Six educators will be honored on Monday, Aug. 1, as Pioneers in Education for their commitment and contributions to public education in Missouri.

The Department will recognize the 2016 Pioneers during the 55^th Annual Cooperative Conference for School Administrators at the Holiday Inn Executive Center in Columbia. The ceremony will take place during a luncheon where more than 500 school district leaders are expected to be in attendance.

The following individuals will be honored as 2016 Pioneers in Education:

• Shannon Ennis, Eminence, left high school during his senior year to serve in World War II before returning to graduate in 1947. He taught at five different schools before he became superintendent at age 28 in Shannon County, a position he held for 12 years. In 1969, he became superintendent in the Eminence R-I School District where he advocated strongly for small, rural schools until his retirement in 1993.

• Rosa James, Kansas City, moved to Missouri from North Carolina, where she began a 36-year career in the Kansas City School District. After her time in the classroom, James received appointments to various committees, including the Kansas City Board of Election Commissioners and the Municipal Judicial Nominating Commission. She continues to work as a member of the NAACP Executive Committee and has received both the Kansas City Spirit and NAACP Presidents Award. She also helped staff a community-volunteer phone bank, designed to call dropouts and provide information to assist in the acquisition of a high school diploma or a high school equivalency certificate.

• Jackie Ludwig, Oak Ridge, taught students over three generations during a teaching career that spanned more than 40 years, beginning in 1950 in Brazeau, Mo. After earning her education degree in 1954, she married and moved to Oak Ridge, where she taught until her retirement in 1990. Ludwig was a member of the Southeast Missouri Teachers Association Resolution Committee from 1977-80 and served on the Oak Ridge R-VI school board for 15 years, retiring in 2008.

• Chris Nicastro, St. Louis, began her teaching career in 1975 at Northwest High School in House Springs. She served as assistant superintendent both at Northwest and the Ritenour school districts, during which time she earned her doctorate in 1991. Nicastro then became superintendent of both the Riverview Gardens and Hazelwood school districts, before being appointed Commissioner of Education in July 2009. Under her leadership, the Top 10 by 20 initiative was launched. She retired from her position as commissioner in 2014.

• Chris Straub, Jefferson City, began his career in education at Union High School, where he taught and coached football for six years, before he became assistant superintendent of the Union R-XI School District in 1973. After earning his doctorate, he served as the superintendent there until 1979 when he became superintendent in the Hannibal 60 School District. In 1989, he moved to the Jefferson City Public Schools to work as superintendent until he retired in 1997. Straub was appointed director of governmental affairs for the Missouri School Boards’ Association in 2000 and was an adjunct professor at four Missouri universities.

• Carter Ward, Columbia, has been involved with education for more than 45 years, beginning as a teacher at Ritenour Junior High School in 1967 before he joined the Navy as a Flight Officer. He returned to teaching in 1970 and transitioned to the Missouri School Boards’ Association (MSBA) in 1973. After receiving his doctorate in 1975, Ward stayed with MSBA, eventually becoming executive director in 1983. He remained in this position until his retirement in 2015. During his years there, he grew the MSBA budget to $5.4 million and started a wide array of programs and services.

“The Department is privileged to recognize these six Pioneers for their devotion to education in the state of Missouri,” Missouri Commissioner of Education Margie Vandeven said. “These individuals have worked tirelessly to promote excellence in education at the classroom, district and state levels.”

This marks the 42^nd consecutive year that state education officials have presented the awards which honor teachers, school administrators, citizens and lawmakers for their distinguished careers and contributions to public education in Missouri.