- Ladue School District
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Nov. 7, 2022 - Business Meeting
Posted by Board of Education on 11/8/2022 11:15:00 AM
This information includes highlights of information received by the Ladue Schools Board of Education at the Nov. 7, 2022 regular Board of Education business meeting. This is an unofficial record. Official minutes of each Board meeting are posted on the district website and are available for viewing at the Administrative Center after the Board approves them, typically two weeks after the meeting.
View a recording from the Nov. 7 Board Meeting
Board President Remarks
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Several members of the Board and district administration took part in the MSBA annual conference in Kansas City over the weekend. Board members Carolyn Jaeger and Andy Bresler, along with Dr. Geoff Macy and Dr. Jim Wipke, presented “Going Beyond Budgets for Student Success,” during which they shared our cash flow model. Those in attendance were very impressed and engaged me in conversation about the presentation throughout the rest of the weekend when they found out I was from Ladue. Well done to the whole team. Our very own Board Secretary Fern Wagstaff presented at a pre-conference panel discussion titled, “Who is your boss?” I heard plenty of kudos from our colleagues from around the state about Fern. Overall, the conference was a success. We heard from dynamic speakers including a parent whose daughter lost their life in the Sandy Hook tragedy and a former principal of Columbine High School, as they discussed school safety. We heard from Dr. Bernard Harris, a former NASA astronaut, who shared his experiences from numerous flights and space walks. He emphasized the importance of STEAM education in all schools across the country, including DOD (Department of Defense) schools, which I attended while living on military installations. The quote he left us with was, “I am an infinite being with infinite possibilities.” Finally, the conference ended with Jackee Joyner-Kersee – it was amazing to see someone who you’ve admired for so long but never heard speak so intimately. She left us with a few quotes as well: “The support has to match the challenge,”, “Know your why; those that know why will always be those that know how,”, “Know what it takes to get on the podium,”, “Remain coachable,”, and finally, she reminded us to give back to our students with hope, guidance, and light.
Superintendent Remarks
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October has come and gone and so has the first quarter of the school year. It’s been a wonderful first quarter and second quarter is off to a great start.
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I want to thank our Board – in particular, Andy, Carolyn, Kisha, Jennifer, and Marissa – for attending the MSBA conference in Kansas City. I believe we all learned a lot and it was an enjoyable experience. I was also impressed with Carolyn, Andy, and Geoff’s presentation as they had 37 attendees. It was titled, “Going Beyond Budgets for Student Success” and they did an outstanding job.
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We continue to move forward on some major initiatives, including finalizing decision on expansion of our early childhood program to make it more accessible to our students. We continue to look at ways to offer additional after-school programming for middle school students next year. The more we can get students involved in activities after school, the more academics will follow. We continue to offer leadership opportunities at our high school, including a leadership breakfast on Wednesday. Dr. Derrick Wallace has a few new community education proposals he is working on as well.
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I’m also excited about the data overview that will be given tonight. Over the past three years, we have brought in more educational support in the form of instructional coaches and additional teaching assistants, so that they along with our talented teachers can dive deeper into ensuring all students find success. As I walk through schools, including Old Bonhomme today, it’s common to see students receiving additional support in small breakout rooms. It’s also common to see students receiving acceleration opportunities, like today when I saw students walk down to a construction site of a home and were able to talk directly with the builder.
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Tomorrow is November 8 and it is a professional development day in our district so students will not be in attendance, but I can assure you a lot of learning will take place with our staff and teachers.
INFORMATION ITEMS
Board Advisory Committee Update
The Board has received four qualified applications for the newly created Legislative Board Advisory Committee and the four applicants are recommended for approval to the committee.
UPCOMING MEETINGS
The next Board of Education regular business meeting is Monday, Nov. 21, 2022. The Meeting ID will be posted on the Featured tab of BoardDocs when the meeting information is officially posted.