District Newsletter: 09/03/2026

Reminder!

Monday, Sept. 7 - Labor Day; No Classes, District Closed

Monday, Sept. 21 - No Classes for Students & Teachers

Tuesday, Sept. 22 - No Classes for Students; Teacher/Staff Professional Development Day

Learn about Issue 5, Bexley Schools’ Facilities Funding Request on the November Ballot

Information is now available on Bexley Schools’ website related to the district’s facilities funding request on the Nov. 3 General Election ballot. The issue will appear on the ballot as Issue 5.

In addition to explaining how Phase I funding would work and how much the ballot request would cost Bexley residents, the site also includes information about Bexley Schools’ finances.

To assist Bexley residents, the site includes an online calculator to better understand the personal cost. The online calculator tool was created by a Bexley High School alumnus and is used by school districts in other parts of Ohio.

The website also includes:

• A comprehensive questions-and-answers section on topics for which we’ve frequently received inquiries or questions. Called “In Depth Answers to Your Questions,” this section covers topics like why the district is addressing facilities now, the ages of our buildings, what Phase I includes and how it would be funded, why a new middle school is important to the school district, and much more.
• Information also covers how the district will prioritize maintaining as much green space on the Cassingham Complex as possible and reinforces that synthetic turf will not be used as part of potential surface improvements at Maryland and Montrose Elementaries.
• A section explaining how public schools are funded in Ohio.
• A voter-information section to assist in registering to vote, verifying voter registration with the Board of Elections, and participating in absentee or early in-person voting.

Go to the Issue 5 information now. You can also access it at bex.fyi/issue5.

Hundreds Attended Maryland’s Beloved Breakfast Buddies Event This Morning

Maryland Elementary held its biannual Breakfast with Buddies event today, with hundreds of family members, students, and staff taking advantage of the beautiful morning for breakfast on the back playground.

Twice during each school year – Fall and Spring – members of the Maryland PTO help the staff welcome the Maryland school community to the much-loved event of pancakes, turkey sausage, fruit, juice, and coffee. There were a few tables and chairs set up, but many took their picnic blankets and together enjoyed time with friends, neighbors, and children.

Many thanks to the Maryland faculty and staff and PTO members who helped make this morning’s event so special!

 

 

 

High School Students Learn How to Lead with Kindness

The school year’s first Lions Lead seminar took place today in the Jeffrey Mansion Carriage House, where more than 60 high school students learned about leadership and kindness and how they go hand in hand to build strong teams and relationships. Now in its second year, the Lions Lead program brings together the leaders and captains of Bexley High School athletic teams and organizations. It was launched last year by former principal Jason Caudill, who is now the district’s Chief Academic Officer, and social studies teacher Nancy Mallory and is generously supported by Bexley resident Richard Stoff and the Carol Zelizer Stoff Memorial Fund for Human Kindness. In their welcoming comments this morning, Mr. Caudill and Ms. Mallory shared the program’s objective, to encourage students to learn how to lead and leave a legacy for themselves and others, whether during their time at Bexley High School or beyond. The morning began with a panel discussion from local community members about their leadership journey and how others supported and mentored them. They also discussed how kindness impacts their leadership. Those who participated in the panel discussion were: Paula Haines, who serves as CEO of Freedom a la Cart, a Columbus nonprofit that supports the healing of sex-trafficking survivors by helping them breakdown employment barriers. Shane Roberts, a BHS alumnus and star athlete who played football for Capital University. He was asked to return to Bexley as a middle school track and field coach in 1997, thus launching a nearly 30-year career coaching Bexley’s student-athletes. He also serves the schools as a paraprofessional, where he spends each school day supporting and encouraging students. Kenny Sipes, a former youth minister who started the nonprofit, The Roosevelt Coffeehouse, in 2013 and has since donated more than $230,000 to partner organizations to build wells and latrines, feed the hungry, and rescue and restore dignity to people who were trafficked. Nick Wolfe, a school-based mental health therapist for Nationwide Children’s Hospital who worked with Bexley Schools to address non-academic barriers to success. With a love for the outdoors and passion for mental health support, he also developed an Adventure Therapy program. Throughout their discussion, the panelists talked about leading with curiosity and kindness and caring enough to meet others where they are on their journeys. Other members of the high school faculty led the students in other discussions during the day, including Jamie Hayes and Carleton McGrady, who guided the session, “Everyone Matters: Leading a Strong Team.” Teachers Dianne Day, Sarah Flower, and Janet Mulder also led a session on goal setting. Dr. Kacy King, shared her keynote comments in the afternoon, expressing with the students that kindness is a leadership choice. She is the senior associate athletics director at Ohio State and executive director of the Student Athletic Support Services Office. She is a Bexley native and received the Bexley Education Foundation’s Distinguished Alumni Award last year. The high school will hold the next Lions Lead event later this school year for other students who serve as leaders and captains of their teams and school organizations.

 

One Bexley & the Bexley Public Library Don’t Miss ‘Real Talk: Neighboring 101’ One Bexley and the Bexley Public Library invite you to Real Talk: Neighboring 101, an interactive evening that explores how small acts of connection can create a stronger, more welcoming community. Together with the Center for HumanKindness at The Columbus Foundation, the program will help community members to discover practical ways to build meaningful relationships with the people who live around us. Hear inspiring stories, participate in engaging activities, and leave with simple ideas you can put into practice right away. The session will also introduce the Kindness Close to Home neighborhood toolkits designed to help neighbors create lasting connections. Whether you’ve called Bexley home for decades or just arrived, this conversation is for you. Wednesday, September 9 6:30–8:00 p.m. Bexley Public Library Auditorium Bring your curiosity. Meet someone new. Be part of building the kind of community where everyone feels they belong. Reserve your free seat today: Register for Neighboring 101 Stronger neighborhoods don’t happen by accident. They happen when neighbors choose to know one another.

Important Dates

Tonight! Sept. 3 (Thurs.) – Middle School Curriculum Night, 6 p.m.

Sept. 7 (Mon.) – Labor Day; No Classes, District Closed

Sept. 8 (Tues.) – Middle School PTO Meeting, 7 p.m., School Library

Sept. 8 (Tues.) – Montrose PTO Meeting, 7 p.m., School Library

Sept. 9 (Wed.) – Middle School Make-Up Photo Day

Sept. 9 (Wed.) – Board of Education Regular Meeting, 6 p.m., Bexley City Hall

Sept. 14 (Mon.) – Maryland Elementary Picture Day

Sept. 14 (Mon.) – Montrose Elementary Picture Day

Sept. 17 (Thurs.) – High School Financial Aid Information Meeting, 6 p.m., Schottenstein Theater

Sept. 17 (Thurs.) – Middle School 8th Grade Washington, D.C. Trip Information Meeting, 6 p.m., Cassingham Theater

Sept. 21 (Mon.) – No Classes for Students & Teachers

Sept. 22 (Tues.) – No Classes for Students; Teacher/Staff Professional Development Day

Sept. 26 (Sat.) – High School Play, Witches!? In Salem?!, 2 p.m. AND 7 p.m., Schottentstein Theater

Sept. 27 (Sun.) – High School Play, Witches!? In Salem?!, 2 p.m., Schottentstein Theater