Pattonville High School English learner teacher Eleanor Taylor was selected as a recipient of the 2021 Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award. The annual program recognizes St. Louis area instructors, selected by their schools’ administrators, for their accomplishments and dedication to their students and the teaching profession.

Taylor received an engraved crystal apple from Tiffany & Co., along with additional prizes. Emerson recognized the 85 honorees in a commemorative advertisement that appeared in the Sunday edition of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Nov. 21.

Please join us in congratulating the following individuals on their new roles. The following administrative changes were discussed at the Dec. 14 Pattonville Board of Education meeting and will become effective July 1.

• David Besgrove has been named chief human resource officer for the Pattonville School District, replacing Dr. Barry Nelson, assistant superintendent for human resources, who will become superintendent of Pattonville on July 1.
• Dr. Tori Cain’s position will be reclassified to assistant superintendent for student services.
• Kelly Gordon has been named chief communications officer, replacing Mickey Schoonover, APR, upon her retirement at the end of the school year.
• Gene Grimshaw was named associate principal of Pattonville High School, replacing Bob Thompson, who is retiring at the end of the school year.
• Dr. Mark Houston was selected as the principal of Pattonville Heights Middle School, replacing Dr. Scot Mosher, who is retiring at the end of the school year.

Two students were recognized by Congressperson Ann Wagner for their hard work and ingenuity in the 2nd District of Missouri’s Congressional App Challenge of 2021. They are Pattonville High School sophomore Sai Dorasani and Pattonville Heights Middle School eighth grader Parker Hasenkamp.

The judging team from LaunchCode chose Dorasani’s Envo Recycle app as the second place winner. Hasenkamp participated in the competition submitting his GPA Calculator app. 

Students in Mr. Ryan Brueckmann’s AP U.S. Government and Politics class took a field trip to the St. Louis County Board of Elections office on Tuesday. The learning opportunity included a tour of the office and hands-on experience using real voting equipment raising students’ interest to be part of the election process.