In the Drake University Knapp Center — a place where crowds regularly erupt in celebration — thousands of DMPS educators and support staff were on their feet several times in appreciation of guests who spoke to the challenges and joys of working in schools.
Superintendent Dr. Ian Roberts welcomed everyone to the first Reimagine, Recommit, Reignite Back-to-School celebration on Monday, August 12, an event that is expected to be an annual event for DMPS staff before the start of a new school year.
The featured guest of the day was Nikole Hannah-Jones, author of the 1619 Project. She encouraged us to thoroughly examine the history of the United States because it comes with realities that are still influencing the lives of our students today.
“Learning a more accurate history allows us to grapple more honestly with the country that we have so that we can build the country that we ultimately want,” she said.
She also discussed the importance of literacy education beyond 3rd grade, providing reading materials that reflect the student experience, and reading what puts us out of our comfort zones and challenges us.
Hoover English Language Learning teacher and 2024 Iowa Teacher of the Year Ann Mincks returned to visit a few weeks after the start of her year-long sabbatical traveling across Iowa to share her experiences from Space Camp with other state teacher of the year and the connection their work had to educating students.
Associate Superintendent Matt Smith shared an update about the Reimagining Education Facilities Planning Committee. The group of 80+ stakeholders – parents, teachers, staff, business leaders, and community members – have gathered many times over the last eight months to research and analyze data with the goal of moving the district forward. He said they are now ready to shift to advancing options and making recommendations to the community and the School Board for systemic change that will benefit our students, families, and staff for generations to come.
Those changes could include adjustment of school boundaries, new schools, building additions, changes to school and facility programming, school and facility consolidation, and changes to grade configuration.
He shared a commitment to invest not in buildings, but in the people who will create the necessary change to meet with future.
“We are united by a just cause,” said Smith. “Three or four years from now, Des Moines Public Schools will not look the same way it does today. We are going to invest differently to get a better result, to get better outcomes for our children, for you, for our families.”
Smith said more details would be available after the start of the 2024-25 school year.
Dr. Claire Muselman took the stage in her sparkling white suit to encourage people to connect with one another to lift everyone — and indeed that connection is what matters most.
Following lunch, Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris challenged everyone to “get better every day” and praised Des Moines students as, “global citizens equipped with the cultural competency necessary to thrive and globalized society that demands adaptability and appreciation for diversity.”
Drake University Dean of the School of Education talked about the great partnership between DMPS and the university and how it will positively impact the future.
Not many dry eyes were left in the building as John-Michael Keyes, co-founder of the I Love You Guys Foundation told the story of the day his daughter was killed by a gunman in her classroom at Platte Canyon High School in Colorado. He shared his family’s pain and the purpose they found around creating and teaching a Standard Response Protocol that will help keep other students safe in their schools, including Des Moines Public Schools. The Foundation’s programs are used in over 45,000 schools, agencies, and organizations across the country.
Dr. Roberts closed the day of celebration as he started it, with an intentional focus on grounding all decisions during the 2024-25 school year in what is good for the children of DMPS. He shared his own evolution as a student and a school leader, to a champion of radical empathy. He left the audience with a simple message – be more than an ally, be an advocate for students.
DMPS Back-to-School Celebration Photos
