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NILES -- The board of education at its meeting Tuesday heard from middle school Assistant Principal Leah Marsh regarding a partnership the district has joined with the Cleveland Browns.
During presentations regarding recently released Ohio Department of Education report cards, Marsh told the board how the district plans to implement the Stay in the Game program.
The program, supported by the Cleveland Browns Foundation, ODE and Proving Ground Network, focuses on improving student attendance and engagement by connecting schools and students to resources aimed at addressing chronic absenteeism.
"We have what's called a playbook that we fill out as a district," Marsh said. "Mrs. (Antoinette) D'Urso, our director of teaching and learning, she and I work together to set up different events.
"We could bring the Browns mascot to an event we're going to do at Dragon Day next year."
Marsh said the program provides incentives for students in the district to have steady attendance. She said the foundation will provide gifts that can be given to students, including apparel, posters, yard signs, a football autographed by team quarterback Deshaun Watson, and possibly, tickets to games.
"Every school building has a Browns game that is selected for us by the program, and we get to nominate a student to go and get tickets for (them) and a family member," Marsh said. "We will of course put that on our social media so the community knows who is selected to celebrate that, but also Stay in the Game will help support and promote that as well."
Marsh also added that at some point, a student in the district will be selected to appear on the field at a Browns game during a presentation after kickoff.
Marsh said this is the first year the district has partnered with the Cleveland Browns Foundation. She said she is the school's "point-person" for the program because the attendance incentives are sent to the middle school.
In other business, superintendent Ann Marie Thigpen gave an update regarding access to fields owned by the district.
Thigpen said the field outside the board of education's administration building is open for residents to use outside of school hours. Thigpen said the school's Head Start program will use the field between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. She said that there are trash cans and dog bags at the field.
Thigpen said Bo Rein Memorial Stadium will remain closed to the public while the district works out issues, but it will be open in the near future.
"Austintown Fence is supposed to come out to see where they could put a gate," Thigpen said. "That probably won't be open until after the fall season."
Thigpen said that the district is still determining the exact hours that the stadium will be open to the public.
"We would have to allow people to use the stadium only when there's no sports activities," she said.
mcole@tribtoday.com