The Fort Zumwalt School District Board of Education has named Dr. Paul Myers as Superintendent of Schools, effective July 1. The announcement was first shared with the community in the fall of 2021 when longtime superintendent Dr. Bernard DuBray announced his retirement, which will be effective June 30. The current school year has been a transition period, during which Myers has served as Superintendent-Elect.
Myers, who joined the district in 1999, is now in his 24th year with Fort Zumwalt. He first served at South Middle School as a School Psychologist and Educational Diagnostician before becoming an Assistant Principal at West Middle School. In 2005 he was named Principal at South Middle School, a position he held until moving into district level administration, where he has served in multiple roles and overseen Special Education, Health and Early Childhood Services, Student Personnel Services and Administrative Services, which includes Transportation, Student Nutrition and Custodial Services. His background in mental health services has informed much of his work with the district, including the launch of what has grown to be the Mike Clemens Center for Adaptive Learning.
The leadership transition has come at a unique time for Fort Zumwalt, as the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has assigned the district the task of researching, writing and implementing a new Continuous School Improvement Plan (CSIP), due to DESE this summer. Jennifer Waters, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, has chaired the steering committee guiding the process. Myers has worked closely with Waters and been involved in all of the steering committee meetings as well as all of the community forum meetings. The CSIP maps the district’s goals for the next three to five years.
“In some places CSIP and strategic plan are used somewhat interchangeably,” Myers says. “But that’s not the case here. The CSIP is at the center, but as we move forward, there are other components to a strategic plan that we will have to work on, like facilities planning, for example.”
Expect the CSIP to be presented to the Board of Education this summer. Once approved by the Board, it will be submitted to the state and, next year, will be a component in how the school district is scored for its Annual Performance Report.
“The most important, and rewarding, part of the CSIP process has been the opportunity to hear from our community. The process brings in input from faculty and staff, students and families, and our other community stakeholders,” Myers says. “We certainly recognize the value in listening to feedback to understand priorities and also areas where we can continue to improve.”
Families and community members will also have plenty of opportunities to meet the new Superintendent of Fort Zumwalt School District. Watch the calendar at fz.k12.mo.us as the new school year begins in August.
Tune in April 30, 2023 to the FORTiTUDE podcast to hear Dr. Myers and Mrs. Waters breakdown the CSIP process and share more about Mapping Our Future.