January is School Board Recognition Month and the Akron School District is joining other districts across the state to thank these community volunteers for their commitment and contributions to our public schools.
The job of a school board member is tough, the hours are long and the thanks are few and far between. Too often we forget about the personal sacrifices school board members make. Their time is spent attending meetings, extracurricular activities, and professional development. In a climate of change and challenge, they make difficult decisions on complex educational and social issues that affect the entire community and the lives of individual students. Like many public positions they often only hear the focus of the negative and not all the positive things happening in our school.
Their service ensures that decisions about our local district are made by those most familiar with the needs of our community’s children and families. During this month of appreciation, take the time to reach out to our school board members who provide wonderful support to our students, teachers, and administrators.
There are many ways to show your support and gratitude to our board members: Email a message of support, send them a letter of appreciation, or just stop them sometime and let them know you appreciate their service. You can find their emails and the school address on the school website (akronrams.net) under the School Board Agenda & Minutes tab.
Akron School Board Members
Name Position Years of Service on the Board
Kyle Dorrenbacher President 6
Kory Kessinger Vice-President 4
Tony Claflin Secretary 4
Jessica Filla Treasurer 3
Kelly Chenoweth Director 2
Why I serve?
“I serve because I have a fond appreciation for all the student opportunities a rural district has to offer. Along with the sense of safety, what we provide is often considered a lost art in education such as involvement in enrichment activities, small class sizes, and the ability to be heard when concerns arise.”-Jessica Filla
“I originally served on the school board due to a lack of candidates and felt that my engineering and construction background would be a benefit during the construction of the new school. I decided to serve a second term to help transition the district focus from construction back to educating our students, increasing student opportunities and supporting our district staff.”-Kyle Dorrenbacher
“I feel the school is the heart of the community, It is important for our students to have opportunities to grow and succeed, as well as for our district to continue to flourish.” – Kelly Chenoweth
“I am grateful for the opportunity to serve on the school board” –Tony Claflin
“I chose to pursue a role as a school board member because I care about he education of our next generation. Growing up in the community I realized the importance of giving kids in rural America every opportunity to succeed by offering them as much as possible to reach their goals. I consider myself to be a workable link between our community and school district”. –Kory Kessinger