A great deal of attention is placed upon our students to master content standards and pass standardized tests . . . rightly so.  But, I am glad that our teachers have not lost sight of the importance of teaching and modeling community service to our students.

Recently, Sally Andrews and a group of her Marysville Health Tech students volunteered at the Union County Women’s Health Day.  I was so proud when several guests approached me to compliment OHP and Marysville on the professionalism and work ethic of our students.  They did a super job!

All of our satellite students are involved in some type of community service throughout the year.  This evening, the Graham FFA students will cook and serve tasty dinners to the teachers during parent-teacher conferences.  The CBI students at Upper Scioto Valley High School collect canned goods and organize them at the local food pantry once a month.  Our teaching professions students at Marysville and Bellefontaine provide professional development to teachers and parents on Internet safety.  The list is endless, and many other projects will be referenced in future blogs.

Any of you who volunteer or provide some type of service to the community know that you just don’t show up and do what is told of you.  Teachers and students spend countless hours organizing, preparing, and providing whatever service is being provided . . . and then there is typically clean-up of some type afterwards!  I applaud our instructors and students for putting forth time and effort beyond the school day to make a difference in our communities.  Thank you!