Today's News Update: Sixth-graders at Hazel Grove Elementary are giving up their traditional Thanksgiving feast in an effort to help others. Visit http://tiny.cc/jQpMv

R-7 Citizens' Advisory Committee
presents recommendation for April
2010 no-tax-increase bond issue
Members of the Lee's Summit R-7 Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC) presented a recommendation for a school district no-tax-increase bond issue at the Nov. 19 Board of Education meeting. The broad-based citizens' group made the recommendation for this $16 million bond issue after a comprehensive study of the district's growth, financial and facility needs.
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Race for the Future raises $23,825
for LS Educational Foundation,
Carrie Foresee Memorial Scholarship Fund
Race for the Future, a 5K run/walk held Oct. 10, raised approximately $23,825 to benefit the Lee’s Summit Educational Foundation and the Carrie Foresee Memorial Scholarship Fund. Braving unseasonably cold weather, a total of 742 runners and walkers registered for the 5K event and another 127 participated in the Kid’s Dash.
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R-7 School District earns state’s
Distinction in Performance Award
The Lee’s Summit R-7 School District was one of just 13 metropolitan-area school districts to earn Missouri’s coveted Distinction in Performance Award this year, according to a Dec. 12 announcement from state education officials. The award honors districts for academic achievement and progress during the 2007-08 school year.
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Nov. 25-29: Thanksgiving vacation
Dec. 18: Early release day-end of semester
Dec. 19-Jan.4: Winter break

Jan. 4: No school-teacher workday
Jan. 5: Classes resume-second semester begins

•R-7 was among the top two school districts on Missouri's "top 10" spring 2009 schools lists. The state lists rank schools based on student scores on the spring 2008 Missouri academic achievement tests.
•The school district is a winner of Missouri’s Distinction in Performance Award, the state’s highest recognition for academic achievement. During December 2008, the R-7 School District was recognized for being among a handful of districts in the state to earn a perfect score on criteria for the Distinction In Performance Award each year for the last eight years.
•The R-7 Nutrition Services Department was named District of the Year in School Nutrition in July 2009 by the School Nutrition Association. The award included $25,000 to further improve the nutrition program.
•R-7 officials reported that approximately 83 percent of the 2008 graduates have stated they are attending college, based on 2007-08 seniors' response to a fall 2008 survey.
•The class of 2009 was offered $20.5 million in college scholarships for the next four years.
•Lee’s Summit was recently featured in BusinessWeek magazine as Missouri’s “Best Place in America to Raise Kids.” Only one town was selected from each state, and most important factors in this analysis were school performance, affordability and safety.
•Money magazine named Lee's Summit R-7 schools as seventh best in the nation in its annual "Best Places to Live" issue focusing on the nation's top 100 small cities.
•Nine seniors were named National Merit Scholarship finalists in February 2009.
•All three R-7 School District high schools offer the International Baccalaureate program, a rigorous curriculum offering students the opportunity to compete with high-achieving students worldwide. Only nine high schools in Missouri offer this program.
•The A+ program is offered at all three high schools. Qualifying students enrolled in this state-funded program are eligible for reimbursements at Missouri community colleges, vocational/technical institutions, and some four-year colleges.
•Lee’s Summit R-7 students consistently score above state and national norms on all tests, including the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) Tests and ACT college-entrance test. On the ACT 2009 college entrance test, for example, the R-7 School District high schools’ composite score was 23.3, compared to 21.6 for the Missouri average and 21.1 for the national average.