PIQUA — The Piqua City Schools Board of Education was honored by district administration and students during its regular meeting Thursday as part of Board Appreciation Month.
“This is our opportunity to say thank you for all the support that you give,” Superintendent Dwayne Thompson said. “In any other year, if the state would have said, ‘We want you to change how you do every single thing in your district, from the way you feed kids, transport, and educate, we would have laughed at it, but we’ve done just that this year and we’ve done that with your support.”
Several district principals were in attendance Thursday to give their appreciation on behalf of their individual schools, and each presented board members with gifts, most of which were created by students.
Also during Thursday’s meeting, board members heard from High School Principal Rob Messick regarding student achievement. Messick also gave a presentation about student clubs offered by the school.
“One thing we’ve learned throughout this pandemic — and I think we always knew it — is just how important it is for kids to make connections with each other,” he said.
Messick highlighted some of the high school’s clubs, which includes groups like the girls club “ROX,” which stands for “Ruling Our eXperience,” and which aims to help girls gain confidence and leadership skills.
Other groups include FCCLA (Family Career and Community Leaders of America), SAGA (Sexuality and Gender Alliance), Dungeons & Dragons Club, Science Olympiad, National Honor Society, Harry Potter Club, and more.
Messick stressed the importance of clubs, and said additional clubs may be created, as well.
“We need to become a meeting place for these kids,” he said. “We want them to have really positive relationships during school and after school, and for them to be here doing those things, where we can be with them, it’s just a benefit for everybody.”
In other business, the board:
• Approved a list of donations to the district in the amount of $5,228.
• Approved the enrollment of Marta Giacobbo, of Cittadella, Padova, Italy, at PHS for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year as a foreign exchange student through ASSE/WH International Student Exchange Program.
• Approved a list of personnel leaves, substitutes, retirements, and volunteers.
• Entered into executive session.
The next board meeting will be held Thursday, Feb. 25, at 6 p.m.
