Three candidates are running for the two Fox C-6 School District Board of Education seats up for election on April 8. The candidates are former school board member Jim Chellew, who is challenging incumbents Kenneth Woolsey and Todd Scott.
The positions are three-year terms. The school board members are unpaid.
Woolsey, 45, of Barnhart is self-employed at KJ’s Construction. He has worked 29 years in the excavation and concrete work business. He is a Fox High graduate and studied two years at Jefferson College. He is married to Bettina and has five children. His wife and a sister, Regina Ray, work for the school district.
Scott, 55, of Arnold works for Presort Inc. He served 25 years in various capacities in the district – teacher, coach, club sponsor, building and district administrator. He retired in 2019 as the principal at Seckman High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Southwest Missouri State University, a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of Missouri-St. Louis and a specialist degree in education from Missouri Baptist University. He is married to Lisa and has three children. His son, Connor, works for the district.
Chellew, 76, of Imperial is a professor of education and education administration at Missouri Baptist University and a former Fox C-6 superintendent. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Central Methodist College, elementary certification and superintendent certification from University of Missouri and a master’s degree from Truman State University. He is married to Emily “Kathy” and has two children and four grandchildren. His nephew, Chris Conway, is a Seckman Middle School teacher.
What experience do you have (elected office, civic organizations, volunteer work, etc.) that might serve you well in this position?
Woolsey: I have served on the Fox C-6 school board for the past three years. I was a student leader for the youth group at First Baptist Church of Arnold for 17 years. I went on numerous mission trips to Mexico to build houses for squatters in Matamoros.
Scott: I am currently serving a three-year term on the Fox board and am vice president.
Chellew: I served on the Board of Education for two terms. I served in leadership positions in numerous civic organizations, including the C-6 Educational Foundation, Arnold Rotary Club, Kiwanis Club, Scouting America, Jefferson County Veterans Tribute and Fox Sports Hall of Fame, and I volunteered in several youth organizations.
There have been discussions about having a late start once a week beginning next school year to provide teachers more time to plan. Do you favor the plan? Why or why not?
Woolsey: I’m in favor of this plan, but I wasn’t ready to say yes just yet. There is a need for a late start to give teachers more opportunity for professional learning communities. This gives teachers time to collectively figure out what teaching strategies are working and what aren’t. PLCs can elevate effective teaching techniques to reach students and improve learning, test scores and relationships. I plan to be in full support of late starts for the 2025-2026 school year, giving our community plenty of time to plan and adapt to late starts.
Scott: I do favor the plan for late starts. At the high school level, the time it takes for teachers to collaborate has been the biggest hurdle in properly implementing professional learning communities. Our middle and elementary schools can adjust their schedules, which allows PLCs better than we can at the high schools. We still have some issues to work out with the high school schedule planning for PLCs, but I am in favor of a late start to improve the PLCs’ effectiveness across the district.
Chellew: Establishing a late-start professional development program should only be considered if our teachers believe it would be more effective in improving student achievement than the current full-day program, and consideration needs to be given to the possibility of late starts adding hardship on parent work schedules.
What are the biggest problems facing the school district and how would you address them?
Woolsey: We continuously face problems like safety, security, discipline and staffing. These will always be challenging due to an ever-changing environment but remain a high priority. I want to focus on high school academic scores, striving to ensure college and career readiness for our students to succeed. I’ve started addressing this by encouraging changes in our high school schedule to be more efficient. Fox is currently reevaluating schedules to address an abundance of student free time and the lack of resources teachers need to be more effective. Late starts is the next step after creating an efficient schedule.
Scott: Student achievement: We need to work with administration and teachers on a plan to diagnose our shortfalls and identify weaknesses in the curriculum and then provide staffing and curricular support for teaching and learning. Retaining and attracting staff for all our positions: We need to actively recruit and communicate why working in the Fox School District is great. Financial accountability: We need to ensure all funds are budgeted and spent on what is best for students and how this expenditure will impact student learning. Facility upgrades: We need to put the District Facility Master Plan into action.
Chellew: Building trust with the community is our greatest concern. When asking school community stakeholders to consider any initiative, they need to have accurate and complete information so an informed decision can be made. Collaborating with teachers, staff and parents to meet the needs of our students is essential. Supporting community volunteers who provide learning opportunities the school district cannot provide will only make a school community a better place for children to grow. Many of our facilities are no longer meeting building mechanical and instructional technology needs of a 21st century program and should be modernized.
Why should voters elect you to this position?
Woolsey: I will continue using my strengths as a business owner to provide financial oversight and construction knowledge to help with capital improvements. Make decisions based on what’s best for our students and have a willingness to listen to our patrons. I have a conservative moral compass to protect our kids and community from liberal ideology and personal agendas that take the focus away from education. While our community is still healing from an ugly past, I feel we’ve made leaps and bounds to earn more trust with our community. Please allow me to continue working toward unity in this district.
Scott: I have provided solid leadership on the board for the past three years. I have continued to ask questions, listen, collaborate and provide solutions while working with our board in the planning and execution of the district goals. I have worked with the superintendent, administration and teachers to improve student achievement; stabilize and monitor our financial transactions; and make our school district a better, safer place to learn, work and live. I ask the community to support me again so I can serve them as a board member for the next three years.
Chellew: My track record of serving this community is clear. I have served as a teacher, principal, superintendent and board member in the Fox district. I have served as a community volunteer in the Fox district in many capacities for many years. My only motive for serving is to use my experience in education and in community organizations and youth programs to create a school program in which all members of the school community can take pride.
List your goals, if elected.
Woolsey: No answer given.
Scott: I will make decisions with the best interest of our students in mind. I will work with our teachers and administrators to improve student achievement. I will work with our staff to retain and attract qualified staff for all of our positions. I will work collaboratively with the Board of Education and administration to model appropriate behavior as a board and an individual. I will respect diversity of opinion and listen for understanding in conversations with the community, teachers, staff and students. I will promote and support the superintendent in work that meets the district goals.
Chellew: Build trust with our school community by providing clear, accurate and complete information with full transparency. Support our teachers, staff and parents in their efforts to serve our students in becoming confident learners and achieve excellence. Provide a safe, secure, comfortable school environment that allows all students the opportunity to fulfill their potential for learning and that prepares them for success in life. Foster district leadership that serves the interests of the whole school community with the goal of creating quality schools and a quality community while managing district resources responsibly.
