Milford Exempted Village School District
Eagle eNews
www.milfordschools.org
May 2015
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District Calendar

   
May

21Board of Education Meeting
McCormick Elementary
7 p.m.

22Last Day of School
23Graduation 
Cintas Center
4 p.m.

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Groundbreaking Held for New Schools

On May 6, the district held two groundbreaking ceremonies for our new elementary schools. It was a celebration shared with local government officials, district staff, teachers, parents, students and our design (SHP) and construction (Turner) teams. Charles Seipelt as well as the family of the late Boyd E. Smith also took part in the ceremonies.


 
Construction of the new schools will begin after the school year ends in late May. Pictured are BES and Seipelt students, ranging in age from preschool to 4th grade, along with Principals Sarah Greb and Doug Savage. These students will be in Kindergarten-6th grade when the new buildings open in the fall of 2016. 

Milford High School Earns Top Ranking
For the second straight year, Milford High School earned a silver medal from U.S. News and World Report in their annual Best High School rankings. Milford was ranked 35th out of 881 public high schools rated in Ohio, placing them in the top 4% in the state! Milford High School also ranked in the top 8 of Cincinnati area high schools!
Pay it Forward Makes Community Impact
Milford Junior High School held its third annual Pay it Forward Day on April 23. Pay It Forward Day is an opportunity for 7th grade students to leave campus and perform community service projects during the day. 

Students performed service at many locations including Milford Fire Department, Miami Meadows Park, Meadowview Elementary, Pinebrook, Seipelt Elementary, Milford Library, and more. Special thanks to our bus drivers who donated their time to drive students to all of these sites.

Community feedback has been so positive...
"Great thing to do. The kids did a terrific job washing my truck in the Domino's lot!"

"Nicest thing I've seen in a while!"

"Thank you for the beautiful door decoration that you left on my door!"

"So proud of the students and teachers who invest themselves in their community - what a great district to be in!"








Enjoy the documentary our MJHS News Crew produced capturing the day:  Click here 
Top 25 Academic Signing Day Milford's best and brightest were honored at Milford High School's annual Academic Signing Day held on April 29. The ceremony honored the top 25 academic achievers from the class of 2015. At the ceremony, each student announced his or her choice of college and was congratulated by a representative from that college. All of the students were featured in a video produced through Miami Township television. 

More than $6 million in scholarships were offered to these top 25, and they accepted close to $1 million dollars to further their education at universities all over the country including the U.S. Naval Academy. A bio of each of these seniors and gallery of photos from the ceremony have been added to our website at the following link - Top 25.
Fossier Family Donates $27K in Memorial Scholarships to Natalie's Former Classmate
Many Milford families remember the loss of Natalie Fossier who was killed in 2007 by a falling tree limb while she was outside playing with her dog. Natalie would have been a graduate of the class of 2015 and will be remembered through $27,000 in memorial scholarships presented by her parents last night at the MHS senior awards night. Thanks to the generosity of the Fossier family, seven Milford seniors were awarded scholarships. The first responders and nurse who cared for Natalie were called on stage to help present the awards.The recipients of the five $5,000 Natalie Fossier Memorial Scholarships are Stevie Chandler, Makenzie Doherty, Kaitlyn Green, Carynne Hawkins and Ashley McFadden and the recipients of the two $1,000 Natalie Fossier Memorial Scholarships are Jennifer Brewer and Molly Milinovich. These students were selected by the Fossier family because of their commitment to community service and future career choices in fields that help others.

 

Click on the following links for local media coverage of the presentation by The Cincinnati Enquirer and LOCAL 12, WKRC-TV.

Milford's 2015 Educators of the Year Honored

Each Spring, the Milford Miami Township Chamber of Commerce presents the annual Dinner of Excellence to recognize outstanding Milford educators. The ceremony, held on April 22, honored 2015 Milford Educators of the Year as well as retirees, classified staff, and select seniors who received local scholarships from the Chamber and its partners.Congratulations to the following Milford teachers (pictured) who were honored: Lisa Holt-Taylor, Boyd E. Smith; Denise Baum, McCormick; Jason Fitzhugh, Meadowview; Trena Panko, Milford High School; Brian Ruck, Milford Jr. High School; Jeannie Clough, Milford Preschool; Donna Roberts, Mulberry; Jessica Early, Pattison; and Jennifer O'Brien, Seipelt.

 

Click here to read more about each honoree and the 

here for the link to a video featuring each teacher.

Classified Staff of the Year Honored
On April 22, the Milford Miami Township Chamber of Commerce presented its annual Dinner of Excellence and recognized outstanding educators, support staff, retirees, and students. 

Congratulations to the following classified staff who were honored at the dinner: Lynn Hill, Boyd E. Smith; Becky Jauch, McCormick; Melissa Craft, Meadowview; Vickie Parker, Milford High School; Connie Stevens, Milford Jr. High; Lisa Holland, Milford Preschool; Dody Parker, Mulberry; Cathy Schulte, Pattison; and Laurie Howell, Seipelt.

 

Our support staff is critical to the success of our district and we thank them for their dedication. Click here to read more on what makes each of them so special!

Tim Ackermann to Leave Milford to Become Kings Superintendent

On Monday, May 11, Kings Local School District's Board of Education named Milford's current Assistant Superintendent, Tim Ackermann, as its new Superintendent. Mr. Ackermann will begin his duties at Kings on August 1, 2015.

 

"Tim has great leadership skills and has had either a lead role or a part in all of Milford's progress during his eight years in the district," said Milford Superintendent, Dr. Farrell. "Tim's talents will be missed by all of Milford, but he is pursuing his goals, and I am proud of him being awarded this appointment."

 

Ackermann is grateful for his time in Milford and said,"I appreciate the opportunity I've had to serve Milford and will miss all the wonderful people. I am excited to start working with the Kings family and community and build upon their success." 

Board Holds Special Meeting on Construction of New Buildings
On April 30, the Milford Board of Education held a special meeting to approve resolutions related to the demolition and construction of the new elementary schools.

 

The Board approved a resolution to approve Locally Funded Initiatives (LFI) for the new Seipelt and Boyd E. Smith. A LFI is money that would come from the district's general fund rather than the money allotted through the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission who is funding the project. Mr. Johnson reported that the project is 13% above the budget set by the state through the OFCC.  

 

"These buildings are not over designed. They are efficient and effective buildings." Dr. Farrell told the Board. "We were fortunate to receive competitive bids and prices when we renovated the high school and added the NGC wing in 2009, which allowed us to come in at 2.5 million dollars under the budget, but now the thriving economy is having the opposite impact."

 

"With the cost-saving measures we have put in place; an increase in property values and collections; an increase in TIF dollars; and anticipated increases in state dollars under the new Kasich budget, we will be able to stay on track with our finances and not ask the voters for another operating levy any sooner than we had planned," Mrs. Caudle said.


 
For more details, click here.

Staff & Student Achievers 
Students from Mrs. Baugh's Banking/Finance class at MHS-Jordan Iles, Maria Molett and Jasmine Penrod, Andrew Armacost-who placed 3rd out of 371 regional teams in the Cincinnati area and 8th out of 939 division teams in the online Stock Market Game. 

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The MJHS Concert Choir earned a Superior rating and 1st place in the Kings Island Music in the Parks Competition Saturday.They also received the Esprit de Corps trophy which is given to the ensemble that best exemplifies character, sportsmanship, and discipline off the stage throughout the day.

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Boyd E. Smith teacher Mr. Pete Parnin was recognized during a special 4th grade assembly as a local winner of the Barnes & Noble "My Favorite Teacher" contest. Haley Rodeffer, a former BES student and now MJHS 8th grader, wrote and submitted the winning entry.

*** 

Ten Milford students attended the National FEA conference in held April 23-25 in Washington, D.C. Students, under the guidance of the Teaching Professional teacher and FEA advisor Jennifer Norsworthycompeted in six competitions and presented two workshops that were filled to capacity. 


 
The following students placed in the top ten in the nation in their competitions:

Brandi Norman - 6th place, FEA Leadership Award (the highest award one can receive in FEA)
Carolyn Megie - 4th place, Impromptu Speaking
Stevie Chandler, Shawn Cooley, Madison Griesser - 4th place, "Inside Our Schools"
Stevie Chandler, Megan Fitch - 10th place, "Recruitment & Marketing"
Upcoming Rocket Launch at Mulberry
Mulberry Elementary will be the site of a rocket launch on Monday, May 18, from 5:30-8 p.m. A total of 11 groups of students from all fifth graders in the district were selected to launch these rockets based on the experiments they developed. Students developed these award-winning experiments to fly into suborbital space in a specialized spacecraft, but the company that was to take their experiments into space is not ready yet. Students involved in the rocket launch at Mulberry will get to keep the rocket and launch pad as a reward. 

Thanks to iSpace for facilitating this event and for the Milford Schools Foundation for funding this exciting STEM project. Also, through the generosity of the Milford Schools Foundation, all 5th graders have visited iSpace this spring. Located on Kemper Road, iSpace makes learning exciting through hands-on, interactive programs for students and teachers.
Creating a Culture of Community Service
Creating a culture of meaningful service within the district is the mission of Milford High School's new service recognition program. Beginning on January 1, 2015 all students in grades 7-12 can be recognized for the community service they complete for non-profit organizations outside of school hours. 

Services hours can now be tracked over a student's school career and they can create a service resume to help market themselves to colleges and the job force. Tracking hours also allows Milford to recognize students with two levels of National Awards: The Jefferson Award and the President's Volunteer Service Award.

Seniors who have met the criteria of these prestigious national honors were recognized at Milford High Schools Senior Awards Ceremony held April 30. 

Here's a summary of the service honors given to seniors.
Jefferson Award (50-99 volunteer service hours)
19 seniors totalling 1,022.5 community service hours.

Bronze level (100-174 volunteer service hours)
10 seniors with a total of 1,041 hours of community service.

Silver level (175-249 hours of community service)
Four seniors with a total of 773 hours of community service.

Molly Milinovich with senior class advisors Allison Willson and Janelle Schunk.
Molly Milinovich earned the Gold level of the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, which recognizes any student who has volunteered more than 250 hours of community service in one year. 

Molly was also given a special recognition called the Milford Service Award. It is an award not given every year, just when a student goes above and beyond.

"If we were able to count Molly's cumulative community service hours, she would have well over 700 hours of service," Senior class advisor Janelle Schunk said. "Every few years a student like Molly comes along who shows a dedication and a devotion to his or her community and school."

To learn more about the service recognition program, go to the following link on Milford High School's web page-
Service Program.
Athletes & Coaches in the News...

Congratulations to Milford senior Justin Arnold who was named Ohio High School Baseball Athlete of the Week Award on May 4  by JJHuddle and Bucknuts. He earned a six inning perfect game in Milford's 10-0 win over Turpin on April 24. Arnold retired all 18 hitters he faced, striking out six in earning his third win of the season!

***

ECC Champs again! The Milford High School baseball team wrapped up their 4th straight conference championship under the leadership of veteran head coach Tom Kilgore. The Eagles have won or shared conference crowns in six of the last eight years. The boys wons the first round of the OHSAA Sectionals and host Hamilton on Thursday, May 14 at 5 p.m.
*** 
For the second straight season, the Milford High School softball team has won the Eastern Cincinnati Conference Championship! This season, Milford Head Softball Coach Christy Gregory picked up her 200th career varsity win. 

The opening game in the 2015 OHSAA Tournament for the softball team is Wednesday, May 13 at home at 5 p.m.

***

Track Coach Bill Marran was honored recently with the Distinguished Coach Award from the South West Ohio Track Cross Country Coaches Association (SWOTCCA). Coach Marran, a Milford teacher for 31 years, is currently in his 51st consecutive season of coaching track at Milford High School! 

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So far, 16 Milford seniors will be playing athletics in college. This Spring, the following MHS athletes have committed to continuing the academic and athletic careers in college. 

  • Ryan Gallimore-Wittenberg-Basketball
  • Will Hannah-Capital University-Basketball
  • David Sheldon-Wrestling-Ashland University 
  • Lauren Best-Cross Country/Track & Field-Morehead State University 

Zach Strief "Dream Big" Foundation

9th Annual Football Camp

Zach Strief's "Dream Big" Foundation is dedicated to providing opportunities to children in the form of educational growth and life skills lessons coming from positive role models.

 

Dates: Monday, June 22 and Tuesday, June 23
Time: 6:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Where: Milford High School Athletic Fields 
Cost: Free
Enrollment: Student athletes entering 3rd through 8th grades are eligible to attend.

 

Zach Strief will be present both days of camp!

Click here for registration and details.(Flyer includes registration forms)

Summer School 2015

This summer, MIilford High School students will have an opportunity to complete a portion of Physical Education (P.E.) requirement for graduation from high school. Additionally, students may take the required health credit via the Apex curriculum for an additional $75. Click here for the Summer PE and Health Registration form


 
Students are also able to recover credit or earn original credit (Health and Government) in Summer School.  Please click here for additional information on Summer School. Summer School registration will be held on June 4 and 5 from 9:00 to 11:30 a.m.

Spring/Summer Free Community Swim

The Spring session of open swim ends soon and Summer session is right around the corner! The pool is open every Tuesday and Thursday morning at Milford High School, from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., through Thursday, May 21. 

This summer, community/open swim sessions will be held for families that reside in the Milford School District and are free of charge. Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Waiver of liability forms must be completed at the pool prior to swimming. Sessions begin the week of May 25 and will be held in the morning and afternoon. The summer schedule will be posted on the website once it is finalized.

For more information, contact Lois Leavens, Community Swim Coordinator at [email protected].

Summer Camps and Community Flyers

Check out our Community Flyers section on the district website for upcoming summer camps and community programs in everything from basketball to robotics to art. Summer sports camps are also posted on the athletics website at www.milfordathletics.org.