MOUNT VERNON – In June the Ohio Association of School Business Officials sponsored a program in Columbus titled “So you want to be a school treasurer.”
Registration information for the session said, “Veteran school treasurers will walk attendees through a typical day in the life of a school treasurer. (Hint: There is no such thing as a ‘typical day.’”)
Knox County’s school district treasurers already know there is nothing typical from one day to the next as they confront the challenges of their work. On Friday they gathered to share approaches to a myriad of responsibilities that encompass payrolls, accounts receivable and payable, student records, board of education minutes and the preparation of five-year financial forecasts. In smaller districts like those here the treasurers’ offices also handle human resources issues.
Judy Forney, Mount Vernon City Schools treasurer, invited all county school treasurers and their staffs – as well as Clear Fork – to the MVCS board room for Friday’s training session led by Columbus attorney Megan Greulich. For two hours Greulich outlined requirements and answered questions relating to:
– The Family and Medical Leave Act
– The Fair Labor Standards Act
– Records retention
– Ohio’s Open Meetings Law
The treasurers meet occasionally when a topic needs to be discussed, but Forney said Friday’s session was the first to include staff members.
“This was an opportunity to hear important information, collaborate and give our staff members a chance to meet one another across the county districts,” Forney said. “Putting a face with a name and meeting the person who does your job in another district is a great way to communicate, share experiences and solve problems.”
Following Greulich’s presentation the treasurers spent an hour sharing their respective strategies relating to nearly a dozen topics, including grants, cash balance policy, school fees and board meeting notices.
East Knox Local Schools Treasurer Jessica Busenburg cited the “cooperative spirit” of the meeting and said the morning was time well spent.
“This was an opportunity for us as a group to talk about common topics that impact all of us,” she said. “We were able to discuss how we manage things in our respective districts and share solutions to problems and issues.
“Not everyone can go to every training session that is offered, so it’s helpful for those who attend a session to share what they learned with the rest of us. Today, we all heard information (from Greulich) that is important for all of us.”
In addition to Forney and Busenburg, Friday’s participants included:
Centerburg: Treasurer Lori Houck
Clear Fork: Treasurer Jon Mason; Tammy Ludwig, payroll, and Denise Bowman, accounts payable
Danville: Treasurer Tonya Mickley and Assistant Treasurer Anita Viers
Fredericktown: Treasurer Heather Darnold
Mount Vernon: Lynette Telek, assistant to the treasurer; Christine Hohman, accounts payable and receivable; Monica Pryor, HR specialist, payroll and insurance
Knox County Career Center: Treasurer Tracy Elliott; Assistant Treasurer Carolyn Addair; Wendy Figgins and Teri Hill, administrative assistants
Knox Educational Service Center: Treasurer Melissa Carpenter; Assistant Treasurer Tristan Hinkle
Unable to attend were Tiffany Hall, Centerburg assistant treasurer; Tracy Beckett, East Knox assistant treasurer, and Dawn Campbell, Fredericktown assistant treasurer