Findlay City Schools welcomed 45 new teachers to the district on Tuesday during New Trojan Orientation.

New staff members received a warm Trojan welcome and information on goals and expectations.

“We are excited to welcome our new team members to Findlay City Schools!” said Katie Abbott, Director of Whole Child and Secondary Instruction.

“New Trojan Orientation provides an opportunity for our new staff members to learn our processes and procedures to ensure academic excellence, diverse opportunities, and true belonging for all of our students. The information presented will help prepare educators to meet the needs of all the students while ensuring a smooth transition to the Findlay City Schools team.”

Findlay City Schools utilized feedback from teachers hired in the past few years to plan the sessions and activities.

Organizers wanted to ensure new hires receive the tools and knowledge they need to succeed in their classroom and the district.

WTOL-11 spoke with instructional coach Courtney Elbin.

One of the most significant benefits of the day is that it fosters belonging and connectedness with their team members.

The group got the chance to gain knowledge from administrators within the district and learn about the district’s strategic plan and its goals and objectives.

The group even boarded a Findlay City Schools bus to tour the district and familiarize themselves with the city while playing Trojan Trivia.

The first day for Findlay City Schools is Tuesday, August 23rd.

(above pic courtesy of Findlay City Schools)

Sandusky police say two people are facing charges for having sex on the Ferris wheel at Cedar Point.

A man and a woman were arrested for public indecency at the park on Sunday night.

Several witnesses told police they could see the private parts of the two people charged and the cart above them on the Giant Wheel was shaking.

The witnesses said the couple clearly knew they could be seen and they were laughing.

It looks like the President is planning to pay a visit to the Columbus suburb of New Albany.

Multiple reports say President Biden is coming to Ohio for the Intel groundbreaking.

The visit will highlight the recent signing of the CHIPS Act which allocates $52 billion to boost domestic semiconductor research and production.

No specific date has been set for the President’s visit, which is expected in the coming weeks.

It was announced earlier this year that global semiconductor manufacturer Intel Corporation had chosen a site in central Ohio’s Licking County, near New Albany, as the future home for its most advanced semiconductor manufacturing facilities in the world.

Governor DeWine says the megaproject will be the largest single private sector company investment in Ohio’s history and will generate more than 20,000 jobs in the state, including 3,000 direct Intel jobs earning an average of $135,000 per year (plus benefits), 7,000 construction jobs over the course of the build, and tens of thousands of additional indirect and support jobs including contracted positions, electricians, engineers, and jobs in restaurants, healthcare, housing, entertainment and more.

At the Findlay City Schools Board of Education meeting Monday night, the board voted to utilize an immediate active shooter notification system called SafeDefend in their schools.

SafeDefend utilizes multiple ways of communication in the event of an active shooter situation as well as provides staff with crisis management options and training, including but not limited to defensive force and first aid.

Each classroom and large common spaces throughout the district will be equipped with a safety box in classrooms and activation modules for hallways.

The system provides instant notification in multiple ways in cases of an active shooter or life-threatening crisis.

Once a staff member activates the device, an instant notification is sent to dispatch along with a text message, email, and voice alert over the PA that is sent to all law enforcement officers,
firefighters, and staff within that building, and administration across the district.

The system identifies the exact location of the crisis down to the school and specific room where the system was activated.

SafeDefend is designed to protect students and staff by reducing law enforcement time, ensuring law enforcement, firefighters/ems, and staff have real-time crisis information until help arrives.

SafeDefend has been installed in more than 300 schools in nine states and their team has trained over 20,000 teachers and staff on best practices for crisis management and active shooter response.

“The safety and security of our staff and students is Findlay City Schools highest priority,” said school board president Matt Cooper.

“We know safety and security requires a layered approach and we will continue to be proactive in evaluating new and additional ways to increase the safety and security of staff and students.
The partnership and collaboration between FCS and the City of Findlay Police and Fire Departments while installing SafeDefend will significantly increase our response capabilities while decreasing response times for a life-threatening crisis.”

Findlay City Schools will be the first school district in Ohio to install the SafeDefend system.

Learn more about the system by watching the school board meeting below, or by clicking here for the company’s website.

The Findlay Police Department held active shooter training drills at the high school ahead of the new school year beginning.

Lt. Andrew Welch says they put every officer in the department through five different scenarios, including some scenarios that mirrored the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas in May.

“I’m happy to say, in the event that, heaven forbid, something like that ever happens, I’m very confident that the response from us would be very swift and much more efficient than what occurred there.”

As Lt. Welch mentioned in the audio above, if a call comes in of a school shooting all officers would immediately respond to the school.

Once on scene, the officer would grab whatever weapon is available to them and enter the school.

“We train our guys to run towards the stimulus, whether it’s yelling or shooting, and try to interject and be that space between the assailant and students, to hopefully get in there and make a difference as quickly as possible.”

At the board of education meeting Monday night, the board voted to install an immediate active shooter notification system called SafeDefend in their schools.

SafeDefend utilizes multiple ways of communication in the event of an active shooter crisis as well as provides staff with crisis management options and training, including but not limited to defensive force and first aid.

You can watch that board meeting below.

The first day of school for Findlay City Schools will be Tuesday, August 23rd.

University of Findlay students returning to campus for the new academic year will notice upgrades to dining facilities and new food delivery robots.

Henderson Dining Hall, which serves as the primary dining location on campus, underwent a much-needed renovation that includes a new brick pizza oven, a 24/7 Simply To Go area with new meal customization options, updated build-your-own burger station, international cuisine station and more.

New meal stations and a new layout will provide students with more food options and opportunities to customize meals along with setting up the space for additional updates in the future.

For those who have a busy schedule, Henderson’s 24/7 Simply To Go station, once completed, will be open for additional hours and even offer pick-up options.

The reimagined space will now feature a UF mural, Oiler Nation colors, and new furniture to give the full Oiler Experience to every diner.

Along with Henderson’s new look, UF says another exciting addition coming to the university is Kiwibot food delivery robots.

Anyone on campus will soon be able to use the Everyday app on their phone or other compatible smart devices to order food from on-campus dining as well as some new virtual dining concept options such as Mr. Beast Burger, Pardon My Cheesesteak, Buddy V’s Cake Slices, and Mariah Carey’s Cookies.

Kiwibot orders can be paid for directly through the app with a debit/credit card or UF meal plan points.

Students will have the option to add money for Kiwibot deliveries to their meal plan and can even purchase a subscription plan to save on delivery fees.

For more information on the University’s dining options, meal plans, Kiwibot usage, and more, visit the Dining Services webpage or contact Dining Services by email at ufdining@findlay.edu.

Hancock Public Health along with its partners, Blanchard Valley Health System and the University of Findlay, College of Pharmacy, have come together to collect data on the effectiveness of real-time blood sugar monitoring and continuous feedback to Type 2 diabetic patients on managing the disease.

This study promotes the use of the Dexcom® G6® Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM), thus eliminating the need to use finger stick blood sugar testing.

The new technology boasts the ability to improve A1c levels in adults who regularly use the Dexcom® monitor.

The study is designed to last one year and enroll approximately 200 participants.

Participants must be recommended to the project by their primary care physician and consent to participate in the project and its terms.

There will be no cost to eligible individuals referred and chosen to be part of the project.

The CGM technology used in this research has been provided by Dexcom® with additional funding for clinical support provided by the Findlay-Hancock Community Foundation.

Blanchard Valley Health System, Hancock Public Health, and the University of Findlay, College of Pharmacy have each provided specially trained clinicians to support the participants of this project.

Under the auspice of Hancock Public Health, this specialized team will monitor, and review participant’s progress and provide support with the goal of the participants to better understand their diabetes, empowering them to manage their diabetes, and discover glucose patterns not otherwise observed.

The team will also collect data for the identification of health trends and effective medical interventions for the diabetic population in Hancock County.

According to the 2021 Community Health Assessment, 13 percent of Hancock County adults had been diagnosed with diabetes, increasing to 26 percent of those over the age
of 65.

Nationally, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), estimated 37.3 million US adults have diabetes, and 1 in 5 of them know they have it. (2022).

Local health officials are hoping to empower individuals to understand the relationship between healthy eating, exercise and blood glucose levels.

Additionally, the goal is to equip them with the tools to improve their overall health.

To learn more about the project, people should consult their Primary Care Physician or contact Hancock Public Health at 567-250-5153.

You can also review the agency’s other programs on their website, www.Hancockph.com.

Some of the best hot air balloon pilots around are showing off their skills at Flag City BalloonFest this weekend in Findlay.

In the picture above and video below we saw a balloon skimming the surface of Lake Cascades behind the WFIN Studios Friday night.

It was great flying weather at Flag City BalloonFest on Friday morning and that’s WFIN’s Matt Demczyk was fortunate enough to go on a flight.

Matt went up with pilot Steve Wilkinson, from Palm Springs, California in Steve’s Cosmic Crisp apple-shaped balloon.

Steve has been flying hot air balloons for 42 years all across the world and also takes part in competitions.

It was a very smooth flight, and landing, as they landed in the backyard of a home a little south of Findlay.

In one of the videos below you can see the family come out and check out the balloon.

Flag City BalloonFest is being held on August 12th, 13th and 14th at Findlay’s Emory Adams Park.

Hundreds of new University of Findlay students completed the traditional Arch Ceremony as they embark on their journey at UF.

Legend has it that if they walk back through the Arch before commencement they won’t graduate.

Move-in day at the University of Findlay was held on Thursday.

New students, along with the help of family, faculty, staff, returning students and other volunteers, made the move into their campus housing.

UF says it will have 1,386 students living on campus during this academic year, which is a record.

There will be 712 first-time freshman.

On Friday, University of Findlay President Dr. Katherine Fell formally welcomed students to campus.

Following Dr. Fell’s welcome, new students participated in one of UF’s oldest traditions of marching through the Arch toward Old Main.

According to tradition, they can’t walk back through it until commencement or they won’t graduate.

It was great flying weather at Flag City BalloonFest on Friday morning and that’s when WFIN’s Matt Demczyk was fortunate enough to go on a flight.

Matt went up with pilot Steve Wilkinson, from Palm Springs, California in Steve’s Cosmic Crisp apple-shaped balloon.

Steve has been flying hot air balloons for 42 years all across the world and also takes part in competitions.

It was a very smooth flight, and landing, as they landed in the backyard of a home a little south of Findlay.

At the end of the third video below you can see the family come out and check out the balloon and get more of our talk with Steve.

Flag City BalloonFest is being held on August 12th, 13th and 14th at Findlay’s Emory Adams Park.