History:

Each year, members of the Holland Springfield Historical Society visit with elementary students in each of the school district's four elementary schools to share a wealth of information about the greater Holland community. During the presentation, students learn that in 1898, Springfield Schools held its first commencement exercises for a class consisting of two graduates - Mabel Hovey and Eathel M. Wood. Students learn an interesting fact about Ms. Hovey - she later became Holland's first Mayor and believed "What Holland had been was nothing compared to what it could be." When elected mayor, Ms. Hovey was one of only two women mayors ever elected in Ohio. She later went on to teach Holland students for more than 27 years.