The below message from Dr. Jason Dandoy, Superintendent of Schools, and Theresa Rangel, Board of Education President, was published in the spring edition of our Turner Today magazine:

We wrapped up a great school year with the graduation of an incredible group of seniors. In the Class of 2025, we have future Architects, Cosmetologists, Dentists, Construction Workers, Engineers, and Teachers, amongst many other fulfilling careers. Another high point for our Turner High School students - we were able to watch sixteen of our Juniors receive $50,000 scholarships through KC Scholars. There are many wonderful things happening with our students and this edition of Turner Today will highlight those for you.

Each spring, we announce a new theme for the upcoming school year and next year, we have chosen “Raise the Bar… Higher” as our focus for 2025-2026. This past year, we adopted “Raise the Bar” as our theme, which yielded great results. This challenge to our students and staff has been met, but we recognize that improvement should always be pushed further. Therefore, we are keeping our current theme and bringing it to the next level.

To start the process of raising expectations, we are developing our new 5-year Strategic Plan. If you have not been able to check out a quarterly Strategic Planning video, they can be found on the district website under “Board of Education”. Our new plan will be released to the public later this summer. A few immediate highlights for you to look forward to:

• New Science resources will be implemented in our elementary schools.
• Three grant-funded positions that allow for literacy intervention at Turner Sixth Grade Academy, Turner Middle School, and Turner High School.
• Expansion of the Turner High School life skills/adaptive special education program.
• Full implementation of OpenGate metal detection systems at Turner Middle School and Turner High School.
• Completion of the new press box at Steineger Field.
• Use of a managed formative assessment platform that will allow teachers to monitor student work in live time.
• In the back-to-school edition of Turner Today, you’ll have an opportunity to meet some new leaders in our district. These individuals and position changes include:
  • Mr. Jereme Brueggemann will move into the role of Executive Director of Administrative Services.
  • Mr. John Oshel will move into the position of Turner Middle School Assistant Principal.
  • Mr. Matthew Kennedy will move into the position of Curriculum Administrator at Turner Elementary.
  • Ms. Cara Pack will move into the position of Principal at Oak Grove Elementary.
  • Mr. Chad Cross will move into the position of Curriculum Administrator at Oak Grove Elementary.
  • Ms. Cassidy Stauffer will move into the position of Curriculum Administrator at Midland Trail Elementary.
  • Ms. Abbi Linville will move into the position of Principal at the Turner Sixth Grade Academy.

All of these individuals have experience in the district and we look forward to their continued success.

On behalf of the USD 202 Board of Education, we hope you have a safe and enjoyable summer!