Technology Issue • Proud Products of Ohio Public Schools June 2012 • Volume 56, Issue 3 J OURNALOHIO SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION High-tech teaching and learning Where’s Your Insurance Program When You have a Claim? You need a program that is always working in your best interest – even when you have a claim. The Ohio School Plan is Ohio’s largest school program and we’ve earned that position and reputation by being visible when our members need us. We provide the right coverage at the right price and with the best service in the industry. We’re always here when you need us. Contact Becky Swisher, Ohio School Plan Program Manager today. 1-800-288-6821 www.ohioschoolplan.org The Ohio School Plan is exclusively sponsored by BASA, OASBO and OSBA. Table Of Contents ON THE COVER Infusing technology in school, p. 10 J OURNALOHIO SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION Technology issue: Oak Hills Local (Hamilton) embraces 21st century learning across the district. Cover photo: Bridgetown Middle School teacher Kara Farquhar works with student Andrew Evans in eKIDs class. — photo by Bryan Bullock FEATURES p. 28 Leaping into social media 22 Sycamore Community City launched its Facebook page on Feb. 29, connecting parents, community members, students and alumni. Business Honor Roll marks another successful year 28 Districts thank local businesses for their support of schools. Proud Products of Ohio Public Schools 34 OSBA honors successful past graduates of Ohio schools. NEWS p. 8 Playing the numbers game 8 Keys to starting a successful blended learning program 18 Ohio’s unique system of technology support 21 Gamification — not just fun and games 24 Capital Conference 2012: Key into public education 26 DEPARTMENTS p. 3 Executive Outlook 3 According to Law 4 Management Insights 6 Capital Insider 7 OSBA: Working for You 44 New digital edition available! OSBA Journal (ISSN 0893-5289) is published bimonthly by the Ohio School Boards Association, 8050 N. High St., Suite 100, Columbus, OH 43235-6481. Periodicals postage paid at Columbus, Ohio, You can access the Journal’s new and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: send address changes to OSBA Journal, Attn: Mailroom, Ohio digital edition on the OSBA website at School Boards Association, 8050 N. High St., Suite 100, Columbus, OH 43235-6481. www.ohioschoolboards.org/journal. Comments and articles should be sent to the editor at the above address or email [email protected]. The views expressed in articles appearing in OSBA Journal are those of writers and do not necessarily represent OSBA policies or positions. Notice of rights: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. For information on permission for reprints and excerpts, contact OSBA. Who We Are OSBA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE JOURNAL STAFF Sharon E. Manson President Charlie Wilson President-elect Crystal Davis Hutchins Cathy Johnson Immediate Past President Editor Cindy Crowe Central Region Doug G. Stuart Northeast Region Gary Motz Dr. Angela Zimmann Northwest Region Managing Editor Terry A. Halley Southeast Region JoAnn W. Feltner Southwest Region Angela Penquite Assistant Editor/ OSBA BOARD OF TRUSTEES Richard Lewis, CAE Layout and Graphics Central Region Bryan Bullock Cindy Crowe Westerville City Communication Coordinator W. Shawna Gibbs* Columbus City Cathy Johnson South-Western City Amanda Finney Ken Morlock Madison-Plains Local Senior Marketing (Madison) Coordinator/Advertising Hanifah Kambon Columbus City Randy Reisling South-Western City Jeff Chambers Charlie Wilson Worthington City Director of Communication Northeast Region Services Ginger Baylor Akron City Candice L. Christon Reno Contipelli Cuyahoga Heights Local (Cuyahoga) Richard Lewis, CAE Albert Haberstroh Trumbull County ESC Executive Director Robert M. Heard Sr. Cleveland Municipal Susie Lawson Tri-County ESC & Wayne County Schools Career Center Roger L. Samuelson Champion Local (Trumbull) & Mission Statement Trumbull Career & Technical Center OSBA leads the way to educational Julie Schafer Copley-Fairlawn City excellence by serving Ohio’s public Doug G. Stuart* Rittman EV & Wayne County school board members and the Schools Career Center diverse districts they represent Northwest Region Kenna Haycox through superior service and creative Kenneth E. Ault Wood County ESC solutions. Eric Germann Lincolnview Local (Van Wert) Lisa Sobecki Toledo City David Spridgeon* Arcadia Local (Hancock) © 2012, OSBA Dr. Angela Zimmann ESC of Lake Erie West Ohio School Boards Association Southeast Region 8050 N. High St., Suite 100 Don E. Carpenter Barnesville EV & Belmont-Harrison Columbus, OH 43235-6481 Career Center Terry A. Halley* Gallia County Local (Gallia) (614) 540-4000 Sharon E. Manson Waverly City & Pike County Career fax (614) 540-4100 Technology Center Michelle Francis www.ohioschoolboards.org W. Bryce Watt Muskingum Valley ESC Southwest Region Correction JoAnn W. Feltner Franklin City A photo caption on page 33 of the Rick Foster Manchester Local (Adams) April Journal misspelled a Federal Gail Martindale Cedar Cliff Local (Greene) Relations Network member’s last & Greene County Career Center name. The caption should have Randall E. Smith* Forest Hills Local (Hamilton) identified her as Donna J. Myers. James Sommer Greenville City The Journal apologizes for the Vanessa Y. White Cincinnati City error. *Region President Executive Outlook 20/20 vision, now and into the future The road to success Richard Lewis, CAE, executive director ome lines are timeless. In Lewis past, present and future achievements position the association for the future. Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in and challenges. Affirming the team’s Wonderland, the Cheshire Cat work, the Board of Trustees adopted a Last month, a survey was provided to Sdeclared, “If you don’t know where you mission that was straightforward and every board member in the state are going, then any road will do.” In focused: “OSBA leads the way to soliciting input on the challenges and 2007, OSBA tackled this riddle as it educational excellence by serving Ohio’s opportunities facing public school embarked upon a journey that marked a public school board members and the boards and how OSBA could better milestone for the association. That year, diverse districts they represent through serve them. We hope you took a task force was formed to create a new superior service and creative solutions.” advantage of this opportunity to provide OSBA strategic plan. guidance to our team. If you have The VISA team’s efforts set the stage for additional thoughts, please don’t hesitate The task force was assigned to re- OSBA staff to implement the plan. The to contact me personally or send your examine the OSBA mission statement; declarations embedded in the 2007 plan comments via OSBA’s online feedback review the current strategic plan and have been our guiding compass for the form at www.ohioschoolboards.org/ process; assess the association’s current past five years. Board-member driven, feedback. and future needs; devise a system to the plan remains a living document keep the Board of Trustees up-to-date designed to guide OSBA now and into Ohio’s public school board members on planning and improvements; and the future as it works to support Ohio’s come from diverse cultural, ethnic, include findings from the 2007 NSBA public school boards in the 21st century. economic and racial backgrounds. They Operations Audit in discussions. have different levels of experience and The VISA plan was launched with a expertise. Board members represent The result was Visionary Initiatives series of 23 goals. A central tenet of communities that vary in socioeconomic for Strategic Action, the strategic plan the plan was that it should be dynamic, makeup, funding levels, ethnicity, race, that now guides us. That plan is the fluid and adaptable to the evolving needs language, size and achievement. OSBA product of thousands of hours of effort and challenges of public education. To gladly accepts the charge of serving each by association members and staff. The assure that flexibility, OSBA trustees and every member board with creative task force, which came to be known as and staff were charged with monitoring solutions that are flexible and adaptable the VISA team, collected information the plan to keep it aligned with the needs to the changing world. from a variety of sources via personal of association members as they strive to interviews, surveys, assessments and provide their students ever-expanding OSBA is a steward that holds the other research. It gathered input from opportunities. Three dozen additional resources given to us in trust for our OSBA members and staff and reached short- and long-term goals have been member school boards. Responsible out to external stakeholders, including melded into the plan since its adoption. stewardship requires continuously statewide education organizations, the improving processes and products. It governor’s office, state legislators, the The VISA team recognized that the plan is our hope and expectation that as we Ohio Department of Education, local would need to be revisited regularly to refine our strategic plan, OSBA will government groups and organized labor. ensure its timeliness and relevance. It continue to be the forward-looking The research included comprehensive prescribed that the mission, vision, voice of public education in supporting analyses of OSBA programs, products strategies and vision priorities be its mission of providing the best service and services; a look at previous formally reviewed in 2012. Under the possible for Ohio’s public school boards, strategic plans; and an assessment of direction of President Sharon E. now and long into the future. the association’s infrastructure and Manson, Waverly City and Pike capabilities. County Career Technology Center, the As for the observation of Carroll’s famous next generation of “visionaries” has cat? OSBA knows where it is going, we What emerged was a portrait of OSBA’s begun the work of how to better have our map and we’re on our way.