District Communications
The Community Relations Specialist helps make sure parents and community members can easily access quality, useful and clear information about the school district.
We share information in many ways, including the district website, social media, email communication, weekly district-wide e-newsletters, hard copy newsletters, and through the local media.
District & School Communications
Sharing information helps us build trust with our community, measure our impact, celebrate successes and learn from our challenges. There are a number of ways you can stay informed!
Parents/Guardians
Centerville City Schools uses ParentSquare for district and school communication. ParentSquare automatically generates an account for each parent/guardian, using the email address and phone number on file in our student information system.
Updating Your Contact Information
Please review your contact information at the start of each school year when you update your child's Student Registration Forms. If your email address or phone number changes during the school year, please contact your child's school office or follow these instructions to update your contact information:
- Log into the Home Access Center.
- Click on the Registration icon.
- Scroll down to Contacts and click on the Edit button on the right side of the page.
- Save your changes in HAC. They will automatically update in ParentSquare overnight.
Note: You will only have access to edit your own contact information. Any other parents/guardians will have to log into their own account to edit information.
District/School Newsletters
Parents/guardians of Centerville students will automatically receive a weekly e-newsletter from the district, as well as electronic messages from your child's school and/or teachers.
Emergency Alerts
ParentSquare allows us to contact our school community within minutes. These time-sensitive messages, such as school closures, are sent via email, phone, text and/or app notifications.
Community Members
Members of the Centerville-Washington Township community are invited to join a variety of community groups on ParentSquare to receive information about district activities. Use the link below to see what groups are available.
Here are some of the district's recent posts from ParentSquare:
Accent, a school newsletter mailed to the residents of Centerville-Washington Township, is published twice a year. Use the link below to view an electronic copy of the most recent newsletter.
Follow us on Social Media
Did you know you can find Centerville City Schools on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube and Centerville Athletics on X (formerly Twitter)? Be sure to follow us for positive stories about the district!
Did You Know?
Throughout the year, Centerville Schools share #WednesdayWisdom facts about a variety of topics with the community.
More than 200 Centerville students from all grade levels participated in Destination Imagination this year, working together in teams to solve open-ended STEAM challenges designed to teach the creative process.
On April 6, 17 Centerville teams competed at the state tournament at Lakota East High School, and 10 of them qualified for the DI Global Finals, scheduled for May 22-25 in Kansas City, Mo.
Congratulations to all the teams for their amazing challenge solutions and creative instant challenge solutions! These competitive teams, made up of students from grades 3-12, have been working on their choice of a STEAM-focused challenge since September, including building pinball playing fields, excavating past artifacts,; launching beanbags, creating kinetic art, solving a community need with a service project, and spontaneously storytelling improvised skits based on research.
The Ohio Department of Education & Workforce recently recognized school districts and individual buildings for their accomplishments on the 2022-23 State Report Cards.
Centerville Schools was one of only 75 districts that received an overall rating of 5 stars -- the highest possible mark school districts can achieve!
In addition, the following schools were also recognized:
- Centerville High School, Magsig Middle School, Watts Middle School, John Hole Elementary, and Primary Village South all received an overall rating of 5 stars for their performance across the five rated report card components.
- The Centerville-Kettering-Oakwood Career Tech Compact was one of 33 districts that received an overall rating of 5 stars for their performance across the four rated components.
- Tower Heights Middle School and Cline Elementary earned the Momentum Award for demonstrating student academic growth. Both schools improved their performance index by 3 or more points from 2021-22 report card to the 2022-23 report card AND received a value-added progress rating of 4 or more stars.
March is Youth Art Month!
All students in grades K-8 participate in visual arts classes during their related arts rotation. Students are also required to earn at least one credit in fine arts to meet high school graduation credits. This semester, there are more than 700 students enrolled in visual arts courses at Centerville High School.
Visual arts classes support the development of important skills, such as creative expression, critical thinking, respect for others, confidence building, and emotional well-being.
March is Music in Our Schools Month!
We are fortunate to live in a community that values the arts and has been recognized multiple times with the Best Communities for Music Education designation from the NAMM Foundation. From kindergarten through high school, our students have the opportunity to engage in musical education at all grade levels.
All students in grades K-8 take a music class as part of their related arts rotation. In grades 6-12, more than 1,200 students are enrolled in at least one band, choir, or orchestra class, plus hundreds of middle and high schoolers participate in music related activities outside of the school day.
During the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, Centerville Schools has partnered with Centerville Safe to host 10 presentations as part of a free safety series. Community members have been able to learn from experts about topics such as mental health, online safety, and active shooter training.
Our last presentation of this school year is a free screening of the film, Screenagers: Under the Influence, followed by a panel discussion, which all begins at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12 in the Cline Elementary Auditorium. Click here to learn more about this event.
Many times when a family is in crisis, school staff members are the first to know. Partnerships with the community play a critical role in providing support to these families.
One way our district partners with the community to meet these needs is through CarePortal, an online platform used throughout the United States that connects children and families in need with churches in the community. When a need arises with a student, the school counselor, with the parents' permission, enters that need into CarePortal without providing any identifying information of the family. Churches are notified that a request has been entered and they respond through the CarePortal. The school counselor then connects the family with the church.
Thanks to community members from our local churches, more than $19,000 worth of support has been provided to 50 Centerville students and their families!
As part of a continuous effort to prioritize the safety of students and staff members, Centerville Schools is using grant funding from the state of Ohio to enhance security measures at every school building.
Since July, contractors have been replacing a number of exterior doors, upgrading door hardware, installing key fob entrance points for staff, and implementing an alert system that will notify the school office if a door has been left open. Over half of the funding for this project was provided through $843,000 in grants from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission, with the remaining balance paid out of the district’s permanent improvement fund.
Click here to read more about this project.
Did you know Ohio law now requires students to receive instruction in financial literacy as part of their high school graduation requirements? This requirement began with the Class of 2026 (this year's sophomores).
In addition to earning 21 credits for graduation, students also must demonstrate competency (most commonly by showing proficiency on the Ohio State Tests for Algebra 1 and English 10) and readiness (earning two state or locally determined graduation seals).
Our school counselors help students achieve school success and plan for a career!
During National School Counseling Week, we are proud to recognize the hard work of our 24 school counselors in 13 school buildings across the district. These dedicated individuals collaborate with students, parents, and their fellow educators to assist with academic strategies, college and career planning, social-emotional development, and sometimes referrals for long-term support.
Did you know Centerville High School offers 27 AP courses? This is a 50% increase since 2019 -- the result of efforts to encourage students with a wide variety of interests to enroll in advanced classes.
This Thursday, freshmen, sophomores, and juniors will have the opportunity to attend the 2024 AP Fair to learn more about these courses. Engaging in conversations with AP students and teachers at the AP Fair, taking into account subject-area interests, defining future goals, and prioritizing social-emotional well-being are all factors families should consider when making scheduling decisions.
Centerville City Schools will hold three more community forums to discuss school finances and the district’s 3.9-mill operating levy that will be on the March 19 ballot.
District leaders plan to share a brief presentation and then offer community members the opportunity to share their feedback about district finances on the following dates:
- Wednesday, Jan. 31 - Community forum at 6:30 p.m. in the Magsig Middle School Auditorium, 192 W. Franklin St.
- Thursday, Feb. 22 - Community forum at 6:30 p.m. in the Watts Middle School Cafeteria, 7056 McEwen Rd.
- Wednesday, March 13 - Community forum at 6:30 p.m. in the Tower Heights Middle School Cafeteria, 195 N. Johanna Dr.
Did you know school districts in Ohio are required to provide career technical education for students? Juniors and seniors at Centerville High School have the opportunity to participate in 19 different programs that are designed to help them discover and explore career options.
In the 1970s, Centerville partnered with the Kettering and Oakwood school districts to create a career education compact, which means state funding earmarked for career education directly benefits students in our three high schools, rather than going to the Miami Valley CTC.
Learn more about career education at CHS
The district began implementing reductions after the November election, including limiting new hires, substitutes, overtime, and field trips, plus finding other ways to reduce expenses.
Our Curriculum Department was able to save nearly $13,000 for the district-wide paper order for second semester -- a 28% decrease from the first semester order. This was due to a combination of price reductions for paper, purchasing more white paper instead of color paper, and a reduction in the number of cases ordered.
In the last five years, the Centerville Schools Transportation Department has eliminated a total of 26 full- and part-time positions through staff retirements and resignations.
The department achieved this reduction by investing in larger capacity buses and working to create safe yet efficient routes, which resulted in decreasing the overall number of routes required from 630 in 2018 to 552 now. These changes have also helped the district maintain transportation services in spite of a nationwide school bus driver shortage.
This year, we have been able to assist 170 families and 392 children with gifts and food baskets through our Adopt-a-Family program, thanks to the generosity of our students, families, staff and community members! This is a 34% increase over the number of families served in 2022.
We are grateful for the parents and community members who share their time as part of our Academic Volunteer Program!
During the 2022-23 school year, 182 parents and 61 community members logged 7,326 service hours and supported the learning needs of 4,650 students.
Click here to learn more about getting involved with the Academic Volunteer Program.
Did you know Centerville High School currently offers 27 different Advanced Placement (AP) courses, which is a 50% increase since 2019? This is part of an effort to encourage students with a wide variety of interests to enroll in advanced classes.
Last May, 1,680 AP exams were administered at CHS, a 9.7% increase from the previous year. Our students scored a 3 or above on 72% of the 2023 exams.
Click here to learn more about the AP courses offered at CHS.
Did you know all students in grades 6-12 have access to the Naviance college and career planning website?
This tool helps students explore interests and start to create a plan for life after high school, whether that includes a four-year university, trade school, joining the military, or entering the workforce. Naviance can be accessed through your child's Clever account and includes interest surveys, as well as information about colleges and various career paths.
October is Ohio School Safety Month, and our biggest help when it comes to school safety is YOU!
If you see or hear something unusual, speak up by reaching out to a staff member or by contacting the 24-hour Safety Helpline at 1-866-547-8362 or using the button at the top of any page on the district website.
Any information shared will be thoroughly investigated and may prevent students from hurting themselves and/or others. Click here to read more about how school safety threats are investigated.
Do you know when to stop for a school bus?
It's School Bus Safety Week, and every day our Transportation Department runs more than 600 bus routes, transporting nearly 9,000 students to both public and nonpublic schools in our community. We need YOUR help getting our children safely to and from school!
- On a road with fewer than 4 lanes, ALL traffic approaching a stopped school bus from either direction must stop at least 10 feet from the front or rear of the bus and remain stopped until the bus begins to move or the bus driver signals motorists to proceed.
- If a school bus is stopped on a street with 4 or more lanes, only traffic proceeding in the SAME DIRECTION as the bus must stop.
Centerville Schools adopted our current strategic plan prior to the 2022-23 school year after about two years of work. The plan includes an updated mission, vision, core principles, and five focus areas, with action items that are assessed and updated each year.
About 400 community members have been involved in the process so far, including development of the strategic plan itself, collaborating on our Portrait of an Elk, and participating on committees to look at areas such as master facility planning.
We are proud that all of the state identified subgroups in Centerville exceeded their performance goals on the 2022-23 Ohio State Tests, and we are grateful to our teachers and families for challenging students to keep growing every day!
The state of Ohio sets annual and long-term achievement goals in English language arts, math, and graduation for several identified subgroups. The state expectation for all areas and all student subgroups is to continue closing educational gaps year over year.
Keep learning, every day!
September is Attendance Awareness Month! Daily attendance at school is critical to student success -- from kindergarten all the way through high school graduation. Students, staff, parents and community members are invited to take the pledge to help the children in your life show up to school every day ready to learn.
Did you know five School Resource Officers work in our schools every day, thanks to a community partnership with the Centerville Police Department and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office?
We're excited to welcome our newest SRO, Deputy Grafton Bowersox, who joined our team this week! We are also grateful to Officers Brad Eshler, Tracy Sommers and Jason Stamm and Deputy Gary Fulwiler, who partner with us to create a safe learning environment, which in turn helps us meet the overall health and wellness needs of our students.
More than 40% of students in grades 6-8 choose to participate in band, chorus and orchestra electives at our three middle schools.
The enrollment process for band and orchestra begins at the end of fifth grade when music directors visit each of our elementary schools to demonstrate a variety of instruments. Families that are interested in pursuing band or orchestra in middle school are invited to attend an instrument fitting in the spring. Chorus sign-ups take place at the beginning of the school year.
We have hundreds of diverse opportunities for students to get involved at their schools!
During lunch periods on Sept. 6, students at Centerville High School had the chance to learn more about student-led clubs. Help your child find something to fit their unique interests, from athletics, performing arts, and visual arts to academic teams, service organizations, and more! Lists of available extracurricular activities can be found on each middle and high school website under the Athletics & Activities menu.
Centerville in the News
Here is some of the most recent news regarding Centerville Schools:
High school basketball: Centerville senior named state player of the year
Dayton Daily News, March 29, 2024
Centerville middle schooler wins Regional Spelling Bee, advances to D.C.
Dayton Daily News - March 7, 2024
Inclusive dance club shines in performance at Centerville High School
WDTN-TV - March 6, 2024
Wheelchair basketball brings kids together
Spectrum News 1 - Feb. 16, 2024
Centerville school district holds 'run, hide, fight' presentation
Dayton 24/7 Now - Nov. 16, 2023
Distributing Information about Community Activities
As a service to the community, the district shares information about special events, camps, sports leagues and other activities with our families.
Centerville City Schools uses ParentSquare to distribute information to families. All parents/guardians and community members will have access to a group where they can find information about community activities. You can join this group here.
Information from community organizations will ONLY be distributed in electronic format through ParentSquare. Approved information will be shared through the ParentSquare app each Wednesday during the school year (and on select dates during the summer) and will remain available to users once posted, both through the app and on the district website.
Community organizations wishing to share information with families in Centerville Schools must complete a Request to Distribute Information form at least three days prior to your requested post date.