Cuba’s R-2 District School Board met for the first time during the 2026-2027 school year Sept. 29 and heard various updates from administrators and its student representative about how the school year is going so far. Cuba’s previous school board meeting took place Aug. 19, six days before the Aug. 25 first day of school in the district.

A new but familiar face was serving on the district’s board. Tiffany Dickens, who previously served on the board from 2021 until 2024, was approved by the board to replace Caitlin Mace, who sent a letter of resignation on Aug. 5, which went into effect Aug. 7.

Kendra Humphrey, a junior at Cuba High School and the district’s student representative, gave a detailed report from the student’s perspective and said that things are going well so far. When asked about the school year, Humphrey said, “It’s been pretty good. We have homecoming this week, so it’s definitely been exciting. The sports have been good, and the clubs are getting more involved so we are all really good so far.”

Each of Cuba’s faculty administrators then gave their respective reports to the School Board.

Tess Green, Cuba Elementary School Principal, began by telling the board that she has been assessing her student’s behavioral reports by separating them into major and minor incidents. She added that these specific reports can help her and her staff respond efficiently and effectively to each individual situation.

  “The whole purpose of doing majors and minors is to create consistency, to have that documentation piece,” Green said. “And then it really helps steer our PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports), which as a district we’re really working towards, and so it helps us see patterns when we meet monthly with our committees,”

She continued, “And then again, we use it as a quick reference all the time. What areas do we need to focus on? If we’ve had a ton of issues with physical contact, but I can see that physical contact is taking place on the playground, what do we need to change? Do our teachers need to be spread out more? Do we need to add more teachers on duty? Do we need to reiterate what the expectations are, so on and so forth,” Green added.

Green moved on to speaking about Cuba Elementary School’s fall block party, which she said drew 472 community members.

“I felt like it was really busy, but it was really good,” she said. “I think it was the first year that I’ve been here that we actually had fall weather for the fall block party, so that was beautiful. We’ve got lots of family involvement going on, so we’re booming in that area. Block party, grandparent’s day coming up, all kinds of great things. So we are rocking and rolling.”

  Grandparent’s day at Cuba Elementary School is scheduled for Oct. 14 from 7 a.m. until 8 a.m. where grandparents of students will be treated to coffee and donuts while spending an hour that morning with their grandchildren. Registration for the event isn’t needed and coffee and donuts will be served on a first come first served basis. 

Cuba Middle School Principal Erica Williamson spent the majority of her report to the board highlighting her school’s teachers and their involvement in extracurricular activities.

“I kind of wanted to focus on my wonderful teachers. They have so many clubs going for our students,” Williamson said. “We have junk journalism, journaling, journalism and many others. There’s just so many different things that our students can do after school. They also have tutoring available, and we also have our AR lab open. The fall book fair is going on right now so that’s an exciting time. Our students love to go down to the book fair and buy things.”

Williamson added that Cuba Middle School eighth graders will be taking a field trip Oct. 15 to the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City, which is “an exciting field trip that they all love.”

Cuba High School Principal Michael Clutts said that the school’s first assembly of the year featured a $50 by Friday presentation by Dr. Sean Siebert, which he said was especially impactful to many students. According to a Facebook post from Siebert, “The presentation focused on entrepreneurship, innovation, opportunity, failure, resilience, and believing that where you start does not have to determine where you finish.”

Clutts emphasized his students’ attention to the presentation and their behavior during the ceremony was noticeable.

“It’s a testament to Dr. Siebert. He was able to grab the kids’ attention, but also I think it’s a testament to our advisory and our emphasis on school behavior and how well our kids behave during the assembly,” Clutts said. “And so I think things are going in the right direction. The assembly was great and I think a lot of kids got some stuff that they needed out of it, and it’s still ongoing with stuff that came out of that assembly with our kids.”

Clutts added that homecoming spirit week is underway, which includes homecoming Olympics, consisting of daily assemblies with contests and spirit competitions.

Jennifer Moreland, Crawford R-2 District School Board President said that CHS’ co-op with Steelville for football has also helped increase school spirit.

“I just also want to highlight your last bullet point on your report about how well the co-op is going between Steelville for the football program,” Moreland said. “I’ve talked to a lot of parents, community members, and everybody is so grateful and thankful for the opportunity. So yeah, I think it’s amazing.”

Board member Renee White added, “It’s really good to see all of those kids getting along, and not just the football team, but the other students as well.”

In her report, Assistant Superintendent Myra Siebert noted that the school district currently has a $35,877.54 balance of unpaid student meals.

“I would like to point out that the unpaid student meal balance is very high, but I also am appreciative that our kids are still eating,” Siebert said.

Siebert added that there isn’t a cutoff date for the free or reduced lunch forms to be filled out. She continued, “However, any balance that’s been accrued prior to filing for free and reduced lunch, can’t be wiped out and needs to be paid.”

Cuba R-2 District superintendent Scott Davidson said that it’s common for school districts in the area to have an outstanding balance for student meals.

“I will mention that superintendent groups, as discussed, have said that it’s not uncommon in multiple surrounding districts. So it’s just something to keep an eye on. We will address it as best we can,” Davidson said.

Cuba’s R-2 District School board will have its next meeting at 6 p.m. Oct. 29 at the District Office at 1 Wildcat Pride Drive.