Mentor Schools bus routes will be posted online on Aug. 19. They will no longer be mailed to students' homes as has been done in the past in order to reduce printing and mailing costs.

Routes will also be posted at all schools on the same date.

For more information contact the transportation department at (440) 974-5260.

Mentor Schools' full-color wall calendars will be mailed to all district families on July 31. Mailing of the calendars was delayed due to a technical issue.

The calendar features a Take Flight! theme, coinciding with our district's transition to the middle school / four-year high school model; the introduction of all-day kindergarten; and the renovation of the high school iWing.

We would like to thank all our calendar sponsors for their advertising support, which makes producing the calendar possible.

Below is an image of the Take Flight! calendar cover, which should be arriving in your mailbox in the next few days:

Mentor Schools has received reports about a male approaching residences in the Mentor area asking to speak with students who will be attending Mentor High School regarding homework assignments.

Mentor Schools is in no way affiliated with this individual or group. If you observe any suspicious activity in your neighborhood please contact the Mentor Police Department (440) 255-1234.
 

The start of Mentor High School's Take Flight! school year is just more than a month away. Incoming freshman and sophomore students and their parents are invited to an orientation program scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 25 at the high school Fine Arts Center.

For more information, contact the high school at 974-5300.

When Joe Shandle played football for Mentor High School in 1933, there was no stadium, no video score board, and the helmets were made of leather. But just like today, there was a feeling of being part of something great - a championship team.

Shandle, now a resident at Kemper House in Mentor, played defensive end for the Cardinals in a legendary season with no losses and only two touchdowns scored against them all season long. The memory of that achievement has remained strong with him for 75 years.

Through Hospice of the Western Reserve's Life Enrichment program, Shandle, 93, recently asked to visit with MHS head football coach Steve Trivisonno and some players from the 2008 - 2009 team.

Trivisonno and team members Nick Koshiol, Timothy Moore, Ben Pike and Adam Watson spent time with Shandle on Thursday, bringing Mentor Football shirts and medals and sharing stories from the gridiron.

They swapped stories bridging the gap between teams separated by nearly a century. Shandle offered words of encouragement and even a few tips from his own coach, Ed Masonbrink, telling the players to give their best at earning a state title this season.

Mentor Schools would like to thank Hospice of the Western Reserve for the opportunity to be a part of such a special event.

The Mentor Board of Education will ask voters in the school district to renew an existing operating levy for five years on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Initially passed in 2004 at 7.9 mills, the purpose of the renewal is to avoid an operating deficit. If passed, the levy would continue to yield $15 million dollars per year for the district with no tax increase to residents.

Funds from the levy are used for all aspects of the district's daily operations, from teacher salaries to technology and supplies.

The school board voted 5 - 0 to certify the renewal request to the Lake County Elections Board at its regular meeting on July 15.

The decision to seek the renewal came after a series of levy work sessions were conducted by the board in 2007 and 2008.

Mentor High School students may pick up their schedules for the 2008 - 2009 school year on the following dates:

Juniors/Seniors: Aug. 22 and Aug. 25 from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Freshmen: Aug. 26 (at orientation, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.)

Sophomores: Aug. 27 (at orientation, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.)

Evening schedule pick-up for all MHS students is set for 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 28.

Freshman and sophomore parent/student orientation is scheduled for 7 p.m. Aug. 25 at the MHS Fine Arts Center.

For more information, please call the district administration building at 255-4444.

The Mentor Board of Education approved the hiring of several new central office administrators at its regular meeting Tuesday.

Joining the administrative team as director of student services is Margaret Watson. Watson has worked as principal of the Thomas Jefferson Magnet School in Euclid since 2000. Prior to her administrative work, she taught at the elementary level for 15 years.

William Porter was hired as the new director of K-8 education. Porter comes to Mentor Schools with 12 years of public school administration experience, most recently with Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools. There, he served as principal of Willoughby Middle School from 2006 to 2008. Prior to that he held positions in the Wickliffe City School District as assistant principal and principal of Wickliffe Middle School.

Shore Junior High Assistant Principal Christl Wolf was hired to serve as the new Unit 9 principal at Mentor High School.

Dr. Kevin Guynn will now serve as coordinator of special education for the district.

The Mentor Schools community would like to welcome our new and transitioning staff members and we look forward to working with you in our Take Flight! year and beyond.

Get ready for the start of the fall 2008 Mentor High School athletic season with season tickets and all-sports passes. Tickets and passes will be on sale from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays at the high school athletic office starting Tuesday, July 29.

The regular meeting of the Mentor Board of Education scheduled for July 15th will begin at 5:30 p.m. The Board will conduct a work session to discuss athletics, followed by its regular meeting to commence at approximately 7 p.m.