Editor's note: Stover is president of the Danville Local Schools board of education.
We as a district believe that improving Danville Local Schools facilities should involve our entire community, and all stakeholders. We all want a safe and productive environment for our students and staff.
In a small community like Danville, one of our greatest strengths is relationships. We rely on relationships. We come together to help each other for the betterment of our district and community.
Since the board’s discussion of infrastructure improvements in February and the development of a master plan with the assistance of SHP architects, a community advisory team (CAT) has solicited and compiled public input by Superintendent Jason Snively. Mr. Snively and Treasurer Tonya Mickley have worked with the team and SHP architects to communicate information throughout the district. Contrary to rumor, the list of possible improvements is not the superintendent’s list; it is a district list developed through discussions with community members, and the goal was to include all stakeholders within the district. What does the community identify as priorities? What can we afford? How does it affect taxpayers on a go-forward basis? All of these were concerns within the board of education and the CAT.
After the team’s most recent meeting on April 8, the top three priorities were identified as a new roof on the elementary building, an elevator at the high school and HVAC work at the high school.
The three least favored were demolition of the administration building, creation of a parking lot there and improvements at the baseball field to include a field house, locker room and restrooms.
The board respects the fact that there can be differing opinions, but it doesn't want misinformation of the potential projects, and their costs, to divide our community, and therefore has continually invited all community members to these CAT meetings.
As the list of proposed improvements is prioritized and finalized, the treasurer will match them to available and projected revenue.
“The facilities improvements studied by the community advisory team is a dream wish list. The team – a committee of district residents and stakeholders – is trying to get the most out of the wish list for everybody,” Tonya said. “Once priorities are finalized, we will determine what we can afford internally before considering a tax issue. We are continuing to discuss this with the committee.
“A lot of people don’t realize that the superintendent is the voice of the board,” Tonya continued. “When he talks about the list of proposed improvements, it’s not his list; it’s the list developed by and for the community. When he makes staffing decisions it is based on evaluations and other feedback related to job performance.”
As board president, I know that when you look at all of the pluses and minuses in regard to building improvements and staffing changes, there are far more pluses than minuses.
Has the superintendent, via direction of the board of education, held others accountable for their responsibilities and actions? Yes. In some cases, the end result was not always well-received by some. However he also has worked hard in providing staff the tools needed to be successful and has stepped into the line of fire to shield others when warranted.
We have an outstanding and dedicated staff, but some community members want to blame the superintendent for those who have left the district. If you polled other districts, I believe you would find similar factors: burnout related to COVID, relocation to jobs closer to home or nearer to elderly parents, a decision to be a stay-at-home parent, and retirement.
Mr. Snively has also devoted a great deal of time to mentoring new supervisors – an athletic director, a high school principal, a food service coordinator and a maintenance director, to name a few; therefore, he spends a lot of his time in the buildings. Soon he will also mentor a new elementary principal. He has been working diligently over the past several years to build the necessary pillars for the future success of the Danville Local School District
Many times Mr. Snively has stepped in to help the district behind the scenes. He has driven a bus when needed, worked with the custodial staff over the summer, sanded wooden floors, taught classes when necessary and even went as far as to use his own equipment to clear space for a potential youth softball field, among many other things too lengthy to mention.
We as a board ask the community and stakeholders to work together for the good of the district and ensure facts are being utilized to drive discussions and any potential resulting decisions. The CAT will meet again at 6 p.m. on May 10 at the lobby of the high school. It will be an open, public meeting. Come with your questions and suggestions as we will continue to listen to all ideas so we can make the right decisions for our future.
As mentioned earlier, we are a community built on the strength of positive relationships. We are a community proud of our school district and the outstanding citizens it has graduated into very successful careers and dreams they had while walking the hallways of our Danville schools. We are a community that can work together to assure the best possible education for every student.
For more detailed information about district achievements, please see the April 18 State of the Schools report at this link: danvilleschools.org/news/state-of-the-district/.
