The doors to Brown County Intermediate School will close when the school year ends in about two months, and teachers and staff across the district have learned where they will be working next school year.

The school board approved staff placements for the 2021-2022 school year at the March 25 meeting. The board also approved the administrative team for next year.

Over the summer, BCIS will be transformed into the Educational Service Center, which will be the new home of the Brown County Career Resource Center. This move is a part of multiple cost-cutting strategies the school board approved earlier this year to combat declining enrollment and state funding.

The district is in the process of selling the current CRC building on East Main Street. The money from that sale will help in renovating BCIS to better serve learners at the CRC.

Current fourth-graders will remain in their elementary schools for fifth grade. Current fifth-graders will move to the junior high school for sixth grade, and the junior high will be renamed Brown County Middle School. The middle school will serve all the district’s sixth- through eighth-graders.

To keep the number of certified staff in line with the closure, and to avoid firing teachers, retirement incentives were offered to teachers and non-certified staff like custodians.

Enough staff members decided to take an incentive to retire early, preventing the school district from issuing pink slips to any teachers or staff. Superintendent Laura Hammack told the school board at the March 4 meeting that six certified and 10 non-certified staff members had decided to take the incentive.

The retirees are Marvin Brock, Carolyn Stant, Debra Arnold, Donna Griffith, James Bond, Pamela Walters, Kelly Rudd, Denise Campbell, Catherine Baum-Newlin, Laurie Godfrey, Kelly Harmon, Karen Melahn, Debra Pinney, Staci Harden, Madeline Lucas and Debra Sumner.

At the end of February, current staff at BCIS were informed of which school building they would work in next school year.

BCIS Principal Trent Austin will serve as the associate principal at Brown County Middle School. Brian Garman will continue to serve as principal of that building (the former junior high).

Former BCIS Assistant Principal Thor Davis will work as a counselor at Helmsburg Elementary School next school year.

Former BCJHS Assistant Principal Greg Pagnard will serve as the director of the CRC. Sheila Popplewell will be the CRC adult educator.

Current CRC Director Christy Wrightsman will get a new title next school year as the district’s first director of career connected learning, which is a grant-funded position.

Current Director of Student Learning Debbie Harman will also receive a new title next year: Director of student support services.

Principals at the elementary level will remain the same.

The following are the teachers who will be working in each building next year. The lists are current as of March 25 and are subject to change before the start of next school year as openings are filled. Those changes can be tracked in the school board’s consent agenda.

Helmsburg Elementary School: Teresa Fultz, Erica Garman, Karen Hedrick, Jayne Jones, Michelle Joy (mentor teacher), Jill Miller, Debbie Olson, Natalie Robison, Jodie Silbaugh, Malini Stiles, Natalie Van Zuiden, science teacher Chris Miller, music teacher Rachel Martin, counselor Thor Davis (mentor teacher), physical education teacher Josh Sparks, preschool teachers Lydia Voland and Brandi Lunsford, and master teacher Brenda Ely. HES has one opening for a special education teacher and two openings for paraprofessionals as of March 25.

Sprunica Elementary School: Brittany Dunkley (mentor teacher), Erika East (mentor teacher), Allyson Hanus, Becky Higgins, Megan Kakavecos, Mary Kurdziel, Magen Purlee, Julia Riebl, Angie Shirley, Jessie Spurgeon, Billie Thomas, Lindsay Wheeler, science teacher Amy Gordon, special education teacher Kera Hayworth, counselors Paige Wetzel and Wendi Gore, PE teacher Sparks, preschool teacher Libby Ziegler and master teacher Alyse Johnson. SES has openings for a preschool teacher and a paraprofessional.

Van Buren Elementary School: Alyssa Daffron, Annette Fields (mentor teacher), Emily Gaither, Jill LaGiglia, Lauren Lockdall, Piper Nicholson, Darlene Radloff, Tina Robertson, Heather Sawyer, Kortney Thalls, Michelle Wagers (mentor teacher), science teacher Michael Brown, special education teacher Makenzie Duncan (mentor teacher), counselor Sarah Forest, preschool teachers Erin Schultz and Jennifer Dunn, and master teacher Sarah Cochran. VBE has openings for an administrative assistant and an elementary teacher as of March 25.

Brown County Middle School: English-language arts teachers Steffanie Davis (mentor teacher), Cindy Stark (mentor teacher), Julie Miller and Jane Phillips; social studies teachers Kyle McGaha, Michael Potts and Justin Schwenk; science teachers Sarah Hale, Kevin Roush and Mandy Austin; math teachers Tim Hebert (mentor teacher), Bruce Koopman, Kaitlyn Christie and Thom Miller; engineering teacher Dan Lewellen; computer science teacher Bryce Boyer; special education teachers Courtney Hitchcock and Mike Taylor; choir teacher Dan Lyng; band teacher Matt Finley; art teacher Laurette Roales; PE teachers Colton Sample and Mike Harmon; counselors Terri Whitcomb and Wendi Gore; master teachers Alyssa Stanley and Mitzi Garman. BCMS has one opening for a special education teacher as of March 25.

Brown County High School: ELA teachers Allison Crenshaw, Hillary Frye and Rebekah Bryan; ELA-media teacher Brian Galm; social studies teachers Alecia Adams, Elyse Babb, Jay Myers (mentor teacher) and Emily Lewellen; science teachers Matthew Noriega, Wendy Weddle, Chris Driver, Shanna Carpenter and Jim McFall; math teachers Paige Burton (mentor teacher), Cheryl Fox, Mark White and Sean Dorsey; engineering teachers Chris Townsend and Dean Keefauver; computer science teacher Kirk Wrightsman; Spanish teachers Lauren Spiece (mentor teacher) and Pedro DeLeon; special education teachers Anna Cassiday, Matt Huffman, Janay McGill and Barb Kelp; choir teacher Kristi Billings; band teacher Finley; art teacher Andi Rogers-Bartels; PE teachers Rob Abraham and Carlie Salisbury; business teacher Ryan Crenshaw; guidance counselors Donna Alwine and Stephanie Quillen; master teachers Kevin Greve and Hannah Newlin. BCHS has openings for an ELA teacher, a theater teacher, a mentor teacher and a master teacher as of March 25.