Top Takeaways: MNEA State Board & MACCE Report (October 2025)

State Board of Education Agenda

Teacher of the Year

Kimberly Sixta and the Missouri Teacher of the Year finalists were recognized at the State Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, October 21, 2o25. In addition to Sixta's address to the board, the State Board of Education adopted a resolution in Sixta's honor.

The Department hosted the annual Teacher of the Year Banquet on Monday, October 27 in Columbia, Missouri where all regional, semifinalist, and finalists were also recognized. Bill Shaw, a recent donor of the program who created an endowment for the Teacher of the Year program, was in attendance and awarded Sixta the first Bill Shaw award at the banquet.

We cannot express our congratulations more to Kimberly Sixta, finalists, semifinalists, regional winners, and all Teachers in Missouri. We are better because of you.

Success Ready Students Network (SRSN)

In both 2023 and 2024, the State Board approved (37) Missouri School Districts for an Innovation Waiver (161.214, RSMo) to focus on Competency-Based Education (CBE). The innovation team is made up of all members of the Success Ready Student Network (SRSN).

Once again, the SRSN presented more information on their current Innovation Waivers. The item was only a discussion item at this time as the state board of education expressed concerns that there was not enough knowledge of the current waiver and its impacts on students and communities. There is still a third cohort of SRSN who is seeking a waiver but they have not made it onto an Action Item on the agenda yet.

With this item once again being a discussion item this month, it is unclear when the SRSN waiver requests will be an action item to approve a third cohort of schools.

"The Missouri NEA supports effective and fair school accountability systems. The Association believes that these systems must promote student excellence and growth that reflect meaningful, high-quality learning and ensure that the best teaching practices are supported and utilized" (A-4).

Further, "The Missouri NEA believes that changes in student instruction and assessment must be carefully implemented…that development of education initiatives must, at the outset, include all stakeholders…that the most important place where implementation occurs is in the classroom. Staff must have adequate time and training as well as appropriate and adequate resources to implement new initiatives…Assessments must measure what was actually taught and be in a form familiar to the student" (B-41).

Legislative Priorities

The State Board's subcommittee presented their legislative priorities ahead of the 2026 Legislative Session. These priorities are created as a subcommittee along with the department's Chief of Government Relations, Perry Gorrell.

The new state board members expressed concern that these legislative priorities have not had enough discussion amongst the board for the new board members to feel comfortable understanding what to advocate for. Since the board does not meet in November, the department will be providing a series of Webinars for the board to understand these priority areas.

The board will formally seek to approve these legislative priorities at the 2025 December Board meeting.

Secondary Scienceand Special EducationCertification Rules & Financially Stressed School Districts

Two notices of proposed rulemaking were approved for both Secondary Science and Special Education Certification requirements. The next step for these proposed rules is a period of public comment.

The proposed changes reduce the number of course hours required to obtain each certificate. The rest of the requirements of these certificates-passing a program with GPA requirements and passing Praxis assessment-still remain in place. The changes were proposed as an attempt to increase the number of program completers and certificates issued. The board was concerned about the lowering of standards for quality candidates in classrooms and they asked for an implementation analysis on these changes.

"...The Association believes that requirements for admission into a college of education program should be rigorous yet flexible enough to allow admittance to those who demonstrate potential for effective practice" (D-3).

Three School Districts have been deemed financially stressed by the department.

• 009-079 Zalma R-V (enrollment 240)
• 018-047 East Carter Co. R-II (enrollment 650-ish)
• 106-007 Bradleyville R-I (enrollment 211-ish)

Statutorily (161.520), specific criteria determine if a district is financially stressed: negative balance in either the Teacher or Incidental Funds, combined ending balance in the Teachers and Incidental Funds less than three percent, or tax anticipation borrowing between February 1 and June 30. The department must identify these districts with a letter to the local board of education and the Chief Financial Officer.

School Funding Modernization Task Force Updates

"Per Executive Order 25-14, the Task Force shall submit a final report to the Governor by December 1, 2026, detailing recommendations for potential state funding models for K-12 public and charter schools. The report should include up to three alternative recommendations or components of the recommended model, as well as a summary of feedback garnered through the work of the Task Force from stakeholders" (DESE).

The Modernization Task Force has been meeting in workgroups since the last in-person meeting in September; the workgroups are as follows: Funding Targets, Student Counts, Local Effort Factors, and Performance Incentives. At this time, each of these groups are in the discussion, exploratory, and research phases of their work and there have not been any set decisions made at this time. The group will come back together in January after the scheduled workgroup meetings conclude. Once the entire group reconvenes together, they will use their findings to craft three alternative recommendations for School Funding in Missouri.

It is vital to remember that while this group will create three alternatives to Missouri's current formula, any new formula for the state will have to go through the formal legislative process.

The workgroups will continue to meet virtually. These meetings are publicly available for viewing. Missouri NEA will continue to be in attendance at all workgroup meetings.

"The Missouri NEA believes that equitable and adequate funding is critical to the future of public education in Missouri. The total wealth of the state should be distributed as equitably as possible for the public education of each child in Missouri. State support for public education should be no less than one-third of the state general revenue. Local school tax levies and bond issues should be passed by a simple majority. Property values should be fairly assessed and regularly reassessed. Assessor's offices should have adequate resources, data, and professional staff and be held accountable to regular review by the state.

"The Association also believes that state and local revenues should be partially derived from a progressive, broad-based system of personal and corporate income tax, which reduces the heavy reliance on property taxes and protects the property of those on subsistence income.

"The Association strongly opposes Tax Increment Financing (TIF) that decreases local funding for school districts. The amount of state and local money designated for education shall not be decreased when monies from other sources are allocated to public education.

"The Association further believes that state support must be predictable for long-range and year-to-year planning. If the foundation formula is changed, no district should receive less money per eligible pupil than in the last year prior to implementation of the change (A-11)."

MNEA believes that every student and educator deserves the best experience possible in schools. That is why we are the only educational organization that is consistently present at every meeting of DESE, the state board of education, and the Missouri Legislature. We are your eyes and ears where decisions are being made about your schools.

The next meeting of the Missouri State Board of Education will be held on October 21, 2025, in Jefferson City, Missouri. If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact Samantha Hayes at 800-392-0236 or [email protected].