students learn.   Greenville schools support heterogeneous groupings in scheduling Gifted students in grades 5 and 6.  Students with a Written Education Plan and identified as Gifted learners are cluster grouped with like-minded peers throughout their middle school experience.  Teacher training and experience, along with student identification are taken into consideration when students are scheduled into classes.  For example; a math teacher with multiple years of training may have the math identified students scheduled in his/her class to support the student’s math goals within their Written Education Plan.  

               

 Again, this year Greenville High School will open its doors to community members seeking a warm, safe place to walk on winter evenings.

 

The public is invited to walk at the high school from 6 to 8 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays beginning Monday, Nov. 29, and continuing through March 24, 2022. There will be no walking during Christmas break. Also, if school is closed during a day or there are parent/teacher conferences, then it will be closed to walking that evening. A complete calendar of available walking dates will be available to walkers at the sign-in desk.

 

Greenville High School opened its doors to walkers many years ago. The Greenville Board of Education has continued to support this activity in the high school.

 

In the past, dozens of people enjoyed the program. Greenville City Schools is happy to support this wellness activity to benefit residents of the community. Seven and a half laps around the interior hallway loop is equivalent to one mile. Walkers go in a clockwise direction on Mondays and Wednesdays and counterclockwise on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

 

The district is pleased to provide a safe, free and warm place for people to walk.  The program does not cost the school district extra money because volunteers monitor the walkers and custodians are usually working in the building during the evening. Thank you to those who help monitoring the activity including SADD Club, IMTV, NHS, NJROTC, Key Club, Foreign Language Clubs, Student Council, Med Tech, We Are The Majority, student body, members of the school board and school district personnel.

Parents are encouraged to report any positive test, or case of COVID-19, to their school by calling in to the building principal or reporting to the building when they call in their child’s absence.

Known positive COVID-19 tests will be communicated by building, on the district website, if that information is confirmed.  It will be reported by building case number only.  No identifiable information will be shared or discussed.

Oct. 20, 2021 

The Greenville City School District has five additional positive COVID-19 cases.
 
 The local health department is aware of the cases and will do appropriate follow up and contact tracing.
 
 In order to keep our students and staff healthy, we ask you to keep a safe social distance, wash your hands often, and we recommend wearing masks to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus.
 
 Thanks for your ongoing cooperation with our guidelines to deal with the COVID-19 virus.
 
 Go Wave!

Many schools throughout the state of Ohio take part in a process called the Ohio Improvement Process (OIP).  This is an organizational strategy that gives school districts a template to perform a traditional plan-do-study-act cycle.  There are three different levels of the OIP process, Teacher Based Teams (TBTs), Building Leadership Teams (BLTs), and the District Leadership Team (DLT).  The DLT is composed of central office personnel, principals, school psychologists, teachers, and parents.  There is a BLT for each building in the district.  At GHS our BLT is composed of administrators, guidance counselors, and members from each of out TBTs.  Teachers make up the composition of the TBTs and are organized at GHS by grade level.   The TBTs meet once per week and communicate their discussions and actions to the BLT.  The BLT meets once per month to discuss TBT progress and support.   

Registration is FREE and available to students from grades 5 - 12 and can be completed at the following website:  

If interested, or if you have any questions, please see Mr. Koenig in room 182 for details or e-mail Mr. Koenig at mkoenig@gcswave.com.  

Children come to school each year with so many different reading abilities. Our staff at Greenville Elementary come to school each year equipped with different teaching strategies and new training to support those children. The literacy coaches at GES work collaboratively with the classroom teachers and intervention specialists to come up with a plan that makes the students most successful. In their weekly meetings with one another they produce schedules, they coach one another, share ideas, and reflect on students’ progress. 

I sat down with one of our three literacy coaches, Tammie Riffle, and talked about what her day looks like. Mrs. Riffle has been trained by the Ohio State University on Literacy Collaborative where she then coaches classroom teachers and intervention specialists on a daily basis. She begins her day by practicing High Frequency words with small groups of first graders and then meets with teachers in between her morning and afternoon small intervention groups. Mrs. Riffle meets with at least two teachers and/or intervention specialists each day and talks about what strategies they are using in their classroom, how they are collecting evidence, word work they are using with students, and reflecting upon their teaching. 

The lazy days of summer have come and gone, and the school year is full steam ahead. But with our children’s school day followed by homework, sports, music lessons, dance classes, and them wanting to spend time with friends, it’s no wonder many of them are feeling overwhelmed and stressed out. While we want to enrich our children’s lives through a wide variety of fun and enjoyable activities, helping them become well-rounded people, we also must help them find balance in their lives and minimize stress. Sometimes this means cutting back on the “extra stuff.”

It's challenging because there are many benefits to the extra stuff, like building self-esteem, discovering self-interests, teaching responsibility, helping to grow friendships, etc. The extra stuff can be good for them, so knowing when it’s too much may not always be that simple.

Is your child at-risk for problem gambling? It may sound like a silly question, but in a recent survey, 90% of youth reported that they had gambled in the past year. Yet most parents say they have never talked to their kids on the subject.

Why is that? Likely it’s because when many of us think of gambling, we tend to think of slot machines, horse races and lottery tickets, places and things to which our underage youth do not have access to, so we don’t think of discussing it with them. That is where we fall short.

According to the problem gambling awareness campaign Change The Game Ohio, gambling includes any act that involves risking money or valuables on the outcome of a game or contest that is mostly determined by chance.

We know that many young people spend hours on their phones and computers playing a variety of games in their free time. Many of these games, with bonus points, coins, gems, loot boxes and other rewards, replicate real-life gambling situations. These seemingly harmless games can easily become a habit for children that can then subtly develop into problematic behavior.

The following general principles will guide Greenville City Schools reopening for the fall 2021-2022 school year related to COVID-19:

 

 

After much consideration, the Greenville City School District has decided that masks/facial coverings will be optional for students and staff at Greenville City Schools to begin the 2021-2022 school year.  This is optional in the buildings and at school events.

 

However, in an effort to stay compliant with the Center for Disease Control federal orders that apply to all public transportation including school buses as named all passengers and drivers must wear a face covering while on school bus.  The driver does not have to wear a mask/face covering when on the bus by themselves. 

 

Please note that although masks/facial coverings are optional in the buildings during school and at events the Center for Disease Control, the Ohio Department of Health, the Darke County General Health District, and Greenville City Schools continue to recommend their use indoors.  

 

Again, this year daily self-monitoring to assess for symptoms should take place.  Family and students should monitor their own temperature and their health on a daily basis before coming to school.  

G-CTEC Construction students receive a donation of tools

8/26/2021 — This week Greenville Career Tech Education Center’s newest program received a generous donation.  Bruns Construction donated 20 tool bags, fully stocked with construction tools for students.  These tool bags included hammers, safety glasses, speed square, hard hat, screwdrivers and more to be used in the construction lab as students apply new technical skills through authentic and hands on experiences. 

In addition to the tool bag donation, Bruns generously donated over $3,000 for the addition of new larger tools for the lab.  “This money can go toward additional shop tools for students to learn on, such as cordless drills,” Adam Eberwein, Construction Technology Instructor shared at the donation. G-CTEC Director, Andrea Townsend said, “Community partnerships like this one make it possible for us to continue to offer high quality Career Technical Education that benefits students and our community.”   “We are so proud to partner with this new program and see students succeed in our community and the industry,” said Nick Koesters of Bruns Construction.  

The 2021-2022 school year will be the first year for the Construction Technology Program at G-CTEC.  Students have the opportunity to participate in the program as Juniors and Seniors at Greenville High School.  The Construction Program will be taught by Mr. Adam Eberwein and will concentrate on multiple foundations and fundamentals of entry-level processes of?construction?technology. In the first year, students are introduced to materials, methods and equipment used in carpentry and masonry.??Students will also learn blueprint reading as it relates to the architecture and?construction.??Students will also develop an estimate of material, time, personnel, and equipment needs, availability and cost.? The second year of this program will focus on students exploring many basic skills involved in?construction?of a building.??Students will learn physical principles and fundamental skills across mechanical systems in?construction, basic electrical circuits, copper and plastic plumbing fixtures, and the operation and maintenance of heating and cooling.????? 

Heading back to school is a transition that impacts many aspects of life, including our tweens’ and teens’ sleep schedules. Sleep, as we know, is fuel for the brain and getting the right amount of quality sleep is essential to their health.

A good night’s sleep is important for everyone but especially our growing and developing children. According to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, children who regularly get an adequate amount of sleep have improved attention, behavior, learning, memory, and overall mental and physical health. On the flip side, inadequate sleep can lead to high blood pressure, obesity and even depression.

So how much sleep do our tweens and teens need?

It’s not just about hitting the numbers though, it’s important our children get high-quality sleep. Experts agree there are certain steps we can all take to promote more restful sleep. The Sleep Foundation has broken it down into the following four categories:

There are certain times in an adolescent’s life where they are at greater risk for the onset of alcohol and other drug use due to increased stress—particularly during periods of transition. When students start at a new school, it’s natural for them to experience a great deal of stress regarding new teachers, new friends, new social status and new expectations. While a little bit of stress can be a positive motivator, an overwhelming amount of stress can be detrimental and dangerous. Sometimes, to cope with their strong negative emotions, young people may turn to risky behaviors.

It’s important to keep this in mind as youth transition back to school this fall—even if they are returning to the same school, with the same group of peers. Due to the uncertainty and ever-changing regulations students experienced last year, many are likely to feel apprehensive as to what to expect for this year. What will the classrooms be like? What will the hallways be like? Will we be required to wear masks in the school building? Will there be social distancing? Will the plexiglass barriers still be up? 

After much consideration, Greenville City Schools has decided that masks/facial coverings will be optional for students and staff at Greenville City Schools to begin the 2021-2022 school year.  This is optional in the buildings and at school events.

 

However, in an effort to stay compliant with the federal orders of the Center for Disease Control that apply to all public transportation including school buses as named all passengers and drivers must wear a face covering while on school bus.  The driver does not have to wear a mask/face covering when on the bus by themselves. 

 

Please note that although masks/facial coverings are optional in the buildings during school and at events the Center for Disease Control and the Ohio Department of Health continue to recommend their use indoors.   

 

Again, this year daily self-monitoring to assess for symptoms should take place.  Family and students should monitor their own temperature and their health on a daily basis before coming to school.  

Published in the Scientific American Mind magazine, “The Parents’ Ten” is listed in order from the most to least important skill areas in predicting positive child-rearing outcomes.

There has been a lot of talk about the benefit of “letting kids be bored”. Those in favor will argue that young people are overscheduled and need downtime. They believe boredom sparks creativity and encourages autonomy.

Though the research is slim-to-none to back up these claims, they are valid points. Many children are overscheduled and could benefit from some downtime and lazy days over the summer months. And yes, boredom certainly can cause youth to get creative in how they end up spending their time.

However, there are also problems with each of these arguments. Relaxing downtime is not the same as relentless boredom. Relaxing downtime will refresh and recharge a child; relentless boredom will leave a child feeling displeased, discontented, and dissatisfied. And while being bored can cause youth to get creative, that creativity is not always positive, safe or healthy.