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Rockwood School District Annual Report 2023-2024

Welcome to Rockwood!

Our students, staff members and families have been excited to head back into our hallways for the first half of the 2023-2024 school year in the Rockwood School District! Rockwood is a special place for our students to learn and grow, and we are committed to maintaining a safe, focused and fun environment for everyone in our community.

Our nearly 3,500 teachers and staff members go above and beyond to ensure a quality learning experience each day for over 19,400 learners. We prioritize the physical safety and mental and social-emotional health of our students through a multi-tiered system of support. We keep our focus on our students’ education through cultivating positive, respectful relationships that build a solid foundation for learning. And we always make sure to keep things fun and celebrate the many and varied successes of our students, staff and community members!

These collective efforts uphold a reputation founded on high student achievement, outstanding teachers and staff and great community support.

Rockwood is not only the gem of St. Louis County; I believe it’s the gem of the state of Missouri. It is a district that is known for student achievement, innovation and ensuring that the needs of all students are being addressed. We have been one of the most well-regarded school districts in this country, and we will continue to be just that by working together to ensure all students realize their full potential.

Mission, Vision, and Core Values
What is The Way Forward? https://forward.rsdmo.org
Meet the Superintendent
Get to know Dr. Curtis Cain https://www.rsdmo.org/superintendent
Meet the Board of Education
Your educational advocates https://www.rsdmo.org/boardofeducation

Student Achievement

The Rockwood School District continues to be a state and national leader in education. Rockwood students routinely perform at high levels in the content areas of Reading, Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies on state assessment tests.

Awards

Graduation Rate

The Rockwood graduation rate continues to be significantly above the state average. We want all students to graduate and be prepared for college, career and citizenship.

There may more information here! Scroll or swipe left and right to see the whole table.
Group Graduation Rate
Rockwood 95.5%
Missouri 89.3%

Student Academic Achievement in Rockwood https://www.rsdmo.org/discover/the-rockwood-advantage/academic-achievement

Advanced Placement (AP)

AP provides students the opportunity to take college-level courses while in high school. Students who participate gain college-level skills and may earn college credit while they are still in high school.

More than 68 percent of the graduating class earned a B or better through coursework from the Advanced Placement or Advanced Credit Program.

32
Different AP Exams
4,207
AP Exams Taken
1,950
Students Taking AP Exams
87%
AP Exam Scores of 3+

The AP Program https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/assessment/student-testing/advanced-placement

ACT

Nearly 91 percent of 2023 Rockwood graduates participated in at least one administration of the ACT.

The ACT defines College Readiness Benchmarks as minimum scores needed to indicate a 50 percent chance of obtaining a B or higher or a 75 percent chance of obtaining a C or higher in the corresponding credit-bearing college courses.

The numbers below reflect students' best ACT attempts. For information about students' most recent ACT attempts, visit our Academic Achievement page.

There may more information here! Scroll or swipe left and right to see the whole table.
Group Composite Average Students Meeting
All Four Benchmarks
Rockwood 23.5 40%
Missouri 20.1

The ACT in Rockwood https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/assessment/student-testing/act

MAP

The Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) offers statewide grade-level assessments for students in the academic areas of English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies. MAP results should be used in tandem with other data points—such as learning environment and other contextual factors—to understand student performance in relation to academic goals.

There may more information here! Scroll or swipe left and right to see the whole table.
Group Language Arts Math Science Social Studies
Rockwood 60.1% 57.8% 58.2% 55%
Missouri 43.5% 40.4% 39% 39.2%

MAP Testing in Rockwood https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/assessment/student-testing/map

Highly Qualified Staff

  • Rockwood South Middle Principal Dr. Laurie Birkenmeier was named the 2023 Middle School Principal of the Year by the St. Louis Association of Secondary School Principals (SASSP).
  • Three Rockwood educators received a 2023 Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award, and Rockwood Teacher of the Year, David Choate, was one of seven finalists for Missouri State Teacher of the Year.
  • Crestview Middle teacher Meghan Menchella received the Milken Educator Award.
  • Westridge Elementary nurse Angie Oest was named the 2023 School Nurse of the Year by the St. Louis Suburban School Nurses’ Association (SLSSNA).
  • Thirteen Rockwood nurses have received National Board Certification of School Nurses (NBCSN).
  • Rockwood provides ongoing professional development for all of its employees. We have a comprehensive program for the development of teachers and staff at all levels.

Employment in the Rockwood School District https://www.rsdmo.org/hr

87%
have advanced degrees
15
average years' experience
162
National Board Certified Teachers

Safe and Caring Schools

The health and safety of our students, staff members and our entire community will always be a top priority in Rockwood. To help ensure the safety and security of our school communities, we recognize the importance of continually collaborating with emergency management officials to ensure best practices are implemented for school safety; reviewing and evaluating the district's comprehensive safety plan; and providing professional learning on safety for staff at all levels. This includes districtwide options-based response training so that staff members are prepared to lockdown, barricade and evacuate students to a safe location outside the school building during an intruder alert.

For the 2023-2024 school year, the Rockwood School District has added one safety officer for each of our four quadrants. These officers are armed and assigned a marked district vehicle. Their primary focus is covering elementary schools within their assigned quadrant, and they work in tandem with our existing 13 school resource officers (SROs).

21
National Schools of Character
23
Missouri Schools of Character

Safety and Security

Providing a warm, welcoming and safe school environment https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/safety-and-security

Effective Communication

Connecting the home, school and community https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/communications

Character Education

Developing autonomy, belonging and competency https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/safety-and-security/social-and-emotional-safety

Parent Involvement

Supporting students and their achievement https://www.rsdmo.org/presidentsforum

We care about our students. We recognize that relationships matter. Our core values drive our work as we connect with students so they can learn, grow and reach their highest potential. Rockwood Student Services provides social-emotional support for all students.

Our caring, trained school counselors, social workers and social-emotional behavior specialists help provide a multi-tiered system of support for our schools. Students in need can also access on-demand behavioral and mental health teletherapy outside of a school setting through our partnership with Hazel Health.

Social-Emotional Learning

A multi-tiered system of support https://www.rsdmo.org/departments/student-services/social-and-emotional-learning

Social Workers

Providing a caring environment for learning https://www.rsdmo.org/socialworkers

School Counselors

Facilitating students' academic and personal goals https://www.rsdmo.org/counselors

Wellness and Health

Keeping students healthy and ready to learn https://www.rsdmo.org/health

School Report Cards

With almost 20,000 students, Rockwood is the largest school district in St. Louis County. In addition, the district's 19 elementary schools, six middle schools and four high schools collectively make up one of the highest performing school districts in the country.

Visit a Rockwood school and you'll see great things: successful students, caring employees, enthusiastic volunteers and a commitment to excellence in education. Each Rockwood school produces a school report card to highlight student achievement, enrollment and staffing.

Visit our Annual Report online at https://annualreport.rsdmo.org/reportcards to browse each school's report card.

Responsible Finance

Awarded Highest Rating (AAA) by Standard and Poor's Rating Services

Awarded the Meritorious Budget Award by the Missouri Association of School Business Officials

For the 14th straight year, Rockwood School District has earned a top ranking as a AAA-rated district from Standard & Poor's. The AAA rating reflects organizations with exemplary financial strength and discipline in meeting all obligations.

According to Standard & Poor's, a AAA-rated organization has an extremely strong capacity to meet its financial commitments. A AAA credit rating is the highest one issued by Standard & Poor's, and Rockwood is one of only four districts in the state to earn such a high bond rating. Rockwood has also earned the Meritorious Budget Award (MBA) for excellence in budget presentation by the Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) International for 24 consecutive years and the ASBO and Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) Certificate of Excellence (COE) in financial reporting for 18 straight years. Rockwood is the only school district in the state to currently hold a AAA rating as well as ASBO's MBA and COE and GFOA's COE.

Finance in Rockwood https://www.rsdmo.org/finance

19,424
Student Enrollment
3,486
Staff Members
$261,934,774
Operating Budget

Revenue and Expenditures

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Revenue

Source Amount
Local Property Taxes 66%
State Foundation Formula 13%
Other Local, State and Federal 9%
State Sales Taxes 10%
Desegregation Aid 2%

Expenditures

Expenditure Amount
Instruction 70%
Facilities and Maintenance 13%
School Support 8%
Central Admin 5%
Transportation 4%

Exceptional Community

Partners in Education logo

Partners in Education

A good education requires a partner. In Rockwood, we have PIE (Partners in Education).

PIE facilitators collaborate with volunteers willing to share their expertise or special talents with our students. This community cooperation enhances curriculum and affords our students a real-world view of what their future might look like.

Partners In Education https://www.rsdmo.org/pie

Parkway-Rockwood Community Education logo

Parkway-Rockwood Community Education

Parkway-Rockwood Community Education offers a broad range of programs and services for youth and adults in several areas, including aquatics, adult education and literacy, enrichment, outdoor education, school-age care, sports and visual and performing arts.

The collaboration provides high-quality programming and services to enhance quality of life for residents.

Parkway-Rockwood Community Education http://www.prcommunityed.org/

Rockwood Early Childhood Program logo

Rockwood Early Childhood Education

The Rockwood Early Childhood Education program has a longstanding reputation for excellence in educating children from birth to kindergarten with resources such as Parents As Teachers, screenings, preschool, diagnostics and special education.

All teachers are certified by the state in Early Childhood Education and/or Early Childhood Special Education. The preschool program features a curriculum aligned with Rockwood's high standards.

Rockwood Early Childhood Education https://earlychildhood.rsdmo.org

Rockwood Gives Back logo

Rockwood Gives Back

Rockwood Gives Back is a group of volunteers who support Rockwood students and families in need. Rockwood Gives Back cultivates a spirit of generosity and donations, connects families with services to strengthen our school district and develops a districtwide culture of support for our children.

Rockwood Gives Back works closely with district and school staff members to nurture a close, caring school community.

Rockwood Gives Back https://www.rsdmo.org/giveback

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