Derek Morgan SOCS School Board

05/27/2026

The S-OCS School Board will meet this Thursday, May 28, beginning with an Executive Session at 6:00 p.m. for the Board’s annual evaluation of the superintendent. The school board has only one employee—the superintendent—and providing meaningful feedback and conducting a thoughtful evaluation is one of the Board’s most important responsibilities. This Executive Session is closed to the public as permitted by law.

The Board will then convene for our regular session meeting at 7:00 p.m. We appreciate your continued interest and engagement in the work of our schools.

05/23/2026

Congratulations to the Class of 2026! Your graduation represents years of hard work, perseverance, and dedication. Reaching this milestone is no small accomplishment, and you should be proud of everything you have achieved along the way.

As you close this chapter and begin a new one, I wish each of you success, happiness, and exciting opportunities in the journey ahead. The future is full of possibilities, and I can’t wait to see the impact you will make.

I’d also like to extend my appreciation to my fellow board members. It is an honor to serve alongside such a dedicated group as we work together to support our students, staff, and community. Congratulations again to our graduates and best wishes to the Class of 2026!

05/21/2026

Happy last day of school! Wishing all of our students, staff, and families a summer filled with rest, relaxation, and time to recharge. Thank you for another great year, and I’m already looking forward to even better things ahead in the 2026–2027 school year. Have a wonderful summer break!

05/19/2026

05/12/2026

The Spencer-Owen Community Schools School Board meets this Thursday, May 14, for our regularly scheduled board meeting.

• Executive Session (closed to the public) – 6:00 p.m.
• Regular Session (open to the public) – 7:00 p.m.

Both meetings will be held in the Mike Wells Memorial Board Room at Central Office, and the regular session will also be livestreamed on the S-OCS YouTube channel.

The agenda for the meeting is attached below. We appreciate the continued engagement and support of our schools and community.

04/17/2026

📣 Thinking about running for school board? Start here.

If you’ve ever considered serving on the Spencer-Owen Community Schools Board of School Trustees, the Indiana School Boards Association has created a great Candidate 101 resource to help you get started:

🔗 https://www.isba-ind.org/resources/candidate-101

💻 Even better—ISBA is offering free Candidate 101 webinars in May and June. These sessions break down:
✔️ What school board members actually do
✔️ The time commitment
✔️ How to get on the ballot
✔️ What to expect during a campaign

🗳️ Three S-OCS school board seats will be on the ballot this November:
• District #5 – currently held by Jack White
• District #2 – currently held by Mark Rogers
• District #3 – currently held by Lizz Bixler

School board elections are held as part of the November general election cycle, and local races like these play a key role in shaping our schools and community.

📅 The filing window (May 19 – noon on June 18) will be here before you know it, so now is the time to start learning and preparing.

If you’re even a little curious, I strongly encourage you to check out the Candidate 101 page, attend a webinar, and reach out if you’d like to talk more about what board service is really like.

04/08/2026

Join us this Thursday, April 9 at 7:00 PM for our upcoming School Board meeting in the Mike Wells Memorial Board Room at Central Office.

The meeting agenda is now available, and we are especially looking forward to a presentation from Spencer Elementary’s Book Buddies program. We are excited to highlight the great work happening with our students and staff.

We encourage community members to attend in person or tune in live on our YouTube channel.

03/30/2026

Join us tomorrow, March 31 at 6:30 PM for a School Board Work Session in the Mike Wells Memorial Board Room at Central Office. You’re also welcome to watch live on our YouTube channel.

The focus of this session will be a discussion on potential future building and facilities projects. Maintaining safe, high-quality learning environments is essential to supporting student success, and we’re committed to thoughtful planning for the future of our schools.

03/16/2026

🗳️ Have you ever thought about serving on the school board?

This November, three seats on the Spencer-Owen Community Schools School Board will be on the ballot:
• District #2 – currently held by Mark Rogers
• District #3 – currently held by Lizz Bixler
• District #5 – currently held by Jack White

I’m sharing a map of our school board districts with this post so you can see which areas of the county each seat represents. Candidates must reside within the district they represent. All three races are voted on by all of the voters who reside within the school corporation.

School board members play an important role in setting the direction for our schools and supporting the success of our students and staff. If you’ve ever been curious about what board service looks like, now is a great time to start learning more.

💬 Thinking about running? Let’s talk.
I’d be happy to visit with you, and you’re also welcome to reach out to one of my fellow board members or Superintendent Cline to learn more about the role and the commitment involved.

📅 The candidate filing window is May 19 through noon on June 18.
If you want to learn more about how to get your name on the ballot, the Owen County Clerk’s Office can help:
https://www.owencounty.in.gov/departments/clerk/