WESTPHALIA — Fatima R-3 Superintendent John Kitchens told board members at their Oct. 21 meeting that he’s considering having district staff members train to carry firearms in school.

“This is teaching our current teachers firearms training,” Kitchens explained. “There have been 52 school shootings this year in the U.S. You have to put yourself in the mindset of what you should do as a parent, as a teacher, and as an administrator.”

Kitchens said a former police officer is on staff at Fatima who has been invaluable in providing information and ideas for a safer school district.

The superintendent noted he had spoken with [certified firearm] instructors in Springfield who may be able to come up to mid-Missouri and teach staff at a local gun range.

“Before crunching the numbers and looking into it anymore, I would just like to know if there are any strong oppositions to this idea,” Kitchens said.

“I’m 100% on board,” said Board VP Matt Robertson. “It may even act as a deterrent.”

“The thing that hit me was that the recent shooting in Oregon took three minutes,” Kitchens said. “It could take 20 minutes for the Osage County Sheriff’s Department to get here. The best-case scenario is 12 to 15 minutes. It seems irresponsible to not at least look at the cost and consider it.”

Kitchens will do some additional research and report back to the board.

In other business, the board approved girls’ golf as a new sport, beginning in the fall of 2027.

Kitchens noted that staff member Eric Saak, who been the boys’ assistant golf coach for several years, had been running a girls’ golf club for the last three years. Girls had participated in the boys’ golf team for several years prior to that.

“We have more girls participating in the golf club than in basketball this year,” Kitchens said.

• The Fatima school district plans to have a radius for sports and club events of 50 miles. If an event is outside of the 50-mile radius, the club or sports program would have to pay for transportation.

“I bring this up to be fiscally responsible,” Kitchens said. “This has been done in the past by past superintendents.”

Kitchens said that the district will allow parents to drive their students to and from events as well.

“We’ve done that for some girls’ basketball and volleyball,” Kitchens said. “Fuel is up 50%, and we have to cover everything over $3 per gallon.”

Kitchens said he has talked to the coaches and club sponsors about the upcoming changes.

“We heard today that if everything was solved in the Middle East today, it would still take two years to get back to capacity,” Kitchens said. “I don’t see an end in sight.”

“I think this is the new normal,” Robertson said. “We are going to have to adjust our budgets and look at our transportation contract.”

• The district plans to change its policy for retirement and resignation incentives. Currently, the district pays a $500 incentive for staff who inform the district they plan to retire or resign by March 1.

“Twenty years ago, March 1 worked,” Kitchens said. “Right now, March 1 is not very beneficial.”

The district will move the date to Dec. 1 but leave the amount of the incentive the same.

• Fatima is having trouble filling hourly positions. “We are having a real tough time finding folks,” Kitchens said, adding there are job openings for kitchen staff and janitors, all of which are paid on an hourly-wage basis.

Board Secretary Sarah Brendel noted that the district is trying to utilize free ways to post the job openings to save money on advertising.

“We can’t really offer crazy money here but maybe we need to increase our pay scale,” Kitchens said. “Our revenues are tightening, but these are critical positions. We can’t operate without them.”

Currently, daytime staff starts at $15.05 per hour, and nighttime janitors get $15.55 per hour.

“We may need to look at these numbers; it just seems like it is a continuous struggle,” Board Member DJ Schroeder said. “We might as well face it, and be realistic.”

• Board members approved the snow routes for the upcoming winter season with minimal changes from the 2025-26 school year.

• Mandatory policy changes were approved without discussion.

• The following students were honored as students of the quarter: Charleigh Wieberg (first grade), Anna Feltrop (sixth grade), Skyler Powel (junior high), and Jackson Crede (high school).

• Board Members approved hiring the following new employees: Cooper Kleffner (substitute), Krista Schmitz (food services director), Craig Green (junior high wrestling and assistant high school wrestling), Joyce Kilmer (substitute), Makayla Heinrich (substitute), and Jacob Struemph (paraprofessional). The board accepted the resignation of Reese Dawson (preschool aide) as of Oct. 2.

• Thirteen students were approved for early graduation in December.

• The school board members approved outstanding bills for October totaling $375,938.21.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT

Kitchens reported that the A-F Report Card rating for school districts is finally out, and both the elementary and high school received the grade of “B”.

“We are right where we thought we would be,” Kitchens said. “To be clear, the A-F report card is the marketing plan for open enrollment in Missouri. It doesn’t help us to get another label. It’s all the same data.”

• Fatima’s board Christmas party is scheduled for Dec. 9, at which board members will discuss staff Christmas presents, noting that he intends to do the same thing as the previous school year.

• Kitchens is thankful to the kitchen staff who are working shorthanded and still providing a vital service. He also said that recent comments have shown that the food is improving.

• Kitchens would also like to look at the rules for using the weight room in the district. He believes the policy should be revamped to better serve the community and students.

PRINCIPALS’ REPORT

High School Principal Somer Hinshaw praised the band for recent performances. The Fatima band placed second at the Sullivan parade, first place in the Mizzou Homecoming parade, and first place at the Potosi parade. They also won Best Music at the Potosi parade.

“I’ve received three random emails from parents of other school districts voicing support for our band program,” Hinshaw said.

Hinshaw reported that enrollment was 397 students in high school, with a 97% attendance rate.

• Elementary Principal Renee Ellingsworth-Albert noted that PTO’s Carnival Night was a huge success, raising over $7,000. She also thought that the trunk-or-treat was a big event and was attended by 350-400 students. The PTO Christmas Party will feature Santa Claus and is sure to be a good time.

• Ellingworth-Albert thanked the art teachers in both elementary and high school for displaying the student artwork in the library during the school board meeting.

“We are so blessed to have them both at our school,” Ellingsworth-Albert said.

• Elementary enrollment was noted at 234 students, with a 96.8% attendance rate.

SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTOR REPORT

Coordinator Janah Massman reported that the Title 1 Program is up and running. She said that her department passed out books during the recent trunk-or-treat event.

• She is setting up dates for testing in the spring of 2027.

ATHLETIC DIRECTOR REPORT

Athletic Director Matt Baker noted that fall sports ended.

The softball team earned third place with a win over Marceline as reported last week, finishing with a record of 18-12. Volleyball ended the season with a 14-15 record and runner-up plaque at the district tournament.

Baker noted cross country was especially busy closing out the season, with both full teams earning a state berth. That meet is covered in this edition of the U.D.

The boys’ soccer team had a season record of 3-15, ending the year in the district semifinals.

Junior High basketball teams played eight games and had strong local support.

Baker noted Fatima student-athletes competed in Special Olympics on Oct. 2 at South Callaway.

• Baker reported that transportation for all the events had been scheduled and coordinated, and home events were fully staffed.

• Winter sports officially began on Nov. 2.

• The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 6 p.m.