Fort hires new head football coach

FORT RECOVERY - Alumnus Wesley Wenning is heading back to Fort Recovery Local Schools to serve as varsity football coach and elementary/middle school intervention specialist.

School board members at Monday night's regular meeting moved to hire the 2016 Fort Recovery High School graduate as intervention specialist and varsity football coach effective Aug. 1, pending the completion of all requirements and proper certification.

He will succeed varsity football coach Brent Niekamp, who led the Fort Recovery Indians for 20 seasons, posting an overall record of 80-133 and a playoff record of 10-7.

Wenning was a member of the 2015 Fort Recovery High School state championship football team. He continued his football career at Ashland University, where he earned a degree in special education in 2020.

He also earned his master's degree in education administration from Youngstown State University in 2023. For the last four years, Wenning was a teacher and coach at Archbishop Hoban High School in Akron, according to a school news release.

"The district is looking forward to welcoming him back to Fort Recovery and is excited about the opportunities ahead of our students and athletes," the release states.

Wenning said in a statement that it's an "absolute blessing and honor" to return home to Fort Recovery, saying he's eager to work with the administration and staff to build an outstanding culture that affects more than just the football program.

"I cannot wait to get to work. There is no place like home," he said.

In other action, board members approved a motion authorizing treasurer Deanna Knapke and superintendent Tony Stahl to seek bids for an elementary/middle school HVAC project involving the replacement of variable air volume boxes and associated controls. The project is estimated at $989,081.

"There's like over 100 of them in the building," Stahl said of the air volume boxes that are original to the building completed in July 2000 as part of a state pilot program. "They sit above the tile and they control the flow in and out of air, the heating and cooling for each individual classroom."

The project is slated to be finished this summer.

"With the bidding process right now, we want to get it going as fas as we can," Stahl told The Daily Standard. "Hopefully we can get everything ordered, set up and ready to go as soon as students are out."

Prior to authorizing administrators to solicit bids, board members approved a motion to transfer $1 million from the general fund to the high school capital project fund, $1 million from the general fund to the permanent improvement account and $500,000 to the athletics facilities capital project fund.

The $1 million transfer to the permanent improvement account is intended to cover the cost of the forthcoming HVAC project. The other two transfers were made to build up savings for future projects at the high school and athletic facilities.

"We don't necessarily have a specific project like the HVAC over at the other building, but we are anticipating things like that happening, whether it's plumbing , HVAC over the next 10 years. We want to be prepared for it," Stahl said.

The same mindset is behind the $500,000 transfer to the athletic facilities capital project fund.

"Like track resurfacing, replacement of weight room equipment, resurfacing of our gym floors, replacement of bleachers, those kind of things," he said.

Board members also:

• honored the girls bowling team for earning a share of the Midwest Athletic Conference championship.

• approved a resolution authorizing Knapke and board president Don Wendel to accept two easement proposals with the village of Fort Recovery for a village sidewalk improvement project.

• accepted the resignation of third-grade teacher Kimberly Pohlman, effective March 14.

• approved the cross country overnight field trip to Chenoweth Trails in Greenville from July 27-28.

• approved an overnight trip for FFA members to attend the State FFA Convention at Ohio State Fairgrounds in Columbus from April 30 to May 2.

• approved an overnight trip for FFA members to attend the State Wildlife Contest at Hocking Technical College in Nelsonville from March 28-29.

• went into executive session to consider employment. No action was anticipated afterward.

The board meets next at 6:30 p.m. March 17 in the Fort Recovery Community Room.