Let's Talk Clermont

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This is the inaugural episode of Let's Talk Claremont. In this episode, we talk about Ohio Senate Bill 1, which seeks to reform state higher education institutions, and House Bill 113, which addresses annexation processes. We also interview Becki Johnson, a CNE school board member, about her experiences as a board member and local education challenges. 

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We've been living in sin so long.   All   Hello, and welcome to the very first episode of Let's Talk Claremont.   I'm your host, Pappy. And before we get into it, I just wanna talk about   why this exists and what you can expect from this podcast.   We are here to fill a void. I think it is tough,   if not impossible,   to find, just some good local information about Clermont County.   Things like what's going on in the county government, the local government, the public schools.   And so that's why we're here. We're gonna try to fill you in on everything Clermont County,   because I think if we want a better world, we gotta start in our backyard.  

So we're here to know what's going on in your backyard.   So the shows we're gonna start all the shows with   some news   from the state, from the county,   from local   towns, villages, municipalities.   And then we're gonna move on to an interview.   These interviews, I'm hoping to talk to people like local government officials, some business owners,   really anyone interesting.   And then after the interview, we'll talk about some upcoming events and thank our donors,   and read any interesting   listener notes,   which kinda brings us to the value for value model.   Like anyone, I need to make money,   and I'd like to do this, in a value for value.  

That means anything you can contribute to the show, whether it be time, talent, or treasure,   would be really much appreciated.   Pretty much if you can if you find value in what we're doing,   all we're gonna ask is that you share some value back.   And money's great. Don't get me wrong.   But, you know, information about what's going on in your town,   you know, what are you concerned about, what should people in Felicity, Milford, or Blanchester be aware of? That's extremely valuable,   and and we wanna hear it from you.   If you wanna send money, though, that's great.  

I'm still trying to figure out the best way to do this. But in the coming months, we're gonna try to find ways to make it easy for you to share value with the show.   And with all that said, let's talk about what is going on in the state of Ohio, specifically the state legislature.   There isn't I saw an interesting bill, senate bill one,   and it's looking to   kinda,   reform   state institutions of higher   education. And there's a lot of stuff in this, but the things I think are probably the the most interesting   is it's gonna   require   these colleges   to publish   their undergraduate   syllabi   online. So we can go or you can go, and you can   see what, you know,   is being taught.  

It's also going to require   a standardization of an American   civic literacy course,   in covering foundational documents and economic principles, which I think is probably a very, very good thing.   And it's also gonna it kinda takes aim at diversity, equity, and inclusion,   DEI policies,   which   I imagine everybody's heard about.   So, again, that's,   in my opinion, probably a very good thing.   Overall, it it looks like it's just gonna increase the accountability and transparent transparency   of   Ohio's state colleges,   which, you know, I I no complaints from me.   So house bill another   piece of legislation, house bill one thirteen,   it's a little dense, and it's making changes to annexation processes.  

And that's going to change   kind of how   some towns and villages can expand.   And it's gonna adjust petition requirements, buffer zones, and acreage limits.   It's also going to give school districts a little bit more   say in,   property tax exemptions,   and it's gonna give them a little more control to safeguard their funding.   Again, it's a it's a big bill, and it's   it's dense. So   I'm probably gonna look into   this annexation   process in general, and, you know, we'll continue to talk about this and see see what it's what it's gonna do.   In our interview today, we're gonna talk with Becky Johnson, and she's a school board member,   for Claremont   Northeastern.  

And she mentioned that the Ohio budget is gonna have a an an impact for CNE.   So,   we didn't go much into that, but I I wanted to,   research that a little bit and let you know kinda what she was talking about.   So the Ohio budget for the fiscal year 2026   and 2027,   it's changing how school fund funding formulas   work.   And so in broad strokes,   half of Ohio school districts are going to see a decrease in school aid,   specifically for Claremont.   From   2025   to 2027,   there's gonna be some school districts that lose   or their,   I guess, rather their state   funding will decrease.  

And that's gonna be like, Bethel Tate is going to see a 9.1%   decrease,   New Richmond exempted village,   an 8.1%   decrease,   West Claremont local, a 7.3%   decrease,   and CNE is going to see a 4% decrease. And, again, that's from   2025 to 2027.   There are some gains, though. So   Felicity Franklin local, that's going to see a 9% increase.   Batavia local, a 7.8%   increase.   And Goshen local will see a 4.5%   increase   in state state funding,   for their districts.   Overall, there's gonna be four districts that are gonna gain and five districts that will will their funding will decrease.   So,   I guess it's good news for some, bad news for others.  

If you're in one of those districts, you know, you should be aware   of how your funding will change from 2025   to 2027.   So let's move on to   Clermont County.   West Clermont is looking,   to enact a school levy.   And   they're looking to update school facilities, build more,   which I think is pretty typical for levies. You know, they they wanna make their schools nicer and build new schools and things like that.   But how this is gonna impact your taxes?   So   if you're in the Western Claremont School District,   your property tax will be $61.60   a year for every $100,000   of your home value,   and that's projected to raise $3,900,000   annually for the district.  

There's also an earned income tax,   impact, and that's going to be a hundred and $25   a year on $50,000   of earned income.   Now this only applies to wages, so it's not it has nothing to do with pensions or Social Security or anything like that. It's only,   earned income,   and that's projected to raise about 5,000,000 annually.   There's also a state partnership, and it's going to see 20% funding support from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, which is is hoping to reduce local taxpayer costs. So   if you're in the Western Claremont School District, you should be aware of that,   and I believe they'll be voting on that in May.  

Milford.   Milford is getting license plate readers, which,   honestly, I think kinda sucks for Milford.   But that's gonna capture images of the vehicles and license plate numbers. They're gonna be stored for thirty days. There's no facial recognition,   and it's hoping to deter criminal behavior and help solve crimes.   I I don't know. I   I wouldn't want cameras in in my town, but   that's what's going on in Milford. And Batavia, we're getting a snappy tomato pizza. I'm pretty excited about that. More pizza options.   And that's gonna be off of 32 by the Dollar General.  

At the township, Batavia Township,   the planning commission has recommended the approval of Aspire Development located on a Hospital   Drive.   Now the trustee should have heard this on their February 4 meeting. I couldn't find much on it.   So   there   is a development approved,   around Hospital Drive,   and I'll keep digging and see if I can find more, but I thought you should know about that. In the village of Batavia,   there's a development off of Baumann Lane by the airport.   It's for nearly 800 townhomes and single family homes.   And there is a community it's a community reinvestment area, so there's a tax abatement, meaning that the residents will pay reduced taxes,   for fifteen years.  

Basically, they're only gonna have to pay,   taxes on the unimproved land value, and that's raised some tax concerns within the village.   And I I think there was a a little bit of conflict around that.   But as far as I know, that development is moving forward.   There's also in the,   village   a hundred million dollar development that's going in on Haskell Lane right right by the Red Barn if you're familiar with Batavia.   It's a eight apartment buildings,   518   units all told.   And I think that's probably a good thing. That influx of resident residents, I think, is gonna,   you know, it's gonna provide people that can, you know, go to the downtown and eat at the bean and brew and things like that. So,   I think that's a pretty exciting exciting development.  

As far as I could tell, everywhere else seems quiet. But, again, if you've got something you think we need to be talking about,   send us a message. You can email us @infoatlet'stalkclaremont.com.   That's info@let'stalkclaremont.com.   And so next, we're gonna talk to Becky Johnson. She's a school board member at Claremont Northeastern.   We talk a little bit about her family.   We talk about, obviously,   her time on the school board and how she even got on the school board and and what it's like being on the school board. We also share some COVID war stories, which I think is always kind of fun to do.   But, anyway, stick around for that. And then at after that interview, we'll talk about some events   going around,   going on around Claremont.  

Alright.   Well, thanks again for sitting down with me. Thanks for inviting me. I'm with Becky Johnson. She's on the school board of Claremont Northeastern. Mhmm. Excellent. And so I guess just to start off, why don't you just tell us a little bit about yourself, your family, where you live, but don't tell us where you live.   That wouldn't be a good idea. You live in Claremont County? Claremont County. That's that's good enough. So just tell us who you are and and Okay. And kinda what you do. Okay. Well,  

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like he said, I'm Becky Johnson. I am, married. My, husband's name is JJ, John.   And, we have six children. And my oldest,   let's see, I believe she's 28, and my youngest just turned 10.   I have   seven grandchildren now. It's So Yeah. Yeah. That's awesome. I know. Congratulations. I know. Four of my children are married,   and,   three of them have children. So, like, they are,   on a roll. I mean, they've gotten married young, had kids quickly. Well, you and JJ got married young. Right? We did. Yeah. We did. My parents got married young. The other day. I was like, oh, you married the farmer's daughter. Yeah. I was like, yes. I did. He did. He did. His his dad was a plumber, and his grandpa was a plumber. He probably woulda carried on the Johnson family plumbing business, but,   instead, he started working for my dad when he was 15. And, he decided that's what he wanted to do is be a farmer. And, my dad let him in the business, and so that's,   it   yeah. So right now, he is a farmer, but he also gets to be the family plumber also. That's awesome. Well, he seems like an incredible I I was not blessed with that kind of  

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handy mechanical mind Yeah. That I think JJ was blessed with. But I love I love talking to JJ in the mornings. He's a great guy. Yeah. It's fun to talk to him about farming because I think it's really easy. It's easy when you sit down and you like, your beef was great, by the way. We're still enjoying   the Oh, good. Beef that we got. Yeah. But,   it's easy when you sit down for a meal. Like, you don't think about   how it actually got there. So you talked to JJ. You know, he's worried about   global prices of food and Mhmm. Weather and whether his machines are working and money in, money out. Yes. It's an it's an insanely complicated business. It is. And I think a lot of people just take for granted. It is. Especially at the scale because you guys farm quite a bit of acreage. We do. We do. We Is it in the thousands of acres? It is. It is. We farm corn and soybeans,  

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with my my dad.   My family, the Stahl family has been in farming for generations.   I've heard about,   my great   great great grandpa who came over from Germany   and, began farming in Kentucky. And then my   great great grandpa, FJ Frederick,   he, went bankrupt in Kentucky when,   I think it was in the twenties.   I'd have to ask my dad to check, but when prices fell out, he went bankrupt and moved to Ohio. And my, great grandpa, Pascal, came,   and that got us started in Ohio in the Clermont County area. And so so we've been here since then. And, so we actually have a lot of family around us. You know, people like, a lot of families probably wouldn't know they're related,   but because we live in the same area   that my great great grandpa had land in and then, it passed down through generations, then we know many of those people and that we're distant cousins   and, which is pretty interesting. I like that. So my my family as a whole, I we farm with my dad,   my brother, my sister, and her husband, and all their kids. Well, most of the kids, not all of them. And, my children and my husband so we farm together. And then my husband and I, along with our children, raise cattle for, beef cattle. And yeah. Yeah. And it's delicious. Thank you. I appreciate it. We really enjoy it. It's a hard list to get on too.  

Yeah. I mean, I yeah. I don't have to advertise anymore because I I have regulars. And when they no longer need as much meat,   then, it just spreads word-of-mouth. I mean, every year, it's pretty well taken up. You know? Yeah. Yeah.  

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So like I mentioned before, you're on the, school board Yes. For Claremont Northeastern. Can you geographically   just kind of tell us what  

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kind of territory Claremont Northeastern encompasses? Let's see. Go there? Okay. I think it's about, Claremont Northeastern is is, unique in that it covers a large,   part of land.   Most of it's rural.   If I remember right, I think it's about 95 acres,   or acres.   Schools?   95,   square miles maybe is what I meant to say. But,   so it's a large   amount of land,   where most schools are even small schools have, like, a smaller part of land. Like, Fayetteville, you might say, is,   it covers a smaller amount of land, where CNE covers a large amount of land, but it's rural land. And then another thing that's unique about our school district is the land has a high the the value is is high. So,   that affects the funding of the school.  



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Okay. So that's interesting.   So because the land value is high, does that   diminish the amount of funding, like state funding that you're able to get? Or Yeah.  

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It does diminish the amount of state funding, and it's affected   the like, many schools around, you see they have new buildings,   and CNE has been unable to do that. And that's part of the reason why. The it affects the amount of state funding. So they do that on on land value, not, like,  

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aggregate income or or median income for the for the school district?  

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You know, I'm not really sure. I know that's affected it. It's a the whole tax system and how the money comes in is a really complicated issue, and I talked to our treasurer about it quite a bit. But and I've learned a lot about it, but it's still very complex.   Yeah. And but I know that that's affected why we have not been able to get a new building like many schools. And there are people quite a few people in the CNE district that would like to have a new school building. Now I personally   I like the high school. I think it's   a it it's old, but I think it's a great building.  

If we built a new building, it would not be of the quality   Sure. That the old building is.   It would lack. But it also means there's a ton of things that need to be updated. Sure. Like, we have to continually,   spend quite a bit of money just to update things that are very old. And that there's a lot of things on the list right now that do need to be updated.  

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Now are you able can people volunteer to update those things, or do you have to go through some kind of, like, code or or bidding process? Or if somebody's like like, if Jay some plenty like JJ who's a good plumber, can they just say, well, yeah. I can fix that for you.  

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Some things. Some things people can volunteer for. They,   we've had people talk about building something for the school. There is a process that we need to go to. But other things, we have to, by law, get bids Okay. And, look at the bids and go from that way.   And a problem too sometimes we have with people built,   volunteering to build things is   they will start building it, and then part of the way through, maybe get mad or decide they don't feel like doing it, and then the school is stuck with the expense of finishing the project. So whenever someone does   volunteer to build something, we also need to count the   to dis if we're gonna go forward, we need to count the cost of that project   as if we're going to spend it because we may end up spending it. Sure. Yeah. And, actually, I I know we kinda got into the  

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the school board bit.   But if we could back up,   what do school people on school boards actually do? Like, what what what is your job? Why why do people elect It's a lot different than what I thought it would be.   Well, let's start with what you thought it would be.  

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I thought that school boards   were the reason   why   things were   were why things that were not good in schools were that way. I thought that school boards were the reason why at times there's inappropriate books in   right in schools. I thought, well, you just fix the school board. Because, you know, that's what they tell you on talk radio. You get the school board right, fixes the school. Right. Well, it's not that simple. I mean, I think that probably   years ago, school boards played a bigger rule   in how the school was operated.   But right now, the way schools school boards operate is I can't just walk into the school when I want. Sure.  

I don't even have a key card to unlock the door. If I'm going to go and I, for instance, I want to see how things   operate or look at a certain area of a school that needs attention,   I call our superintendent,   mister Siz, and I let him know I'd like to come see such and such. And he may say, oh, okay. How about you come today at such and such time? Mhmm. And then I'll get there, and he'll take me to see it. Or if I want to tour the school building and see you know, I will set up a time to go and look at it.   So it I'm not in the classrooms. I know if I wanted to be in a particular classroom to see how the teacher was doing, if there was an issue,   well, I would go through the same process. I would talk to our superintendent and set up a time to go and sit in on that class, which I haven't done because I haven't seen the need to do that. Sure. But there have been times I have toured the buildings or looked at particular,   things, and that's the process I went through.  

But so it's not   if there's an issue in the school, many times, I don't know about it unless,   our superintendent brings it to our intent our attention or a teacher, a parent, or a student. And that has happened before. There have been students that have reached out to me. There have been parents that have reached out   and, let me know that something was going on, and then I would   call our superintendent and address the issue with him. See, the superintendents   or the the board is responsible for hiring the superintendent and treasurer. Mhmm. So that's who we oversee.   Okay. And  

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the superintendent's job is to make sure all areas of the school are functioning well. So, like, there's a of accountability because, like, teachers, I imagine, are accountable to the principal Right. Who is then accountable to the superintendent, who is then accountable to the school board. Exactly.  

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So if there was a teacher that was, doing something   wrong,   it would not  

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I I should not contact that teacher. Right. I need to contact the superintendent. And many times can talk to you. Yes. Like, if a parent has a problem with something or there's an issue Right. They can they can call you up or email you or whatever. They can. I would prefer  

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that they take it through the chain chain of command and try to deal with it. And It's also not an invitation for everybody to start calling Becky and There are some issues I think that people should go straight to the board and say, hey. This is what's going on in the school district. And if they try to exhaust those channels and they're getting stonewalled, I imagine that it would be appropriate to call somebody up like you Yes. And say, like, look. I've been having a problem with this. Can you help? Yes. Yes. Like, if they feel their child is being picked on and they've talked to the teacher about it, they've gone to the principal and they've gone to the superintendent and nothing's getting changed,   or they don't like what's being taught in the class, or their kid got,   suspended, you know, things like that. They really need to take that through the chain of command. And then if things aren't resolved, come to the board. Yeah. That's the way I would prefer that they do it. But I'm just glad, you know, when they actually do reach out, a lot of people are afraid to come to,   the board   or even to leadership, to administration in the school. They're afraid if they complain or aren't happy about something that their child will be picked on. And I just don't think that's the case. And the reason why I disagree with that is because I came to this position by being unhappy and complaining. Yep. And,   that was during COVID.  

My,   my family, we   began going to board meetings, and we were not happy. Yeah. We came. We spoke out regularly. We held signs.   We made the present the board that was there at that time, we made things difficult for them. Yeah. And,   my my child was treated just fine. Yeah. So, people should   when something matters and it's important, they should speak up and do something. That's actually really awesome because  

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not to plug myself in this, but that's one of the reasons I wanna do this is because I think, you know, if you want a better world,   you gotta know what's going on in your backyard first.   You know? And so to to   go to those school board meetings and because I've been noticing you can get minutes online, and you can look at agendas.   And I just really encourage people to do that because, you know, it's easy to get swept up in in kind of broad societal issues at the national level. But   what really   government is really school boards. It's city councils. It's village councils. It's It is. That's that's where governance is happening, and that's what's gonna impact you and your family   the most. It is. The absolute most. And if It is. If there's something wrong, like, you should do exactly what you did. Yeah. Go to the school board and pressure them. They then pressure the superintendent   who pressures  

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the teachers and the principals, and that's how you really change things for the best. It is. Typically, though, when people are really upset, what they do is they get on social media, and they   begin broadcasting what the issue is. Yeah. And many times, they haven't even gone to the principal and spoken to him about the problem that occurred   or, to the superintendent.   And   they just get online and post the whole thing out. And,   oftentimes,   what they think happened isn't actually  

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what fully occurred. So would you advise people to   if they have if they have an issue, maybe stay away from social media as your first resort Yeah. And maybe go go to the teacher, go to the principal I would. And go to the superintendent, then go to you before you start   stirring up some problem that might not even be a problem? It would because,  

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you know, some people   get really angry with the school that over diff you know, issues that are going on and then want to give the school a black eye. And I just like to say, like, as person who I'm a person who's not a bit big advocate   of public school. Mhmm. Like, I'm not pushing people to send their kids to public school. I've homeschooled a lot. Yeah. My, you know, my children,   they did a variety of means of education. Public school was just one of them. Mhmm. I homeschooled them quite a bit.   But at the same time, the public school is what is influencing   our community greatly. Oh, yeah. It's where the majority of children in our school are coming from, where they're being educated.  

And,  

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not only that, tremendous amount of homeschool students are participating in the sports Yeah. Of the public school. The public school matters. Well, and I'm sure the public school, the curriculum that is taught there Mhmm. I'm sure that influences homeschool curriculum because because the curriculum taught in the public schools is what's   being tested in things like the ACT and the SAT, which is what's determining whether you get into a good school or not. So Right. I mean, like it or not Mhmm. Public schools are dictating a lot of the curriculum that these kids will be tested on Yeah. To determine their aptitude. Yeah. You're right. You're right. I hadn't even thought about that. But to just, go on social media  

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and begin complaining   about how awful the local public school is and you hate it is   not helping the situation. It's not very bad. Through the channels   and try to bring about the change. Before you stir up a mop with pitchforks. Yes. Have a conversation with someone first. What I have found as someone,   who wasn't heavily involved in the public school system, and the only reason why I,   went for school board was because of what was going on during COVID. I hated seeing the kids masked. Yep. I,   I had filled made a religious exemption for my,   my son and my daughter   to not wear the mask. My brother had actual medical exemptions for his children who have asthma to not wear the mask. It was all rejected.  

And They rejected all of it. They rejected all of them.   Religious exemption. Yes. They did. We sent our children to school on the first day   of school   and with no mask   and their exemptions in hand. And the school was very kind. They let them finish the day, but then they they called us parents and let us know that if they were gonna return the second day, they had to have their mask   or they needed to do online school at home.   Really? Yes. Yes. I didn't know that. That's wild. We were not happy about that, and I just wasn't happy to see that there were so many children that were having to wear these silly mask all day long.   It was,   really frustrating that that was going on. That's why I wanted to get on school board. I just didn't wanna see these kids doing this. I mean, at the time, I remember,   going away for a weekend with my husband in the Hocking Hills and hiking, and there would be families hiking without mask. Some of them would, but some of them would be all maskless, and then you would see the element or their elementary age kids wearing mask   because they wanted to. Yeah. Like, kids were getting used to wearing mask to the point   where they did not want to take them off. Yeah. It was like a security thing. They wanted to wear them all the time. And, like, that's a scary thing when you see society entering to a place where kids are more comfortable   not showing their face in public Yeah. And   and not   talking than,   you   know, than being themselves Well, I and being seen and heard. And I'm not  

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a doctor or a child development   expert. And quite frankly, most of what I get is through memes that Katie sends me. But Yeah.   I'm fairly certain it's there's been studies and it's been shown that masks were   extremely detrimental to developing children because of   the communication is so much more than just words. It is. When you're looking at my face, you're looking at my body language, you're looking at how I'm expressing things. Yes. And as a child developing, you need to understand those cues. I mean, you've had young kids. You know, they don't understand. Right. Like, our little girl, Olive, the like, it's like I put on the meanest face I could possibly put on, and it's like she doesn't understand. It's not com computing with her. Yeah. She needs to understand  

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and develop that that skill. Yes. And if you're behind a mask Right. I think that's insane. It is. And, again, I'm not a medical professional, but I'm fairly certain they didn't do anything anyway. Yeah. Like, it wasn't in bacteria and let the children rebreathe it over and over. Yeah. You know, after they fingered the mask and they walked out of the bathroom, you know Yeah. And put it took it on and off.   Yeah. Yeah. Just   some I heard that there were kids that even got sick because of the mask that they were wearing and the bacteria that was it was something else. So wild. It was. What a crazy time. And a a crazy thing that, like, so many people went along with it. I still look back on that. I'm getting so annoyed going Well, I did. Yeah. Like, in the beginning, it's it could because you think back to it, and the first two weeks were terrifying  

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because it was like, what's happening? And they're telling you wear masks, and it was like, okay. We'll we'll do that. But then as time wears on, it was like, well, wait a minute. What's really happening here? But when you start reading things, you're like, wait a minute. This is theater.  

[00:30:52] Unknown:

It was theater.   I didn't wear them except when I had to get into places   to,   like, if I took my grandma, my husband's grandma to the doctor, I mean, they weren't gonna let me in. I didn't have a mask on, and she had to have me there with her. So I would put it on to get into sports events with my kids. I would put on the mask. But then when I got inside, I would take it off so they could visit me every little bit and tell me to put my mask back on. Yeah. You know, I just wanna make sure they had a hard time.   You know, there were fun aspects to it. You know? Like sure they had a hard   Yeah. Yeah. There were fun aspects to it. It was like, you know, getting on Etsy and ordering special mask that have, little messages on them. Are those, like, really thin mesh masks? Yes. I had that too. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, that that was kind of fun. But I did you know, going to the grocery store and having people yell at you and make scenes because you weren't wearing a mask,   admire. I had the greeting ladies chase me down. Yeah.  

It it was hard, and I realized I was getting in the habit of not giving people eye contact Yeah. And not smiling. Yeah. And, yeah. When I when I finally stopped wearing them in grocery stores and stuff, I'd  

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I'd noticed the same thing. Yeah. You know, it's like  

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it it was so bizarre. It was so bizarre. It was. I was wondering if we would get back to being able to smile and talk to strangers again. I because at that time, I didn't want to look anybody in the eye or you know, because I didn't want to look at them and see them glaring at me. It wasn't a conscious decision. In my mind, I wanted to be friendly and talk to people, but   what I realized I was doing was actually not looking at people and not smiling, forgetting how to smile when I was in public. Yeah. And that's not good because you want to smile. You want people to see your mouth and that you're happy and pleasant.  

[00:32:41] Unknown:

And, yeah, I was forgetting. One of my favorite times with Katie during COVID is we actually, I think she was just alone, so she was telling me this. She I dropped her off at at Walmart, and she goes into Walmart. She she comes back out. She didn't wear wasn't wearing a mask.   And she's like, oh, that lady at the front asked me to wear a mask, and I just said, no thanks, and kept walking. It's like   I was like, what a great response to that. Like, no. Thank you. Yeah.   I'm not not willing to do it or be bothered about it. So no. Thank you. Yeah.  

[00:33:10] Unknown:

We, we went on vacation once. We were at, Douglas Lake in Tennessee, and we went into a local what was it? Piggly Wiggly there. And we were shopping without our mask, and they tried to get us to put it on when we first walked in, but we did not. And   so once we got in, we were walking around. We saw a man without a mask. You know, it was almost like once you'd see somebody without a mask, you'd be like, wow. Kindred spirit. Right. So, you know, we smile at him. We keep going. After a while, he chased us down. Like, he wanted to have a conversation with us, like, find out who we were. Yeah. He was so happy to see our family in Piggly Wiggly without mask on. Yeah. We were the only people there that didn't have them on. At a certain point, you because like I said, it was scary,  

[00:33:50] Unknown:

at least for us, because we had also had a newborn. Yeah. Yeah. It's very, very scary. But then once once you started going through it, you're like, oh, this is   Yeah.   You really did start it it started scaring me a little bit how many people just   didn't seem to   think critically about it, to be quite honest. Yeah. Or or to be frightened   to the point where because once   once it came out, I mean, it it was terrible. People died, absolutely.   But it wasn't   the black plague. Right. Like, Katie and I have had COVID. Everybody I know has had COVID.   Yeah.  



[00:34:27] Unknown:

I don't know. It just it was just a very, very odd time. It was terrible. And maybe if they would have treated the people that had COVID better with more effective medicines, maybe not as many people would have died. Yeah. But it's really sad how it all went down, and older people were locked in nursing homes   and had to die alone and not see their family. It's just amazing that they were able to do that to our society.   Unbelievable.   Unbelievable.   It's almost like a dystopian novel that that happened. Yeah. I I just like living in a dystopia. It was. It really was. It was scary time. Because like I said, all of it just been born.  

[00:35:02] Unknown:

And,   you know, grandparents wanted to come visit, but, I mean, we would like we wouldn't let anybody in the house because it was like, we have no idea what's happening. We don't know how deadly this is. And so they'd, like, come to the the sliding door and, like, wave. Hold on. Here's the baby.   Alright. Yeah. I mean, it it was just it was   terrifying.  

[00:35:23] Unknown:

It was a scary time, but   I guess one thing   that didn't change for us is every morning,   JJ still went to our shop,   in Batavia to work on equipment, and all the employees came. And the family that all the same people that work every day came every day, did the same exact thing.   Like, nothing was happening. No mask. Acted normal. It felt good to walk in there sometimes and visit just to see people acting normal.   And   that really helped. It was scary too in a way because, you know, in the beginning, we didn't know how bad COVID would be. Right. And so I do remember one of the employees got sick, and dad got aggravated because they came to work anyway. And he's like, you go home. You're gonna get us all sick.  

[00:36:08] Unknown:

Well, if you remember, they were show on social media. You would see videos from China where apparently people were, like, dropping dead in the streets, and they were I tell they're buying   things on onto apartment doors. Yeah. Do you remember that? Yes. Yes. They were it was really freaky. Yeah. I just wonder, like, how did they like,  

[00:36:27] Unknown:

I don't know. I I wonder about some of the things that came out on media, like,   how how that came to be or if it actually even was. I know. You know? It was nuts. Even today,  

[00:36:40] Unknown:

it's it's getting more   and more difficult, but   I don't with AI and everything so I'm a a writer. I write for, marketing companies Okay. That, and I'll write blog posts and white papers. If   anytime I try to search for statistics or something to help me write something Mhmm. I'm not I'm getting a bunch of AI generated blog posts. A lot of times, just made up statistics. Wow. Yeah. I mean, completely.   I in Forbes magazine   because I was I was doing something that required some kind of statistic, and I saw a Forbes Magazine article. And the very first because once you work   in writing and you and because I use AI to help me write and to help me research,   The very first line I read it, I was like, this was written by a by GPT by AI.  

It was just apparent. And it's it's getting to the point, not to stray too far from the conversation, but it's getting to the point where   there's so much   written   content online, both in blog posts for companies. That's just AI written that I think it's looping back into the AI. And so it's like it's like making a copy of a copy of a copy.   So anytime I go and read something on online, because I'll get my news from message boards and different websites, I just think.   There's a there's a very significant chance that what I'm reading is just some AI generated bot that's   pushing an agenda for somebody Yeah. Doing something. I I don't know. I've come across that recently with, being on school board.  



[00:38:10] Unknown:

I just thought   some people were   amazing writers, and I needed to improve   my, adjectives and,   my sentence structure. And so, you know, I'm working on that. And then finally, someone said to me, well, they're using AI on their emails to make them better. And I looked at it again. I'm like,   oh, wow. Yeah. I've tried it out a few times. Like,   I don't know exactly how to use it all, but sometimes when I'm unsure how to word things, I've gone on to social media, and I've written a post that I didn't. It wasn't really gonna be a post. Yeah. I've just wrote out all that I wanted to say,   and then I clicked on the AI,   little   button, and it gives me all these different choices, and it gives me ideas of how to rephrase it. Yeah. And then, of course, I don't post it because that wasn't my initial intent.  

But it helps me with writing. But I'm like, that is amazing. And I have a nephew too that he had gotten caught doing donuts one year at the fair. And, like, in his car? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. His his truck. I guess he wasn't the only one, but he was the one that   somebody got caught. Yes. Yes. And he had been that guy before. He had to go before the fair board apologized, and he wrote them all letter. He didn't write the letter.   He had AI do it. It sounded like the sweetest, most apologetic letter. And, of course, I mean, I think it's far you know, a couple year that was a couple years ago, so I think it's too late for him to get in trouble with me saying this. But,   you know, like, it sounded really good. And now   I'm all the time thinking what's real and what's not. Like, even, like, things you see, memes and pictures you see on social media, like, my daughter started pointing out to me, mom, that is AI. Oh, yeah. And I'm like, how can you tell? She's like, look at it. It's too perfect. And Yeah. I mean, there's entire Yeah. Instagram accounts  

[00:40:03] Unknown:

that are they're not real people. It's just AI generated  

[00:40:07] Unknown:

photos. That's unbelievable.   I don't know where this is gonna take us, but what a wild ride we're on living in this day and age. Yeah. It's crazy. It's really nutty. It is. I just don't even know what to think about it at all. Yeah. But, you know, any like, back to the school board thing when we did Yeah. Sorry. I didn't mean to   That's okay. I have a tendency to to hear conversations in odd places. That's I don't mind. But, you know, with the mask thing going down, we,   began going my brother,   and I and my husband too, we just started going to the school board meetings, and we would speak in each one of them with our three minutes that we had. And I know they hated to see us, but it started wearing on them.   We were actually   the first   Blanchester   School set a date to get rid of the mask, and, they were the first ones to set a date to get rid of the mask mandate in the school district.  

And,   then they had a date set. And if I remember right,   our governor, Mike DeWine, then set a date.   And then we   actually   decided,   we we were at a school board meeting. I wasn't on the school board. I was in the odd I was the nasty parent at the time. But,   I was there, and the school board had just gotten so annoyed with the whole mask thing that they voted that night   that it was there was one more day left of school before it let out for the summer, and they voted that night. The mask mandate is over now. Right. And the kids were able to go to school that next day for the last day of school, and they did not have to wear a mask. And it was before Mike DeWine's date. I was so proud. I was so proud of them. Made me so happy. And that's I I think that's also another really good point is public pressure works. Yes. It does. I mean, it really there's something going on that you don't like Mhmm. Showing up to these meetings and talking about it and you essentially becoming a problem. Yes. That works. It works more than sending an email. You can send me an email, and I will talk to our superintendent.   I will,   you know, do something about it. But you show up at a board meeting and you confront all of the board and our superintendent,   things are gonna happen much more quickly. Yeah. It is more pressure. You know? Things in the school system run slow.  

You can make a decision, and many time   many times, it's gonna take at least a couple months to get that decision brought forth. But sometimes, the amount of pressure that you can put on a group can make that group move faster and get things done quicker. And that was proof. When they got rid of the mask mandate,   we did it before we were supposed to. The school system   set the date, got rid of the mask before we were supposed to. Like, one thing we're always concerned about on the board is   protecting   the school   from,   legal Yeah. Issues. Absolutely. You know, we don't want to make decisions   that are going to open up lawsuit against our schools. So we're really trying to be careful what we say and following all the different procedures and going the right way.  

But that just shows there are times   we will if it if there's enough pressure,   if it's the right thing to do, we believe and know it's the right thing to do, we'll do it anyway. Sure. We will take the risk. We will do it anyway. But, generally, we will follow the procedure and try to get things worked out in a safe way. And,   ultimately,   I believe that's why people elected me to be on school board is because they want to see the local school doing well. Mhmm. They want to see it, protected,   and they want to see it doing the right thing and children coming out of the system   as well as a public school can bring them forth, educated and doing well.  



[00:44:04] Unknown:

So   if we can   it wouldn't be much of a topic shift, but you said that you've homeschooled quite a bit and that you've also interacted with the public schools in your homeschooling. Can you talk about that a little bit? Because I I don't I don't know how many parents at Claremont   homeschool, but I think it'd probably be helpful to hear how homeschool parents interact with public school systems and how that works. Yeah. Okay. Well, I'm homeschooling one of my children right now.  

[00:44:29] Unknown:

We have a little guy, and,   we have custody of him. He's been with us for four years. In the first two years,   he wasn't that he was with us, he was in public school because   I,   when he came to stay with us, he was in public school, and I didn't want to make a sudden shift or change   because I didn't think his parents would   or not his parents, but his family   would like that. So I wanted to keep things as normal as possible.   But what I noticed was that   there were habits   and things that I was not being able to impact as a a parent,   and   we just needed more time to be able to be with him and to to bond and be a family and him be a part of our lives, be able to go with dad on the farm and   and   learn   what our family does and how we do it. And so he is homeschooled right now. Pulled him out of the school district while I was on school board and homeschooled him.  

And last year, I was actually homeschooling both of my children while still on public school board. Yeah. And my daughter, right now, she's back in school. She goes to Live Oak, so she is not homeschooled anymore.   I think that   there's not necessarily a perfect way to educate children. Oh, yeah. I'd agree with that. I used to think that   when I was young, I used to think everybody should homeschool, and that is the way things should be done. And   I just realized that there   are great kids   that come out of   many different aspects of life. I mean, there are great kids that come out of homeschooling   environments,   public school, private school,   a a whole variety. And,   there can be parents have the best of intentions of raising good kids, and those kids can just stray and go the wrong way. I mean, I've seen that. And so there's just not   necessarily   a perfect way to do it. People have gotta do what they believe is right and trust the Lord   for,   their children's future. But, yeah, I started out,   homeschooling   my kids years ago.  

I,   just really, like I said, felt very   passionate about it and thought that was the way things should be done. And   my daughter,   my oldest, when she   she had really been putting pressure on me that she no longer wanted to be homeschooled. And it was a it was hard at the time because,   you know, when you homeschool,   you are   and you don't use, like, other classes and things. You are the not only the mother, like, if you're Yeah. I'm speaking as a mother.   You're their mother.   You're also their teacher. Yep. And so you're not just enforcing good habits at home. You're enforcing that you do this assignment, and it needs to be done by this such this time, and this is the way I want it to you know, this is the quality that I expect.   So you are the one setting almost all   the guidelines and boundaries, and it's a weight. It's quite a weight to carry. Yeah. And she had been putting good bit of pressure on me that she wanted to go to homeschool or public school. And I put her in some homeschool programs, and that was really helpful. But How old was she when she was wanting to go to public schools or just not homeschool? She, began talking about it probably eighth grade Okay. Quite a bit. So about the time she she started getting a social life a little bit. Yeah. Yeah.  

And I actually had her in a,   a homeschool program called PEP at the time, and that was very helpful. Was is this Alex? Yeah. Alex. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So then So, yeah, she she spent Katie loved PEP. It's a shame that's not around. It was a yeah. Or if it is, I don't know what I think it I think there might a Pep and Mason, at least last I heard. I don't know if it's not in Milford AM. Our path is, but Pep is it. Yeah. Yeah. But, yeah, that so Alex's eighth grade year was really good. She was in Pep.   She was in school with Katie and Anita, and they were both on the rowing team. So your wife Katie was driving them to Amelia for rowing.  

That was a brutal sport.   And Alex had just like   like, mom,   I want to go to public school. And I I gave you know, my husband and I talked about it. We gave her a choice. Like, okay.   You we'll let you go to public school,   but you will not row in public school because she loved rowing. Yeah. And,   you will either go to public school or you'll be homeschooled and be in pep, and you can do rowing. But rowing is like I think it was five hour practices a day. Oh, I know. It was Amelia. I'm like, we're not doing that. You're not going to school all day and then doing five hour practices in Amelia. Like, we're just not doing that.   So she did. She made the decision to go to public school. So then I began looking at public schools. And what I saw in Claremont Northeastern at the time, I was not pleased with. Right. There were things going on in school district that was really How many years did this would have been?  

Why? Let's see. Alex graduated   in 02/2012,   I believe.   So This would have been about ten, twelve years ago. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.   Yeah. The school   didn't did not look very good at the time. It had a a lot of, had a gay straight alliance in it,   and there were several other things that I saw with the school when I went to a basketball game.   I was like, yeah. That's that's not where my daughter is going.   And we were going to church in Williamsburg at the time.   We were involved in youth ministry, and we liked,   many of the kids that were at Williams School, so we open enrolled her. And she went to public school. She graduated from Williamsburg.   Kendall came along, and it was easier with him. You know, once Alex broke me down   to public school,   it was easier than after that. You know? It was hard that initial time. And then once she got in and she was dyslexic too, so I knew that once she got in there, like, she was gonna struggle in some areas, and she did. But she did well, and she made it through. And I thought, well, Kendall can do it too, and he wants to. So he graduated from Williamsburg also.  

And, yeah, we  

[00:50:40] Unknown:

did all kinds of education options. Is that a typical path for homeschool parents to take? Is that, you know, it gets to be about eighth grade or Mhmm. And then they'll go to either a larger school or public school or private school, something like that.  

[00:50:52] Unknown:

There's so many options nowadays.  

[00:50:55] Unknown:

Yeah. There's a lot of East River's got because I talked to John Mhmm. Which I need to redo that interview. That's inside.  

[00:51:03] Unknown:

What is it? Claremont Christian that he's putting Yes. Over there? Yeah. Which sounds I mean, it sounds great. Yeah. Next year, it's gonna be up to eighth grade. Yeah.   And it it will be three days a week, which for me, as a parent, I think that's like   I'm excited about that, Wyatt will be there next year, and that's, like, perfect.   I mean, I'm thinking   for his social life and then someone that will challenge him,   his education and and set the standard and the due dates, and that's not me. And I'm just gonna be enforcing that he actually does it, but,   that's perfect because then he'll have two days at home. You know, if he finishes up his homework, he gets to go to work with dad if he wants or play. You know, whatever. I I'm excited about that. But, yeah, as far as,   if that's a typical parents, a lot of,   our typical path, a lot of homeschool parents do.  

Maybe. I don't there's just so many options nowadays. I mean, actually, I see,   a lot of homeschool parents that once their kids get to high school age, they begin doing college classes. Yeah. And so I would say that's probably more typical   is, them going ahead and starting on college classes. And they can get those college classes through a variety of things. They can go to their low local public school. They can go to the local college. They can I they might even be able to do some at home? And then I've seen some   there are now college classes at some of the   homeschool programs. Okay. Like Path now, this year, they had a college course. How is that is that something that  

[00:52:34] Unknown:

is accepted by most colleges? Like, if I take a a homeschool   college credit, will will that transfer over? They that's what they were,   advertising the class as. That's really College credit. Yeah. That's really Yeah. Mhmm. There's a lot of post secondary because I think Katie's sister, Heidi,   who I guess I should Katie is my wife. I guess I should be cognizant of the fact that not everybody knows who we're talking about.   I think Heidi did a lot of post secondary. Okay. Okay. I think she graduated   I I might be   wrong about this, but I'm about 80% certain that she graduated high school with her diploma and an associate's diploma. That's impressive.  

Yeah. But, I mean, it's it's like you there are paths of education that Mhmm. Can allow you to do that. And Yeah. Quite frankly, I'm not somebody who would   tell kids or my kids even that they should go to college.   But  

[00:53:25] Unknown:

if you can graduate high school with an associate's degree, it's That is really nice. It's not bad. Yeah. You know? Because of all the different paths that are available   to students nowadays that the our high schools are not as full. Yep. Because there's the vocational,   schools that they can go to. There's the college classes they can take. There's just a variety   that,   even public school students are choosing   different routes, and it makes the the school building itself not as full. There's just a lot of and and since there's not as many students in the high school choosing classes, it makes the amount of the class choice. So it may be a little bit more limited because,   you know, you   can have a wide   wider variety of class choices when you have more students.  

But I still think like, CNE still has  

[00:54:15] Unknown:

a lot of choices. It's probably a double edged sword, really, because while you might not be able to offer the same amount of classes, the classes you do offer,   it's gonna be a much smaller group. It's probably Yeah. If a kid needs more attention or doesn't need more you know, it's a little bit more hand. I I'm a product of public schools. I went to Middletown High School. My graduating class was, like, 350 students. Okay. It was it's a huge school. Yeah.   And, you know,   our average class size was probably about 30 students or something. Okay. And you didn't get any personal attention. I mean, it was like a factory. Right? Yeah. Like, they're just trying to get you through to get the diploma, and then the kids have went on to college and stuff like that. So Yeah. And they I loved my teachers. They were great teachers.   I think I told you on the phone, my father was on school board. My mother was very involved in the schools Okay. Make sure that I got a good education at the public school. Yeah.  

But, I mean, it's just   at at that size, it's it's really just like a factory. They're just trying to stamp out kids. So while you might not be able to offer the same class choice Mhmm. The small I would I would say that smaller class size is probably   better.  

[00:55:22] Unknown:

Yeah. I I think that Claremont Northeastern is a good school district. I I   it's got a   it's just a pleasant environment, I think, for a lot of the students, and the teachers   like their job. I mean,   we've   worried about being competitive as far as paying.   And a lot of times people say, well, why would they why would anybody wanna work at Claremont Northeastern when they could go to Milford and they get this happens or they get that. But the fact is there are people that do want to be in a more more   rural environment,   a school that's smaller, and,   a community that's a little tighter and people know each other.  

That is a drawing factor for some people that are seeking employment.   So we have been able to keep teachers,  

[00:56:13] Unknown:

and we have good ones. Well, I think what's nice because it's I look at a teacher. It's I mean, that's a calling. Right? It's like a doctor or something. You're like, there's good doctors who don't don't have that as a calling, but   the best doctors,   like, they're called to do that. They want to help people. Yeah. They wanna make people better. They keep learning. They I mean, it's I don't know if you're know or or knew Justin Kenny from East River. He was one of the guys that lifted us. Oh, okay.   He's a doctor now. He's out in Pittsburgh. But that that guy, it's just   he was called to do this. Like, this he loves it, and he wants to help people. I think it's the same thing with teachers. I think he would be a good teacher and not necessarily have to be   want to do it. But Yeah. The best teachers are the ones who just   would probably do it for no pay. Yeah. I mean, it's just they feel so strongly about Just comes out of them. Educating kids, you know, and being involved in the education of children. Yeah. So I I think it's probably a good thing that that you're I think and, again, I have no evidence for it, but my guess is is that being a smaller rural community,   having people that are, you know, interested in   education and making the school better probably attracts the right kind of teachers.  

I would say so. We I mean, you don't want somebody, a teacher that's just looking for a a paycheck. Like Right. There's more to teach you than just money. There are. And I think we do pay well, compared to other schools around.  

[00:57:37] Unknown:

You know, we are competitive, but at the same time,   we do have we have a lot of people in the school that actually graduated from Claremont Northeastern. There are people teaching there that I went to school with, and they love being in that district.   They're not going to another district to try to,   climb the ladder,   get better positions, better pay. Like, they're at Claremont Northeastern   because that's where they want to be, and they invest in the school. We got people there that I think will stay, and they want to see Claremont Northeastern do well and succeed. They work really hard at it. And I I am I'm happy that I got into this position. I came into it not knowing what I was doing,   you know, not really knowing much about the the public school system, but I've learned a good bit. And it's I've got to know some really amazing people. And   yeah. So it's a good thing. I I I want to see it do well. Even though, like, right now, my little guy isn't in there,  

[00:58:41] Unknown:

he may be in the future. You know? It's just right now, it's not the right time for us. Oh, and like you said before, the kids that graduate CNE, I'm sure some of them go off and do other things around the country, but   there's probably a high percentage of them that stay in Claremont. Yeah. You know? I believe there is. Yeah. And Mhmm. I mean, you've got teachers in in the school that graduated that high school. Yes. So,   I mean, it's   it's producing the people who are gonna be our community. It is. And it matters. Neighbors. And Yeah. They're gonna be the guy that fixes my car. They're gonna be, you know, the guy that,   works at Milacron or something. I I don't know. Yeah. Like, they're gonna be our people. Yeah. You know, we wanna be making good people. Mhmm. We do. We do. That's the most important thing is  

[00:59:28] Unknown:

the students and,   the outcome, you know, what they bring what comes out of the school   with them, what they bring out with them, and who they are, the kind of character they have, the kind of people that come from there. I mean, that that matters. That's what our what's gonna grow our community. So it really does matter. Now are there any, because I know you said the school board, they're responsible for our superintendent,  

[00:59:49] Unknown:

treasurer, and keep an eye on them.   Is there anything else you guys do? Are there any kind of things that are coming up that people should know about that the school board is,   you know, involved  

[00:59:58] Unknown:

with? Or Well, one thing that's coming up is, our governor, Mike DeWine,   his new budget proposal,   the way that it will affect Claremont Northeastern   and   many of the other   districts in Claremont County,   I think maybe nine other districts,   it will decrease our funding.   Like, over the next two years,   we   will get if it goes through this budget, we will get $640,000   less.   Right now, CNE is funded,   60%   by local taxes   and 30%   by state. So it will increase,   the tax load on the local our our local because we're gonna have to pick up that Yeah. Funding somewhere. Possibly. Yeah. I mean, we haven't   we haven't talked about trying to get a levy passed, and   it isn't something that's on the table that we've been discussing. It's not something we want to do at all. So I'm not here saying that we're going to do that.  

But   and and right now,   we are on the lowest level   that we could be on for,  

[01:01:06] Unknown:

for taxes from the local. It's called a two mil. And don't ask ask me to explain the mills and all of them. There's a levy going on somewhere. I can't Yeah. Remember where, but I I started reading about it in the mills and stuff. Did did they misspell something? What's a mill?  

[01:01:19] Unknown:

Yeah. It's a percentage. Let's see.  

[01:01:22] Unknown:

It's a you don't have to go into it. It's very esoteric  

[01:01:26] Unknown:

and very it's complicated. It is complicated. It's kinda  

[01:01:30] Unknown:

it which is odd because it's like, these are my taxes. I feel like you should make this very easy for me to understand. Yes. But I'm reading through this this proposed levy, and I'm like, not   not for Claremont Northeastern. This is a different levy.   What is what is this? What what does this even mean? It is complicated.  

[01:01:48] Unknown:

Our treasurer has explained it to us many times. I've read about it, and I can say a little bit about it, but it's just not going to be   hugely clear.   I'm not an expert on it.  

[01:02:01] Unknown:

I don't it sounds like you need to be somebody with a financial background to have a to have  

[01:02:06] Unknown:

a full grasp on it. You know? Yeah. I if I was an accountant, maybe I would be able to explain it and, give everyone a lesson on what that is. But I do know we're on the lowest level of taxes that we that we could take from the community. It's 20 mil. Northeast. Yeah. Yeah.   And,   we'd, of course, don't want to tax more for the community. You know? I think people just feel like   that   right now, things are so expensive, and a lot of families are just barely getting by anyway. Taxes are ridiculous, the amount that we have to pay.   And,   it's a shame that it's that way.  



[01:02:44] Unknown:

And I it's just a difficult time. We definitely don't want to add to that burden. And this is the the budget I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cut you off. No. It's alright. This is the budget that the wine   Mhmm. So is it going through the house senate or the,   I guess, the Ohio House  

[01:02:59] Unknown:

of Representatives? It hasn't gone through yet Okay. If it goes through. Well, the the reason I asked, though, is because people Yes. That doesn't sound good to people. Yes. People can call the representative,   call Adam Byrd. Adam our our representative   Adam Byrd Bird is he primarily,   heads up   most of the things have to do with education in Ohio. He he is a great person to contact, leave message for, to call, email, whatever. And So so if somebody was if if this doesn't sound great to them and they don't like this particular part  

[01:03:29] Unknown:

of the budget. And afterwards, if you don't mind if you have more information on this, if you can send it, that'd be great. If I could what? Send me send me more information about Okay. What this actually is. Okay. Yeah. I could do that. Because I'd like to read it. Okay.   But   contact Adam Bird if this  

[01:03:45] Unknown:

Yes. Do you have an opinion about this? Yes. Yes. And your local representative. Yeah. That would be great.   Yeah.   So, you know, school funding is an issue. Yeah. Definitely. Yeah. Definitely.  

[01:03:58] Unknown:

Well, I think, yeah, we've been at it for an hour. Oh, okay.   So so I'm happy if if you wanna talk about more things, I'm happy to talk. If you have anything that you wanna ask me about, go for it. Otherwise   no. I think I think this is pretty good. I had a great time. Okay. Good. I really appreciate you, again, coming down and doing this. And I think this is I think it's really important for people to hear   from their elected officials, school board, whatever Mhmm. And just a, like, a nice long form conversation with this. So Okay. Appreciate you being willing to You're welcome. You're welcome.   Alrighty.  

Alright. Well, I hope you, really enjoyed that that interview with Becky. I enjoyed talking to her.   Hopefully, she'll come back. I think she will.   But, anyway, let's let's go over some events,   that are going on that, I think sound pretty fun.   On Friday, April 5, there's something called knee high naturalists'   mud,   and that is from 10AM to 11AM at Shore Park.   And it's a preschool program,   designed to help young children explore nature.   And I guess this focus this month's focus is on mud. So if you wanna go play in the mud with your kid   on Friday, April 5, go check that out at Shore Park.  

Flora and fauna fun, it's a wildflower walk at Shore Park.   That's also on April 5, and and that's gonna be from one in the afternoon to two in the afternoon.   And it's a guided tour through Shore Park, and,   you get to look at all the seasonal wildflowers bloom, which actually sounds like a nice way to spend a Saturday afternoon, assuming the weather's nice.   The hoedown in the park with Rabbit Hash string brand,   that's Monday, April 6, from 2PM to 4PM.   That's at the Pattison Park Lodge side, which looks like it's right outside of Owensville.   And it's got lively square dancing   with, the Rabbit Hash string band, which I looked them up on YouTube, and they sound pretty good. So if you wanna go to a hoedown, that's that's for you.  

This is a little further down. These are gonna be a little further down the road, but the spring native plant sale at the Cincinnati at the Cincinnati Nature Center, that's gonna be Saturday, April 26,   and Sunday, May 18   from eight a or I'm sorry, from 10AM to 5PM   at the Roe Visitor Center.   So if you wanna get all your herbs and native perennials and flowering trees and shrubs,   go check that out.   There's gonna be a Loveland   food truck rally.   It's a family friendly event.   It's gonna be from May it's gonna be on May 10 from twelve to 8PM at the Shoppers   Haven Plaza.  

There's no admission fee, so that's good.   There'll be entertainment and live music as well as beer, wine, water, soda, and, of course, food trucks. There's 25 food trucks.   So, if you like food trucks and you like   honestly, if it sounds like if you like food trucks and fun, that's gonna be, that's gonna be the place for you to go   on May 10.   And the mustard seed market, that again, this is a little further down the road. This is gonna be May 16   from four to 8PM and May 17 from ten to 4PM and May 19 from ten to 3PM.   But I wanted to include this one because we're gonna be interviewing the the people who put on mustard seed market.  

But it's also just a great event. I went there with my family,   last fall, and it's it's pretty wonderful.   It's gonna be at the Claremont County Fairgrounds, and there's a hundred local shops and small businesses.   There's food and music,   and, you know, things for everybody to enjoy. So it's a really great event. I can't recommend it to recommend it enough, and I know it's a   little ways out in May, but I wanted to let you know about it.   Again, this is the first episode, so we don't really have any any listener notes, but, hopefully, we will in the future.   So if you wanna get in touch, if you've got,   anything you think we should know about,   email us at info@let'stalkclairemont.com.  

Info at let's talk clairemont dot dot com. And thanks for listening, and we'll have another episode up for you soon.