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Salmans retires from Coshocton school board

| December 20, 2019

Dr. Todd Salmans, who has served on the Coshocton City School Board for 16 years, accepts a certificate of appreciation from Coshocton City Schools Superintendent Dr. David Hire during the Dec. 19 board meeting. Salmans is retiring and Phil Hunt will be taking his place on the board. Mark Fortune | Beacon

COSHOCTON – An emotional Dr. Todd Salmans expressed his appreciation and gratitude for everyone that serves the Coshocton City School District as he talked about his 16 years of service on the school board. Salmans, just for fun, voted no on approving the minutes, saying that, “That’s my first no vote in 16 years and I just had to do it.” During that time, Dr. Salmans served as the board president for six of those years and, as Superintendent Dr. David Hire said in his comments, “He provided a clear vision for our district and you will be greatly missed!”

In his comments to the board, Salmans said, “It’s been great working with you, and working with everybody. I look how far we’ve come as a district. The community has trusted me and I think the biggest thing was to see over 2,000 kids walk across the stage and graduate and be a part of that. Because that’s our future – doctors and dentists and attorneys, that’s what it’s all about. It’s not about a building, it’s about the kids. That’s been my best memory, being part of that.”

Following the meeting Salmans said, “A high point was being able to see over 2,000 kids walk across that stage and graduate with a high school diploma over the past 16 years. To be a part of that every year is by far the highest point of being a board member.” In talking about the new elementary school, Salmans said, “I said it back then and I still say today, it’s a dream come true. I never dreamed that we would have this, have the opportunity to build this. The community was not at a high point economically and it was a stab in the dark to get this thing to go and we were lucky the community backed us and we got this done.”

Salmans had a few words for incoming board member Phil Hunt, who will start in January, “Think about the decisions that you make, think clearly, and stand by them. In 16 years I don’t ever look back and think I made a wrong decision. I made the best decision at the time with the information that was provided to me and I still today stand behind those. I feel strongly about that.”

Hunt said, “I’ve got big shoes to fill. The handoff of the tie really means something special now. Being a graduate of Coshocton and living here my entire life I really am looking forward to contributing whatever small part it is. There is an old saying that was told to me one time and I kind of live by that especially more now in my adult life and with the board, and when I’m done I just want to leave the woodpile a little bit higher than when I found it. I want to pay tribute to my school district and my community.”

Coshocton City School Superintendent Dr. David Hire said, “His influence and his impact on not only the school board but the school community and on my professional career I cannot even measure it. He has been a fantastic board president, vice-president and confidant to me. I’m really happy for him and we are going to miss him. He was one of the main reasons I came to Coshocton.”

Salman’s wife, Jackie Salmans, who herself understands the commitment of serving the community as she is on Coshocton City Council, said about her husband, “He’s put a lot of time and effort into it. He leads with his heart. I’m really proud of him. For 16 years he has stuck with it. He’s seen a lot of changes, good and bad, but mostly good. I’ll enjoy having him at home on Thursday nights now. The phone won’t be ringing as much with people calling. I think he ended on a really good note and I’m proud of him.”

In addition to a Christmas gift that was presented to all board members by Dr. Hire, Salmans received a ceremonial gavel and had the honor of tapping the gavel to end the Dec. 19 school board meeting in his final gesture.

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Category: Education

About the Author ()

I live with my beautiful wife Nancy on a small farm just outside Coshocton. We have been married for thirty two years and have two grown children, Jessica and Jacob. Jessica is married to Aaron Mencer and they are employed with Coshocton City Schools. Jacob is a sophomore at Kent State University. I graduated from River View High School, have a Bachelor’s Degree from North Carolina Wesleyan University and am actively involved with the Roscoe United Methodist Church, serve on several local committees and am a member of the Coshocton Kiwanis Club, having served as Past-President. I love reading, especially military thrillers, the Civil War and history in general. My goal is to write a novel. My wife and I are also AdvoCare distributors and encourage anyone wanting to lose weight, gain energy and better health to explore AdvoCare at our website; www.fortunes4advocare.com. I love the media field, innovative technology and have worked in newspapers for over 30 years – in fact, my first job was delivering newspapers. The Beacon is a dream made possible by the support of this community and a great team. I hope to continue serving Coshocton County for many years.

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