Vol. 43, No. 6
January 28, 2009
DESE Will Hold a Public Hearing Next Week on Riverview Gardens
State education officials will hold a public hearing next Tuesday, Feb. 3, in the Riverview Gardens School District, concerning the district’s accreditation status.
The meeting will be from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. in the auditorium at Westview Middle School, 1950 Nemnich, St. Louis.
The State Board of Education voted in June 2007 to classify Riverview Gardens as “unaccredited.” Thus, the district is nearing the end of its second school year in unaccredited status. The district currently enrolls about 7,000 students.
The purpose of the hearing is for Riverview Gardens residents to express their views about the school district and its future. Officials of the school district will make a brief opening statement about the district’s current efforts to regain accredited status.
The public hearing is required by state law (Section 162.081). This law gives unaccredited school districts two full years to make sufficient progress to regain accredited status. Otherwise, the state may intervene and take control of the district.
The hearing will be conducted by Stan Johnson and Charles Brown, assistant commissioners of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Brown also serves as superintendent of the Wellston School District, which was taken over by the state in 2005.
Persons who wish to speak at the public hearing will be asked to sign in when they arrive. Each speaker will be allowed three minutes for oral comments. Written comments also may be submitted at the hearing. All comments will be recorded. A transcript of the hearing will be provided to members of the State Board of Education.
State education officials have not set a timeline for the board to make a decision about the status of Riverview Gardens.