"All means all" was the theme of R-I Superintendent Scott Dill's state-of-the-school address at the annual convocation on Monday, Aug. 14, at the Black River Coliseum.
The statement served to affirm the district's mission - Achieving excellence through learning: Every child, every hour, every day.
Having the entire staff together - nearly 800 employees, Dill took the opportunity to announce this year's focus with major construction now in the rearview: to strengthen the district's PLC model, which stands for professional learning community.
"For my money, if there's a better way to improve performance, I have not found it," Dill stated, noting that it is the golden era of educational research.
A PLC is defined in school literature as an ongoing process in which educators work collaboratively in recurring cycles of collective inquiry and action research to achieve better results for the students they serve.
Dill and his administrative team participated in a PLC Institute over the summer to brush up on the guiding principles in order to ensure the process is being implemented with fidelity from building to building, in light of routine turnover that has taken place.
The district initially engaged in the process several years ago, instituting Collaboration Day, contractual time built into the academic calendar for teachers to work together interdependently analyzing data and aligning curriculum in order to help individual learners excel.
"I see this as a retooling of what we're doing really well in a lot of places," said Dill, reflecting on his first year in Poplar Bluff. "We have to move past talking about my kids and start talking about our kids."
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education posted last week that this year's graduation rate for PBHS is 91.8 percent, an increase of 4.2 percent over 2016, and more than 13 percent since 2011. Dill commended the faculty on the substantial strides. Even still he pointed out there are about 8 percent of students not walking across the stage.
"The stakes are high, ladies and gentlemen," Dill concluded.
Prior to the address, faith partners united to deliver a prayer, the JROTC presented the colors and vendors raffled off prizes. Each principal introduced their new staff members. The convocation serves as a pep rally for employees as they enter a school year.
Above: Superintendent Scott Dill delivers the state-of-the-school address.
Below: Members of the Board of Education show their support during the convocation.
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