This is the second in a series of stories kicking off the school year in the county’s four public school districts.
HANCOCK COUNTY — School may have been out for the past several weeks, but Mt. Vernon had plenty to keep busy with over summer vacation.
When students return today (Thursday, July 29) for the start of the 2021-22 academic year, they’ll notice improvements to buildings and dozens of new staff members.
The bulk of the facility changes are at Mt. Vernon Middle School on the district’s main campus in Fortville, including enhancements to art, band and choir areas along with the cafeteria. But mechanical, electrical, plumbing, roofing, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning upgrades are coming to properties district-wide.
Work continues at the middle school on remodeling 1,200 square feet and adding 250 square feet to the band and choir area. The project includes soundproofing, offices and storage, and is expected to be completed in late September.
Stephen Day, Mt. Vernon Middle School band director, said the renovation is bound to bring a lot of excitement and interest in the entire Mt. Vernon band program.
“Students in performing arts programs tend to take a lot of ownership in their respective rooms,” Day said in a statement. “When a band room is modernized and improved, which is exactly what Mt. Vernon Middle School is receiving, current and future band students will be very excited to learn and grow in the new space. We’ve also considered the needs of present and future MVMS band students in the design of the band room as it will surely give students a more ideal space to make music and continue to grow the band program at Mt. Vernon.”
Also at the middle school, an 800-square-foot expansion to the art space was finished just in time for the start of the new school year.
After the end of the 2020-21 school year, work started on expanding the middle school’s cafeteria by about 2,000 square feet, which is on track for completion by the end of September. Derek Shelton, Mt. Vernon’s director of operations, said work won’t interfere with meal periods.
“They will still be able to use a majority of the cafeteria for the students at lunch time,” Shelton said at the district’s July school board meeting.
When the middle school art, band and choir, and cafeteria improvements were announced in spring 2020, Mt. Vernon officials said the existing design layout and space were no longer conducive for curriculum in those subjects, and the cafeteria could not accommodate enrollment growth without having multiple lunch periods posing challenges for daily routines.
The projects add up to a maximum expenditure of over $5.3 million, which is part of the same bond issue for the district-wide mechanical, electrical, plumbing, roofing and HVAC improvements — a maximum of just over $16 million. The bond issue did not impact the tax rate for those living in the school district.
Along with the district’s middle school, Mt. Vernon also has Fortville Elementary School, Mt. Vernon High School and Mini-Marauder Preschool on its main campus in Fortville. McCordsville Elementary School and Mt. Comfort Elementary School are part of the district as well.
The HVAC work won’t be completed for a few months, and the roofing improvements will continue throughout the school year.
A 2019 feasibility study of all building systems throughout the school district identified the projects.
Forty-five new staff members have joined Mt. Vernon’s ranks for the start of the school year across a variety of positions, and the district doesn’t plan to stop there. More information on employment opportunities is available at www.mvcsc.k12.in.us/employment.
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Following is a list of new teachers and administrators joining the staff at Mt. Vernon, as of July 27.
Aaron Amos, high school business computer science
Rebekah Anderson, high school English
Kaitlin Baldwin, middle school counselor
Makayla Boyd, McCordsville Elementary kindergarten
Gregory Cepluch, high school math
Angela Coffin, high school English
Julie Crist, high school special education
Kellie Danforth, Fortville Elementary fourth grade
Suzanne Digby, preschool early childhood special education
Jordan Fuerstenau, McCordsville Elementary third grade
Joana Goff, preschool instructional assistant
Teresa Heckman, McCordsville Elementary fifth grade
Jenna Hietpas, Fortville Elementary special education
Sophie Hrinowich, Fortville Elementary third grade
Alex Hutton, high school math
Ashley Lain, seventh-grade math
Elizabeth Leonard, Mt. Comfort Elementary special education
Kylie Matusiewicz, McCordsville Elementary teacher
Molly Montgomery, Fortville Elementary School kindergarten
Hannah Neher, preschool early childhood special education
Megan Posey, seventh-grade science
Robert Ross, Mt. Comfort Elementary behavior resource
Amanda Smith, Fortville Elementary first grade
Leslie Spooner, Fortville Elementary first grade
Linda Steele, middle school resource
Brandon Taylor, seventh-grade science
Noelle Truex, eighth-grade English/language arts
Betsy Zarse, Fortville Elementary DREAM Room special education
Vince Edwards, Fortville Elementary principal
Anita Glaze, high school assistant principal
Elizabeth Blunk, middle school attendance secretary
Victoria Campbell, Fortville Elementary high ability instructional assistant
Alix Collins, Fortville Elementary DREAM Room high intensity instructional assistant
Sarah Cruz, high school media center assistant
Stephanie Goff, preschool instructional assistant
Hilary Harriman, preschool instructional assistant
Breanna Johnson, Mt. Comfort Elementary custodian
Heather Johnson, preschool coordinator
Catherine Kernodle, McCordsville Elementary cafe supervisor
Elizabeth Leonard, Mt. Comfort Elementary special education
Alaina Nugent, Fortville Elementary instructional assistant
Tonya Plettner, McCordsville Elementary custodian
Erica Schneider, Mt. Comfort Elementary cafe supervisor
Shay Shipley, Fortville Elementary instructional assistant
Jean Wuerch, preschool secretary
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Here are key dates at Mt. Vernon schools for the coming year.
July 29: First student day
Sept. 6: Labor Day (no school)
Sept. 22: eLearning day (no school)
Oct. 1: End of first grading period
Oct. 4-15: Fall break
Nov. 24-26: Thanksgiving Break
Dec. 17: End of second grading period
Dec. 20-31: Winter Break
Jan. 17: Martin Luther King Jr. Day (no school)
Feb. 7: Teacher day (no students)
Feb. 21: Presidents’ Day (no school)
March 11: End of third grading period
March 14-25: Spring Break
April 6: eLearning day (no school)
May 25: End of fourth grading period, last student day
May 26: Last teacher day
May 27: Mt. Vernon High School graduation
