Rockwood Board of Education President Lynne Midyett will not seek a fourth term, after nearly 10 years serving on the board.
Midyett, who lives in Clarkson Valley, said she’d like to give the opportunity for new people to introduce new ideas on the board and said she would also like to spend more time with her five granddaughters. She was appointed to the board in June 2016 to fill a vacancy and was elected to her first full term the following April.
Midyett’s current term will expire after the April 7 election. Because Rockwood received exactly three candidate filings to fill the three open spots on the board, the school district will not hold an election. The candidates -- Kary Bachert and Bob Cadigan, who are incumbents, along with Amy Wassman -- will be sworn in at the board’s reorganization meeting April 9.
“At the very beginning, I said (three terms) was all I would do,” Midyett said. “I knew from the start of being on the board that 10 years was about the right amount of time. I saw other people who I thought were very successful board members, and it seems like you get to a point where it is time to let other voices be heard and move on to other ways to support the district.”
“It’s a great group of people, and I feel very confident that the board will continue to do great things,” she added. “Maybe if I didn’t feel that way, I would say, ‘OK, well, I’ll stick around a little longer,’ but I’m really confident of the health of this board and (Superintendent Curtis Cain), of course.”
Cain said he knew of Midyett while she was an educator in the St. Louis region and “completely confirmed” all the good things he heard about her when they began working together on the board. Midyett and the other board members voted to approve Cain’s hiring in January 2022.
“She is a true champion and advocate for all children, and she has a deep and true passion for the Rockwood School District, not just in its past or present state, but most definitely in its future,” Cain said. “I haven’t made it a secret; the Board of Education is one of the reasons that I’m here. We have really been able to work quite well together – always with high expectations for every single portion of the school district and want to see Rockwood continue to be a leader not only in the state, but I believe the nation.”
Midyett began her career as a special-education teacher and then area coordinator of special education covering a number of different districts in St. Louis County. She retired as an assistant superintendent with the Special School District, overseeing special education in 22 districts throughout the county. She has a master’s degree in special education and a certification in educational administration.
Midyett said some of her proudest moments while on the Rockwood Board of Education include evaluating and hiring three superintendents (beginning with Mark Miles in 2019, then Timothy Ricker in 2021, who served as interim superintendent for one year, and finally Cain in 2022), implementing a student advisory team for the board and developing the district’s comprehensive school improvement plan (CSIP).
Midyett said this is the third year the student advisory team has been in effect.
“That was something I gave a lot of thought to over the years,” she said. “We have two representatives from each high school, (and) they meet with the board four times a year. We hear their perspective on things, and they really do give us great feedback.
“At the last meeting, we talked about (student) absenteeism, AI in the classroom and cell phone use. They go back to their high schools and share the discussion points. I think it’s been well received.”
Midyett said there was a year-long community involvement process to address the district’s future goals in order to create the CSIP. The CSIP, for 2025-2030, was approved by the board on June 5, 2025, and includes topics such as nurturing learning, ensuring fiscal responsibility and attracting and retaining qualified staff, among others.
Midyett said she enjoyed going into classrooms across the district and seeing Rockwood’s “wonderful teachers” instructing students. She said the district’s teachers and building administrators are fantastic to work with.
She added that, in any given week, she had about three or four meetings or events to attend, in addition to the regularly scheduled Board of Education meetings held at 7 p.m. on the second and fourth Thursday of the month at the Administrative Annex, 500 N. Central Ave. in Eureka.
“What you’re seeing at board meetings is really the tip of the iceberg of the amount of time that these folks are spending,” Cain said. “And in the case of school districts in Missouri, this is volunteerism. It’s a true, in my mind, outward expression of a passion and appreciation and a high degree of expectation that board members have for the respective communities that they serve and that they represent.”
Next steps
After her time on the board comes to an end, Midyett said she’d be more than happy to act as an informal mentor for board members or help on future committees or special projects. She said she recently spoke with Wassman about stepping into the role.
Wassman, of Eureka, is a Eureka High School alumna, according to her page on the district’s website. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology, master’s degrees in special education and administration, and a doctorate in school leadership. She spent nearly a decade as a teacher and served as special-education coordinator with the Special School District for six years. Her children attend Eureka Elementary.
“I am committed to maintaining educational excellence while ensuring student access to meaningful learning opportunities,” Wassman wrote on her board page. “My career has focused on advocating for our most vulnerable learners, and I will bring that same dedication to serving every student.”
Midyett said she has three granddaughters in the Rockwood district and two in the Webster Groves School District. She said she’d like to spend more time volunteering in both districts and may even substitute teach as time allows.
“(Rockwood) is a fantastic district, and I have every confidence that the board will continue to play its part in making sure that all students have what they need through our fantastic staff,” Midyett said. “I will continue to be involved and support however I can to keep the mission going.”