August 15, 2019 

Dear Parents/Guardians, 

It is with great enthusiasm that I welcome you back for another incredible school year! There are lots of outstanding things happening at our schools so be sure to check out our school social media sites, keep an eye on your mail and email, and watch for flyers and other materials that will be sent home with your students the first few days of school to let you know about many of these exciting planned events! You can also check out the Hannibal School District on social media. 

This has been a busy summer and a lot of construction projects have been completed, others are currently underway, and more will continue to take place through the end of next summer. Some of those completed projects are listed below: 

• New Heating Ventilation Air-Conditioning installed at Hannibal High School and Hannibal Career and Technical Center 
• All new plumbing installed at Hannibal High School
• Drop ceilings installed throughout Hannibal High School and in corridors at Hannibal Career & Technical Center 
• Fire alarm systems on main campus connected to Fire department to enhance safety
• LED lighting installed throughout the district 
• Control systems installed throughout the school district 
• Overhead electrical systems have been removed and buried to enhance safety at Porter Stadium 
• New water fountains installed at Hannibal High School, many with water bottle filler systems 
• Installation of temporary air-conditioning window units in an additional 11 Hannibal Middle School classrooms so HMS can plan for cooler conditions this school year while their new HVAC is installed next summer 

More construction projects will continue this fall, including the installation of new double-pane windows on the main campus. We are proud to share these facility improvements with your students and are excited to see what how these improvements will enhance the student achievement at the beginning of this new school year. 

As a parent you can help us to ensure the educational success of your children by stressing to your children that attendance in school is important. Did you know that absenteeism in the first month of school can predict poor attendance throughout the school year? Did you know that poor attendance can influence whether children read proficiently by the end of third grade? Did you know that by 6th grade, chronic absence becomes a leading indicator that a student will drop out of high school? Finally, did you know that research shows missing 10% of the school year (or about 18 days) actually has a negative impact on a student's academic performance? That is just two days per month! 

 

In closing, the Hannibal School District's staff continue to work tirelessly to make our schools a place where you child wants to come each and every day to challenge themselves, to socialize, and to achieve all that they can achieve as learners! We ALL CARE DEEPLY about the safety and success of our children! We are lucky to have such a dedicated and caring staff whose focus and priorities are all in the right places - building positive relationships with each and every student! I look forward to another great year! Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions, comments, or concerns you may have throughout the year. My email is sjohnson@hannibal60.com and my office phone number is 221-1258. See you all soon! GO PIRATES! 

Sincerely,

Susan Johnson, Superintendent of Schools