Claridon Township Homeschooled 9th Grader Receives $1,000
Hocking College Scholarship
Geauga Soil & Water Conservation District Board Meeting - August 12, 2025
Meeting Details: The Geauga Soil & Water Conservation District (Geauga SWCD) met on August 12, 2025 at 7:30 am at the Geauga County Office Building, 12611 Ravenwood Dr. #240, Chardon, OH.
Board Attendance: Jeff Huntsberger, Board Chair; Robert Lausin, Vice Chair; Tracy Engle, Secretary; Mary Slingluff, Treasurer; Dee Belew, Fiscal Agent
Staff Attendance: Carmella Shale, District Director/Engineer; Gail Prunty, Education/Communications Specialist; Colleen Lair, Administrative Assistant
Others in Attendance: Rebecca O’Neill, Program Specialist, ODA-DSWC (Ohio Department of Agriculture - Division of Soil & Water Conservation); Julie Parker, District Conservationist, USDA/NRCS (United States Department of Agriculture/Natural Resources Conservation Services)
Open Board Meeting- Opened by Jeff Huntsberger at 7:35 am
Pledge of Allegiance
MOTION - Approved - August 12, 2025 Board Meeting Agenda
MOTION - Approved - July 8, 2025 Board Meeting Minutes Reviewer Note: The GSWD does not publish their minutes on their website. You can obtain a copy by writing to Director Carmella Shale cshale@geauga.oh.gov
OPEN PUBLIC DISCUSSION- LWV Observer Wendy Landry acknowledged Carmella Shale for her follow up assistance on clarification questions while she learns all the acronyms.
MOTIONS Approved –
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Accept Treasurer’s Reports from previous month (including all deposits and transfers that occurred in addition to previous approved expenditures)
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Approve money transfer in the amount of $1,945.31 from Huntington Savings (Electronic/Stripe Payments through end of July 2025) to Huntington Checking
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Approve payment for expenditures, purchase orders, vouchers and bills as presented including EFT payments and estimates and Sales Tax EFT payment of $20.25 less ¾% discount
There was a review of the previous month’s mail, bank statements, payroll and minutes.
SCHEDULED GUEST: REBECCA O’NEILL, PROGRAM SPECIALIST, Ohio Department of Agriculture- Division of Soil & Water Conservation (ODA-DSWC)
Ms. O’Neill gave a Budget update. She said the State Match has been approved with an overall 80% match, down a couple percentage points from last year. Ms. O’Neil reported that the State match for this department was down just a little bit from last year. Ms. Shale elaborated that the budget she put together and submitted was $4,000 more than what they got. The State match depends on what they get from local funds, and she requested a little less from local funds and that played into what they got from the State match. She indicated that their department will be fine with this decrease in funds. Ms. Shale reported that they received 78% match because they are in the upper tier of State funds.
Ms. O’Neill said that they are planning the Board Works Training for Board members for 2026. She advised that if the board had any feedback on things they would like to see, she was receptive to hearing that. The next personnel training is August 28th at 2 pm on personnel and general Human Resources (HR).
Programs Update: Ms. O’Neill stated that the Watershed Managers updated their plans and they are available on their website. She noted that the Employees Association is trying to fill two Soil & Water vacancies in Area 2. . HR training for Soil and Water staff will be on September 25, 2025. They got HR training last year and are getting training in three areas at Portage Lakes.
SCHEDULED GUEST: JULIE PARKER, DISTRICT CONSERVATIONIST, Ohio Department of Agriculture - Division of Soil & Water Conservation (USDA/NRCS)
Ms. Parker reported that all Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQUIP) & Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) obligations have been fulfilled for the year. They have done several site visits to check completed work. There is a new Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCCP) that covers the whole state of Ohio and offers a wildlife habitat incentive. Ms. Parker got a call from an Ohio Department Natural Resources (ODNR) biologist who will be running the program and doing the contracting for it, but she will have to sign some things and get them in their system. Ms. Parker got a call from one of the biologists indicating that they sent out an announcement over the weekend and have already received 65+ calls. Landowners who are interested in the incentive program just have to own at least 5 acres of land that they want to turn into habitat, mainly for quail.
Ms. Parker said that Agriculture Field Day will be on August 19th and noted that they will be showing off a tile project they are doing and talking about other farmsteading.
Ms. Parker stated that they have met with several people in Geauga County who are interested in doing some EQUIP projects, and they have several applications for next year already.
SCHEDULED GUEST: Camp Canopy Scholarship Recipient presentation
The second recipient of the 2025 Camp Canopy Scholarship came in with her parents to talk about her experience at camp. She is a Claridon Township resident who will be entering the 9th grade this year as a homeschooled student. She is a member of 4H and raises chickens. She aspires to have an outdoor career. This was her first overnight camp and she was one of the youngest campers.
She presented a well-organized PowerPoint in which she included photos for the board to see what camp looked like and discussed topic areas for camp education, including:
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Timber Sports Presentation- Chainsaw Competing and Ax throwing
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Wildlife Management- How to track animals
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Dendrology (Study of Trees)- Learned to observe and identify leaves
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Wildlife ID– They studied Raptors (Birds of Prey) that catch prey with their feet. She said this was her favorite class.
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Fighting Wildfires
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Ecology, Wild Edibles- Herbs, Teas
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Silviculture- Planting trees in different ways
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Resource Management issues
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Typical Camp Activities included: Paddle boarding, hiking, and games
There was an end of camp test, which she reported she studied for and scored a 96% on. In recognition of doing well on the test, she received a $1,000 Hocking College Scholarship Certificate for future studies. She reported that she really enjoyed her experience. The board asked if they could use her excellent PowerPoint presentation to generate applications for scholarships in the future. The board congratulated her on her scholarship and great camp experience.
The board has sent about a half dozen kids to Camp Canopy on Scholarship. Some years they do not get any applications. This is only the second time that one of their scholarship recipients scored one of the highest scores on the test and received a college scholarship.
CARMELLA SHALE, DISTRICT DIRECTOR/ENGINEER
MOTION Approved via roll call vote– New inventory Display case purchase ($103) that will be used to protect a construction site display borrowed from Cuyahoga SWCD. The display case will stay with the display to protect it, and Geauga SWCD will have the ability to loan it in the future at no charge.
The rule is that they inventory anything over $100. They borrowed a display model from Cuyahoga Soil and Water that shows a construction site. It's a 3x3 display. They want to purchase the case so they can use it at the fair booth display.
MOTION Approved for the purchase of 12 pond safety kits for $1256.56 (about $105 each).
They are out of pond safety kits, which were last purchased in 2014. The kit includes a life ring and bag. They sell them and give them away at different events. The kits used to cost $56 and now cost $105.
MOTION Approved to update General Operating Policies to include the ADP/IT Computer Acceptable Use Policy and motion approved to update the pond safety kit price from $75 to $120.
GAIL PRUNTY, EDUCATION/COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST
Ms. Prunty discussed the following events:
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2025 Geauga Fair Booth Plan They will have a booth at the County Fair. The booth will focus on Soil Erosion Prevention: Anchor with Roots before it Pollutes. Some board members as well as SWCD employees are signed up to cover the booth.
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2025 Rain Barrel Yard Art Campaign Kick-off - The decorated Rain Barrels are currently in the county building at the front door to view and bid on. Bids just opened and they only have two bids as of the meeting, but bidding goes on through November 5th. To bid on these Rain Barrels Yard Art go here.
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Get Septic Smart! Class will take place September 17, 2025, 6:00-7:30 pm at Geauga County Public Library Administrative Center. It will provide helpful tips on how a home sewage treatment system works, how to maintain your system, and what to do when it appears to not be working properly. How to extend the life of your system white protecting your investment, our water resources, and the public health will also be discussed. Register here.
NEXT BOARD MEETING: Tuesday, September 9, 2025 - Geauga County Administrative Building: Geauga SWCD Office – 12611 Ravenwood Drive, Suite 240, Chardon, OH 44024.
Meeting Adjourned at 8:30 am
More information available here.
Observer: Wendy Landry
Editor: Sarah McGlone
Reviewer: Gail Roussey
Date Submitted: September 1, 2025
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