Mike Davis, President, Junior Achievement of Central Ohio, presented Dr. John Kellogg, Superintendent of Westerville City Schools, with the 2019 Educator of the Year Award.
Mike Davis, President, Junior Achievement of Central Ohio (JACO), attended the Westerville City Schools Board of Education meeting on Monday evening, October 14, to present Superintendent John Kellogg with the 2019 Educator of the Year award. Dr. Kellogg received this honor for championing Junior Achievement programs and partnering with his faculty and staff to deliver and expand this programming from 2,690 Westerville students to 6,386 in one school year. The plaque was engraved with the words, “On behalf of the students, educators, and volunteers of Junior Achievement of Central Ohio, we offer you our sincere congratulations and appreciation for your commitment to our community.”
In August 2018, it was announced that Westerville City School District (WCSD) students would have the opportunity to participate in JACO programs while in elementary, middle and high school, thanks to $149,362 in funding through the State of Ohio’s Community Connectors grant initiative.
Representatives from WCSD and JACO collaborated on the competitive grant and received notification in late June 2018 that they were among the 116 community partnerships selected to receive funding in the latest round. The state established its Community Connectors grant program in 2014 to connect Ohio students to role models who can help motivate and inspire them, as well as help them develop skills that lead to success in school and the workplace.
“Junior Achievement already works with many of our schools, particularly at the elementary level,” said WCSD Superintendent Dr. John Kellogg said last year. “For most students in our middle and high schools, this will be their first opportunity to benefit from such programming at the secondary level. Winning this grant will allow us to bring enhanced access, consistency, and continuity of JACO programming from elementary through high school.”
Kellogg and the JACO staff indicated that this opportunity for WCSD students would not have been possible without the many local partners that agreed to become involved and support the initiative. Partners include The Point at Otterbein University, Westerville Education Foundation, Cardinal Health, Westerville Area Ministerial Association, Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce, Westerville Sunrise Rotary, Education First Credit Union, and Mt. Carmel St. Ann’s.