Dear Bath Community,

I want to continue the conversation started by Mr. Lewellen last spring regarding our school district’s next financial challenge because in May of 2018, we will be seeking a renewal of our operating levy which constitutes $3.7 million of our $16 million budget. It is important for us to be transparent and have open dialogue with regards to our school finances and the issues we will be facing in the near future. The current Board of Education, Treasurer and previous Superintendents have done a great job keeping us fiscally responsible over the past decade in that we have not had to ask our community for new operating money since 2004. In the spring of 2012 we asked for new money in the form of a bond issue to build a beautiful new elementary school. We are incredibly grateful for this wonderful learning environment in which our kids experience on a daily basis. However, the funds for this construction project to build the elementary are separate from paying utility bills, salaries, etc. Moreover, due to legislative changes in Columbus in the way our district valuation is determined, our community members will inherit more of a burden to maintain our current level of revenue. Let’s take a closer look at how three factors may influence your taxes.
First, TPP reimbursement from the state of Ohio. Years ago we passed an emergency levy which is a fixed sum levy that is renewed every five years. A fixed sum levy collects an exact amount of dollars based upon the amount of the levy in the year in which it was passed. As property values go up or down, the county auditor adjusts the millage rate so that the same amount of revenue is generated each year. Furthermore, if there are changes from Columbus in the funding formula for reimbursements, then there can be a change to how the fixed sum levy amount is calculated in relation to who’s paying. In 2005, the state legislature stopped taxing our local businesses and industries on their tangible personal property (TPP) (their equipment & inventory). We used to get this TPP reimbursement (tax dollars from equipment & inventory from an industry in our community) from the state. This reimbursement is phasing out over the next five years through year 2021. There will be NO fixed sum TPP reimbursements in 2022. The amount of money the state is cutting its reimbursement will be added on to the local emergency levy and collected in local property taxes. Consequently, they have shifted this burden to real property owners. This begins in tax year 2017 (taxes that will be collected in 2018).
Second, HB 49 requires the Department of Taxation to decrease the Current Agricultural Use Value (CAUV) tax rates beginning with the 2017 reappraisals. Allen County is scheduled for a triennial update in tax year 2018. Per our county auditor, farmers will see a decrease in their valuations (affecting January 2019 tax bills). Bath’s Class I valuation is 13% agricultural and 87% residential. For our emergency levy and our bond levy, as CAUV goes down, residential rates will go up. Again, this change in CAUV comes legislatively from Columbus.
Third, we anticipate that residential property values will go up across the state as well as right here in Allen County and Bath Township. This may or may not affect your taxes.
In summary, this is a renewal levy that has been on the ballot since 1979. We are currently on the financial path of an Emergency Operating Renewal and Permanent Improvement Renewal every five years. Permanent Improvement levies generate monies that may only go towards facilities, technology or any items lasting more than five years. Our P.I. renewal will come on the ballot in 2021. The timing of these levies has worked well for the district as there are a couple of years between the two levies. It has given us the opportunity to provide our students with a well-rounded education and provide them with the services they need to succeed.
Over the next few months, we will provide more information regarding the levy on May 8th, 2018. If you should have any questions, please do not hesitate to call our office.
Sincerely,

Rich Dackin Superintendent

FROM
BATH ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL
MR. CHRIS RENNER, PRINCIPAL
FIFTH GRADE QUIZ BOWL TEAM

Do you watch Jeopardy? Do you play Trivia Crack? Do you play Trivial Pursuit? Can you answer these trivia questions? Who invented the traffic light? What century did King Henry VIII rule? What are the three agents of erosion? Who wrote the Little House on the Prairie series? What is the capital of Vermont? When did Ohio become a state? Name the Great Lakes. Where is the Cumberland Gap? Where did Davy Crockett die?
What artist is known for his blue period? What does www stand for? What section of a symphony would you find a French horn? What is the square root of 49 plus 10? If so, quiz bowl may interest you! Members of the 2017-2018 fifth grade quiz bowl team have been selected. Fifth grade students interested in being a quiz bowl member took a qualifying test after
school on November 14. Students were informed of their individual results a day later. Practices are after school in Coach Wiedenbein’s classroom.
Trivia games, research, dry erase board rounds, buzzer rounds and procedures are components of the practice sessions. Thank you goes to the PTS for
funding a resource for potential questions. Meets are in late January and early February at Shawnee Middle School.

THIRD YEAR FOR THE ELEMENTARY NewsCats!

WILDCAT KINDERGARTEN ROUNDUP
Bath Elementary School is taking names for 2018 -2019 Kindergarten. To be eligible, a child must be 5 years old on or before August 1, 2018. If you have a child who meets this qualification, contact the elementary office during regular working hours. Parents will need to provide the school with the child’s birth certificate (which includes mother’s maiden name), social security card, immunization information, custody papers (if applicable, including all pages of the document and the judge or magistrate’s signature), and three
documents providing proof of residency in the Bath Local School District. All of these
items must be submitted to the elementary office before registration forms may be completed. Parents should pick-up the initial information packet in the

Bath Elementary School fifth grade students Faith Clark, Leah Shields, Lucy Niebel, Carmen Kunkleman, Ezrah McKissick, Hadyn O’Donnell, Kyla Fallis, Jaden Ryan, Emily Lee, Cole Craddock, Téa Sibert and Cody Miller are this year’s staff for the Elementary NewsCats!	They are learning how they put together recorded video announcements for our students to watch as well as live video productions streamed to parents and grandparents if they are unable to make it to the event. Most of the time the NewsCats are able to put together and record video announcements for the students to watch once a week. After several productions this year, it appearsThe NewsCats are well on their wayto producing some high quality news reports.

elementary office as soon as possible. Parents will also sign-up for a screening time for their child at that time. Screenings will take place May 29 and May 30. The elementary office is open to pick-up packets from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and from 2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily.

5TH GRADE BAND
The 5th grade band presented their Demonstration Concert on December 5 to a packed house of parents, friends and family members! Students demonstrated what they have been learning in class and the progress they are making day-to-day. The 71-member ensemble will be performing again on May 7th at 7:00 p.m. at Bath High School in our annual Band-o-Rama concert with the other Bath Bands. These students are very talented and will continue our "Tradition of Excellence" for many years to come.	~Mrs. Snyder & Mr. Hanhold

PTS Meeting – February 12th @ 7pm. Always the second Monday of the month! Follow the Bath PTS on their Facebook page, Bath Parent Teacher Society (PTS), for meeting dates, locations and news.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

 February 5 – Spring Pictures
 February 7 - Students on a 2 Hour delay for staff in-service
 February 19 – No School

MR. CHRIS RENNER, PRINCIPAL
FROM
MUSIC IN THE ELEMENTARY

BATH ELEMENTARY
In December, the kindergarten classes performed a Christmas carol concert for guests where each class was able to perform a special poem or finger play intermixed with the carols. The fourth-grade students presented the musical Christmas on Candy Cane Lane. They entertained their fellow elementary students with a performance during the school day and the community with an evening performance. We want to give a special thank you to our music teacher, Mrs. Hartzler, as well as the kindergarten and fourth grade teachers for their extra efforts.

SCHOOL
ELEMENTARY SAFETY PATROL

New to Bath Elementary this year is a safety patrol program. Students from fourth and fifth grade applied for patrol positions. Teacher recommendations were also considered to select the patrol members. Safety patrol helps teachers and administrators monitor the student body while entering and exiting the building. The patrol members encourage the student body to make healthy and safe choices. The younger students often slow down as they see a patrol member so that they may receive a high five from an upperclassman. Patrol members also maintain the lost and found area. During lunch, they choose the cleanest and quietest table. This table of
students is rewarded by going to recess first. Positive feedback has been received as the program develops. A big thank you goes out to the
leadership of the safety patrol members and their willingness
to accept extra responsibilities for the betterment of our student body. Go Wildcats!

5TH GRADE CHOIR

The fifth grade choir has been working incredibly hard this year. They learned about Christmas celebrations all over the world as they performed the program "It's Christmas Everywhere". They did a wonderful job and put on a great show that involved over 100 students, many of which had speaking and singing solos. I couldn’t be more proud of them all!

Now that Christmas is over, the choirs will continue working on reading music, singing technique, and many other musical ideas. They will soon begin preparing for their next concert on May 21 in the middle school gym.

The first half of this year has been so much fun! I look forward to the rest of the year working with these great singers.
~ Mrs. Sarah Haselman

FROM
BATH MIDDLE SCHOOL
MR. BRAD CLARK, PRINCIPAL
6th GRADE TECHNOLOGY CLASSES

6th grade technology students have been working hard the last few weeks creating individual career plans. Students first logged on to the Ohio Means Jobs website and created a “backpack” to store their career information in one location. After creating a backpack, they completed a career cluster inventory. This is a series of questions about what students like and dislike. A cluster of careers that students may be interested in was then generated from their answers. Students researched a career from their cluster and created a PowerPoint to present to the class. The PowerPoint included a career description, the salary range, classes needed for both high school and college, their reactions to information gained as well as influences for choosing their career. After PowerPoint presentations were completed, students briefly discussed the many different careers available. They were amazed at some career options as well as surprised to learn about such a variety of careers. Please be sure to ask your student about their career choice!

6th grade technology classes have also been learning how to code and create videos in Movie Maker. Coding is what makes it possible for us to create computer software, apps and websites. The students felt as if they were playing a game, however, they were creating it! Students are currently working with Movie Maker and recreating a music video to “Can’t Stop the Feeling.” Be sure to ask your student what they are working on in the technology world!

CLASS OF 2022

There will be a meeting on Monday, February 5th at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium for parents and students who will be freshman next year. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss scheduling, graduation requirements and high school policies. We encourage all students and parents to attend this informative orientation. The high school guidance counselors will meet with students during the school day on February 5th and distribute the 2018-2019 curriculum guide. You can also find this guide on the Bath High School website.

The annual College Credit Plus meeting will be on Wednesday, February 7th at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium for any student interested in taking a college credit course next school year.

WLIO CLASS OF THE WEEK

On October 13, Mrs. Kowal’s and Mrs. Renner’s homerooms at Bath Middle School were named Fat Jack’s Class of the Week on the WLIO Lima News. They were recognized as a result of raising nearly $200 for the Real Men Wear Pink fundraiser. The money
raised was donated to the American Cancer Society. Way to go!

MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENT COUNCIL

The Middle School Student Council has been an active club in our building this year. In the fall, they spent an afternoon cleaning out the landscaped areas around the elementary school, raised over $800 with a penny drive to benefit the oncology department at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and assisted the Bath High School Interact Club with their West Ohio Food Bank Hygiene Barrel drive. For Christmas, student council sponsored a holiday card drive, creating over 250 cards to spread holiday cheer to those unable to be home for the holidays. Cards were sent to our local hospitals, Nationwide Children’s Hospital and to military personnel. The group has also taken on the task of helping our classrooms recycle paper. Student council members check and empty the recycle bins on a weekly basis, something our custodians have been thankful for. They have noted the trash
bags in each classroom are significantly lighter since starting this recycling program. Similar to the spirit week hosted this fall, the
student council will be promoting school spirit all week in February,
which culminates with a pep rally

on Friday.

FROM

STUDENTS OF THE MONTH

Teachers at Bath Middle School have selected students of the month for October and November. The following students were selected based on their academic
performance and their behavior.

MOMENTUM AWARD

The Bath Middle School students and staff recently received the Momentum Award from the State Board of Education. This award is based on student test scores from the 2016-2017 school year and recognizes schools for exceeding expectations in student growth for
the year. Schools must earn straight A’s on all Value-Added

October

Jadin Marquez Kyla Bailey Paris Davidson Jordyn Sturgeon
Jackson Kohlrieser

Blaine Albright

November

Sahib Singh Nick Prichard Dillon Earl Sami Klingler Ava Clay
Kiersten Sheridan

measures on the report card. The school or district must have at least two Value-Added subgroups of students, which includes gifted, lowest 20% in achievement, and students with disabilities. The staff and students worked hard in order to be successful on the state tests
and hope to continue this success on the tests in 2018.

BATH MIDDLE SCHOOL
VETERANS DAY ASSEMBLY

On November 8, the Bath Middle School conducted a Veterans Day breakfast and assembly. Our building was honored to have
approximately 50 veterans in attendance for the breakfast and the assembly. It was a pleasure to host and recognize veterans from our community. The activities from this day also provided a valuable lesson to our students about patriotism and service to our country. The middle school thanks our veterans for their service and for spending part of their day with us.

MR. BRAD CLARK, PRINCIPAL
PROCTER AND GAMBLE DONATIONS	Mrs. Wicker’s English classes wrapped up a unit on holiday traditions around the world in December. Working in groups,

Once again this year, Bath Middle School	students researched the holiday traditions of another country in experienced the generosity of Procter and	an effort to answer questions such as what decorations and

Gamble. Before leaving for Christmas break this year, each of our students received a bag of
personal hygiene products compliments of Procter

foods are unique to the country, what holiday stories do they share, and what customs does the country honor. Students then
created a presentation to share with peers about what they

and Gamble. This is the second year that our	learned. In addition, students were required to write and students have received the products. The Bath	illustrate an original children’s picture book to read to the

Middle School would like to thank Procter and

Gamble for their generosity and for thinking

class. The unit culminated with each group sharing their picture

book with the Educational Service Center units housed at Bath

about our students during the holidays. Their	Middle School. Some groups even efforts and generosity are greatly appreciated.	made a craft or food from their
country to share. Students made passports and stickers to document which countries were “visited.”

FROM
BATH HIGH SCHOOL
MR. RICK GROSS, PRINCIPAL

BATH HIGH SCHOOL 2018 TESTING DATES
Please do not schedule any appointments, vacations, etc. on these days. Thank you in advance for making attendance a priority!

ACT TEST for all JUNIORS
	March 20th @ 8:15am
	All students in the Class of 2019 must take the ACT this date – Bath and Apollo Students
	
	AIR TESTING DATES
	April 16th-17th
	
English Language Arts I and II
	
	AIR MAKE-UP DATES
	April 18th-20th
		
	MATH
	April 23rd
	
Math Part I & II
	
	SCIENCE
	April 24th
	
Science Part I & II
	
	SOCIAL STUDIES
	April 25th
	
Social Studies Part I & II
	
	AIR MAKE-UP DATES
	April 26th – May 4th
		
	AP ENGLISH EXAM
	May 9th
	
8am to noon in library

BATH ACADEMIC TEAM

The Bath High School Academic Team finished 2nd out of 12 schools at the Blackswamp League hosted by the Allen County ESC. Seniors Tristam Cheeseman and Alexis Ball finished first or second during Blackswamp League all four years they were on the team. Team members included: Tristam Cheeseman, Derek Inskeep, Natalie Crowe, Vincent Abrams, Alexis Ball, Riley Iiames,
Noah Kindig, Megan Tracy, Kenzie Jones, Ashytn Jefferson & Charis Barnes.

Pictured left to right. Tristam Cheeseman, Derek Inskeep, Natalie Crowe, Vincent Abrams, & Alexis Ball

COLLEGE CREDIT PLUS MEETING – There will be a CCP meeting on Wednesday, February 7th at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium for all students currently in 6th to 11th grades.

ACT

The ACT will be administered at Bath High School on Saturday, February 10th and Saturday, April 14th for anyone wishing to take the ACT. The current junior class is required to take the ACT on March 20th at 8:15 a.m.

SCHEDULING FOR 2018-2019 SCHOOL YEAR

Feb. 5th – Class of 2019 and Class of 2022* Feb. 8th & 9th – Class of 2020
Feb 12th & 13th – Class of 2021 Feb. 23rd – All schedules are due

*Class of 2022 parent and student meeting at 7 p.m. in the High School Auditorium

SCHOOL
NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY

FROM
BATH HIGH
In October, the NHS held its annual induction ceremony. At this ceremony we installed our officers for the 2017-18 school year. The following seniors will be leading National Honor Society this year: Alexis Ball, president; Lydia Wiechart, vice president; Seaira Ball, secretary; Megan Truman, treasurer. Additionally, we welcomed new members who fulfilled all four pillars of the National Honor Society (leadership, character, scholarship, and service). The following juniors and seniors were inducted to the Bath National Honor Society: Luke Best, Hunter Calvelage, Dominic Camps, Regan Canter, Joshua Carman, Jordain Craig, Megan Clinger, Kaitlyn Collins, Tori Dackin, Maegan Dunn, Jaidyn Hale, Katelyn Fisher, Riley Iiames, Kari Miller, Robert Mooney, Alexa Pack, Cole Parlapiano, Kaley Perry, Katelyn Rable, Caitlyn Renner, Caylee Rieman, Hailey Robey, Emily Rocca, Will Sakemiller, Quinn Schneider, Alexandra Scott, Julia Shipman and Paige Williams.

STUDENTS GIVE BACK

In the 2017 Christmas season, the student council at Bath High School was able to reach 17 families for the annual Christmas baskets. With generous donations and Halloween grams sales, student council donated baskets of food, hygiene items, and lunch boxes. Among those who helped make this possible was the National Honor Society and Spanish Club. NHS members donated toys and gift cards for 45 families, and Spanish Club members donated hats, gloves, and scarfs to keep these families warm this winter. Thank you to all who made this year’s Christmas baskets successful, and a reminder to all: the season of giving is over, but don’t let that stop you from helping those in need.

2017 U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT BEST HIGH SCHOOLS

Congratulations to students, staff and community for earning one of
America’s Best High School awards from U.S. News and World Report.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR -NO SCHOOL

Due to the Junior class taking the ACT, there will be no class for high school students in grades 9, 10 and 12 on March 20th.

MR. RICK GROSS, PRINCIPAL
INTERACT CLUB – SERVICE ABOVE SELF
The Bath Interact Club has been busy this school year with several service projects in and around our community: community tailgate before a home football game, online spirit den (check out www.bathwildcats.org to order spirit items), an #ArriveAlive social media campaign, West Ohio Food Bank hygiene barrel drive, assisting at the Rotary Special Needs Christmas Party, dodgeball game to provide a drug and alcohol free environment for our students to have fun, and the second annual Father Daughter dance just to name a few!
Thanks to your support, the hygiene barrel drive brought in 1,213 pounds of personal care items that will benefit people living in our area. We were overwhelmed with the generosity of the Bath community. The Interact Club is nearly 70 members strong this year and doing great things. Members are currently selling
SUNDAY FUNDAY
tickets to help fund the Kyle’s	SUNDAY FUNDAY!
Heart Foundation Scholarship.	Sunday, Feb. 18th 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Westgate Lanes
Tickets - $15 per person, includes 3 hrs. unlimited bowling, shoe rental, pizza and soft drinks!

BLOODMOBILE
The annual Bloodmobile will be Friday, February 23rd 9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
in the High School Gymnasium
Please contact Mr. Gross if you would like to donate blood. (419) 221-0366 or GROSSR@BATHWILDCATS.ORG

BATH LOCAL SCHOOLS 2650 BIBLE ROAD LIMA, OHIO 45801

NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID
PERMIT NO. 65 LIMA, OH 45801

Bath Schools are in the process of taking nominations for our first Hall of Fame Class to be inducted next school year. Please visit bathwildcats.org for the application to nominate one of our finest.

#WildcatNation

P A R E N T	S C H O O L	C O M M U N I T Y

BATH LOCAL SCHOOLS DIRECTORY

BATH ADMINISTRATION Rich Dackin, Superintendent Annette Morman, Treasurer 2650 Bible Road
Lima, OH 45801 (419) 221-0807

BATH ELEMENTARY Chris Renner, Principal Chris Clark, Asst. Principal 2450 Bible Road
Lima, OH 45801 (419) 221-1837

BATH MIDDLE SCHOOL Brad Clark, Principal
Todd Fleharty, Asst. Principal 2700 Bible Road
Lima, OH 45801 (419) 221-1839

BATH HIGH SCHOOL Rick Gross, Principal
Brian Jesko, Asst. Principal 2850 Bible Road
Lima, OH 45801 (419) 221-0366

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT: JANE BAILEY
We are honored to spotlight Mrs. Jane Bailey in this edition of our Bath School Community Newsletter. Jane grew up in Bath but was a student of St. Rose and LCC who always attended Bath events. She has two daughters, both graduates of Bath Schools, and two grandkids that attended Bath until recently moving to Tennessee. She recalls always wanting to be a teacher as a child. She would often play school growing up. However, she waited until her family was raised to go to college and become a teacher. She chose to wait until she could afford college tuition. While Jane spent most of her years teaching the 3rd grade, in her first four years of teaching, she taught four different grade levels, in part due to the closing of Cairo Schools. Now in her 38th year of teaching, Mrs. Bailey recounts several changes to her profession: the addition of technology, classroom size, the needs of our students and the new elementary. Jane smiles as she names colleagues that were once students of hers. Currently serving our students as a Title I Teacher, together as a team, the Title I department supports our classroom teachers
in filling the educational gaps of our students, mainly in regards to reading, as well as administering the DIBELS testing. In addition to teaching, Jane also supports our school and community with the Angel Fund Project, Author-Illustrator and Literacy Night. Although Jane admits she loves her job and isn’t ready to fully retire yet, she hopes that when she does, she will be remembered as a teacher that taught more than academics; a teacher that taught her students character attributes such as honesty and determination.

Renewal Levy Highlights:
	This fixed sum levy was passed to bring in $3.7 million (originally $2.7 million from real property values and $1 million from

tangible personal property (TPP)

	This levy will never earn more or less for our school district.

	This burden is spread over the entire community’s total valuation including residential, agricultural, commercial and industrial properties.
	When the state removed the valuation of industry’s tangible personal property (tax on equipment and inventory) from the valuation base, they delayed the impact to real property (houses, structures and land) owners by using CAT (Commercial Activities Tax) income and sales taxes to “reimburse” the school districts for the amount collected on tangible personal property value. This TPP reimbursement is now being phased out and will end in 2022.
	Current Agricultural Use Values are expected to decrease which will cause the residential property owner’s rates to increase. 	Residential property values are trending upward.