Will Roderique's 11th School Board term will be his last

William Roderique, the second longest serving member of the Webb City R-7 Board of Education has not filed for reelection, which means his 33 years of service will come to an end when his current 11th term expires in April.

His seat is one of three that were open, however, there will be no election because only three candidates signed before the Dec. 23 deadline.

David Collard, who will have completed 12 terms (36 years) in April, is the longest serving member – and he is coming back for another term.

Scott Smith, who won election in 2025 to complete Jeanne Newby’s eighth term (23 years), will begin a new three-year term in April.

Taking Roderique’s seat in April will be Maggie Schade, the community impact minister at Christ’s Church of Oronogo.

Roderique was absent for the board’s regular monthly meeting on Tuesday.

Present, in addition to Collard and Smith, were Stephen Crane, Dan McGrew, Erin Taylor and Jason Woodmansee, whose terms are not expiring.

The board reluctantly accepted retirement letters from three teachers with a combined 77 years of experience with the district.

• Shauna Friend, 28 years as a high school chemistry and physics teacher.

• Laura Hoog, 23 years as a special education teacher at Carterville Elementary School.

• Darin Hostetter, 26 years as the high school auto body instructor.

Initial legislative news not as bad as expected

Superintendent Brenten Byrd, responding to Gov. Mike Kehoe’s State of the State address earlier in the day, said, “The initial news (from the legislative session) is not as bas as I thought.”

He said Kehoe’s proposed budget does not include cuts to public education, except for transportation. Byrd had figured potential funding cuts into the current budget, so he said no cuts would mean the district will end the year in good financial condition.

“We didn’t come out (of the governor’s message) crying, but we’re not celebrating,” he said.

He and a contingent of board members are planning trips to Jefferson City while the legislature is in session to present the board’s priorities.

In other action:

• Allison Pope, assistant superintendent of instructional services, reported on a plan to participate in a state pilot program of interim testing to assess students’ mastery of subjects in addition to the annual MAP test.

• Josh Flora, assistant superintendent of business operations, reported on a renewed agreement with the city of Oronogo to share revenue from the cell-phone leases on the water tower near the Truman Schools complex.

• The resignation letter from Justin Boudreaux as a high school counselor was accepted.

• Contracts were offered to:

– Masen Cook, high school science teacher.

– Jessica Holt, high school counselor.

– Logan Walker, high school special education.

• Commencement was set for May 15.

• Summer school dates were set for May 28 – June 24.