August 11, 2011
School district readies for first day By LIN RICE ThisWeek Community Newspapers
Upper Arlington school district officials are putting final touches in place for the new school year, which begins Tuesday, Aug. 23. For one of the schools, the new school year will mean the celebration of its 50year anniversary. “We first opened our doors to students in 1961 and dedicated the building in December of that year, so we’re going to come back and hold a rededication this year as well,” said Hastings Middle School principal Robb Gonda. In keeping with its 50th anniversary, Gonda said Hastings will host special
events throughout the year, including a rededication ceremony on Dec. 8. The ceremony will include guest speakers and a reception, and former faculty, students and community members will be invited to tour the building, he said. Throughout the first several months of the school year, students will focus on the different decades at the school for a presentation, and will also work on preparing a time capsule, Gonda said. At Upper Arlington High School, prin-
cipal Kip Greenhill said that even though the students will be back full-time, they’ve not had an idle summer. “We don’t give them the summer off completely,” he said. “The students have been working on our summer reading program, and all students have to do community service work in the summer. We believe that, in terms of getting them to give back to the community that’s given them so much support, that’s something we really try to instill in our students.” UAHS will open its doors to about 1,850 students this school year. Greenhill said it’s an exceptional group of young people. “I’m really looking forward to this
year,” he said. “Our seniors really impress me a great deal, and the seniors always set the tone for the whole school. I think this is going to be one of the best years in the history of our school.” Classes at UAHS will begin for ninthgraders on Aug. 23, following an orientation date scheduled on Aug. 16. All other students will begin classes at the high school on Aug. 24, Greenhill said. The school day runs from 8:05 a.m. to 3:05 p.m. Other schools in the district will host opportunities for students and parents to familiarize themselves with new surroundings before the Aug. 23 start date. The Greensview Elementary School PTO will host a back to school day 2-7 p.m.
Aug. 17, where students can also pick up their supplies; a meet-the-teacher night 5-5:45 p.m. Aug. 18; and a parent’s informational night at 6 p.m. Aug. 22. The Windermere Elementary School PTO will host a new family and kindergarten ice cream social at 7 p.m. Aug. 17 at the kindergarten courtyard area on Haviland Road. Other elementary schools in the district have already hosted their textbook pick-up day. Jones Middle School will host an orientation day for incoming sixth-graders from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug. 17. SeventhSee SCHOOL, page A2
Dibble case to be appealed to Supreme Court By JIM WOODS and RANDY LUDLOW The Columbus Dispatch
By Andrea Kjerrumgaard/ThisWeek
Laurel Wakeley and her son, Sam Wakeley-Fox, 2, take a front row seat to listen to The Spikedrivers during the last Music in the Parks concert at Sunny 95 Park on Aug. 4.
Summer music fades, fall planning begins By LIN RICE ThisWeek Community Newspapers Last week’s Spikedrivers concert in Sunny 95 Park marks one of the first signs of the season’s end, as the city’s cultural arts division wrapped up its 2011 Music in the Parks summer concert series. Arts coordinator Lauren Emond said that with the addition of the new Amelita Mirolo Barn as a venue this year, attendance at the series went very well. “I think we probably gained a bit of a new audience, especially people who live in the area and hadn’t made it out before,” Emond said. “We started the series in the mid 1980s, and it’s grown over time. People are used to Upper Arlington being one
of the summer concert locations to look for. Definitely having the UA arts stage at the barn has helped to identify us as a performing arts space and venue.” Kicked off in May, the series brought a variety of acts this year, ranging from traditional bluegrass (Grassahol), jazz (Jeff Benetar Trio) and Irish music (General Guinness Band),the series also incorporated styles such as Brazilian jazz (Maggie Green and Canto Poetica) and a kids’rock group (The Shazzbots). Emond said the division strives to schedule a variety of sounds. “We have a performance committee that reviews the applications, and they look over everything to make sure we have a good variety of music,” she said. “They’re mainly
local musical acts, and our committee members are pretty knowledgeable about which groups are up-and-coming, and who’s been around a while.” Depending how well-known the band is, between 100 and 400 people typically show up for the concerts, Emond said. Many turn out early in the season for the annual Upper Arlington High School jazz ensemble’s performance, or when other local talent performs. With the series finished for 2011, the division is working on plans for the city’s fall events, Emond said. The performance committee will begin reviewing applications for next year’s series in November, select tal-
Tasty evening is in store at Northam Park tonight One of Upper Arlington’s signature events of the active games and inflatable play areas for kids. year takes place today (Thursday, Aug. 11) in This year’s Taste of UA will also include a Bier Northam Park. Garten, where festival-goers The 18th annual Taste of can try beers from specialty UA celebration runs from craft brewer Magic Hat and 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. today. Free others. and open to the public, the The event will also include event is expected to bring in a tasting competition, with a nearly 12,000 visitors this panel of seven judges. Restauyear. rants from the city and surNortham Park will play rounding area will submit aphost to about 30 local restaupetizers, entrees and desserts, rants and more than 300 local drawing prizes from the businesses during the event. judges and from festival-goers This year’s celebration will in a people’s choice award. also include live music from the Willie Phoenix Northam Park is at the corner of Northam and Band and Avalon Nine; a meet-and-greet with Bru- Tremont roads. More information on the event can tus Buckeye and the Ohio State cheerleaders; and be found online at www.uachamber.org. Ohio State’s Buckeye Mobile Tour, bringing inter— Lin Rice
See MUSIC, page A2
A ruling suppressing key evidence in a voyeurism case against a former theater director at a private school in Upper Arlington will be appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court. Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien said last week he will ask the high court to set aside an appellate court ruling that “raises a substantial constitutional question.” Without a successful appeal, the prosecutor’s office might have to dismiss some or all of the 20 counts of voyeurism and one count of sexual imposition filed against Lawrence A. Dibble, 42, who formerly worked at the Wellington School in Upper Arlington. The Franklin County Court of Appeals ruled on Aug. 4 that Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Horton was correct when he ruled in July 2010 that an Upper Arlington police detective made false statements when he obtained a warrant to search Dibble’s home. Videotapes seized during the search were key to the case against Dibble, who was accused of secretly videotaping female Wellington students while they were unclothed in a dressing room at the school. Dibble was a theater director at Wellington School at the time. He was then indicted on 20 counts of voyeurism — 17 of them felonies — and one misdemeanor charge of sexual imposition. Unless the appellate court rul-
A closer look Without a successful appeal, the prosecutor’s office might have to dismiss some or all of the 20 counts of voyeurism and one count of sexual imposition filed against Lawrence A. Dibble, 42, who formerly worked at the Wellington School in Upper Arlington.
ing is overturned by the Ohio Supreme Court, the videotapes cannot be used as evidence against Dibble. O’Brien’s office has argued that the police detective did not intentionally misrepresent the facts he presented when requesting a search warrant. “We have no case without the evidence that was suppressed,” O’Brien said. According to the court of appeals, Upper Arlington police detective Andrew Wuertz had interviewed two women about their experiences with the teacher while they attended Wellington School. Wuertz admitted during a hearing before Horton that he based most of his affidavit for the search warrant on the statements of one woman who admitted to a consensual sexual relationship with Dibble after she graduated and turned 18. The appeals court agreed with Horton’s conclusion that although Dibble’s behavior was “reprehensible,” Wuertz lacked credibility when he based his request for a search warrant on portraySee APPEAL, page A2
St. Andrew Parish Festival slates 11th annual event By LIN RICE ThisWeek Community Newspapers
St. Andrew parishioners and community members alike are invited to attend the annual St. Andrew Parish Festival Aug. 19-20. In its 11th year, the festival is starting to become a community institution, said festival chairwoman Debbie Bichimer. “We’ve really strived to be a premier community event,” Bichimer said. “After 10 years, I really feel that we’ve established ourselves as a tradition among our parishioners and with our community.” About 25,000 people annually attend the twoday festival. In addition to a variety of food and live entertainment, the festival includes rides and
games for children and adults, a casino, raffles, a white elephant sale and silent auction. “This year we will also selling ride ticket vouchers ahead of time, in order to make our ticket lines a little shorter,” Bichimer said. “We’ll be selling 500 of those after Mass on August 14.” The festival will kick off at 5 p.m. Friday,Aug. 19, with a live performance by local band EKG, followed at 8 by ’60s tribute band The British Invasion. Saturday’s live entertainment will take the form of Irish step dancing at 6:30 p.m., followed by Columbus group The Conspiracy Band at 8. Other elements of the festival included in the two–day event will be carnival rides from the See FESTIVAL, page A2