Schools/Library
Everyone knows Oakwood has great schools, in fact, the finest public schools in the region. This has been the case for decades and the tradition continues. I know this is hard to believe, but the OHS Academic Decathlon team won the Division III National Championship for the 10th year in a row. This scholastic competition is unique because the team is tested in art, social science, economics, language and literature, mathematics, music and science and participates in judged events in speech, interview and essay. Congratulations to all the students and advisor Lori Morris, who is in her 17th year as coach. She deserves major kudos for her efforts on behalf of our students.
Oakwood High School is the first public high school in the Dayton region to have a Virtual Dissection Table. The Anatomage Table, as commonly known, makes it possible to visualize and interact with virtual anatomy in the way people would on a living human body. As the Oakwood Register described this addition, “The days of the traditional frog dissection are over.” This is an incredible learning tool made possible with a grant from the Oakwood Schools Foundation.
We congratulate and thank Todd Duwel for his 11 years of service on the Oakwood Board of Education and thank outgoing Superintendent Kyle Ramey for his outstanding leadership of our school district.
Wright Memorial Public Library celebrated its 83rd anniversary. Under the leadership of Director, Kristi Hale, they are one of the most heavily used libraries in the county, and in 2022 they were named Partner of the Year by the Greater Dayton Partners for the Environment, in recognition of the library’s environmental programs and native community gardens. They also completed a $5.1 million renovation and restoration of their beautiful Tudor architecture building. A substantial portion of the renovation came from private philanthropy.
City Services
The primary purpose of local government is to provide for public safety, refuse services, water and sewer services and other governmental and infrastructure services. We also have the obligation to create a community ambience that encourages citizens to want to live in our fine community.
Public Safety
Formed in 1927, our public safety department is the second oldest consolidated department in the United States. It is unique because all our officers are cross-trained and state-certified in law enforcement, firefighting and emergency medical services. Our first officer on scene response time for any emergency is under three minutes, by far the fastest in the region. Our fire engine response time is 4.4 minutes; the national standard is 6 minutes. Our medic response time is 3.3 minutes; the national standard is 12 minutes. Oakwood has the lowest crime rate and fire loss in Montgomery County.
Under the leadership of Oakwood Public Safety Chief Alan Hill, we have the best group of public safety officers in our history. Captain Mike Jones retired after 25 years in public safety and received the Oakwood Rotary Community Service Award. We were able to promote from within our organization, promoting Officer Justin Slone to Lieutenant and promoting Lieutenant Mike Tanner to Captain. Lieutenant Chuck Balaj was recognized for more than 20 years of service with the Kettering Regional SWAT team. He was the first non-Kettering officer to serve on the SWAT team and has received commendations from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement organizations for his assistance with federal and multi-state investigations.
We offered our fifth annual Citizens Police Academy (CPA). Chief Hill describes the program as a unique opportunity for citizens to better understand the job of a public safety officer and serve as a way for Safety Department personnel to hear the needs and expectations of the community.
Public Works
Public Works is often overlooked in our city as people take most of these services for granted. They should not!
Our public works employees handle our weekly household waste collection and disposal, our comprehensive recycling program, special pickup program, year around yard debris pickup, a dumpster program, fall leaf pickup and a spring mulch delivery program. They