At today’s State Board of Education (State Board) meeting, board members accepted the recommendation made by Commissioner of Education Margie Vandeven to continue with a transition of the Riverview Gardens School District Special Administrative Board (SAB) governance to a seven-member local governing board.

Two Missouri high school seniors were selected as members of the 58^th class of U.S. Presidential Scholars along with 161 students from across the country. The president recognized the outstanding students listed below for their accomplishments in academics, the arts, and career and technical education fields.

The Missouri General Assembly today passed the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s (DESE’s) $10 billion budget, which includes:

Two St. Louis area teachers were presented the national Milken Educator Award today:

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) announced today the school districts and individual school buildings that earned the 2022 Missouri Purple Star designation — the first ever for the State of Missouri:

2022 Purple Star School Districts

Two Missouri entities — a public school district and a private school — earned recognition from the U.S. Department of Education today as 2022 Green Ribbon Schools thanks to their innovative efforts to reduce environmental impact and utility costs, improve health and wellness, and ensure sustainability education.

The 2022 honorees in Missouri include:

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) has announced eight Missouri Gold Star Schools for 2022. The program, which aligns with the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education, recognizes schools for outstanding academic achievement or for performing at high levels while serving a significant proportion of disadvantaged students.

At today’s State Board of Education (Board) meeting, the Legislative Priorities Subcommittee announced that members of the Teacher Recruitment and Retention Blue Ribbon Commission have been selected and will hold their first meeting in June 2022.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) is using federal relief funds to partner with Mental Health First Aid Missouri — operated by the Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH) and the Missouri Institute of Mental Health — to provide Mental Health First Aid trainings to schools across the state at no cost.

Today, the Missouri General Assembly passed and Governor Mike Parson signed into law House Bill 3014. Among a number of line items, this early supplemental budget bill includes 90 percent of Missouri’s American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) allocation that will be distributed directly to local education agencies (LEAs) — a total of $1.9 billion.