Since the fall of 2023, OSMA has been overseen by volunteer educators, and we are looking for a few more to join our Board of Directors.  

While we all know this may seem like one more thing, we promise this one more thing is rewarding and offers many perks.  Here are some of the perks OSMA members of the Board of Directors enjoy.

1. 1.  License Renewal: The Ohio State Board of Education has a form called “Consistently High Performing Teachers.”  In order to satisfy these requirements, teachers must have the highest rating on their evaluations and fulfill one teacher leadership requirement.  The OSMA board fulfils this requirement.  OSMA board members have been using this form to renew their teaching license.  
   2. License Renewal through Continuing Education Unit (CEUs).  If you are no longer pursuing graduate credits as a way to advance your salary, CEUs is another way to renew your license in the state of Ohio. CEUs are usually rewarded through participation in workshops and district activities.  Example:  Advisers who attend OSMA workshops can earn contact hours.  Ten contact hours equals one CEU.  Being on the board meetings earns CEUs, and presenting at an OSMA event earns CEUs.  It is important to check with your district, but board members have used CEUs to renew their license by participating in OSMA.
   3. Have a say in contests:  The OSMA board is always looking to improve our contests, contest descriptions, and the platforms we use to manage contests.  Board members have a direct say and influence in what contests are run.
   4. Camaraderie: Advising can be a lonely business.  No one really does the job we do. Advisers on the board rely on each other and yes, many of us have become friends.  Being on the board gives advisers a group of people to rely on for advice and a group of people for advice when needed.  
   5. Grow in your profession:  During board meetings, we learn from each other as we discuss the struggles and triumphs of scholastic journalism in the state of Ohio.  Vice president of the board Dean Hume explains how the OSMA board impacted his 40-year career.

“I can’t state enough how much joining an organization shaped my career. I was too young to know what I was getting into, but it was to be a major influence. Sitting at a table with John Bowen, Sarah Ortman, Dave Weisenberger, Peg Zadonis, John Coffman, Lyn Skillman, Donette Calhoun, the Dunns, and many others I’m too feeble now to remember, but it was so engrossing listening to them all discuss legal issues, and ethical dilemmas, and coverage ideas, — all the time connecting what was happening in Ohio with the national landscape.”

Requirements for being on the board are the following:

1.  Attend one in-person meeting in August in the Columbus area (virtual option available upon request).  
2. Attend one-hour virtual quarterly meetings. (Dates are set at the August meeting). 
3. Review the agenda before the meeting.
4. Speak at workshops or conferences. 
5. Attend OSMA workshops/conferences on a regular basis.
6. Be a member of a committee if needed.

We hope you will consider joining us as a member of the board. We can not run OSMA without the help of our dedicated advisers in the state of Ohio.  If interested, please reach out to OSMA president Angela Spano at [email protected]

One final note from Dean:

“I have always felt that our jobs are (or were) the most difficult in any scholastic setting. Unlike most students who stuff their homework in a folder or save it online and move on, the kids we teach (and/or taught) have their homework on display for the community to see. It requires work and dedication to serve on the Board. It also demonstrates the same types of commitment we demand from our students,”  Dean Hume.