Hannibal School District working on Eugene Field closure transition

HANNIBAL, Mo. — Susan Johnson and the Hannibal School District are making sure to cross their t’s and dot their i’s during the redistricting process.

“Transition and change are hard,” said Johnson, the district’s superintendent. “We want to be sensitive to the needs of our staff, families and students as we move through this process.”

During the November meeting, the Hannibal School Board voted 4-3 to close Eugene Field Elementary and move forward with four elementary schools beginning with the 2025-26 school year. At Wednesday’s meeting, Johnson took a pivotal step in ironing out that process by announcing a preliminary timeline for informing staff, families and students of the changes that will affect them.

“We put dates on there to hold ourselves accountable so people will know that by ‘this time we will have this done’ and they know what to account for,” Johnson said.

Johnson will meet with the principals at every elementary school by January 10. Those meetings will allow Johnson and those principals to discuss district boundaries, staffing concerns and more.

“(We will) go through the students that will be attending their school next year with those district boundaries being changed, which ultimately will tell the number of sections for each grade level, which then falls into staffing,” Johnson said.

By March 14, Johnson and her transition team will inform families of what they can expect come next school year.

Johnson recognized the need for families to get answers while also making sure the district does not leave any stone unturned.

“We want to be very cautious and make sure that the information we’re putting out is 100 percent accurate so there is no chance for errors,” Johnson said. “The last thing we want to do is cause someone any additional hardship more than what they already feel.”

During the public comments portion of the meeting in the Hannibal Middle School auditorium, Eugene Field physical education teacher Melissa Menze addressed the board and brought to their attention the struggles the staff and students at Eugene Field are going through.

“The mental health of the staff at Eugene Field since last month is a huge concern,” Menze said. “The constant questioning and repetitive conversations we’ve had to have with others on what will happen with you or where you will go next year are extremely tough.”

Menze implored the board to not let this process get pushed to the back burner.

“While we’re making the best of our situation and marching on, due to the incredible sadness and weight of the decision, I’m worried about the length of this mental toll on my colleagues and students,” Menze said. “Several community members said after the last meeting, once this decision is made, make sure you don’t just drop it and walk away. Unfortunately, I would say a lot of us feel that’s what’s happened.”

When Menze concluded her comments, board president Blane Mundle ensured Menze that the district has and will continue to make this process a priority, and after the meeting, Johnson reiterated that it has been and will stay at the top of that priority list.

“It’s the most important thing that I’m doing,” Johnson said. “It’s a priority in every sense of the word. Over the Christmas break, that’s more of what I will be doing. That’s not a complaint. That’s because it needs to be a priority. 

“This is very important. We want to make sure all of our kids, all of our families and all of our staff are getting the best treatment we can possibly give them. I believe we can do that. I just know during that transition time, it’s very difficult when sometimes things are in limbo.”

Johnson said the transition team, which will be made up of people from all five elementary schools, will prove crucial to making sure the district checks every box.

“I’m really looking forward to getting that transition team together,” Johnson said. “Just like anything, you try to be thorough and be understanding of every possible need. You need to include other people in that because they will in all likelihood have other perspectives that I don’t have. We don’t want to leave anyone out.”