Tippecanoe Valley High School Principal Brandon Kresca introduced two of TVHS’ new teachers to the Tippecanoe Valley School Board at its regular meeting on Monday, July 17, at Mentone Elementary School. From left: Math teacher Wes Melanson, Kresca and Spanish teacher Wonnya Guanche. InkFreeNews photo by Leah Sander.

By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews

MENTONE — The Tippecanoe Valley School Corp. has welcomed two new employees.

At the regular TVSC Board meeting on Monday, July 17, Tippecanoe Valley High School Principal Brandon Kresca introduced the board to two of the school’s new teachers, Wonnya Guanche and Wes Melanson.

Guanche, who’s originally from Miami, Fla., and taught there for some years, will serve as a Spanish teacher. She was joined at the meeting by her husband, Sixto Boiges.

Melanson is a 2019 TVHS grad and coming to teach ninth grade math at TVHS and one class at Tippecanoe Valley Middle School. He studied secondary education at Bluffton University in Ohio.

“I’m so excited,” said Guanche of starting at Valley. “I have heard many … amazing things about the team and the interaction I have had with (staff members), they have been super, super supportive, so I see them as family now.”

“I’m just really excited to be back (with) the Valley family and … see how I can grow as an educator and as someone in the community to help out (whether) it’s coaching, teaching or anything that I can do for students to (help them) grow,” said Melanson.

The board also approved Melanson’s hiring on Monday. It approved Guanche’s hiring back in May.

Staff Changes

The board also approved various staff changes.

It OK’d the hiring of Tippecanoe Valley Middle School language arts teacher Megan Bennett; Akron Elementary School instructional assistants Shelly Bickel and Amy Lozano; and TVSC bus driver Ryan Adams and summer techs Alexis Hernandez, Shane Wood, Caleb Cavender and Sheila Kindig.

It approved Leann Carr as an instructional assistant at TVHS; Valerie Lukens as a reading intervention teacher at Akron; and Shannon Samuels as a teacher and LeeAnna Miller as an instructional assistant at the Valley Early Learning Academy.

The board also accepted the resignations of TVHS JV softball coach Shannon Houlihan and athletic secretary Emily Gearhart; and Akron reading intervention teacher Rachel Haney.

In other business, the board:

• Approved meal prices for the 2023-24 school year. Those are: $1.40 for breakfast for grades K-12 and $1.50 for breakfast for adults; and $1.90 for lunch for grades K-5, $2.40 for lunch for grades 6-12 and $4.70 for lunch for adults.
• Heard a brief update on the TVHS construction project from TVSC Superintendent Blaine Conley. “They’ve been in the pool today. They’ve removed a lot of the concrete out at the bottom of the pool … so they’re making really good progress in there,” he said. “They’re (also) working on the weight room wall now.”

The board’s next regular meeting is set for 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 21, at Mentone Elementary School.