Evangel partnership program free to teachers who complete it, commit 5 years to district

By Jessica Breger Special to the Monett Monthly

Monett schools will soon be adding new learning opportunities for their teachers.

During the Nov. 20 meeting of the Monett School Board, a new program presented by Assistant Superintendent Isaac Sooter was approved to introduce a Master’s of Curriculum and Instruction program for district teachers.

The partnership with Evangel University would allow staff in the district to administer the course to 10 people every 18 months. 

“We will run them through a master’s program that we will teach,” Superintendent Mark Drake said. “When I say ‘we,’ I mean anyone with a specialist or higher. We can tailor that to what Monett needs. There’s no set curriculum that we have to follow for them to get the degree. We really have complete ownership of that program.

Drake, who along with Sooter holds a doctorate, said this program is being implemented in approximately 13-14 districts in Southwest Missouri, including Mt Vernon.

Through the program, the instructor would earn the degree with the agreement to work for the district for five years after the program completion.

The program would be paid by the district with the five-year agreement. Should the instructor choose to leave before the five years, they would then be asked to pay the program back.

The district will be paying a discounted rate of 20% for the program through the partnership with Evangel University.

The program is estimated to cost $76,800, or $7,680 per participant, and not to exceed $100,000.

Sooter said at least 1% of district funds must already go to professional development, so funds would simply be routed to the new program.

“Historically, districts send teachers to training and conferences — which, some are great, some can not be great, but the return on investment is much higher putting teachers through a master’s program,” Sooter said.

While this program is set to be recurring, the board also approved a one time doctoral program for district administration. This program would be administered by Evangel instructors.

The doctoral program would not be fully funded by the district and would ask participants to pay for 21 of the 50 credit hours earned in the program.

The budget on this program is set not to exceed $65,000, and participants would be expected to remain with the district through at least June of 2031.

Drake noted that not only will the programs increase teacher attraction and retention, but would ultimately be providing higher quality instruction for Monett students.

Sooter said that while the district already has good teacher retention, these programs help ensure the same for the future. 

“We do have to work a little harder compared to Joplin or Springfield, so we always want to be proactive, not reactive,” Sooter said.

In his first year as assistant superintendent, Sooter oversees professional development. Sooter said that he has been familiar with the Evangel program for some time and was excited to introduce it to the district.

The board also received updates on safety projects in the district, heraing that MODOT has provided the district with anticipated signal light equipment and software at no cost. 

The school-day schedule has already been uploaded, and lights will flash one hour before and after school to aid in traffic safety.

Work on updates to the welding ventilation system that were approved earlier this fall is scheduled for Christmas break.

It was also announced that candidate filing to join the school board is to run from Dec. 6 through Dec. 30 with three seats available.

The Monett School Board meets at 6 p.m. on the third Thursday of each month at Board

Administrative Meeting Room located at the District Office.