Since its start in 1999, the Allen County Young Authors program, which encourages area school children to take up the role of writers and illustrators, has inspired the creation of 13,778 student-produced books and earned a reputation among nationally recognized children’s authors as the place to be.
In a short presentation to the USD 257 board of education Monday night, Deb Greenwall and Daryl Sigg traced the happy evolution of the program — from its original headquarters in Greenwall’s living room — and described for board members the list of events slated for this year’s celebration, which begins Friday morning and features award-winning writer Jewell Parker Rhodes and illustrator E.B. Lewis.
Greenwall sang the praises of students and teachers and organizers and local media, but was most adamant in her gratitude to the Sleeper Foundation, which has granted more than $200,000 to the Young Authors program across its 18 years.
The Register will provide further coverage of the 2017 Allen County Young Authors celebration in the coming days. Until then, more information can be found online at acyoungauthors.com.
ASSISTANT high school principal Scott Crenshaw briefed the board on the random drug testing policy recently adopted by USD 257. The district has decided to go with the Oratect III Saliva Drug Test — an oral swabbing method versus a hair or urine analysis — which will cost the district $12 per test. The program, which will conduct random drug tests across the high school population, will evaluate 20 students per month, a figure that will result in the testing of half the IHS student body by the end of a school year.
UPPER elementary principal Brad Crusinberry gave board members the coordinates for the summer school program, which will host incoming kindergartners through incoming sixth-graders Monday – Thursday, June 5-22, at Jefferson Elementary School.
IN PERSONNEL news, the board approved the resignations of high school PE teacher and head football coach Doug Kerr and eighth-grade math teacher Reine Loflin. The district approved the hiring of Taylor Seward as high school PE teacher and Lauren Toney as high school cheerleading sponsor.
