School board OKs hire of Nathan Darko
By JEFF LAMPE
For The Weekly Post
ELMWOOD – The Elmwood School Board on Monday approved Nathan Darko as its new dean of students and director of athletics in the high school and junior high.
A resident of Bartonville, Darko currently works as a teacher with the Special Education Association of Peoria County. He has also taught physical education and coached junior-high girls basketball at Oak Grove School and was high school cheerleading coach at Limestone (2013-15) and Farmington (2018-23.
While a student at Limestone High School, Darko had surgeries to remove a brain tumor in 2012 and 2013. But he was still able to play baseball his senior year and was a cheerleader.
An Illinois State University graduate, Darko was also a member of the Redbirds cheerleading team.
Darko said his experience reshaped the way he views learning, since after his first surgery he had to relearn how to walk, talk, eat and do just about anything else. He has shared his story with students to help encourage them through difficult times.
Darko will take on a new role created to free more time for career and college counselling for Janelle Meyers, the retiring junior-high AD, and to replace Tyler Baysingar, who stepped down as high school AD. Darko has a three-year contract with a starting salary of $65,000.
The board also approved hiring Elmwood grad Derek McCoy as elementary PE teacher, 8th-grade boys basketball coach and junior-high boys track and cross-country coach. McCoy was an all-state cross-country runner for the Trojans in 2015 as a junior. He ran at state all four years in high school on teams that won a title in 2013, finished second in 2014 and placed fifth in 2015 and 2016.
His junior-high volunteer-assistant coaches will be his former basketball coach, Jim Valla, and his father, former Elmwood Principal Tony McCoy.
Other paid coaches approved were Dianne Burwell (golf assistant), Ethan Jehle (JH baseball assistant) and Emily Bonebrake (high school scholastic bowl assistant).
Volunteer coaches and classroom mentors approved for 2026-27 are Justin Gunter, Tom Maier and Blaise Steffen (5th- and 6th-grade girls basketball); John Baysingar and Josiah Fleming (JH baseball); Karla and Josh Begner and Shannon Steffen (JH softball); Jared Harkness (JH cross country); Vicki Warner (JH cheerleading); Dustin Funk (JH Lego league); Kenny Blum, Tom Conklin and Brett Powers (HS golf); Tom Gorham, Cooper Hoffmann and Mike Sullivan (HS boys cross country); Tom Bowers, Caleb and Noah Hollis, Landon Kline, Mike Walker and Brady Westart (HS football); Eric Yarbrough (HS marching band); Penny Silzer (HS volleyball); Ragan Thrasher (HS cheerleading); Sullivan (HS track); Emma Vallas (HS bass fishing); and Phillip Beal (HS industrial arts).
Resignations were accepted from aides Allison Ramsay and Garrett German, HS class sponsor Nicole Foster, 5th-grade teacher Joanne Carlson and HS basketball assistant Brandon Butler.
The board also approved 4th grade teacher Wendy Coulter for retirement on Jan. 7, 2030, a 4.8% pay increase for non-certified staff outside the collective bargaining agreement and a 3% raise for Superintendent Joel Schmieg, whose salary will increase to $137,917.
The school district will be offering about 25 surplus items for sale between July 1-14. Information on items will be publised in The Weekly Post and will be on the district website.
Finally, after a public hearing that elicited no comment, the board in its regular meeting approved an amended budget for 2025-26. The budget includes a deficit of $471,179.
