Red Devil Ready: Supt.'s Message

Decatur County Community High School

605 E Commercial St, Oberlin, KS 67749

August 3, 2026 (Schedule at the bottom, Skip What You Want)

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or visit our district website at usd294.org

Decatur Community,

For every year of my career that I had been a principal, I would write a Weekly Message, a way I could get some information out to the community and share a glimpse into the schools. As I moved into the superintendent role, I wasn't quite sure how to address that, but I have realized that I have genuinely missed it. My plan is to bring back the messages this year, but I will do them monthly, or bi-monthly. I would also encourage you to treat it like a newspaper and jump around to items and skip things if you'd like. I would also encourage you to reach out to me if you have questions or would like share something.

I will throw tidbits of my life into my messages, as I believe that it is truly important to know those that are looking out for your kids. Though I have gotten to know many of you over these past 4 years, here are some things that I would like you to know about me:

1. I moved to Louisburg, KS in 2001 after my 4th year of teaching. Throughout my life I had gone to multiple elementary schools and middle schools, 7 different schools in multiple states between pre-school and 8th grade. Wichita Northwest became the 8th and the first time that I had ever stayed in one school for 4 years in a row, as I graduated as a NW Grizzly. I guess you could say there was always a little Northwest in me.

My mom was one of 14 and my dad was one of 6. I wouldn't trade a single second of the childhood that shaped who I am today, but Louisburg was the first town I would call my home. I taught, coached, was an athletic director, and finally the high school principal there for 21 years. It is a place that will always be dear to me, and it was one of the most difficult decisions in my life to leave. Their superintendent is Brian Biermann, a born and raised Western Kansas, Leoti boy and the brother of Goodland's superintendent. He is still one of my best friends. For a guy that spent most of his life moving around and living in the urban areas of Little Rock and Wichita, there was a strong appeal to Western Kansas and the peaceful life that he would often describe.

2. I never wanted to be a principal or superintendent, even after I completed the courses. I was simply trying to move across the pay scale, and I said that I would rather be a teacher and a coach than a principal. There were no openings, and I wasn't looking. When the opportunity came over the summer after I had finished my courses, there were those that reached out to encourage me to apply. Giving up my history classroom, my football team, my pole vaulters, but, most importantly, my daily relationships with my students, was one of the most difficult decisions that I have ever made. When I walk through classrooms today, I often long for those irreplaceable moments that can only be captured in a classroom, but I have embraced the special, albeit different, way that an administrator can build relationships with students and staff. Who knows, maybe someday I will be able to teach an elective class.

3. I understand that there is nothing more important in a parent's life than their children and that every day we are dealing with hundreds of students that represent the most treasured items in the lives of their loved ones. It's a responsibility that I have always taken very seriously.

4. Oberlin is home. The past four years have been everything that I could have asked for. This community has been so amazingly supportive from the moment I arrived and completely accepted myself and my family into the community. The school board, the staff, the students, and the community as a whole have made Oberlin everything that I hoped it would be.

My take on Oberlin?

Oberlin has a staff that wants to be here. It is still that town where Friday night football is the place to be, a miniature Arrowhead with fans that know each other and care about one another. A town where the kids can run loose in the park (not the stadium). A town where you know there are hundreds of other Red Devil eyes that are all looking out for each other.

Oberlin is still that town where your kids can ride their bikes to the pool, to the park, or to their friends houses along old red brick roads, and you don't have to worry about them getting right back home where they belong.

Most of you know the movie Cars, probably the movie that I watched more than any other in my life due to the fact that my son chose it every other Friday night throughout his youth for about 5 years straight. Had I not had a daughter in the mix, it probably would have been every week. Great movie. Now, no offense to the movie, but it is almost the animated, somewhat stolent script of the movie Doc Hollywod with Michael J. Fox, a personal favorite. There was always tucked away in a city boy's heart a desire to live life in a small town.

Oberlin is exactly what I was looking for!

5. From Josh Fortin, Spring Louderback, Roger May, Zach May, Montee Moore, Brian Shaw, and Josh Williby, that first board that hired me and gave me the opportunity to come to Oberlin, with Zach May coming over the day after we got here with a small fridge for us until we got a new one installed.

From Angie Williby giving the tour of the house that would become our home (also listening about my daughter that would go on to consider her daughter her best friend here in Oberlin).

From Brenda Breth emailing me before I ever moved here welcoming me into the community that meant so much to her and that she cared so much about.

From Wendy Scott showing up as a staff member to help me move into my new home.

From Charlie Haag coming in as a former principal and taking me to Rotary for the first time.

From Randy Olson showing up in my office and introducing himself as a former AD and being one of the first to reach back out and tell me he had heard good things.

From Joe Dreher and Aquashield jumping on my house fixes after the hailstorm of 2022 to make sure I could actually take ownership of my house.

From Sara Shaw showing up with a meal for my family welcoming us to the community.

From Brandon and Tina Gehring similarly inviting us over for an evening.

From Chris Hackney being there when I needed help finding a house for a new staff member.

From Carrie Morford consistently showing up with Booster Club and helping to provide for all of the staff meals.

From Erica Fortin always being there for me to "borrow" her pictures from games so I could use them.

From Bob Castle dropping off the golf carts each year for the annual Senior Thanksgiving dinner.

From Tasha Carman always being ready to make the pizzas I need for students and staff on short notice.

From Sharee Dempewolf just being her amazing, caring self and offering up her skills to help with grants and promotions for the school.

From Jeremy Tally seemingly always only a quick phone call away to lend a hand or get something set up.

I could go on and on.

From me to them and to all of you, it is an honor to be your superintendent.

Welcome back, Red Devils!

SHOUTOUTS

Every year, I will give shoutouts to various students, staff, and community members for a variety of things that have happened. Here are a few shoutouts with a summer focus.

Shoutout to the maintenance staff that has done an amazing job of getting the school ready for a new year. The crew worked diligently over the summer to ensure that the primary needs of our buildings were addressed. This group works well together and takes a lot of pride in what they are achieving. I am anxious for students and staff to come back to buildings that look as clean as I have seen them since I got here.

Shoutout to building principals Krickit Ketterl and Paul Prewo. Technically, principals are under contract from August 1 throught June 15. You better believe that they spent plenty of time in their buildings or at the District Office throughout July. It's a great feeling to know that you have two administators manning the buildings that make it a priority to be involved and make sure things are going well even when they are technically off.

Shoutout to the building secretaries, Melissa Dreher (DCHS) and Jessica Townsend (OES). Aside from being in the building throughout the summer, the two were essential in enrollment and attended training this summer as the State moves us to a new student data collection system.

Shoutout to Vicki Versailles our head of Food Service. U.S. Senator Roger Marshall came through this summer, specifically during the lunch hour so he could attend the in-person free lunch program that we have here in Oberlin. Most schools that offer this service have moved completely to bagged lunches, and he thought this was a special touch, allowing for a larger, fresher variet of options. They also added a toy box this summer for students that came through.

Shoutout to teachers Tessa Anderson, Libby Fort, Alyssa Gaede, Samantha Gerbitz, and Regina Witt. This group participated in a cohort group through K-State in which their master's class was paid for. The group is one that is trying to attain their certification in ESL (English as a Second Language). Their next class starts in October, once again free, and only a test will stand in their way of gaining full certification. In reality, shoutout to K-State for working with me to make this possible for our teachers. (Don't tell my daughter. She just graduated from KU.)

Things You Should Know

Enrollment and Back to School Nights

Enrollment: If you still have not enrolled your student please do so asap. All of the information that you need to get enrolled can be found on our District website. Here is the link for enrollment.

Here are some key pages:

Online Payments

Power School Parent Login

If you need assistance, please reach out to our buildings.

Back To School Nights:

DCHS: Monday, August 17th 6:30-7:30

OES: Tuesday, August 18th 3:30-4:30

New Cell Phone Policy

HB 2299 was passed in March by the Kansas Legislature prohibiting students PK-12 from having or using their cell phones and other personal communication devices during school hours. This includes lunch and passing periods. Families should plan for student devices to be inaccessible throughout the school day. The law makes it clear that phones should be stored away and in an inaccesible location. At OES, students that bring a phone will store them in their backpacks that will be kept in lockers, inaccessible without supervision.

At DCHS, students will have their phones stored in a lockbox (pictured) with each student having their own number and phone slot at the beginning of the day that will be monitored and controlled by DCHS staff members.

We understand that parents/guardians may need to reach their students during the day, so access will still be available through school phones. The board of Education approved a new policy to support this mandate. We understand that this will be a big change for many, but working together we are confident that we will get through this change and create the best possible learning environment for our students. To assist with questions, we have set up a Frequently Asked Questions page on our district website. This page contains some basic information about the new law.

Reach out to the buildings by phone or email if you have specific questions:

District Office 475-3805

DCHS 475-2231

OES 475-2122

New Staff Join USD 294

Mr. Luke Clayton will be taking over as the PE teacher at OES, and he will also be adding some coaching to the mix. Mr. Clayton graduated from the largest high school in Kansas, Wichita East. Though he went to a big school, he did his student teaching in a small town similar to Oberlin. I know several staff members got to meet Mr. Clayton last spring, and he had a great visit to the community. Mr. Clayton will be living in McCook, but he has already made his way up to the community several times this summer.

Mrs. Alex Cressler will be the new JH History teacher. I still remember one of the first interactions that I had with Alex. She started working for the district and met me at a high school event. She mentioned to me that she had always wanted to be a history teacher and hoped that would someday be a possibility. That stuck with me, as did her comments on the first day of school last year about how much the teachers in that room had been the positive impact in her life that led her into education. I am happy that a Red Devil’s wish will come true. She had been at OES as a Title Aide prior, and I know they will miss her.

Mr. Jon Dunn is another former Red Devil. Jon walked into the office in early June and mentioned that he just might be interested in the Transportation Director position. His appearance was an answered prayer, as I had begun to get a little concerned that we may not find one. He came and shadowed Rick Touslee (who retired in June) for a few days, and he and Terry (Head of Grounds) are old friends. It’s actually working out great, and he brings a positive and charismatic attitude to the district. I intentionally left him off of the summer recognition because I would mention him here, and I know he will do well.

Mrs. Alyssa Gaede will be joining the DCHS staff as the 8th, 11th, and 12th grade English teacher. Alyssa has performed this same job in a few other districts and will be driving in from Colby. Alyssa has been really involved this summer. She has met with our curriculum coordinator Mrs. Gerbitz to address curriculum and training, and she has also been a part of the K-State cohort group working towards ELL certification.

Future Facilities Discussions

As most reading this know, there have been two failed attempts at school bonds dating back to the fall of 2023. As the district continues to look towards the future and how to address some of our big ticket items, I want to recount a little bit about what that looked like in the past and what it may look like for us to move forward.

August 2023:

In August of 2023, the first attempt at school bond failed. At near $29,00,0000, this would have been a one campus, K-12 building. This decision was made after a 27 person committee that included board members, community members, and USD 294 staff looked at multiple options for how best to proceed. A thorough Facilties Assessment and Mechanical & Electrical Systems Evaluation had been completed ahead of time to help with decisions. It was determined that the bond amount set forth was the plan that would address all needs most efficiently and completely.

Here are some key components of the bond and decisions that were made:

1. Additional HS addition built onto the south side of the current building

2. Renovoations to the rest of the building, including making the existing building suitable for elementary age children

3. Additional "practice gym" added that would also use hallways to connect Ag. building. This would have allowed for securing all students indoors throughout the day and prevent volleyball and basketball games from disrupting the elementary PE day

4. ADA compliance addressed throughout the building

5. Renovation of lockerooms, HVAC, and plumbing

6. Shared staff and savings on utilities

November 2025:

In November 2025, the second attempt at a school bond failed. The proposed amount was 16.5 million dollars. This bond was two years later and saw many changes that occurred. There were open meetings with all invited to come and be a part of the discussions. This bond was a scaled down, budget version of the first bond that would have met most essential needs throughout the district.

Here are some key components of the bond and decisions that were made:

1. Introduction of Historical Tax Credit concept that would payback up to %40 of eligible projects upon completion. Most of our building projects would fall into this category.

2. These items were a few big ticket items removed in this bond to get to the lower amount:

A. Third Gym = 2.97 million

B. Locker Room Remodel = 1.64 million

C. Auditorium Remodel = 477,000

D. Classroom Addition = 3.2 million

E. 1965 Remodel Scaled Back = 1.27 million

The Future:

We will continue to have discussions about our facilities each month. We started talking about facilites and needs at the June board meeting and will continue to address it each month. In June we met with three totally different types of groups to get an idea of how we can proceed: an architect, a project management company, and an all-incompassing Design Build Contractor. Why? Because there are a lot of different options on the table and a lot of questions to be asked? Here are some examples:

1. What are the absolute needs?

2. Could a much smaller bond be posed to address a primary need? Separate ballot questions are also a possiblity.

3. How do historical credits play into the equation?

4. What about grant opportunities and energy credits? (This was mentioned by one company)

5. What scope is appropriate for our community?

These are all questions that will continue to be hashed out and disussed. In the near future, we will invite the community to be a part of a meeting from the beginning, a part of the process and the decisions being made, as we continue to ensure ways for USD 294 to remain a competitive, desirable school district for both current and future patrons for years to come.

USD 294 Project Fund Enables Donors to Support Current and Future Projects

In May, USD 294 started the Project Fund. This fund allows donors to contribute funds to the district to address various needs that arise. The project fund currrently sits untouched as we look to build the number up to assist with larger projects.

If you have any questions about he USD 294 Project Fund, please do not hesitate to reach out. You can find more informtion on our website here.

Red Devil Ready

I probably should call it quits at this point. It's Fair week after all and I have 4 shifts on the ferris wheel. With today being a high in the low 70s, it's a great way to kick things off.

Until next time,

Jeremy Holloway

Go Big Red!