Board of Education

Ontario Board of Education Members

(Left to Right) Board Member Jerod Them, Board Vice-President Heidi Zimmerman, Board Member Amy Hiner, Board Member Brett Baxter, and Board President Todd Friend

Next Board Meeting

The next meeting of the Ontario Board of Education will take place on Tuesday, October 8, 2024. This meeting will be held in the Ontario High School Library, 467 Shelby-Ontario Road, Ontario, Ohio at 7:00 p.m.

About Board Meetings

The Role of the Board
The primary responsibility of the board is to establish programs and procedures that will facilitate maximum learning for every student. The board must accomplish this while also being responsible for wise management of resources available to the district. The board must fulfill these responsibilities by functioning primarily as a legislative body to formulate and adopt policy, by selecting an executive officer to implement policy and by evaluating the results; further, it must carry out its functions openly, while seeking the involvement and contributions of the public, students and staff in its decision-making process.

The Organization of the Board of Education
The president and vice president of the board positions are determined by the election of fellow board members at the Organizational Meeting in January of each year. The president conducts the meetings, acts as spokesperson for the board and performs various legal functions such as signing contracts. The vice-president conducts the meeting and board business in the absence of the president.

Role of the Superintendent
The superintendent of schools is the chief administrative officer of the district and is responsible for the execution of the board's policies and the day-to-day operation of the school district. By delegation, the board provides the superintendent with the freedom to manage the schools within the board's policies, freeing the board to devote its time to policy-making and appraisal functions. The superintendent is not a member of the board, but reports directly to the board.

Role of the Treasurer
The treasurer serves as the chief financial officer of the school district and is responsible for the receipt, investment, accounting and disbursement of all types of public funds as required by law and in accordance with board policies. The treasurer is not a member of the board, but serves as its secretary at board meetings.

Paperless Technology for Board Meetings

BoardDocs LT is an internet-based site that will enable staff, board members, and most importantly, the general public access to meeting agendas as well as other board-related files. This site will allow interested parties the opportunity to review information prior to board meetings. All documents will be automatically archived and available for review by meeting date or by using the system's comprehensive search feature.

To use this feature, simply click on the link below or use the link provided on the right side of this page.

Go to the BoardDocs site.

Todd Friend - President
Phone - 419-612-2003

Email - [email protected]

Current Occupation - Senior Neuroscience Sales Specialist with Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals

Number of Years of Board Service - 5 years of service

Term Expires: December 31, 2025

Todd is a 1988 graduate of Mansfield Senior High School and a 1992 graduate of Wittenberg University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. He has lived in Ontario for 16 years and has three children: Conner is a junior at Wittenberg University, Alaina is a 7th grader at Ontario Middle School, and Cameron. Todd and his wife Keeley live in Ontario. He has a step-daughter Lexi who is currently a senior at Ontario High School.

Todd became a board member to passionately serve the children in our schools; the teachers, staff and administrators who operate the schools; and the entire Ontario community who support and expect a well-run, fiscally responsible and progressive educational system. A school board must function under the highest levels of ethics, communication and transparency; ultimately, they must always consider what is in the best interest of the kids in our care. The goal is to prepare Ontario students for whatever comes next, whether that is the first grade, middle school, college, the military or the work force. He has been civically involved with the Ontario schools and the community for over 16 years and is very proud, and humbled to serve on the school board.

Other Activities: Todd coached various youth sports within the Upward Program, Ontario Youth Sports, and Ontario Local Schools systems. He is currently volunteers and serves as the Ontario High School Girls’ Varsity Tennis Coach. He also worked on former school levy committees and is a member of Mosaic Church in Mansfield

Heidi Zimmerman - Vice-President

Phone - 419-512-7570

Email - [email protected]

Current Occupation - Part-time Assistant at an Insurance and Financial Services Company

Number of Years of Board Service - 7 years of service

Term Expires: December 31, 2025

Though originally from Greencastle, Indiana, Heidi and her family have been in the Mansfield area since 1999 and have made Ontario their home since 2004. She and her husband, Brian, a 1989 Ontario graduate, have three children: Shelby, a first-year zoology major at Miami University , Ben, a junior computer science engineering major at The Ohio State University in Columbus, and Sam, a second-year law student at Case Western University School of Law. All three had a great education through their years at Ontario and felt well prepared academically for their chosen paths.

Heidi became a Board member because she wanted to bring a woman’s point-of-view back to the organization. As a parent, who at the time had three children in the school system, she also wanted to witness more interaction and collaboration among Board members, district employees, and parents. Lastly, Heidi wanted to do her part to enhance communication so parents are aware of all the opportunities and resources available.

Other Activities: President of the Ontario Academic Boosters, Sunday School Superintendent, Youth Group Steering Committee Member, OCF Tag Sale Coordinator, and a member of the Ontario Community Partnership. In her free time, Heidi enjoys reading, watching football, completing crosswords, playing trivia games, and traveling with her family.

Jerod Them

Email - [email protected]

Current Occupation - Attorney & Partner at Weldon, Huston & Keyser, L.L.P.

Number of Years of Board Service - 8 years of service

Term Expires: December 31, 2025

Jerod and his wife, Lee Ann, are both Ontario graduates. They have two children in Stingel Elementary, one daughter in Ontario Middle School and one daughter in Ontario HighSchool.

Jerod chose to serve on the Board because he believes a school district is a community’s greatest asset. He is extremely proud of and grateful for the education he received at Ontario, and it is his goal to continue to provide our students, parents, and community an outstanding school system.

Other Activities: Past Board President and current Board Member of Ohio District 5 Area Agency on Aging, Inc.; Mansfield Kiwanis Club member, Past President and 2014 Lt. Governor Division 11-N Ohio District of Kiwanis; Mechanics Bank/Mechanics Financial Corporation Board Member; and Board Member of the Milliron Foundation,. He also coaches soccer, baseball, softball and basketball for OYS/Appleseed Premier.

Brett Baxter

Phone - 419-529-5598

Email - [email protected]

Current Occupation - Sergeant First Class (SFC) and Senior Instructor for OHARNG Regional Training Institute (RTI)

Number of Years with Board Service - 7 years of service

Term Expires: December 31, 2023

Brett and his wife are both graduates of Ontario High School and have lived in Ontario the majority of their lives. Two of their three children are Ontario graduates and their third is currently attending Ontario Schools.

Brett chose to be a Board member because the Ontario community has always been a great place to grow up and raise a family. Also, the community helped his family in many ways during his deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. He wants to give back to the community and school system by bringing a new perspective to the district through his corporate and military experience, along with his education. Brett has a Bachelor’s degree in Technology and a Master’s degree in Emergency and Disaster Management.

Other Activities: Member of the Ontario Youth Sports Board since 2013, Member of Prison Ministry at MANCI, Member of AMVETs and VFW veteran’s organizations.

Amy Hiner

Phone - 740-974-9133

Email - [email protected]

Current Occupation - Associate Faculty, The Ohio State University Mansfield

Number of Years of Board Service - 3 years of service

Term Expires: December 31, 2023

Amy and her family enjoy living in Ontario and love Richland County. They have a fifth grader, first grader, and a two year old.

Amy chose to become a board member to bring an educator’s perspective to the table. She has a Masters in Educational Leadership and Bachelors in Early Childhood Education. As a board member, she tries to see things through the lens of educator and parent and is an advocate for teachers and students.

Other Activities: Amy serves of many boards in the Richland County area: Richland County Foundation Women’s Fund, Mansfield Richland County Public Library, Richland County Task Force on Racism, NCSC IT/Engineering Diversity Advisory Board, Stingel Elementary PTO, and Ontario’s Community & Family Engagement Committee. She and her family love skiing and snow-tubing at Snow Trails during the winter and swimming in the summer. She has coached t-ball, basketball and softball for OYS and cheer for Upward and plans to continue coaching in the future.

Superintendent

Keith Strickler

[email protected]

Treasurer

Randy Harvey

[email protected]

Congratulations Randy on receiving the prestigious honor of Auditor of State Award for excellent record keeping in 2020 and for being a careful steward of Ontario taxpayers dollars!