This week the Bluffton Exempted Village Schools mailed its 2023-2024 Summer District Newsletter to the community. Superintendent Greg Denecker's article is below and the 4-page mailer is attached. 

~ News from the Superintendent~

We are excited to get the 2023-2024 school year started by welcoming over 1215 students, a small increase from last year, into our district on the first day of school. Our enrollment numbers continue to stay very consistent, which is a real tribute to our community and staff, as many schools in our region have declining enrollment.  

We are pleased to announce some great new staff members for this school year, and they are excited to become part of the Pirate family. Alisha Liebrecht and Jack Hohenbrink will be new cafeteria workers for the ‘23-‘24 school year. Jake Staley will be teaching 1st grade, Diana Donaldson - 3rd grade, Joanna Gratz - 4th grade, and Meredith Bixel - 5th grade. Leslie Liberato will teach science in the middle school, and Scott Schnipke will teach MS math. Our new MS/HS physical education and health teacher is Christa Burgei. Brad Schomaeker is our new intervention specialist at the high school, and Kristi Shepherd will teach HS English. Doug Westrick is the new MS principal, and Courtnee Morris is the technology coordinator.

Please stop in and say hello to these new staff members when in the building or at after-school events; they are excited to meet you and get to know the Bluffton School District’s community. We welcome each of these new staff members to the Pirate staff and look forward to working with them for many years to come.

School security is always a point of emphasis with our students, staff, and community. We have taken many different steps to help with the security in our district. We continue to have training with our staff in the event of an emergency.  If you see or hear something, please say something to a school administrator or the police. In addition, Bluffton Schools is a part of the Ohio School Safety Center tip line called SAFEROH. The phone number is 844-723-3764; this tip line number is also on our web site.  

We are excited to continue our senior citizen breakfast performances this school year, and those dates are listed on page 4. Typically, breakfast starts at 8:30 a.m. with a performance starting a little after 9:00 a.m.  Please spread the word and invite friends to this monthly event; it is great to see everyone be able to watch our students on stage. Thank you to our kitchen staff and our sponsors -- Citizens National Bank, First National Bank, Sprunger Insurance, Ellerbrock Spine and Soft Tissue, Lewis Family McDonald’s, Blanchard Valley Hospital, Senior Citizen Center, and Mennonite Home Communities -- for donating the free breakfast each month.  Our students and staff always look forward to hosting these events for the school year.

The financial report on this page shows our general fund information for the 2023 fiscal year.  We have been able to achieve financial stability due to the cost-saving measures that have been put in place over many years. Should there be a cut to our state funding, which is over 50% of our operating funds, our goal is to continue to operate near the same capacity of staff without having to return to our taxpayers for more funding. We will continue to look for ways to be fiscally responsible to you, our community, while still providing our students with an excellent education.

Our district spends $3860 less than state average per pupil, but achievement levels for the district consistently rank near the top in the state. This could not be achieved without the support of our parents, students, staff, and community; everyone plays an important role in helping each of our students succeed.

On the second page of this newsletter, you will find the permanent improvement projects which were completed over the course of the past year. These funds allow our district to make repairs and improvements to our facilities for our students and community. While our buildings are not new, we believe the updates and upkeep to each of our facilities make for an excellent learning environment. We thank our community for the support of our school district and the ability to keep our district up-to-date.  

As a reminder when we are back in school next week, please be careful around all our school buildings if you are walking or driving.  Please watch closely at all intersections around our district and proceed with caution both as a driver and as a pedestrian.

It is great to see the number of different students participating in the fall season athletics, activities, and music programs. The high student interest in these co-curricular and extracurricular activities shows what a vibrant community we have when it comes to all of these different opportunities.

We want all our students to have a positive experience in our district. Please reach out to your teacher, principal, or me if you ever have a concern about your child. We believe our staff is very caring and nurturing for all our students, and we all want what is best for each one of our children.  

We look forward to educating the students in our district this year. This is a wonderful privilege and opportunity. Thank you for your continued support of Bluffton Exempted Village Schools and the students we serve.  If you ever have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to stop in or call me at 419-358-5901.

Greg Denecker – Superintendent