By 1808Delaware
Board President Brandon Lester opened the meeting with a simple message: appreciation. Voters approved the district’s bond package, which means plans for a new high school and a new elementary school can move ahead without raising the tax rate. Lester framed the moment as both practical and forward-looking, especially for a district adding hundreds of students each year.
Honoring Veterans Across the District
The Board set aside time to spotlight how several schools marked Veterans Day. Students and staff from Berlin High School, Orange Middle School, and Scioto Ridge Elementary shared the ways their school communities honor service members each November. The projects weren’t just celebrations; they were teaching moments on citizenship, government, and the role of military service in American life.
How Pupil Services Supports 6,400 Students
Roughly 6,400 Olentangy students have some type of documented barrier to learning, and the Pupil Services team offered an inside look at how they support them. Specialists in speech, intervention, English learning, and related services work alongside classroom teachers using a Multi-Tiered System of Supports to match help to student needs.
Most support happens right in the classroom. When a student needs more intensive assistance, staff step in with targeted interventions using tools such as Bridges, Benchmark, and Frogstreet, the district’s science-of-reading-aligned preschool curriculum. Olentangy’s state-mandated preschool now operates 39 classrooms with nearly 300 students served across 78 half-day sessions.
The district recently became Ohio’s largest to earn a five-star overall rating, including high marks for closing achievement gaps for students with disabilities and English learners.
Superintendent’s Update: Two New Schools on the Way
Superintendent Todd Meyer echoed the gratitude expressed earlier and turned to upcoming construction. With enrollment rising by 400 to 500 students each year, the new buildings are meant to stay ahead of growth, not chase it.
Design work is underway for Elementary School 18, scheduled to break ground in spring 2026 and open in 2027 at Bean Oller Road and Sawmill Road. High School 5 is following a similar timeline, with construction beginning in spring 2026 and opening in 2028 at Bunty Station Road and Sawmill Road.
The district’s redistricting committee meets again next month to revisit guidelines and determine whether new attendance boundaries are needed for 2026–27. The Board will receive a formal update in February.
Treasurer’s Report: Strong Results at a Lower Cost
Treasurer Ryan Jenkins walked through early 2024–25 numbers from the state’s District Profile, better known as the Cupp report. The data shows Olentangy continues to deliver outcomes at a cost slightly below the statewide average.
Ohio’s average operating expenditure is $17,329 per pupil; Olentangy comes in at $17,263. Administrative spending accounts for $1,652 per pupil, or 9.57 percent of total expenses—one of the lowest rates in the state. Meanwhile, 95.31 percent of operating dollars go directly to instruction, the seventh-highest share in Ohio.
Looking Ahead
The Board’s next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, December 16 at 6:30 PM at the Olentangy Administrative Offices. Full meeting materials and records are posted on the district’s Board Meeting Records page.
