AREA SCHOOLS WILL ALSO SEE NEW FACES THIS SCHOOL YEAR

Unfamiliar faces belonging to new students are not unusual on the first day of the school year, but several area schools also will see new adults assuming administrative duties when school begins in August.

Two school districts in the region are starting the school year with new superintendents. Don Abner has been named superintendent of Kelly schools, and Dr. Robert Isom replaces retiring Cairo, Ill., schools superintendent Dr. Elaine Bonifield.

Abner is the for Bell City School District superintendent. He worked 16 years in the school district, 10 as superintendent. He has "done just about everything there is to do in education," having taught junior high science and physical education, as well as having worked as a guidance counselor and elementary and high school principal. This is his 25th year in education.

Abner said his goal for the next school year is to develop a plan to manage growth in the school district. Two mobile units were added to accommodate growth in the school district last year. Although a bond issue that would have resulted in new construction and building renovation was defeated by voters last spring, Abner is hopeful a different plan will be better-received.

"We're averaging 50-60 new kids each year, so we definitely need more space," he said.

Isom is the former superintendent of Lovejoy School District near East St. Louis, Ill., where he worked six years, five as superintendent. He previously taught in East St. Louis for 23 years. He said his main goal, like that of most administrators and patrons in his school district, is to improve student achievement.

"That reflects on the school district in several ways, including employment opportunities and post-secondary school opportunities," he said. "The important thing is for everybody to realize that we all want the same thing."

Kelly schools also filled two principalships this year. Doug Thornton, former assistant middle school principal at Perryville, replaced Carolyn Pazdera as Kelly Elementary School principal. Thornton has taught for 13 years in Malden and Bloomfield and hopes to improve student achievement.

Gary Francis, a 19-year teaching veteran in Kelly schools, has been promoted to become principal of the district's newly-formed middle school. Francis said he enjoys working with students in sixth through eighth grades and hopes to help them find positive activities to indulge in.

"It's a high-energy group and there's a lot of enthusiasm," he said. "I find if we channel that energy through appropriate goals, a lot of good things can result."

Woodland students will also begin the school year with a new principal. Jo Peukert, who taught social studies at Louis J. Schultz School in Cape Girardeau for 11 years, will take over as principal at Woodland Grade School. Peukert has 23 years of teaching experience and is ready to assume her first principalship.

She said her goals will remain similar to those she held as a teacher; namely, to continue to provide a quality education for students. However, now her goals will encompass a larger group as she works to be a "guardian angel" of sorts for both students and teachers.

All of the administrators said they want to improve community involvement in the school district. When parents and the community are involved, student achievement and overall feelings about the school district improve.

Said Isom: "I want to get the community involved in the schools in a more positive fashion, because student achievement is not only a reflection of test scores, but it's also a reflection of the influence the community has in the schools. It all affects the ownership students, teachers, parents and the community feel regarding the school system."