​​Kevin Zhou, a student starting his junior year at Marquette High School, achieved a perfect score on his ACT.  

"I think focusing on specific sections and practicing time management skills really helped me a lot," Kevin said. "I took a practice test and read a test prep book on the science and reading portions. I was really excited about my score."

Construction continues to equip all 19 Rockwood elementary schools with innovation rooms. 

Rockwood K-12 STEM Coordinator Bob Deneau said, "The innovation rooms are designed to bring new opportunities for students and teachers. It's a space different than their normal, classroom environment. That can allow them to do some different things, be more creative and collaborative, and use equipment not available in a standard classroom. That includes more robotics, more electronics and more building. Those rooms can really be flexed and changed to meet the needs of what the teacher wants to do." 

Rockwood Facilities Director Chris Freund said the innovation spaces at Blevins, Wild Horse and Fairway will be completed during the first week of August. Innovation rooms are in the planning stages at Ellisville and Ballwin. Installation of the rooms at Eureka and Geggie is taking place along with the new construction or renovation being done at those schools. 

"By the end of this school year, we want all of them up-and-running, fully functional," said Deneau. 

Rockwood district voters approved funding for the elementary innovation rooms in the 2017 bond issue. They are specially-equipped. 

"Definitely," said Deneau. "There's the robotics equipment, the 3D printing equipment, the construction tools and electronics kits. They all really do offer students and teachers a unique experience to complement what they do in the classroom." 

Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost said, "The innovation rooms will be great resources for our teachers to enhance creative, hands-on, critical thinking exercises for our students." 

Learn about bond issue progress at other Rockwood schools.​ 

​This is the second year for the Rockwood Early College Partnership with St. Louis Community College in Wildwood. Rockwood juniors and seniors are able to participate in dual enrollment in high school and college at the same time.

Students earn 60 college credits over the course of the two-year program. There is no cost to the student's family to participate in the program other than the cost of textbooks.

"Last year was the pilot program for the Early College Partnership," said Todd Minichiello, coordinator of K-12 school counseling. "We had 30 students from our four high schools participate. The year was a great success. For the second year we have 60 students enrolled."

Students take all of thei​r classes at the college campus. They can also take one class at their high school. Participation in after school sports and activities is encouraged to keep students connected to their high schools. 

When they graduate, students will have their Rockwood high school diploma as well as an associate's degree with 60 college credits from the community college. Each year, Rockwood will have 30 juniors and 30 seniors in the program. This program saves the students two years of post-high school work.

Students say they enjoy the freedom that comes with being at college.  They have more control over their schedules and more free time.

Alex Hoffman, a senior from Lafayette High School, says having more free time is a good. It's needed for the greater workload of college classes. Alex said, "It's been pretty great. I get a huge leg up with two years of free college."

Junior Logan Sowadski from Eureka High Schools likes the faster paced classes. Logan said, "I have really high expectations of myself and this program helps me fulfill those."

​A transformation is taking place behind LaSalle Springs Middle School. 

More than five dozen sixth-grade students, parents and staff devoted their time on Aug. 18 to install a community garden.

"It was really fun," said student Ruby Copeland. "I helped shovel dirt into wheelbarrows and then dumped them into the garden beds."

Families and staff assembled several garden beds:

• ​Six raised vegetable beds​
  
• Two pollinator gardens
  
• ​Three herb and flower gardens

Like they do every weekday morning, Rockwood school bus drivers pulled up in front of Ridge Meadows Elementary Friday, Aug. 24. 

Only they weren't delivering children. This time, they parked their buses and walked inside. 

Ridge Meadows staff members greeted them in the library for their annual School Bus Drivers Appreciation Breakfast. 

"We like to let them know they are a part of our team," said Ridge Meadows Assistant Principal Nicholle Simmons. "What they do for students is just as important as what we do. We want to make sure they feel our appreciation." 

Simmons said the event also serves as an opportunity to discuss the most effective ways to keep students safe. 

"We talk a little about Ridge Meadows, our expectations for bus riders, how buses come in, dismissals, arrivals and anything that affects our daily transportation," said Simmons. 

Rockwood school bus driver Verdis Ellis said he and his fellow drivers appreciate the effort. 

"I enjoy it," said Ellis. "We appreciate staff members expressing their affection for us and letting us know they notice what we do."

Green Pines first grade teacher Bryan Tenny filled nearly every seat in his classroom, the evening of Aug. 23. 

His new students were not there. Their parents were. 

"This is an opportunity for me to roll out my All-Star process for parents," said Tenny, in his thirteenth year teaching in Rockwood. "I have always had this passion for letting kids know they are loved and cared for. Now we have this social-emotional approach in schools. I've really invested my time and energy into incorporating it into my All-Stars program. Students feel so much a part of the community, they are willing to do everything and anything for their class. When you get learners like that, we can do just about anything." 

Among those in attendance was Nicole Cheak. Her son, Brennan, was a student of Tenny's two years ago. 

"The way Brennan was able to portray himself after being one of Mr. Tenny's All-Stars was very important to us," said Cheak, "and he wanted to make sure he was able to share his story." 

Brennan did share, standing in front of the group of parents and reading from a statement prepared in his own hand-writing. 

"Being an All-Star is something I continue to do, every day, even when I'm playing hockey," said Brennan. "I also make sure when I see a need I do something about it, like emptying the dishwasher. Parents, remember to tell your kids that every day is a great day to learn something new. Once an All-Star, always an All-Star." 

New parents noticed Brennan's enthusiasm. 

"I think it's going to help them get ready for the rest of their lives," said parent Jessica Lansing. "It's a community feeling, and I think it'll be a good thing." 

William Church spoke of his son's experience. 

"Tenny is very excited, very passionate, and I really enjoy that. I think that'll work for my son." 

Tenny cited Rockwood Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost's Rockwood Champions initiative. 

"Every single child needs to feel like someone is in their corner, invested in them," said Tenny. "In elementary school, I get to be with my kids almost the entire day. So I get to show these 21 sets of parents that I'm all in, not only this year, but for as long as you know me. If you invest in kids, they realize you love them." 

This year, we're beginning an important journey. Over the next few months, we’ll be working on a new five-year strategic plan to set the future direction of our school district.

The Way Forward represents our commitment to every child, every family and every employee of the Rockwood School District.​ This will be an inclusive process. We'll ask questions, listen, evaluate and take an even closer look at what we can do better.

In the coming weeks, our community is going to be hearing a lot about this journey. To launch this strategic planning process, we’re inviting all members of our school community to a state-of-the-district presentation on Sept. 26. Along the way, we’ll also encourage our community to exchange their thoughts and share their ideas on how to make our school district a​n even better place for our students and families.

In Rockwood, we know that our strong school district is reflective of our strong community. Join us in this effort as we plan and set the direction of our Rockwood schools. 

Rockwood's presence on social media just got even bigger! 

Rockwood School District has launched an Instagram page. 

Check us out on Facebook, check us out on Twitter, check us out on Youtube and now you can check us out on Instagram. ​

​On Tuesday, Sept. 4, Rockwood conducted a test of our automatic notification system to ensure all staff members are receiving the district's emergency messages in case of school closings, crisis situations and inclement weather.

Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost sent a notification at 7 p.m. to our Rockwood employees, via phone, email and text. (Please note that parent notifications will be sent at a later time.)

Need Assistance Updating Contact Information?
Have you recently changed your household, cell or work phone number? 

• Rockwood employees need to make sure the information is accurate in BusinessPlus.

• ​Rockwood SSD employees need to make sure their information is accurate in SSDLife.
  

If your contact information is accurate in these two systems, it will be accurate in our automatic notification systems due to our regular uploads of contact information.

Do you need to opt-in to receive text messages?
Text the word "YES" to 68453 from each cell phone/wireless device you wish to receive texts on. (68453 is Rockwood's new short code for text messaging. Please add this number to your phone contact list.) Make sure this phone number is included in your contact information on Infinite Campus. Texts will only be sent to cell phones associated with your students' information on Infinite Campus. Find out more about the opt-in to the service.​

Did your message get cut off?
Messages in progress may be restarted from the beginning by pressing the star (*) key.  

Did your answering machine not record the entire message?
Find out answers​ on how to program your answering machine, plus read answers to a number of frequently asked questions about our automatic notification system.

Want more information about Rockwood Connect?
Staff members may receive two types of phone messages on the Rockwood Automatic Notification System: 

1) Alerts for district-level emergency situations and 
2) Outreach messages from the school. 

For more information about the district's automatic notification system, visit the Rockwood Connect website​ on One Rockwood.​

Rockwood's Kellison Elementary was highlighted by the ASPEN Institute, the National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development. 

An article featuring Kellison was written by Lynn Olson, the organization's editorial director.​ 

The article reads, in part, "One key aspect of a positive school environment is that every student is known well and has a strong relationship with at least one adult in the building. At Kellison, strong student-to-student and student-to-adult relationships are fostered in a variety of ways." 

Principal Dr. Kimberly Dickens said, "We make a concerted effort to teach behaviors we want to see in our students. We use opportunities when they present themselves to teach students what behavior is expected." 

Dickens said Kellison has a school-wide approach when it comes to teaching expectations. 

​"We call them our 'Tigertudes,'" she said. "Students hear them all the time." 

Dickens said Tigertudes include being honest, caring, cooperative, respectful and responsible. 

"Our staff looks for those Tiger traits in students," Dickens said. "They're recognized by getting a Tiger ticket every time they show a Tigertude. We read their names on announcements. This year our students are charting their Tigertude tickets so they can see which character traits they are showing the most, and maybe which one they want to do a better job of practicing at school. This helps them make good decisions when it comes to their behavior. Working with other principals in Rockwood, I know they do some very similar things." 

"This is a really big deal," said Rockwood Executive Director of Student Services, Dr. Terry Harris. "An organization like the ASPEN Institute taking notice of our work is amazing. What is really rewarding is that article could have been written about all of our schools. Over the past four years, social-emotional learning has been a common language in Rockwood schools. Kellison staff members are true champions of social-emotional learning." 

​It was time to celebrate at Lafayette High School.

Colleagues of Nancy Smith honored her recent recognition as the 2018 Carl Towley Winner from the Journalism Education Association (JEA) for her service as the national contest chair since 2010.   

Dr. Karen Calcaterra shared the good news. "Nancy is such a professional and an outstanding educator," she noted. "She understands how to connect with kids and is a true role model and motivator in the classroom."​

Smith is an adviser to the student-led newspaper staff of the Lafayette Image, the Image online and the school yearbook. She has 33 years of experience as an educator. Twenty-six of those have been spent at Lafayette working with high school journalism students and advisers.

"I like serving as a role model for my students by volunteering for my professional organization. I think it is important that they see that I am dedicated to journalism education both in school and out."

Ms. Smith believes that it's not only vital to serve her students, her school and her district, but her profession as well. This commitment shows in her accomplishments. In 2016, she was selected as a Medal of Merit recipient and the Yearbook Adviser of the Year from the JEA. She was a 2016 recipient of the National Scholastic Press Association's Pioneer Award. In 2014, she was named a Dow Jones News Fund Distinguished Adviser.

Smith will be honored for her service to scholastic journalism with the Carl Towley Award at the national convention this fall in Chicago. "I never expected to be recognized in any way for the work I do," she says. "I love running the national contests for JEA and get to work with amazing journalism teachers from all over the country."​

​​ The JEA supports free and responsible scholastic journalism by promoting professionalism in student media education and advising.

Michelle Griese's second-grade students at Ridge Meadows Elementary have opened up their own classroom library. 

Principal Dr. Amy Digman was on hand, Aug. 29, for the ribbon-cutting at the Just Can't Stop Reading Library. 

"We wanted to work together to build something the kids would all have ownership in," said Griese. "We started by putting all the books in the middle of the room. Students wanted to do the chapter books, first, so they sorted them by series and decided where they wanted to display them. Then they made their own labels." 

Griese said students put the remaining chapter books in different categories such as mystery and suspense, and humor. They removed books students decided were beneath their reading level. 

"Then they made labels for everything and came up with a name for the library," said Griese. "Students have so much ownership in it. I hope they get even more excited about reading. I hope they learn there are different genres that exist and different choices to get interested in - like fiction and non-fiction. I want students to feel like they created this library." 

Student Aubrey Toti said, "I helped with all the categories and all the chapter books and the little tags we put on them. I liked working with my group." 

"I sorted and made the signs for three of the books – about the characters Cam Jansen, Eloise and Amber Brown," said second-grade student Nora Rickman. "I think it's pretty cool and pretty awesome." 

​Rockwood will conduct a test of its emergency notification system on Wednesday, Sept. 12. 

We want to be sure our parents are informed for school cancellations due to inclement weather or in case of an emergency in our school community. The annual test of our automatic notification system ensures Rockwood has accurate contact information for parents. 

A phone message from Rockwood Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost will be sent to our Rockwood families around 7 p.m., followed by a text and email message. 

Make sure your family contact information is accurate: 

• Check your family's phone numbers and contact information on the Parent Portal of Infinite Campus. If you do not have an Infinite Campus account, find out how you can get one. 

  ​
  

• If you need to update this contact information, please call your school and notify your school registrar. You may also use Rockwood's new online verification process.​

   
• Rockwood's automatic notification system receives a daily upload of student contact information from Infinite Campus to ensure we have the most up-to-date contact information for our students. 

Remember to opt-in for text messages: 

• Text the word "YES" to 67587 from each cell phone/wireless device on which you wish to receive texts.  (67587 is Rockwood's short code for text messaging.  Please add this number to your phone contact list.) 
  
  
• Make sure this phone number is included in your contact information on Infinite Campus. Texts will only be sent to cell phones associated with your family's information on Infinite Campus. 
  
  

• If you are not already receiving text messages, find out more about the opt-in to the service. 

Rockwood sends out two types of messages: 

• Emergency: In case of a crisis situation, Rockwood will send out notifications to all phone numbers listed for our students - including the household, cell and work numbers for parents. 
  
  
• Outreach: Schools keep parents connected to news and information by calling parent cell phones, as well as sending out emails and text messages to the addresses/SMS-enabled phone numbers on file with their child's contact information.  

Questions?

Visit the Rockwood Connect website for answers to some frequently asked questions or call Rockwood Communications at (636) 733-1140. ​

Rockwood Gives Back is excited to announce the organization's first-ever Run 4 Rockwood Kids! 

Who? This 5K and Fun Run is a family event! Race times start at 3 p.m. along with the Run 4 Rockwood Kids village with kid-friendly activities, games and food trucks. 

When? It takes place on Sunday, Oct. 7. Mark your calendar!

• Date: ​Sunday, Oct. 7
  
• Race Time: 5K at 3 p.m.
  
• Fun Run Time: 4 p.m.
  
• Location: LaSalle Springs Middle School
  
• ​Address: 3300 Highway 109 in Wildwood, MO 63038

Register Online: https://register.chronotrack.com/r/43410​​

​100 percent of all proceeds go directly to Rockwood students in need!​​​​

Why? Because we care about kids! Rockwood Gives Back supports the district mission of doing whatever it takes to ensure all students realize their potential. Rockwood Gives Back provides assistance to students who have a demonstrated need - whether it be food, clothing, programs, tutoring or more. We want to remove obstacles to learning and help students achieve their goals.  ​Find out how you can donate and support the effort.​

​

Each week after school, band students from LaSalle Springs and Wildwood middle schools meet with Eureka High band students to fine tune their skills as they receive complimentary instrument lessons. It's part of the A+ music lessons tutoring program.

"This is a win-win situation for everyone involved," said John Arata, Eureka High band director. "Middle school students get valuable one-on-one instruction on their instruments, and high school students earn valuable scholarship benefits of the A+ program​. A great way to learn something is to teach it, so high schools students grow in their own personal musiciansh​ip."

Sept. 10-14 is National Arts in Education Week, a time when Rockwood joins school districts across the country to recognize fine arts and its impact on student learning.​

Isabella Smith, a senior at Eureka High, tutors Abigail Christianson, an eighth-grade student at LaSalle Springs, in playing the flute.

"We've been paired together for three years," said Smith. "Abigail brings her class materials, and we work on them together. I've seen her improve a lot since she was in sixth grade."

Christianson said, "It's really cool. Being able to come here and get one-on-one tutoring helps a lot."

Arata says since the tutoring is free and the lessons are held at a convenient location, middle school students are eager to take advantage of this great benefit.

The program started three years ago. A Eureka High student asked Arata and teacher Jeremy Knudtson if she could fulfill her A+ tutoring hours by coaching a middle school band student. Arata and Knudtson took the opportunity to research and launch the program. This year, 26 high school students and 40 middle school students are involved.​​

"The music lessons make the A+ program more accessible for high school students because we actively facilitate the tutoring hours," added Arata.

Learn more about Rockwood Fine Arts.​

​President's Forum is a group of parent leaders who work together to shape, grow and support the mission of Rockwood School District. It's all about helping kids thrive at home and at school.

They strive to find innovative ways to support students and facilitate meaningful communication between parents, schools and administrators.​

 Kary Bachert, co-president of the Presidents' Forum Executive Board said, "Our goal at our monthly meetings is to educate our PTO leaders on trends, hot topics their groups are facing, and share key information about Rockwood School District that they can share among their school community." ​

PTO members connect at Superintendent Coffees. Coffees provide an opportunity for PTO presidents to ask Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost questions and discuss topics in an informal setting. Presidents take what they learn and share it with their school communities. ​​

"I think this is a great forum for all of us to​​ come together to exchange great ideas and see what other schools are doing," said Christy Pitney, co-vice president of the Presidents' Forum Executive Board, "I'm looking forward to getting acquainted with other parent leaders and sharing ideas so we can make our PTOs even better."

​

Patriot Day ceremonies took place at several Rockwood schools on the anniversary of 9/11. 

On the track outside Lafayette High School, Principal Dr. Karen Calcaterra read a proclamation: "Those whom we lost on Sept. 11, 2001, will forever hold a cherished place in our hearts and in the history of our nation. As we mark the 17th anniversary of that tragic day, we remember their sacrifice and we commit ourselves to honoring their memories by pursuing peace and justice in the world and security at home. During Operations Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn and Enduring Freedom, more than 7,350 United States service members have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Five of those service members belonged to the Rockwood School District family - Peter Navarro and Paul Varner, Lafayette; Riley Baker, Eureka; Zak Fisher, Marquette; and Edward Forrest, Jr., Rockwood Summit." 

At Eureka High, the day included a series of gestures. An American flag overlooks the front doors of the commons, and the school was decorated with smaller flags. Students displayed banners paying tribute to those who died on 9/11. The banners also pay tribute to the service members who have given the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our country, since then. 

Eureka High students wore patriotic wristbands in commemoration of the day. A tribute was read aloud during announcements, after the Pledge of Allegiance. 

Our youngest learners at Rockwood Early Childhood wore red, white and blue. Executive Director of Rockwood Early Childhood Dr. Jane Brown said, "One of the foundational things we do in our preschool is we talk about taking care of ourselves and each other. We take care of our school, and we take care of our world. So, they begin to have an understanding of living in a place that is bigger than just your home. Wearing red, white and blue is the first step in learning that process."

Students at Crestview Middle took part in a "Tribute Workout" during physical education classes. Some of the workouts included pushups, situps​ and lunges.

                                          Lafayette Air Force Junior ROTC students                                     A Rockwood Early Childhood student
                                              participated in Patriot Day ceremonies.                                wore red, white and blue for Patriot Day.

Now that we have the school year well underway, I've enjoyed getting back to connecting with students, staff and families, especially during my school and event visits. 

Our Rockwood community works hard to make our schools great places for students. Yet, we should always acknowledge a desire to be even better... and we can be better. 

I've called for a collective effort from all our students, adults and community members to help make our schools the best possible places where all can thrive, especially our students. I've asked our schools to work tirelessly as we move forward, to make sure every child can identify at least one adult champion in their school life. 

Champions extend a hand. They connect with children to encourage them to be their best selves. They are trusted adults who go the extra mile to build relationships with students so they can learn and grow. Champions are advocates and confidants who make a school day a little brighter regardless of any circumstance. 

We face challenges every day in our lives. Sometimes, those challenges can be more than overwhelming. Schools need to be places of comfort and refuge. They need to be places where champions inspire students to do their very best. I'm quite certain there have been children who may have had champions, yet never made a real connection. This is why we need to step up our efforts to make sure every child makes this connection. 

Please reflect on these thoughts as you view this latest video, and join me in this effort to make our schools the very best places for everyone to thrive. I wish you all the best year yet. 

Dozens of emergency responders who work within the footprint of Rockwood School District turned out for Rockwood's Crisis Planning Workshop, Wednesday, Sept. 12, in the Administrative Annex. They were joined by Rockwood administrators and parents. 

Superintendent Dr. Eric Knost welcomed the police, fire and EMS workers. 

"We could not accomplish our mission without the partnerships we have with first responders," said Knost. "The peace of mind we get from knowing you've got our backs is something we greatly appreciate. We need to keep relationships with first responders strong." 

Rockwood administrators shared resources and discussed best practices with first responders, to assist them when responding to possible emergencies in Rockwood schools. 

Knost debuted his Rockwood Champions video and discussed how the concept fits into school safety. 

"We're on a mission to develop Rockwood Champions and make sure it coincides with the tactical things we have in place to ensure student safety," explained Knost. "What is a champion? When children are in school, there should be at least one person who is a ray of light that makes them feel school is a safe haven for them. We've come up with this concept to make sure every child has a champion at school. Now it's become a part of our Rockwood culture. It's posted on bulletin boards. Teachers and students are talking about it. I contend that it is a missing ingredient in all the school tragedies around our country." 

John Bergfeld is a Ballwin Police captain. 

"This event is an opportunity for us to collaborate with other emergency responders and school officials and talk through what we would do in a crisis, before we find ourselves in one," said Bergfeld. 

Bergfeld said the crisis planning workshop is all about communication and collaboration. 

"It's an opportunity for us to compare notes and eliminate miscommunication before we're actually in a crisis."