06/25/10 During the June 24 Plymouth School Board meeting, board members present voted unanimously to approve the hire of Kenneth Olson as Plymouth High School Dean of Students. Olson has been teaching social studies at the high school level for ten years. He spent one year in the Warsaw system and the following nine at Bremen High School.
Olson replaces Robin Tobias, assistant principal at PHS, who has resigned to take a position as Athletic Director at Lake Central High School in St. Johns, Indiana.
Olson and his wife, Collett, live in Winona Lake with their two daughters, Sophie, 10, and Julianne, 6. Olson’s first official day will be August 2, 2010.
The board also approved extending the contracts of PHS Assistant Principal Andrew Hartley; PHS Guidance Director Aimee Portteus; PHS Athletic Director Roy Benge; and Riverside Intermediate Assistant Principal Jeni Hirschy. All four recived two-year contracts.
Plymouth Schools Superintendent Dan Tyree had his contract extended by unanimous vote for three years.
Board members praised Tyree as well as the other administrators in the Plymouth Corporation. Board President Frank Brubaker said, “In the last year or two we have been through some really trying times.” Todd Samuelson, board secretary, said, “Dan’s (Tyree) leadership has been very effective. You measure that by results.” He then credited all the administrators for the school’s successes. Board vice-President Melissa Christianson said, “I like the way that Dan (Tyree) is always on the lookout for new ideas.”
Board member Larry Holloway was absent form the meeting.
In other matters, the board approved the applications for grants for the upcoming school year. According to Tyree, the estimated amount of grant monies that could be received is approximately 1.4 million. The approval also allows the application of grants that may become available throughout the year. Tyree called the approach used to apply for grants “aggressive”.
