GPA: Schedel hosting Adventure Camp

Schedel Arboretum & Gardens, Elmore, invites adventure seekers to Adventure Camps in June.

Participants will explore the arboretum and gardens with hands-on science experiments and art projects.

Adventure Camp sessions will be offered for elementary students entering grades 4-6 on June 23-25 from 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and middle school students entering grades 7-8 will July 7-9 from 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Snack & drinks will be provided

Reservations are required as space is limited. Space is limited to 25 participants each session.

Julie Wax, retired Old Fort art teacher, along with her assistant, Teresa Wasserman, retired Old Fort social studies teacher will teach science art. Lori Schultze, a Genoa High School science teacher, will teach science.

Summer Adventure Camps are provided for free thanks to the community support and generosity of ​GenoaBank, Materion Corp,  and Ottawa County Community Foundation.

An Adventure Camp Open House will be held on July 16 from 6-7 p.m. to showcase our campers’ activities and projects for parents and/or grandparents.

Learn more at www.schedel-gardens.org/calendar.html.

Lake Community Festival

The 7^th Annual Lake Community Festival will be held Friday, June 5, from 5-8 p.m. on the Lake Elementary School campus.

Enjoy an evening of live music, food trucks, local vendors, games and inclusive activities for all ages and abilities.

Admission is free. Visit the Lake Elementary PTO Facebook page for more information.

History Day Camp

The Elmore Historical Society will present a History Day Camp: for incoming third through fifth graders June 8-11 from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. at the Historical Society Barn, 353 Ottawa St., Elmore.

Participation is limited to a maximum of 20 students. Pre-registration is required at the Harris-Elmore Public Library 328 Toledo St., Elmore, or visit https://www.harriselmorelibrary.org/. Parents should register students for the days they want to attend.

The daily themes will be:

• June 8: “Ohio in the Civil War.”
• July 9: “Native Americans in Northwest Ohio.”
• June 10: “19^th Century Chores & Games.”

        June 11: “Ottawa County/Elmore Railroads.”

        Campers will eat lunch each day as 12 p.m.

Save the date

Clay High School will celebrate “A Century of Learning and a Lifetime of Impact,” at a 100-Year Celebration set for Friday, Sept. 4 and Saturday, Sept. 5.

Friday’s events include a Community Festival from 3-6 p.m., featuring a memorabilia exhibit, self-guided tours and more, followed by the football game at 7 p.m.

Guided school tours will be offered Saturday from 9-11 a.m.

Check the Oregon City Schools Facebook page for updates.

B-C-S seeking bus drivers

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce has launched an initiative to support both veterans and schools.

Through the Ohio Military Veteran Educators Program Recruiting Initiative, schools can offer a $3,000 New Hire Bonus to military veterans—including for bus driver positions. Visit education.ohio.gov/Topics/Other-Resources/Military-Resources/Ohio-Military-Veteran-Educators-Program-OMVEP/OMVEP-Recruiting-Initiative for details.

Benton-Carroll-Salem Schools invites interested applicants to contact Bill Scherf, transportation director, at 419-898-1412 or bscherf@bcssd.com for more details.

Summer Reading Challenge

“Summer Read,” the Toledo Lucas County Public Library’s annual summer reading challenge, returns June 1. Readers of all ages will have until Aug. 1 to complete the challenge and earn prizes along the way.

“The Toledo Library’s Summer Read challenge helps students maintain and strengthen reading habits during the summer months,” said Nancy Eames, the Library’s youth services coordinator. “At the same time, it encourages families and adults to make reading part of their everyday routines and discover new books, authors and interests together.”

The Summer Read challenge is simple: participants read for 30 days between June 1–Aug. 1 for the opportunity to earn prizes while supplies last. This year’s prizes include:

• A tote bag for adults and a football flinger for kids when they sign up.
• An inflatable animal friend as a midway prize for kids and teens.
• A book to keep from the Library’s special selection for kids and teens and a mug for adults when they complete the reading challenge.

Everyone who completes Summer Read will also be entered into grand prize drawings for Nintendo Switch Lites, Kindles, gift cards and more.

Beginning June 1, Toledo Library customers can sign up for Summer Read and track their reading in one of three ways:

• Using the paper tracker, available at any Library location.
• Registering online at toledolibrary.org/summer.
• Logging their reading through a Beanstack account (available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store).

Participants who register in person will receive their sign-up prize immediately. Those who register digitally may visit any Toledo Library location to collect their sign-up prize.

Visit toledolibrary.org/summer for complete Summer Read details, program listings and registration information.

Terra State holds  57th Commencement

Terra State Community College celebrated its 57th Commencement Ceremony on May 15, honoring the achievements of the Class of 2026.

Dr. Cory Stine, Terra State interim president, congratulated the graduating class, which was comprised of 236 students graduating with associate degrees in over 28 fields and 187 students earning certificates. Notable statistics about this year's graduates include:

• The average time to complete their degree was 4.5 years.
• The youngest graduate is 17 years old, and the oldest is 57.
• Thirteen graduates received their associate degrees and graduated from high school this month.
• Nineteen graduates are earning dual associate degrees.
• Twenty one students have a 4.0 GPA, and 73 have a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
• Eighty four graduates transferred credits from other colleges and universities to Terra State.
• Five graduates worked as student employees this year.
• Eleven graduates are veterans.

Mircea Handru, Chair of the Terra State Board of Trustees, introduced commencement speaker Jeff Groat, executive vice president of The Lion’s Share Company. Groat delivered a speech reflecting on the determination and resilience of community college students, encouraging graduates to embrace integrity, humility, resilience, discipline, and accountability as they move forward in their careers and lives. Drawing from his own experiences balancing military service, family, and education, Groat reminded graduates that success is built through small, consistent efforts and strong character.

STRS Ohio launches  new online resource

STRS Ohio recently announced a new online hub featuring clear, factual information about the pension fund. Known as The Source, the hub offers straightforward answers to topics that STRS Ohio members and stakeholders commonly ask about.

The Source contains high-level explanations of questions about benefit changes, the State Teachers Retirement Board, the system’s investments, operating expenses and more. Featuring an easy-to-navigate format, the site will continue to expand and evolve with the most up-to-date information and topics of interest.

Visit www.strsoh.org and click on “The Source” at the top of the home page to learn more.