The De Soto School District Board of Education will have a new member when it meets in July.
The school board voted 5-0 June 20 to appoint Kari Brooks to fill the seat that has been vacant since the spring when Nicole Spruell resigned. Board member Mark Ferrell was absent from the meeting.
Spruell resigned on Feb. 28, citing personal reasons because she had applied for the district’s position of director of communications, digital learning and chief grant writer. However, before her resignation, she had filed to run for one of the two three-year terms open on the school board and her name appeared on the April 2 ballot. She won her seat but due to being hired, she had to resign the seat.
School district officials said they followed the school policy, which required the board to declare a vacancy and seek applications for the position. Dawn Selsor, Board of Education secretary, said the district received five applications. The board interviewed three of the applicants during a May board meeting.
Brooks
Brooks will be sworn in during the July 18 board meeting. Her appointment lasts until the April 2025 election when she may run as a candidate. School board members are not paid.
De Soto Board of Education president Bev Wilson said Brooks was a good choice.
“Kari Brooks shows a strong interest in the students, their well-being, accomplishments and emotional stability” Wilson said. “She is a team player and is very active in volunteering for school activities. She has a keen sense of priorities and shows a passion for our mission and values. She will be a dedicated advocate for the De Scoto School District.”
Brooks, 35, a Crystal City High School graduate, has lived in the De Soto area since 2008. She lives just outside De Soto with her husband, Dustin, and their two children.
A graduate of Jefferson College, Brooks earned a bachelor’s degree in applied management and a master’s degree in business administration from Missouri Baptist University. She works as a senior business analyst at Ameren, where she has been employed since 2011.
“I am eager to learn from the current board members and build upon their efforts to actively engage with the community,” she said. “There will be significant updates to share with the community regarding district investments following the approval of Prop 4 Dragons.”
Brooks said the De Soto School District has wonderful people already serving on the board.
“They all share the common goal of ensuring learning, growth and success for our students in a safe environment,” she said.
The July 18 meeting will mark Ron Farrow’s official first meeting as superintendent. He replaced Josh Isaacson, who officially retires on June 30.
Farrow has been the assistant superintendent of curriculum, instruction and assessment. He begins duties on July 1.
Also beginning new roles on July 1 are Joshua Phipps, who will move from junior high school principal to assistant superintendent of school operations. Shawn Brown, who had been assistant superintendent of curriculum, instruction and assessment in the Hannibal School District, will fill that same role at De Soto.