Colt Tullis, the 2025-2026 Lisbon’s Business Advisory Council student liaison, talks to members of the board at Thursday’s meeting. (Photo by Stephanie Elverd)

LISBON — The Lisbon school board gave credit where credit was due on Thursday by recognizing two members of the Blue Devil family — an employee and a student — for dedication to the district and for making a difference.

The board recognized Beth Helman as the CORA’s Outstanding Classified Staff Member for 2024-2025 and Colt Tullis for his work as the Business Advisory Council (BAC) student representative.

Helman, as part of the food service, was credited by Lisbon Food Director Melissa Adams for being “an integral part to growing the district’s summer food program.” With Helman at the helm, that program has grown from averaging 40 students to almost 200.

“I never would have never imagined the need for summer feeding would have been so great,” Superintendent Joe Siefke said.

The Seamless Summer program was approved by the Ohio Department of Education in 2019 and was made available to schools through the national school lunch or school breakfast programs. It provides free meals to those 18 and under during the summer months and there are no income guidelines.

Tullis was acknowledged for his part in moving Lisbon’s BAC forward.

According to the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce, BACs were established “to raise the level of engagement between industry and education to provide meaningful opportunities for students and help to strengthen and prepare Ohio’s future talent pipeline to compete in today’s workforce through these robust relationships.” The focus is on developing professional skills, building partnerships and coordinating experiences. The board is made up of students, school administration and students. Ultimately, it encourages students to stay local and consider employment and business opportunities within the counties they grew up in.

In other words, keeping local talent in the local workforce. Lisbon recognized the need for young voices when partnering to do so.

“In growing the BAC, we decided this year to bring a student on and to give their ideas,” Seifke said. “We thought about grabbing a junior and having them commit for two years so that they could then get entrenched and not feel like they only got one year of it and weren’t able to make a difference.”

Tullis was chosen as one of those junior board members through an application and interview process.

“I think [the BAC] is a great thing that we are doing here,” Tullis said. “I think the big part of what was missing was the student board and now that we have that we get way different perspectives from feedback from our perspective and I think we are going to do great things with it.”

“Getting a 16- or 17-year-old’s opinion is important,” Seifke added. “We want to make sure we work with them to create the best career paths that we can and so I’m really glad to have Colt on board and I think he will do a great job.”

In other matters, the board approved several agenda items at Thursday’s meeting, including a resolution approving a revised Electricity Agreement that came in with lower rates for July 1, 2025 to June, 30, 2027. That agreement is with Engie Resources through Power4Schools at a “blend and extend” fixed energy cost of $.05290 per kilowatts.

In personnel matters, the board approved Andrew Lane and Ryan Brown as track volunteers for the 2024-2025, Erin Latimer for a position of permanent substitute for the Food Service Department for the remainder of the 2024-2025 school year and the retirement resignation (effective May 23) of teacher Kellie Seidner. Seidner seeks re-employment with the district after retirement and will hold a public meeting on the issue May 8 at 4:45 p.m. at 317 N. Market St. in Lisbon. The board also approved Becky McCullough, Angela Sims, Matt Guarnieri, Lauren Stauffer, Kristi Slagle, Kami Shingleton, Candance Papp, Leah DeSalvo, Delania Link, Dave Guy, Beth Devine and Bethany Quetot as staff for Before/After School Intervention for McKinley students for the 2024-2025 school year beginning at $35 per hour coming from DPIA/SWSF Funds.

The board heard reports from building principals and a facility report from Roger Tullis who presented the board with a written proposal on maintenance and improvements projects for the board to consider.

Siefke said the district is working with Lisbon Mayor Pete Wilson to explore funding opportunities for some of those projects including replacing the sidewalks on which children travel on to when walking to school.

The board also corrected an approved agenda item from last month, clarifying the agreement with the Lisbon Baseball/Softball Association for a period of one year commencing on March 10, 2025 until the baseball/softball season concludes in the amount of $4,800.

Also at the meeting, the board approved:

— The second and final reading of several NEOLA policies.

— The Senior Class of 2025 pending final completion of all requirements for graduation.

— The treasurer’s financial report, adjusted appropriations for $40,000, listed bills in the amount of $954,222.12 and the amounts and rates as determined by the Budget Commission and authorizing the necessary tax levies and certifying them to the county auditor.

— Jennifer Coldsnow as the Treasurer to be bonded in the penal sum of $60,000 for the term beginning April 5, 2025 and ending April 5, 2026 by Auto-Owners Mutual Insurance Company.

— A Memorandum of Understanding for the College Credit Plus Dual Enrollment Program with Youngstown State University.

— A contract for the 2024-2025 school year effective with Wills Vision & Mobility Services to provide evaluation, planning and report writing time for a visually impaired student attending Robert Bycroft School for at a rate of $125 per hour for up to 660 minutes per month.

selverd@mojonews.com