Before former Fox C-6 Superintendent Nisha Patel left the district this summer for a new job at the School District of Clayton, she recounted some notable memories from her time with Fox.
She said one memory that stood out was a night in March 2020 after she announced the school buildings would close because of the growing concern about the spread of COVID-19. She said she was lying in bed thinking about all the questions she knew students had and wondering how to best answer them.
“It was 11:30 at night, and I texted JP Prezzavento (Fox’s communication and instructional technology coordinator) and said, ‘I want to do an Instagram story,’” Patel said. “He said, ‘Do you know how to?’ I said, ‘No I don’t. You are going to have to teach me.’”
Prezzavento said he made a tutorial for her.
“Dr. Patel, being who she is, learned it at once,” Prezzavento said. “Then she rolled with it.”
Patel stayed up until about 4:30 a.m. answering questions from students.
“I felt that was important for me to do so (students) felt like they were in contact with their superintendent,” Patel said. “That is a moment I remember because I say everything we do, we do for kids, and right then, our kids were worried and panicked about what was going to happen.”
Prezzavento created a video from Patel’s Instagram story to share on other Fox communication platforms to help answer questions about the pandemic.
“It was amazing to see the way the students engaged with her and how she engaged with the students,” Prezzavento said. “It just shows where her priorities lie.”
Tammy Cardona, assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education, said she will miss Patel’s excellent communication skills.
Patel left the district June 30 and became the superintendent at the Clayton School District on July 1, the same day Paul Fregeau took over as Fox’s superintendent after serving in that role at Decatur (Ill.) Public School District since June 2017.
“One of the things communities seem to always be concerned about is the ‘lack of communication,’” Cardona said. “Dr. Patel is very skilled at thinking things through, developing a plan and then making sure her plans are communicated and followed through.”
Time to leave
Patel, 48, of Chesterfield was named Fox’s superintendent Jan. 29, 2019. She had been the district’s assistant superintendent of secondary education since 2016 and took over the district’s top job after former Superintendent Jim Wipke left Fox after four years to become the superintendent at the Ladue School District.
Patel, who just started her 23rd year in education, said no one thing led her to leave Fox, but when Sean Doherty announced he would retire as Clayton’s superintendent after five years, she saw an opportunity she felt would be best for her and for Fox.
“I believe you have to make choices in life and stay true to your moral compass, and I believed it was time for me to stick to my moral ground and what I believed and valued in education,” said Patel, who will be paid $215,000 in her first year at Clayton after earning an annual salary of $182,500 the last two school years at Fox. “Sometimes, you have to leave in hopes that something can be better with you leaving. I had to make that decision, and say, hopefully the Fox School District will be better because I took a different path. I do hope that happens.”
Patel said she also hopes the Fox district continues to follow the five-year strategic plan that was put in place when she arrived as an assistant superintendent.
However, she said she is worried parts of the plan already have been lost, especially with changes made in the Curriculum and Instruction Department.
Fox Board of Education members recently eliminated the executive director of curriculum and instruction position and the college and career readiness assessment coordinator position, and the position of coordinator of literacy was eliminated after the 2019-2020 school year.
“We lost the majority of that department,” Patel said. “To have a district this size without a C and I department to me is a step backwards.”
Board of Education president Judy Smith said Fox’s Curriculum and Instruction Department will have a new look under Fregeau.
“There will be a C and I department put back together again in whatever fashion he feels like will be more effective,” Smith said.
Smith said concerns about Fox’s declining Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) test scores prompted a two-year discussion about changes that could be made to help streamline curriculum decisions.
Fox’s MAP English and math scores fell the last three years the tests were administered and for the second time since cutoff for students to be considered proficient was raised in 2018. The tests were not taken during the 2019-2020 school year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fox scored a 58.3 in 2018 in English, and it scored a 54.3 in 2019. The district had a 50.2 in 2018 in math, and it scored a 47 in 2019.
“There was a very poor emphasis put on the MAP test,” Smith said. “We feel like there are some holes in those things, especially reading and math.”
Accomplishments
Patel said the biggest accomplishment Fox made during her tenure was the passage of Proposition P, a $40 million bond issue.
“We are going to change facilities that impact student learning every single day,” Patel said. “That is something that can never be taken away from this community.”
Randy Gilman, Fox’s assistant superintendent of elementary education, said Patel fostered new leaders inside the district and praised her ability to ensure students had a say in what was happening at their schools.
“Dr. Patel was instrumental in the creation of our district’s Administrative Leadership Development program, which provides aspiring leaders within our district opportunities to learn and grow as leaders,” Gilman said. “This group has been an excellent source of talent during the last several years as we have filled several vacant leadership positions from within.
“She also provided a student-centered vision for the district, which is manifested in her mission statement: ‘Every child enters with a promise and leaves with a purpose.’”
Board member Jim Chellew said he was impressed with how Patel handled the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Dr. Patel served us for two years, and a year and a half of that two years was probably the most difficult time in education maybe in the history of the country,” said Chellew, who was a teacher, principal, assistant superintendent and superintendent for the district. “She did an extraordinary job. She made it work for the students and community, and I believe she did exactly what was best for our kids.”
Patel said the one thing she hopes to be remembered for is helping anyone she encountered.
“Whether it is a student, staff member, a parent or community member, I hope they say Dr. Patel impacted me in a positive way,” Patel said. “That goes back to my personal mission statement, which is to elevate others through my actions to help change the world. I hope I elevated them in some form or fashion.”