Hallsville School District Superintendent John Downs is retiring after this school year
Hallsville Superintendent John Downs will retire at the end of the school year, he said in a news release.
He has been superintendent since 2016, starting in Hallsville as an elementary music teacher 23 years ago in 1997.
Notably, he was superintendent in 2017 when the school district achieved voter approval of its first operating levy increase in 30 years. Subsequently, the school district secured two of the largest bond issues in its history, for $7 million in 2018 and $6 million in 2022.
Hallsville in 2022-23 joined Harrisburg and Sturgeon school district in Boone County in moving to a four-day school week.
Since he started as superintendent in 2016, the operating fund balance increased from 11% of annual spending to an estimated 49% in 2024.
The base salary of teachers has increased by $7,000 since he started as superintentendent.
He started his teaching career in Akron, Ohio, before starting in Hallsville.
His bachelor's degree is from Kent State University in Ohio. He has a master's degree from Miami University and an educational specialist degree from the University of Missouri.
As superintendent, he has served on the Missouri School Improvement Program Advisory Council, Regional Educational Laboratory Governing Board, as president of the Boone County Schools Mental Health Coalition and faculty member of the Missouri Fine Arts Academy.
Downs became Lead Teacher in Hallsville in 2002, then director of curriculum and instruction and assistant superintendent.
“It has been an honor and privilege to serve our students, staff and community for so many years," Down said in a news release. "The Hallsville school community has been like a second family to me for nearly three decades, and the relationships I have made and developed over that time are incredibly important to me. It's comforting to reach the end of my career knowing the district is set on a trajectory for continued student success.”
The Board of Education will begin the search for a new superintendent soon and intends to partner with a superintendent search agency to find the best quality leader for the district.
Roger McKinney is the Tribune's education reporter. You can reach him at rmckinney@columbiatribune.com or 573-815-1719. He on X at @rmckinney9.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: John Downs helped Hallsville pass 2017 operation levy increase
