Cloverleaf Community Newsletter Winter 2023

CLOVERLEAF LOCAL SCHOOLS

Winter 2023

The Guiding Principles of Cloverleaf Special Education

By Nicole Stalter Director of Special Services

Let me introduce you to “Jen.” I’m not using her real name, but her learning needs are real – and so is the pride we feel at Cloverleaf in providing the support and services students like Jen need to succeed.

If you met her, you’d probably say Jen is just like any other bubbly 15-year-old you know. However, Jen has a learning disability that causes her to struggle with reading comprehension and solving math problems. Jen doesn’t recognize most social cues – like what another person’s facial expression or tone of voice might mean. She takes everything literally. She also has poor physical coordination and a difficult time judging distance.

In the past, a student like Jen may have had to go to a different classroom, or sometimes even a different school – away from her peers and community – to receive the help she needs to learn. At Cloverleaf, we are committed to providing a continuum of services to support all students academically and behaviorally right here in our own district as they progress through the general education curriculum.

It’s based on a concept called LeastRestrictive Environment. That means keeping students who receive special education in the same classrooms with typical students as much as possible. Our

staff collaborates with parents to scale interventions up or down based on a child’s particular needs. In some cases, a student with a disability may receive all instruction from a general education teacher with a little guidance from a special educator. At the other end of the continuum, a different student may benefit most from a setting in which all instruction is provided by a special educator in a self-contained classroom reserved for students with identified disabilities. Our district provides these options, plus many others in between. There’s no “one-size-fits-all” at Cloverleaf.

What works best for Jen in this continuum of services? Jen receives some instruction in a co-teaching classroom and some

instruction in a subject area resource room. While Jen has various learning challenges, there are other things she is great at! Those skills include verbal reasoning, vocabulary and strong factual recall. Jen is perfectly able to put those abilities to use in a general education setting.

At Cloverleaf, the test for everything we do is the question: “Is it what’s best for kids?” The Least-Restrictive Environment concept is a great example of doing what’s best for our students with special needs. And we are thankful to have involved parents, a talented staff and a supportive community that makes it happen every day for students like Jen.

Teachers like high school intervention specialist Michele Day work closely with students every day to help them meet their learning goals.

A Message from the Superintendent

Thank-you to the community … and a construction update

I am extremely grateful that our Cloverleaf community renewed its commitment to our school district by approving our 10-year, 4.2-mill fixeddollar renewal levy this past November. As promised, the Cloverleaf Board of Education certified a 0.25% reduction of our district’s earned income tax as a result of this levy’s passage. Savings to our taxpayers with this earned income tax reduction began Jan. 1!

Since our community survey in 2019, our plan has been first to construct the new

9-12-grade high school and then add the 6-8-grade portion of the building when financing becomes available two years later. With news about a sooner-thananticipated disbursement from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission for our construction project, we have a great window of opportunity to complete the 6-8 portion of the building now. As a result, the Cloverleaf Board of Education passed a resolution at its August 2022 meeting to begin the formal design and construction of the 6-8 grade addition to the new high school project. With the addition of the 6-8 portion of the building, it is necessary to change the move-in date from September 2023 to August 2024.

Although I know the change in the construction schedule is disappointing to

Band Continues to “Love What We Do and Share It with Others”

By Andrew Winter Cloverleaf Band Director

The year 2022 was an exceptional one for the Cloverleaf Colts Marching Band!

The band performed for a state-record 40th-consecutive year at Ohio Music Education State Finals, earned its highest scores in more than 25 years, and finished the season as one of the top three Class A bands in the state.

Student leaders helped welcome one of the largest freshmen classes in recent history and innovated many rehearsal and performance techniques. Staff and parent volunteers worked tirelessly to support the students as we continued to build on the success of previous seasons. The band had a strong start, qualifying for state finals in its second competition

of the season, while simultaneously earning a first place and sweeping all awards in its division. After that initial success, the band (which is a Div. 3, Class B-size band) took it up a notch by competing the rest of the season as a Div. 2 Class A band. Students, staff and parent volunteers valued the opportunity to perform more than 20 times, as well as the time together developing friendships, shared experiences, life-lessons and unforgettable memories.

We look forward to continuing to “Love What We Do and Share It with Others” throughout the year with Wind Ensemble, Concert Band and Jazz Band –as well as our State Champion Indoor Percussion Ensemble and State SilverMedalist Winterguard program.

some, most have agreed a one-year delay will be well worth the inconvenience as we are able to move grades 6-12 into a brand new building instead of moving our middle school students to the current high school for two years before moving again. This revised plan means our Cloverleaf students in grades preschool through 12 will be educated in new/relatively new facilities for the first time in the 62-year history of our school district. Again, all of this construction, including our newly renovated athletic facilities, is being funded without a taxpayer-financed bond issue.

It’s a great day to be a Colt!

-- Dr. Daryl Kubilus, Jr. Superintendent

From left: Senior Field Commander Maddy Otterbacher, Guard Captain Amy Washinger and Junior Field Commander Hannah Lesniak.

Fall Sports Wrap-up: A Season for the Ages

great young players are returning for the 2023 season with a lot of experience and a league title under their belts.”

Boys golf was 11-5 overall. They finished second in the MAC when projected to finish fifth or sixth. They lost the regular season title by one shot to Coventry and lost the MAC tournament by two shots to Springfield. Branson Harding qualified for districts, making it four straight years one or more golfers have qualified.

“The boys worked really hard to accomplish what they did this season,” first-year Coach Michael McGee said. “It was above expectations most gave them.”

Girls tennis completed its season 9-8 overall and 5-5 in the league. They finished fourth in the MAC.

“We had 16 girls play tennis this year, which is the most we’ve had in a few years,” Coach Brenda Hewit said. “We are looking forward to growing the program.”

By Owen Price Sophomore Journalism Student

Cloverleaf High School had a fall to remember, with teams earning four Metro Athletic Conference championships to open the 2022-23 school year.

Boys soccer capped the season with a 13-5 record, including 5-2 in the MAC. In the MAC postseason tournament, they defeated both conference teams they lost to in the regular season – including a penalty kick win to beat Field in the semifinals. Then they defeated No. 1 seed Norton, which was the defending champion and undefeated in the MAC. Cloverleaf overcame the Panthers in the finals in sudden death overtime, 4-3.

The Colts ended a 25-year drought to become conference co-champions. Senior Blake Musick was named conference player of the year and set the Cloverleaf record for goals in a season with 27.

“The 2022 boys soccer players came together as a team of destiny this year,” said Coach Aaron Cummings.“ These boys had to overcome injuries and had to face

the hardest path to bring home a banner for the first time in 25 years.”

Girls soccer won the MAC championship for the first time in seven years. The team was 14-3 overall and 6-1 in the MAC. They won the MAC postseason tournament with victories over Coventry, Woodridge and a 2-1 win over Field in the finals.

“It was so exciting for us to come together as a team and also to fight to win a MAC title for the first time in many years,” senior Emma Malikowski said.

The girls golf team finished 12-2 overall and 10-0 in the MAC. They were MAC champions for the seventh-straight time. Jenna McGarry was First Team All-MAC; Mackenzie Seiwerth, Addie Leonard and Sydney Jones were second-team; while Ally Kogler and Khera Miller were honorable mention.

“As a very young team, I believe most on the outside didn’t give us much of a chance to compete for a league title,” first-year Coach Nolan Turpin said. “Our young players rose to the challenge and Jenna McGarry was an anchor throughout the season. A lot of

Football finished 8-3 on the season and 6-1 in the MAC. The Colts qualified for the playoffs and shared the conference championship for the first time since 1972. The team set many school records, including most rushing yards in a season (Oakely Kemp); most points scored in a season (Connor Hitchcock); most extra points made in a season (Griffin Petrocci); and most total yards, rushing yards and points scored in a season. Kemp was the MAC Offensive Player of the Year and Tommy Price was the MAC Lineman of the Year.

“This team was a true family and worked together since June,” Coach Justin Vorhies said. “Their hard work and resilience carried them to a conference championship and will forever leave a mark on the program.”

Boys cross country finished the season second in the MAC and turned in multiple high-level performances – including a firstplace at Medina’s Milt Place Cross Country Festival. The team placed fourth at districts and 12th at regionals.

Brett Gucker was First Team All-MAC, while Vova Herdman and Gavin Forbes were Second Team All-MAC. Honorable mentions were Caleb Neville and Nathan Naples. Ethan Vaughn, Hunter Stallings, Gucker, Herdman, Naples, Forbes and Neville all qualified for regionals.

The football team earned a share of the league championship for the first time since 1972.

The girls cross country team capped its season with a trip to the state championships.

CLOVERLEAF REC WINTER PROGRAMS

CLOVERLEAF REC WINTER PROGRAMS

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

involves analyzing incident trends and using risk assessments to identify projects that can reduce impacts. This role also allows me to utilize my environmental background to ensure compliance with different air, water and waste regulations. What do you like to do outside of work?

Connor: Outside of work, most of my time goes toward pursuing my Master of Business Administration through Lake Erie College. I enjoy traveling whenever I can, with most of my recent focus going toward visiting national parks. Other than that, I’m usually rooting on the Buckeyes, Browns or Cavs.

Class of 2013

What activities were you involved in during high school?

Connor: I was a member of the varsity basketball team, National Honor Society and HUDDLE. I also participated in a Youth Leadership Summit and took post-secondary classes through the University of Akron.

JD: I mainly stayed busy playing on the football, basketball and baseball teams.

What was your educational and career path after Cloverleaf?

Connor: After high school I attended The Ohio State University. I actually came into college undecided on a major. I had a feeling I wanted to pursue some sort of engineering, but did not quite know what. It was not until my junior year when I decided to pursue a degree in environmental engineering. I look back at an internship I had with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency that really steered me to want to learn more about things such as air and water pollution.

After graduation from OSU in 2019, I accepted my first job as an environmental engineer at Forest City Technologies in Wellington, Ohio. I was so fortunate to start my career at Forest City as the leadership

Connor

Class of 2015

team immediately placed a lot of trust in me and gave me some projects not typical for an entry level role. I stayed at Forest City for three years before the opportunity to join Tesla arose. It was actually very difficult for me to leave, but ultimately, I felt drawn toward Tesla’s mission. I currently live in Buffalo, working at Tesla’s Gigafactory New York facility.

JD: After high school, I attended the University of Toledo (Go Rockets!), obtained a degree in mechanical engineering and then started my career at Tesla as a quality technician at the Gigafactory in Sparks, Nevada. I have since moved back to the Midwest and now live in Buffalo, New York with my wife (Brooke), son (Eli) and dog (Nala).

What is your role with the company?

JD: Currently I am a Technical Program Manager at Tesla’s Gigafactory in New York and I spend most of my time developing and maintaining our quality systems.

Connor: At Tesla, I am an Environmental, Health & Safety Specialist. In this role, I work with cross-functional teams in the factory to improve and control risks to health, safety and the environment. This

JD: Outside of work, I spend most of my time enjoying being a new parent with my wife and scarfing down as many chicken wings as possible with friends and family. Buffalo wings are the real deal!

Was there a particular staff member or experience at Cloverleaf that has had an especially positive impact on your life and career?

JD: I was fortunate to have a plethora of good teachers and coaches at Cloverleaf from kindergarten all the way through senior year, but the one coach/teacher/ mentor I still communicate with is Coach Dave Ward. I’ve always admired his character and have appreciated our friendship to this day.

Connor: Cloverleaf’s math and science teachers really helped guide me towards wanting to become an engineer. I particularly remember Mr. (Garth) Gucker’s biotech class, which introduced me to science-related topics that I just had to continue to pursue in college. I also believe varsity basketball had a positive effect on me. It may sound cliché, but skills related to navigating in a team never truly go away and sports really help develop these skills. Overall, Cloverleaf’s sense of community set me up for success in my career. I felt like I could turn to any faculty member, alumni or student for anything from good conversation to advice on my future career. I’m proud to be a Cloverleaf Colt!

JD Schleich

Technical Program Manager at Tesla, Inc.

Ploucha

Environmental, Health & Safety Specialist at Tesla, Inc.

STAFF PROFILE

Tell us a bit about your background.

I am a graduate of the University of Iowa with a bachelor of arts in art history. I have been married to my husband Chris for 15 years and have three children: Katie (12) and twin boys CJ and Will (11). We live in Wadsworth. I began volunteering when my kids started school. I loved my place in the classroom and became a one-on-one paraprofessional in the multiple disability unit.

What is your role at Cloverleaf Middle School?

I’m the lead paraprofessional for the emotional disability unit. The lead teacher and I started the unit two years ago during the COVID pandemic and its aftermath. It is a challenging career, but I love working with children with high behavioral needs. Along with behavior, we also are a resource room for social-emotional learning (grades 6-8), phonics (grades 6-8) and 6thgrade students for math and English language arts.

What is the best part of your job?

I am very proud of my work every day in our classroom and the lives we make better. One achievement I am particularly proud of is my collaboration with teachers and administrators on the PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) team. Our program has received Silver and Bronze honors from the Ohio Department of Education. I love working with staff and helping them be the bridge to their student’s behavioral needs. I also work alongside the counseling department with our ROX (Ruling Our eXperiences) program. This is a girls empowerment group that helps build self-esteem and confidence. I am truly thankful to Cloverleaf for allowing me to take such an active role as a paraprofessional. This is one of the many reasons I am furthering my education to become a teacher.

Danielle Fassler

Paraprofessional, CMS

What are your career goals?

In June, I started my master’s degree in special education at Western Governors University. Starting over can be difficult and it can be scary at times. Throughout my journey to go back to school, I have talked myself out of it several times. There are two reasons I keep on going with my dream. One is my children. I do not want them to think there is an age requirement for dreams. You can accomplish what you are destined to do at any age. My next reason is for the kids who come to school every day and are not on the same level as their peers and who may have academic or behavioral struggles. I believe I can make a difference in those children’s lives.

What do you like to do outside of work?

When I am not at Cloverleaf, I am usually driving my kids around to all their activities. When we are not in the minivan, at the dance studio, or at the baseball diamond, we like to stay local. I enjoy hiking, biking and kayaking around Northeast Ohio. I love to read historical fiction, presidential biographies and self-help books. Chris and I are homebodies and enjoy cooking, baking and grilling. We do not travel much for vacations, but go back often to visit my family in Chicago and his family in Meriden, Iowa (pop. 90). We are huge Iowa Hawkeyes and Chicago Bears football fans!

Fall Sports Wrap-up ...

(Continued from page 3)

Girls cross country took second in the MAC and finished its season at the state cross country championship, which is always an incredible achievement. The girls were invite champs at Keystone and Medina, then finished third in the district; fifth at regionals; and 15th in the state meet.

Megan Knapp, Emma Hibler and Alyssa Stoner were First Team, All-League. Madison Snyder, Brooke Gucker and Allison Yagersz were all Second Team, All-League. Vanessa Monhemius and Lauren Jensch were league honorable mentions. Gabriella Izzo, Knapp, Gucker, Snyder, Hibler, Monhemius and Yagersz qualified for regionals. Then, Hibler (as well as qualifying individually), Knapp, Gucker, Snyder, Monhemius and Yagersz all qualified for state.

“Both teams had great seasons, capped by the boys and girls qualifying for regionals, and the girls overcoming lots of adversity to qualify for the state championships,” Coach Garth Gucker said.

Volleyball completed its season 13-11, including 8-6 in the MAC. The team finished fourth in the MAC, beat Brunswick at the Medina County Preview, and made districts for the second year in a row. The team had a winning season with a very competitive schedule.

“The best part of our season was the growth I saw from our team from start to finish,” said Coach Rebecca Roupe. “We had a competitive schedule and a great run in our postseason.”

The community will be talking about the memories of these fall teams and athletes for a long time. Cloverleaf will try to keep the momentum going this winter. Go Colts!

Fassler recognized by OMLA

Cloverleaf Middle School paraprofessional Danielle Fassler has received the Support Staff Regional Award from the Ohio Middle Level Association. It’s presented each year to a school support staff member who fosters positive, trusting relationships with staff, students and parents. Danielle was recognized by OMLA in Columbus in November. “She gives everybody a fresh start every single day,” said Cloverleaf Middle School Principal Kristina Yako. “Not only does she inspire the kids, but she inspires a lot of her colleagues with her positivity, her patience and her understanding.”

Cloverleaf Local Schools

8525 Friendsville Rd.

Lodi, OH 44254

Board of Education

Jason Myers, President

Rhonda Wurgler, Vice President

James Curran

Jane Rych

Jeff Schreiber

Superintendent

Daryl Kubilus, Jr.

Treasurer

Jim Hudson

Contact:

John Gladden

Community Information Coordinator

330-302-0311

John.Gladden@CloverleafLocal.org

www.CloverleafLocal.org

Emma Bazemore

CHS Junior

Home: Westfield Township

Parents: Debra and Matthew Bazemore

Student Profile

Tell us a little about your family. What kinds of things do you like to do together?

I live with my parents, two younger sisters and a dog. We enjoy hiking and watching movies together.

What are your hobbies and interests outside of school?

I participate on the Cloverleaf girls golf team. I also enjoy art and reading.

A logo you designed was selected as the official logo for the 2022 Step Up to Prevent Suicide Walk in Medina. How did you become involved with this important cause?

I participated in the Step Up to Prevent Suicide Walk as a result of my design being selected and my connection to the issue itself. The topic of suicide is very personal to me and suicide prevention is a cause I want to give time to. To create my design, I started with a traditional rough draft and

completed it on the computer using Adobe Illustrator. In addition to submitting the design, I had to write a short paragraph regarding my design and artistic choices. I was later reached out to and informed that I had won, and as a result, chose to join the walk for the cause.

What are your plans after high school? After high school, I plan to attend college for digital media arts and animation.

Is there a particular class, staff member or other experience at Cloverleaf that has had an especially positive impact on you?

Mrs. (Julie) Krueger, my art teacher, has been an extremely positive influence on my high school career. She has made me approach art in ways I never had before and I am grateful to have her as a teacher.