Moberly School District heads into first year with new superintendent; district still trying to fill teacher openings

MOBERLY, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Moberly School District is set to begin its first school year under the leadership of Superintendent Cristina Wright. 

Wright was announced as Moberly’s next superintendent in January and officially took over the position in June. She replaces Dustin Fanning, who went to the Sturgeon School District to become its superintendent.

Wright got her start in education as an English teacher in North Kansas City before serving as a principal of a private school in Jefferson City, then St Elizabeth. She most recently served as the superintendent at the Licking School District before heading to Moberly. 

She said that Moberly having a small-town feel with larger-community resources -- as well as a welcoming staff -- helped draw her to the position. 

“I think Moberly is really organized, in terms of our continuous school improvement planning and involving stakeholders in that process," Wright said. “We have a vision for the next five years about where the district wants to go. They have great facilities, resources and planned involvement to that end with community input.” 

The Moberly School District serves a little more than 2,000 students. Wright said the district is sill looking at filling a few teacher openings. 

“We have hired approximately 30 new teachers we still have two openings in math. So the teacher shortage is affecting us and it’s real," Wright said. "We are looking at a grow-your-own program and how to retain folks in this community, so they will stay as professionals after they graduate high school or graduate college locally and they are willing to settle down."

Moberly's first day of class is Tuesday, Aug. 22

“So, it is a factor and it didn’t used to be as heightened as it is now, where it’s August 13th and we are looking to fill classrooms with teachers,” Wright said. 

If they unable to hire new teachers, the district's plan is to use virtual learning, or restructure some of the current staff placement. Despite the staffing difficulties, Wright said parents should be excited about sending their children to Moberly schools. 

“We are really pushing the refresh button and starting a whole new vision for this district and building joy wherever we can,” she said. 

Wright says one of the district's focuses this summer has been been enhancing safety. 

“We have installed window laminate on all the buildings in the district. We have added these HVAC filters for air quality. We installed several new security cameras across the district. We just finished our Early Childhood Learning Center expansion and we have an alternative school building being built right now that will be finished in approximately December," Wright said. "So really, all things safety and security. We are taking a hard look at how to keep our students and staff safe.”

Across the state, testing scores have been a concern, especially in math, according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Wright is trying to ramp up the district's efforts to recover some of the learning loss that occurred over the pandemic. 

“That takes all hands on deck to make that happen. Some of that looks like before and after-school tutoring,” Wright said. “Some of that looks like extending into the summer time for summer school, and just the way we teach inside of the classroom.”