West Chester & Liberty Township News

$Despite her opposition, Lakota’s school board passed a revised visitation policy Monday evening that member Darbi Boddy, right, claimed was designed to curtail her access to school buildings. The Lakota Board of Education voted 4-1, with Boddy the lone opposition, to amend its school building visitation policy adding more detailed procedures to how visitors – including school board members - are to proceed with future tours of Lakota’s schools. (Photo By Michael D. Clark\Journal-News)$

Lakota Local Schools board approves new visitation policy

Construction continues on the Ohio 129 extension and I-75 and Liberty Way interchange Monday, Aug. 8, 2022. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Credit: Nick Graham

Liberty Way ramp to I-75 to be closed at night this week

$A proposed board resolution that would further regulate school board members’ access to school buildings and classrooms has already drawn criticism from Lakota member Darbi Boddy and her attorney. The resolution, which was released by the Lakota Board of Education Sunday evening, would amend the existing district’s policies regarding visits by elected school board members and is part of Monday evening’s board meeting agenda. Boddy’s lawyer said if approved by fellow board members, the resolution would “would effectively gut a board member's ability to evaluate the atmosphere and teachings in the schools.” (File Photo\Journal-News)$

Credit: Nick Graham

Lakota board president fires back as Boddy, lawyer blast visitation policy

$The embattled Lakota school board member Darbi Boddy, who has already been asked by colleagues to resign and was censured by them, is now the target of a growing public petition-gathering effort by critics seeking to remove her from office. Pictured is one of the leaders of the Recall Darbi Boddy effort, Alex Argo (center) gathering petition signatures recently outside of MidPointe Library. Argo is a Lakota school parent who says Boddy's many clashes with fellow members and district officials are hurting the 17,000-student district. (Photo By Michael D. Clark\Journal-News)$

Lakota board member says recall petition is ‘product of mob mentality’

Gurpreet Singh, who is charged with killing four members of his family in West Chester Township, appeared for a pre-trial hearing in Butler County Common Pleas Court Thursday morning, Oct. 10, 2019 in Hamilton. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Attorney Charles H. Rittgers hangs up trial work, asks to withdraw from quadruple murder...

$The leader of Southwest Ohio’s largest suburban school system said he is optimistic that though the COVID-19 pandemic continues, the coming school year “will be a more normal school year than we have seen in the past couple of years.” Matt Miller, superintendent of the 17,000-student Lakota Schools, shared that and other thoughts earlier this week during an online chat with school parents and residents in Butler County’s largest school district. (Photo By Michael D. Clark\Journal-News)$

Lakota superintendent hopeful school year will be less impacted by COVID-19

$Earlier this week Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced more than 1,000 K-12 individual school buildings and districts will be sharing parts of a $47 million in grants to enhance school security. Two Butler County school districts – Lakota and Fairfield – are among the top five school systems in the state to receive the largest amounts of money. Pictured are Middletown Police officers recently training for an active school shooter scenario. (Photo By Nick Graham\Journal-News)$

Lakota, Fairfield schools get biggest portion of state funds to boost security

Liberty Twp. Trustee Tom Farrell. CONTRIBUTED

Attorney says Liberty Twp. trustee is not the defendant to ‘focus on’

Miguel Gomez-Alvarez has been charged with aggravated vehicular homicide in the West Chester Twp. hit and run incident. CONTRIBUTED

Bond set in fatal pedestrian hit-and-run crash in West Chester Twp.

$After a quarter of a century of working as a treasurer for Ohio public school districts - the last dozen with Lakota Schools - widely acclaimed financial officer Jenni Logan has retired. Logan, a former Ohio Treasurer of the Year, says her mother's pioneering career last century as a school treasurer inspired her own career. (Photo By Michael D. Clark\Journal-News)$

Retiring top schools treasurer found inspiration from mother

Lakota West’s state champ chooses Nuxhall Miracle League for $1K grant

Power restored; two outages left more than 2.7K without electricity in Butler County

Dozens of volunteers filled backpacks with supplies for the Stuff The Bus school supply drive to help students with supplies for the coming school year. The event was held inside The Foundry at Liberty Center due to rain. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Credit: Nick Graham

Dozens of volunteers turn out to help Lakota, Children’s ‘stuff the bus’

$An embattled Lakota school board member, who has already been censured and pressured to resign by colleagues, is now using an attorney in trying to have restrictions on her school building visits rescinded. Lakota Board of Education member Darbi Boddy, who has clashed repeatedly with fellow members and district officials in the first year of her four-year term, said school system leadership needs to retract actions and stipulations limiting her access to visiting schools she helps to govern as a board member. (File Photo\Journal-News)$

Credit: Nick Graham

Lakota board member Darbi Boddy wants retraction of school trespass warning, attorney...

Synchrony Financial is bringing 300 new jobs to West Chester Twp.. FILE

Credit: FILE

Synchrony brings 300 new jobs to West Chester Twp.

$The coming opening of Butler County’s first Costco will also mark the closing of the national retailer’s store in northern Hamilton County. Officials with Springdale city government said representatives from Costco recently told them the 1100 East Kemper Road store will be closed near the fall opening date of a new Costco, located in Butler County’s Liberty Twp. Workers are now building the front wall of the new Costco. (Photo By Michael D. Clark\Journal-News)$

Butler County’s first Costco will also see shutdown of Springdale store

Driver charged with homicide in case of woman struck and killed on Mulhauser Road

$The booming Interstate 75 business corridor between Cincinnati and Dayton has many engines driving its growth and one of the biggest showed off Tuesday at the West Chester and Liberty Twp.’s Regional Business Expo. The popular annual event, which is conducted by the West Chester/Liberty Chamber Alliance at Lakota West High School, had a record number of exhibitors and one of its largest crowds in decades, say chamber officials. (Provided Photo\Journal-News)$

Regional Business Expo highlights booming growth between Cincinnati and Dayton

$Using refunded, public school tax revenue to pay for creation of a “golf academy” or “access fees” to a local private golf club were part of a 2017 proposed agreement, said Lakota school officials, from the since-indicted Butler County auditor, according to public records obtained by the Journal-News. (File Photo\Journal-News)$

Documents reveal details on Auditor Roger Reynolds’ proposal for Lakota Schools-funded...

Signup has started: Area schools urge parents to apply for free school meals

Developers of a new Liberty Twp. library have released the first look at the new building that will expand library services into the fast-growing community. The $9 million MidPointe Library System project isn’t scheduled to be completed until the summer of 2024 but officials recently announced the hiring of an architecture firm and shared an illustration with a preliminary view. (Provided Illustration/Journal-News)

First look: MidPointe Library officials share what’s coming Liberty Twp. branch

$An entrepreneurial team from Lakota West High School is now one of only five nationwide to be chosen to compete in a "Shark Tank" business competition later this month in Chicago. Pictured is the MatchedUp team after a regional win of funding for their business idea. (Provided Photo\Journal-News)$

Lakota West HS business team 1 of 5 in nation to dive into ‘shark tank’ contest

Last year saw a large turnout for the annual "Stuff The Bus" donation campaign at Liberty Center and Lakota and Cincinnati Children's officials hope for even more help this month with the campaign to get school supplies to the children of needy families. NICK GRAHAM/FILE PHOTO

Credit: Nick Graham

Lakota ‘Stuff the Bus’ campaign crucial due to inflation, organizers say

People participate in a past Crazy Cardboard Regatta at Voice of America MetroPark in West Chester Twp. CONTRIBUTED

$An international digital learning organization has named a Lakota Schools teacher as one their top, rising stars in classroom innovation. The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), a nonprofit focusing on accelerating innovation in education, picked Lakota Woodland Elementary School’s innovation specialist, Kimberly Carlson as one of America’s “20 Teachers To Watch.” Carlson is pictured at the ISTE conference this week in New Orleans. (Contributed Photo\Journal-News)$

Lakota digital learning teacher wins national honor

Fairfield man killed in one-vehicle crash in West Chester Twp.

Brooklyn Oryan prepares a drink at the new Biggby Coffee location at 9433 Cincinnati Columbus Road in West Chester Township. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Credit: Nick Graham

Biggby Coffee West Chester is building community through engagement

Kiya Laudick, 5, drives a pedal car during Lakota Safety Village. Lakota schools, West Chester Police Department, Butler County Sheriff's Office and other have partnered for Lakota Safety Village to teach young children going into kindergarten school etiquette, bus and car safety, fire safety and more at Lakota Freshman School in West Chester Township. NICK GRAHAM/STAFF

Credit: Nick Graham

Police, sheriff’s office team up for first Lakota Safety Village

$Lakota Board of Education meeting Monday evening saw the members hear more than a dozen critics of any consideration the board might take of using the recent state law allowing arming of teachers and other trained staffers. The school board took no action regarding the topic but held extensive discussions around the issue. (Photo By Michael D. Clark\Journal-News)$

Lakota board hears public objections to option of arming staff

A sinkhole has led to the closure of West Chester Road. STAFF FILE PHOTO

Portion of road in West Chester Twp. closed due to sinkhole

A woman and infant were killed in a crash Sunday, June 19, 2022, on state Route 222 near Batavia in Clermont County. TYLER PISTOR/WCPO

West Chester man driver in crash that killed woman, infant in Clermont County

3 Lakota educators lauded with annual district award for excellence