Board of Education

Our mission is to provide an engaging, innovative and holistic experience that empowers all students to become responsible, productive citizens.

Board meetings are held in the District Office Conference Room, 90 North East Street, unless otherwise noted.

When location is rescheduled, they typically are held at the Heritage Elementary auditorium, adjacent to District Office.

Board meetings are held at 6 p.m. on the second and Fourth Monday of each month, unless noted.

Special meetings are scheduled on an as-needed basis.

The following is a tentative list of 2017 meeting dates for the Pickerington Schools Board of Education. Meetings in italics reflect changes from the standard meeting dates of the second and fourth meeting of the month. Dates and locations are subject to change.

• January 9, 2017
• January 23, 2017
• February 13, 2017
• February 27, 2017
• March 13, 2017
• March 27, 2017
• April 3, 2017 
• April 19, 2017, 7:30 p.m. (executive session, Grace Fellowship Pickerington Campus,
  1449 Refugee Road)
• April 24, 2017
• May 8, 2017 (7 p.m.)
• May 22, 2017
• May 23. 2017 (5:30 p.m., executive session)
• May 24, 2017 (5:30 p.m.)
• May 30, 2017
• June 12, 2017
• June 26, 2017
• July 10, 2017
• July 24, 2017
• August 7, 2017 (4:30 p.m.)
• August 14, 2017
• August 28, 2017
• September 11, 2017
• September 25, 2017
• October 16, 2017 
• October 23, 2017
• November 6, 2017
• November 27, 2017
• December 11, 2017

The district streams all Board of Education regular meetings and work sessions live online. Recordings of these meetings also are available to stream at any time. Watch meetings at livestream.com.

The Board of Education welcomes comments from our community. The board provides an opportunity for public participation at its monthly meetings, when individuals may offer ideas and ask questions in a public setting. To speak at a board meeting, individuals must fill out and submit a public comment form. This form is available online and at the meetings.

There are two opportunities to comment at board meetings. The board provides a time for general comments at the beginning of the meeting. A second comment period at the end of the meeting is for topics that were covered by the board on that meeting’s agenda. Comments are limited to three minutes.

Individuals addressing the board can expect the board president to respond to questions in one or more of the following ways:

• Asking the superintendent or a member of the administration to follow up
• Setting a date for further follow-up or review
• Acknowledging that the question/concern may not be able to be addressed at the present time
• Thanking you for your input and interest

Board meeting agendas and minutes for meetings held after January 2014 can be accessed on the Board Docs website.

Meetings prior to 2014 can be accessed here, then clicking on the “Library” tab.

The board performs certain routine business responsibilities each month to keep the district operating smoothly. These tasks often are accomplished with a consent agenda.

Other items on the meeting agendas will require informed decisions based upon research, review, and committee work. The board does much of its fact-finding beforehand through committee reports, meetings, inquiries to staff, and committee liaison responsibilities.

In short, if the board and staff are doing their homework, asking pertinent questions, and getting satisfactory answers, the topics on the Board agenda should reflect this preparation.

Typically, individuals who write to a member of the Board of Education will receive a response that either answers the questions or refers the individual to the appropriate member of the administration, who will be able to answer those questions.

Individuals writing to the entire Board of Education will receive a response from the board president, either answering the question or referring them to the appropriate member of the administration, who will be able to answer the question.

All Pickerington Local Schools Board of Education policies can be found on Board Docs. If you do not find the policy you are trying to reference, contact Jill Amos. A PDF of the requested board policy will be emailed to you.

Board members are liaisons on the following committees for 2016:

Buildings & Grounds: Keith Kristoff, Vanessa Niekamp

This committee considers select topics related to food services, transportation, building maintenance and capital improvement projects.

Calendar: Cathy Olshefski (alternate: Vanessa Niekamp)

This committee works with members of district staff to develop school-year calendars.

District Leadership Team: Cathy Olshefski, Michelle Waterhouse

The District Leadership Team (DLT) is comprised of board members, parents, teachers, and administrators. The DLT guides the continuous improvement process for the district.

Finance: Keith Kristoff, Michelle Waterhouse

In an effort to maintain the highest levels of transparency and communication with respect to district finances and the equitable and efficient use of resources, the Finance Liaison Committee meets the second Thursday of each month. The committee discusses all facets of the district’s financial goals, strategies, and operations with key stakeholders within the school and the community.

Insurance: Lori Sanders (alternate: Michelle Waterhouse)

Comprised equally of representatives from the Pickerington administrative team and the Pickerington Education Association, the Pickerington Schools Insurance Committee meets five to eight times per school year to review the district’s health and dental insurance programs.  The committee’s overarching goal is to find cost-effective ways to offer district employees a highly competitive, comprehensive benefits plan.

Policy: Lori Sanders, Michelle Waterhouse

This committee collaborates with various departments to review related policies and make necessary changes to meet current practices and legislative requirements. The committee reviews the recommendations for all new and current policies before they are proposed to the Board of Education.

Schools and Community: Vanessa Niekamp, Cathy Olshefski

One board member represents the district as a liaison to other committees and organizations.

Student Activities: Keith Kristoff, Lori Sanders

This committee considers select topics related to various activities in the athletic department, fine arts departments, and other student activities.  

Ohio law mandates that school board meetings be open to the public, with an exception of executive sessions. In an executive session, the board may discuss but not vote on:

• The appointment, employment, dismissal, discipline, promotion, demotion or compensation of an employee or official, or the investigation of charges against an employee or official, or regulated individual requests a public hearing;
• The purchase of property for public purposes or the sale of property a competitive bidding;
• Disputes which are the subject of pending or imminent court action in conference with an attorney;
• Preparing for, conducting or reviewing negotiations or bargaining sessions with employees;
• Matters required to be kept confidential by federal or state statutes;
• Specialized details of security arrangements or emergency response.

The Board of Education is legally responsible to:

• Develop policies and regulations necessary for the governance of the school district.
• Ensure students are provided with high quality educational opportunities.
• Appoint a superintendent of schools and invest such powers in him/her as may be legally delegated.
• Appoint a treasurer.
• Act on personnel and policies recommended by the superintendent.
• See that the annual budget is prepared and acted on.
• Pass an annual appropriations measure.
• Adopt a master calendar annually.
• Enter into contracts with all personnel in the manner required by Ohio laws.
• Levy taxes with a vote of the people to maintain schools.