Maumee High School Recognizes Four Grads At Distinguished Alumni Award Ceremony
BY NANCY GAGNET — MIRROR REPORTER
An actor, a businessman, a preservationist and a public servant were presented with 2011 Maumee High School Distinguished Alumni Awards.
Robert Knepper, Jay Hyland, Lynn Olman and Tom Brady were honored at a recognition program on August 26 at the Performing Arts Center. The recipients were also recognized during a halftime ceremony at the first home football game, which followed the program.
“These are very significant individuals who have contributed so much,” said district superintendent Greg Smith. “They are shining examples to the community at large and to the current generation of high school students.”
Knepper, a 1977 MHS graduate, is an accomplished theater, film and television actor. Most notably, he played T-Bag in the show Prison Break.
His sister Kay Knepper presented him with his award.
“When I see you take your final bow, I just start crying. I can’t explain how happy I am for you,” she said. “The greatest role you’ve ever played is my brother.”
Knepper, who participated in children’s theater and several elementary and high school productions, expressed gratitude to his family and friends.
“We are so blessed to have had a school system like Maumee. I am thankful for those who have always supported me and encouraged me to keep going,” he said.
Brady, a 1962 graduate, founded Plastic Technologies, Inc., which includes seven companies and over 200 employees worldwide.
Brady’s lifelong friend Bill Gosline offered remarks through a pre-recorded video.
“In my humble opinion, there is no better recognition than from those you grew up with and knew you best,” Gosline said. “Character and leadership are the wonderful qualities that you possess.”
Hyland, a 1969 graduate, founded the Lighthouse Preservation Society, which focuses on saving America’s lighthouses.
His father J.W. Hyland, who presented him with the award, said that his work has made lighthouse preservation a national issue.
Upon receiving his award, Hyland credited his roots in Maumee for his love of history.
“Maumee has a rich history and that sparked my interest in preservation,” he said.
He also credited his teachers for his success.
“My teachers had a huge impact on my writing ability, especially now as I’m writing my thesis,” he said.
Olman, a 1965 graduate, owns State Farm Insurance in Maumee. He also served on Maumee City Council and in the Ohio House of Representatives.
His wife Joyce Olman presented him with the award.
“Service to others is the engine that drives Lynn,” she said.
Olman said that working in the public sector has allowed him to make a difference in the lives of others.
“Public service has given me vehicles to help people who couldn’t help themselves,” he said.
Each recipient also received a commendation from Maumee Mayor Tim Wagener.
“Every one of these recipients is phenomenal. The caliber of these individuals is outstanding and speaks well to the quality of students that Maumee High School has produced,” Wagener said.
School Officials Credit Strategic Plan For Maumee District’s Excellent Rating
BY NANCY GAGNET — MIRROR REPORTER
An excellent rating from the state of Ohio on the Maumee City Schools 2010-11 district report card was excellent news to assistant superintendent Ken Aerni.
“We are really happy. We’ve got a great staff and they’ve worked extremely hard,” he said.
For the second consecutive year, the district received the excellent rating, having met all 26 state indicators, Aerni said. The ratings were released on August 24.
Each building in the district also received an excellent rating, with the exception of Union Elementary, which was rated effective.
Under the Ohio Department of Education’s rating system, districts can be rated (from highest to lowest level) excellent with distinction, excellent, effective, continuous improvement, academic watch or academic emergency.
The 26 indicators include standardized test scores as well as graduation and attendance rates. The state’s rating system also includes a performance index, which weights how students performed overall; a value-added score, which indicates how students are progressing from year to year; and adequate yearly progress, a measure of goals set for various groups of students.
The district’s performance index score rose from 102 last year to 103.2 this year, which is the highest score the district has received, according to superintendent Greg Smith.
“Last year we earned the highest ever had and this year we topped it,” Smith said. “I attribute our success to the wonderful hard work and dedication of teachers and students, excellent administrators and everybody working very hard.”
According to Aerni, in 2009, two committees – comprised of teachers and administrators – were formed to focus on math and language arts.
“The committees took common core standards that will come out in a few years and began implementing them into the core standards being taught now,” he said.
In addition, teachers continued evaluating data and assessing student scores to determine the concepts that needed to be taught again, he said.
“Teachers have always done that but when you have hard data in front of you, it helps even more. By re-teaching concepts, the students gain more at higher thinking skill levels,” he said.
Each week Aerni also met with building principals to discuss curricular issues.
“That has really helped because then they go out to the buildings and they implemented a lot of things,” he said.
Aerni said that teaching to the standards set by the state ensures that students have the necessary skills to move forward.
“There are certain standards kids have to meet in order to move on,” he said.
Aerni attributes much of the success in the district with teachers going “above and beyond what the standards are.”
“They are able to take standards and go far beyond what those standards are with the curriculum that we have in our subject areas and I think that is why our students do so well,” he said.
Aerni also predicts higher test scores with the new district reconfiguration plan.
“I really think it’s going to help. One of things we’ve talked about in the past few years in the kindergarten through three buildings is the need to build a base when tests begin in third grade,” Aerni said.
Fairfield Elementary principal Joe Taylor also agreed.
“At this level, we are laying the foundation of early math and literacy skills for young learners. We are also working to address student needs through early intervention, as research has demonstrated that these years are the most critical in laying the groundwork for the rest of their educational careers,” Taylor said.
District leadership teams composed of teachers and administrators also meet each month to discuss issues brought forth by building level teams, which also meet regularly, Aerni said.
“You have to have people who know what they doing in working with kids and that’s where your success lies,” he said.
These are sample articles that ran in The Mirror Newspaper.
To see what else you've been missing . . .
