NEVC announces test scores and superintendent to retire

by Johannes Brann

At its regular meeting on December 21, Superintendent Chris Holcomb reviewed the district’s test scores from the previous year while in closed session he announced his retirement following the close of this school year. “I will be retiring from education and working in the Ag industry.”

All board members were on hand—David Bruce, Heather Brown, Heath Brown, Deland Prough, Connie Gerster, Scott Pritchett and Mike Newman—as well as Board Secretary Janice Graves and the superintendent. The district’s two principals were given the night off but submitted written reports.

In an interview prior to the meeting, Holcomb reviewed the test scores saying, “Overall, the district’s numbers on from the Missouri Assessment Program (Map testing) and from End of Course (EOC) tests from the 2022-2023 school year were down 3.4 percent. And to be honest, they weren’t the best the previous year.”

Those math and ELA scores stated that only 50 percent of tested students were at what is called the “proficient” level or better in the subject; this is below the state average.

Commented Holcomb, “When I came on board and reviewed the district’s test scores for the past several years, I made academic improvement a priority of my time here. That is why we are participating in DESE’s (Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Schools) DCI (District Continuous Improvement) program to help fully align the courses we teach with state standards and then become even better teachers of that content.”

Pair for by a grant written by Holcomb, this program brings in a team to analyze the district’s strengths and weaknesses and then lays out a process from making improvements each year.

Asked when such efforts should show up in test scores, he expected to see the first improvements in the 2024-2025 school year.

Added the Superintendent, “As they say, this is like turning an oil tanker; even when you turn the wheel hard, it takes a while before you see the results. We have good teachers, they are buying into the process and they’re starting to see how it’s going to help them in the classroom day-by-day. Our students can and will learn and can and will do better.”

For a number of years, Congress, through the Federal Communications Commission, has been making funds available to schools and libraries to enhance their Internet and information services; it is called “E-Rate Funding.”

The superintendent explained to the board how the wiring and available connections for Internet and information services is a jumble of multiple systems which have been added, one on top of another.

Said Holcomb, “All of us—administrators, teachers and even students—depend on the internet for teaching, assignments and information. When we lose the internet, we are in trouble!”

The superintendent explained that the district, at both its campuses, has a hot-spot so when internet service is lots, and he said this happens too many times each year, attendance can still be taken. This is critical since state tuition payments are determined in part, based upon attendance records.

Holcomb had previously gained from the board permission to begin the process to apply for E-Rate funding and get to the point of taking bids for creating a far more reliable system of wiring and information services.

Holcomb said four companies physically made a walk-through of both buildings to see the needs and so prepare a bid. Three firms submitted a bid but one of them only bid on part of the needed work.

As part of the E-Rate process, an independent firm scores the bids and determines compliance with specifications. Inetvisions of Nevada was recommended as being best overall and on a resolution, the bid of $40,883.77 ($10,200 for fiber, $9,700 for cabling and $20,983.77 for equipment) was accepted by a 7-0 vote.

In his report, the superintendent reported obtaining a total of $15,302.64 to be put towards the purchase of new Chromebooks.

“We have a lot of units which are so old their systems are no longer supported and so we have to replace them,” said the superintendent. “I would like to get us to the point where we only have to replace a few every year.”

The funds came from the Masonic Lodge, the Artis Spencer Trust, the Ellis Foundation and the Schell City Betterment fund.

Holcomb took time to review an aspect from each of the five goals in the districts Continuous School Improvement Plan (CSIP).

Elementary enrollment was reported at 98 with 94.64 percent attendance while the high school has 100 students and an average attendance rate of 92.92 percent.