Maumee City Schools Looks To Fresh Start

BY KRISTI FISH | MIRROR REPORTER — Outgoing Maumee City Schools Superintendent Todd Cramer attended his final board of education meeting on July 25.

“I just wanted to thank you for all the opportunities here in Maumee. When I arrived, it was a great, solid district. That was one of the things that really made this district attractive to go to,” Cramer said.

The board thanked him for his dedication to the district over the past seven years.

“We don’t ask for much from a superintendent other than to leave the district better than when they got here, and I think, without any question, we are in a much better place than when Dr. Cramer first started here seven years ago,” said board president Mike Wiley during the meeting. “We wish you well. If there’s anybody who should be teaching the next generation of educational administrators and leadership in that area, it should be you.”

Cramer’s next post is a professorship at Bowling Green State University.

During the meeting, the board also:

• Heard from Cramer regarding updates throughout the district.

He informed the board that the concrete has been poured for the sidewalk from Wayne Trail Elementary to the high school. The upstairs hallway at Gateway Middle School has new tile and paint, and parts of the office space at Gateway has been renovated and the drywall will be going up soon.

He also thanked Dr. Nick Neiderhouse for his work with the summer camps. There was record enrollment this year.

Cramer also said there will be a presentation on Thursday, August 11 at 7:00 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center lobby in conjunction with the city of Maumee to discuss safety initiatives.

• Heard from treasurer Paul Brotzki with updates on the end of the fiscal year.

There was a decrease in revenue of about $274,000, but Brotzki said it was mostly expected. Changes to policies regarding payments for students within the district going to different schools other than Maumee saved the school approximately $722,000 in expenditures.

“All in all, we had a very good year of adding to our carryover budget for the year forward,” Brotzki said.

• Heard from board member Janet Wolff about the food service committee report from the meeting in June.

“The food service is in great shape, as Paul said, with a hefty carryover of $628,000, and they expected about another $172,000 with the main revenue,” Wolff said to the board. “It’s doing real well. The carryover balance is due to the increased meal participation and the increased reimbursement from the USDA.”

• Approved the financial statement, cash reconciliation and investment ledger.

• Adopted a revision to policy number 3120.04 Employment of Substitutes.

The policy, which is linked online with the board’s agenda and under the district’s policies, would allow the school district to hire and employ substitutes on a conditional basis – if they held temporary licensure during the past school year – for up 60 days.

“It allows us to be better staffed as we start next year,” Cramer said.

• Released a student to another school district for transportation purposes.

• Accepted the donation of 35 books from the Maumee Rotary Club.

• Adopted the resolution regarding a calamity day alternative makeup plan. Similar to previous years, the school may make up to three days online, Cramer said.

• Approved a graduate for the Maumee High School Class of 2022.

• Approved the resignations of Cortney Vallade as assistant nurse at Fort Miami Elementary School, Rachel Dozier as academic intervention agent at Fort Miami and Christopher Buchanan as assistant high school boys soccer coach.

• Approved Cortney Vallade as district lead nurse and Luke Wielgos as music teacher at Fairfield and Wayne Trail elementary schools.

• Approved operational transfers, hires and substitutes along with MEA supplemental, lay supplemental and certificated substitutes.

• Went into executive session to discuss the employment of a public employee.