Neelyville students face change this year, with new staff members and construction

Students flocked to the Neelyville R-IV school district campuses Wednesday morning as the first bell rang to start off the new school year.

Emily Dollins, a senior at Neelyville High School, said she’s nervous to get started but excited to get it “over with.” Thinking back to three years ago, she said she felt like she had a lot of school left, but now that she’s facing the end of high school it’s felt like no time at all.

“Freshman year it was like ‘I have three more years,’” she said. “But now it’s gone by so fast.”

Meanwhile Emandra Sturtevant and Mersadies Powell, both sophomores, said the three years left seem daunting.

“It feels really, really different (from when I was younger),” Sturtevant said. “Everything seems different.”

“Different classes that I don’t want to do,” Powell agreed.

R-IV is looking at several major changes on the Neelyville campus this year to leadership, curriculum and facilities.

One of the main changes is that Debra Parish has taken over as superintendent after Brad Hagood resigned in December, to become superintendent at Doniphan.

Parish is the former Hillview assistant principal. When she was first named superintendent in February, Parish said she’s been involved in all aspects of the district and felt confident in her ability to take the helm and help R-IV continue to improve.

Kindergartner Emilee Duckett laughs with her mother, Autumn Duckett, during breakfast at Hillview Elementary. DAR/Paul Davis

Traci Reinbock, high school English teacher, and Jill Ellsworth, high school English and Spanish teacher, both said Parish has been doing a “phenomenal job” leading up to the start of the school year.

“She’s fired up,” Ellsworth said. “That helps us be fired up.”

Reinbock, who has been teaching with the district for nine years, said she’s interested to see how things will change with the district as part of the District Continuous Improvement program. She said when the district was recognized as an exemplary school, it opened the opportunity to join the DCI program. It is focused on looking at school improvement through analyzing data and adjusting instruction methods to reflect that information.

“It’s to make sure students are ready for the next grade and to graduate,” she said.

When it comes to facilities, the high school office has been torn down and is getting replaced with a new building — which is already being constructed on the Neelyville campus. It is expected to be complete by Nov. 1. It will house the high school principal office, the curriculum director, the technical career director, in school suspension and alternative school.

“I don’t really like school, but this is a good school,” Powell said. “So, I can tolerate it.”

Students line up at Hillview Elementary on the first day of school.DAR/Paul Davis