Whatever quality exists in a school district begins and ends with the school board. I am convinced of that.
It is the school board members, through their leadership and vision, who create the platform on which the entire school staff can base and perform their work. It is the school board that sets the tone, establishes the foundation for a professional school culture and creates an expectancy for unity of purpose in the constant pursuit of educational excellence.
The Springdale School District has had phenomenal board members leading our school system over time. They are and always have been of a single purpose: leading the creation of a quality educational system for the students of the Springdale School District. The Springdale school system is better today than it has ever been, and all of us who are privileged to serve in this school system give enormous credit and a deep sense of appreciation to the servant leaders on the Springdale School District’s Board of Education.
Our district is challenged every day to deal with the issues inherent in a rapidly growing school system. The board understands those challenges and, more importantly, the opportunities that are part of the educational process.
Today the Springdale School District serves almost 21,000 students, and that number predictably will continue to increase by 700 to 800 students each year in the foreseeable future. One can only imagine the potential and promise represented by this growing student population on our city, our region, our state and nation over time. I can assure our patrons the Springdale School Board members are immersed in planning for educational services for all the students of our system, both now and for the future. That’s who they are. That’s what they are constantly preparing themselves to do at increasingly higher levels in the future.
A rapidly growing school district constantly requires the best effort of its entire team and, again, it is the board members, through their day-to-day service, who create the platform from which everyone else can work.
I encourage all of our patrons to express appreciation to our Springdale School Board members. They give of themselves every day to help create great schools that serve the young people of this community. Great cities and communities have great schools, and the work of the school board is instrumental to that achievement.
Thank you, Springdale School Board members, for helping to lead our schools constantly forward toward educational excellence.
JIM ROLLINS IS SUPERINTENDENT OF SPRINGDALE PUBLIC SCHOOLS. HE HAS SERVED IN THAT CAPACITY SINCE 1982.