Smithville students have spring fever and are ready for summer. The Smithville R-II School District will dismiss seniors this Friday and the rest of the students will be released Friday, May 23.

It was an eventful and productive school year for the district, said Dr. Rob Leachman, superintendent.

“It was a noteworthy school year,” he said. “We are nearing completion on the largest building project in the district’s history, we completed our MSIP review and we were awarded the Distinction in Performance award. We also had many athletic and performance accomplishments. Overall, it was a very good school year.”

Smithville High School principal Todd Hinnenkamp said his students worked hard all year and pulled together during two difficult times of tragedy. During this past school year, freshman student Kelsey Thomas died and former high school senior Patrick Parker was killed in a drive-by shooting in Oklahoma.

“We had some very difficult situations this past year,” Hinnenkamp said. “Our students and our staff pulled together to get through it, and we continue to work to be more unified.”

Hinnenkamp said the high school also had many accomplishments this past school year.

“A lot of outstanding things happened this year,” he said. “Our students reached their goals and achieved at a high level. Both the teaching and support staffs worked very hard but there is always room to grow and we plan to improve every year.”

Here are some of the most important events from the 2007-2008 Smithville school year:

• The 2007-2008 school year at the Smithville R-II School District included a mix of teachers with decades of experience and fresh ideas straight from the college classroom.

The district welcomed 17 new educators to its list of teachers for the new school year during special orientation sessions in August.

• The Smithville R-II School District implemented its new districtwide wellness program this year. The new program fits within the state and federal guidelines and comes on the heels of national mandates to curb childhood obesity. Some of the changes that the wellness program implemented included specific food guidelines for breakfasts, lunches and a la carte items on the district’s food menu. But, one of the most noticeable changes to district policy is in regards to celebrations and rewards for students during the school day.

• The Northland Career Center, located in Platte City, launched its newest program this year — Crime Scene Investigation. The program, which is offered to area students from participating school districts including Smithville, allows students to enroll in the program and spend half of their day at the career center learning about the profession. Other programs at the career center include welding, culinary arts and diesel mechanics.

• The Smithville Football Club in conjunction with a variety of other athletic organizations and teams hosted the second annual Pink Ribbon Game at Smithville High School Oct. 12, 2007. At the game, football club representatives sold pink T-shirts and took donations to support free mammography screenings in Smithville. All proceeds from the event went directly to the Spelman Medical Foundation, who facilitate the annual free screenings to women who are uninsured or underinsured.

• Construction bid costs for the Smithville R-II School District’s Phase IV improvements project continued to roll in under budget last October. The district’s Board of Education approved a contract from Morton Buildings for the construction of a new administration building and early childhood education center. The total bid cost was $1,755,150. The original estimated cost was $1.8 million.

• Preliminary readings of the Smithville R-II School District’s energy outputs set the patrons up for more savings than originally expected. Wayne Krueger, assistant superintendent of support services, reported to the Board of Education Oct. 17, 2007, that the first readings of wattage, water and energy used by the district under a new conservation plan were yielding greater than expected results. The district’s Board of Education unanimously approved an energy conservation plan brought forth by Custom Energy. in April. The plan, which cost about $1.9 million up front through a lease/purchase agreement, included new HVAC units, adding a circulation system to the primary school, new energy-efficient windows, thermostat control systems, energy efficient lighting, new toilets, light sensors and more. However, the projects aren’t actually costing the district nearly that much since most of the improvements will be paid off through energy savings that the improvements themselves create. Last year, the district paid over $273,000 in utility bills.

• Whether it’s Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Woodstock or even Peppermint Patty, the Smithville High School fall musical had your favorite Peanuts character on hand. The Smithville High School fall musical, entitled “Snoopy!!!,” was held Thursday and Friday, Nov. 15 and 16.

• Smithville High School junior Josh Hughes was named to the Missouri All-State choir earlier this fall and senior Christine Chesney and sophomore Kyle Nixon each earned a spot in the Missouri All-State band in December. Both the all-state choir and all-state band performed at the Missouri Music Educators Association conference at the Lake of the Ozarks in January.

• Billy Drake, who attends Smithville Middle School, was awarded a $1,300 scholarship to attend the NASA Space Camp this summer. He was given the award in a surprise assembly at the school. He was awarded the scholarship after Smithville High School communication arts teacher Darryl Johnson was given the money to award to a student when he attended the camp last year. Johnson was named the Missouri Teacher of the Year for 2006 and the space camp scholarship for himself and another student was part of his prizes.

• Smithville, along with nearly 300 other Missouri school districts, earned the state’s “Distinction in Performance” award for academic progress and achievement during the 2006-2007 school year. A total of 294 school districts qualified for the annual recognition, which is determined by the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Of this year’s recipients, 247 are K-12 districts and 47 are K-8 districts. Last year, a total of 235 districts qualified for the award.

• Kelsey Lynn Thomas, 14, a Smithville High School freshman, died Tuesday, Feb. 12, when her grandmother found her unresponsive at their home near Smithville. No foul play was suspected in the case, according to Clay County authorities.

• Smithville parents and teens had the opportunity to learn about underage drug and alcohol abuse, bullying and other problems that plague youth during a special event at Smithville High School. The Community 2000 group at the high school, with the help of the Northland Coalition and Tri-County Mental Healthy Services, presented its second annual parent education night with “Ten Seconds Can Change Your Life Forever” by guest speaker Russell J. Simon Jr.

• The Smithville High School robotics team placed first in both the Kansas City and Oklahoma City regional competitions this spring. The team went on to compete at the national championships, where they placed 96th, in Atlanta.

• Despite and wet and cold winter, the Smithville R-II School District’s Phase IV construction plans moved forward quickly this spring but still somewhat behind schedule.

Wayne Krueger, assistant superintendent of support services, said the weather was rough on crews and the district, however, the recent break in the weather has allowed work to move forward more quickly. Krueger said the lower than expected bids helped move the process along more quickly in the early stages than in past construction projects, which helps with the unexpected weather delays.

• Smithville Middle School teacher Joy Bailey was named Art Educator of the Year by the Missouri Art Education Association for the 2007-2008 school year. She was nominated for the award for her “outstanding leadership, service and dedication to art education” and accepted the award at the organization’s annual convention in March.

Bailey, who is in her 20th year teaching, has been instructing middle school art in Smithville since 1994.

• Smithville Primary School has been offering a new program this spring called WatchDOGS. The program, which stands for Watch Dads of Great Students, is a safe school initiative sponsored by the National Center for Fathering that partners fathers with the school to provide a more safe and secure learning environment, according to www.fathers.com. This is the first year for the program in the Smithville R-II School District and its kick off meeting, which was held in January, was an overwhelming success with more than 100 fathers in attendance.

• Eight candidates faced-off in April for three open Smithville R-II School District Board of Education seats. The three candidates that came out on top were Russell Fries, 806 votes; Patty Hagan, 631 votes; and Greg Chastain, 620 votes. Other vote totals are Kendall Hughes, 577; Dan Hartman, 535; Bill Marmet, 325; Thomas Wright, 324; Greg Finney, 198; and 15 write-in ballots.

• A former Smithville teenager was shot dead in his home in western Tulsa County, Okla., in the early morning hours March 30. Patrick Parker, 17, who attended Smithville schools from kindergarten until last December, was shot in the chest inside a home in Sand Springs, Okla. According to an article in The Tulsa World newspaper, authorities responded to shots fired at 2:08 a.m. and that Parker was pronounced dead at the scene. A suspect, Kevin Ray Pigeon Jr. turned himself into authorities and is being held without bail.

• The Smithville R-II School District once again passed its mandatory five-year review by the state. The district underwent a Missouri Schools Improvement Program “mini-review” in April by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

The review is conducted every five years if the district’s annual MAP scores are high enough to allow for the extended time period. However, if a district’s scores drop significantly, a review can be called for at any time. The MSIP reviews directly affect the district’s accreditation.

Smithville Editor Ashley Vasquez can be reached at 532-4444 or ashleyvasquez@npgco.com.

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