Ozark Tiger E-News

We had a great week — despite this extreme heat — and we hope you all did too! It was so good to see the smiles of our students, hear the hallways full of laughter and witness the caring in the classroom.

On Aug. 22, the Ozark Board of Education recognized Ozark East Elementary Principal Karen Capen and Ozark School Resource Officer John Wilkerson with the Ozark School Hero Award for taking actions that helped save the life of an Ozark parent.

Read the full release here.

In order to reach everyone in our community, we sent out a postcard to every mailbox across our district. This brief survey will help us to communicate more effectively to our students, families and community.

There are several ways you can participate in this survey.

• You can visit this link directly, HERE.
• You can visit the homepage of our website, HERE.
• Or you can stop by our District Office.

We look forward to your participation, which in turn will allow us to be better communicators with our Ozark Community!

Congratulations to 13 Ozark School District employees for receiving Ozark School District Foundation Fund grants totaling $10,308.

Gerald Chambers, Ozark School District Foundation chairman, said the grants are made possible through voluntary payroll deductions from Ozark staff. Established in 2002, the fund has provided more than 80 grants totaling nearly $54,000 to Ozark staff.

Read the full release here.

Congratulations to Ozark teachers Jody Dalton and Shawn Saylor for each receiving a Classroom Grant from the Missouri Retired Teachers Foundation. Ozark received two of the 12 grants awarded to schools across 10 counties.

“MRTF is the philanthropic arm of the Missouri Retired Teachers Association and our focus is to protect our pension systems and to protect Missouri public schools. Congratulations to these recipients,” said MRTF President Karen Miller, who is also an Ozark School District retiree. “This year MRTF is awarding 126 $500 Classroom Grants and 28 $500 Support Staff Grants throughout the state.”

Read the full release here.

History is already coming to life for OMS students in Mrs. Hall’s homeroom. On Wednesday the history class live-streamed with David Snider, Flight Director and serving on the Board of Directors for Honor Flight of the Ozarks and Ozark Schools bus driver. Students saw WW2, Korean War, and Vietnam War veterans from the Honor Flight as they got their picture taken in front of the WW2 Memorial.

Students also visited with Derringer Fenton who is a Specialist E4 and former Tomb Guard Sentinel for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier! He explained the meaning and importance as well as the reverence the tomb commands.

As the bagpipes played in the distance, students were also able to see the Washington and Lincoln Memorials. It was a great way to start their first history class!

The Ozark Board of Education is committed to the well-being of each staff member and student while supporting the mission and vision of the school district.

School Board meetings are open to the public and are generally the third Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. at the Ozark Innovation Center, 1600 W. Jackson St.

Find monthly agendas here.

Find minutes following board meetings here.

Meetings for the 2023-24 school year are scheduled for the following:

• Sept. 21
• Oct.. 19
• Nov. 16
• Dec. 14
• Jan. 18
• Feb. 22
• March 21
• April 11
• May 16
• May 23
• June 20

The Board of Education is hosting quarterly Townhall meetings open to the community. Times and locations are yet to be determined, but mark your calendars for the following dates:

• Oct. 10
• Dec. 7
• Feb. 13
• April 22

Our first Behind the Stripes went out on Monday — it’s our one-stop shop for everything Ozark Tigers Athletics and Activities related! See a schedule for this week's games and performances, get to know our coaches better, find out what the Tigers did last week, and even read about some of our awesome athletes and artists!

This newsletter comes out every Monday, so be sure to subscribe if you don't want to miss out! Go Tigers!

Click here for this week's issue and sign up.

Ozark graduates from the classes of 1934 - 1976 are invited to the Alumni Reunion! For more details and updates, follow the Ozark High School Alumni Facebook page. If you have questions, email alumnireunionohs@gmail.com.

The photo in the graphic is from the 1965 yearbook.

We know there have been a lot of changes for the start of this school year. But one thing that hasn't changed is Ozark School District's commitment to financial stability. Last year we received a clean audit report — a more than decade-long tradition — from an independent auditor. We continue to seek out ways to maintain a stable and healthy fund balance while keeping up with the growth of our community.

To learn more, read this release on the audit for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2022. The audit for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2023, is currently underway.