In late September of this year, Governor of Missouri Mike Parson came to our school to sign House Bill 2 (HB 2). Along with signing the bill, he met and shook hands with multiple students and staff. The event took place at the library.
One of our librarians, Shannon McDonald, was overjoyed to have Governor Parson at our school.
“He connected with students incredibly and they all understood him perfectly. He just really engaged them,” McDonald said.
Some of the clubs that got to speak with Governor Parson were HOSA, FCCLA, DECA, Chief Mentors, Robotics, as well as our Cabinet.
Senior Grace Everett, our spirit cabinet representative, loved welcoming Governor Parson to our school.
“We had such a diverse group of students there and we had foreign exchange students who were able to witness something important,” Everett said.
Everett also exclaimed how exciting it was that he chose to do the signing at our school.
“I’m happy he chose to come to Kickapoo out of all schools,” Everett said.
Although it’s known Governor Parson was here to sign a bill regarding schools in the state of Missouri, there are many technicalities of the bill necessary for our schools.
This bill provides funding for elementary, middle, and high schools in Missouri. The funding began July 1, 2023, and will continue until June 30, 2024.
The bill sent out close to 10 billion dollars to fund schools and programs around Missouri. It goes over relevant issues we need to address within our schooling system.
HB 2 consists of a lot of funding for subjects relating to school shootings. It funds a temporary administrative support staff to a public school in Missouri that has recently experienced a traumatic event of gun violence in the last year. Additionally, there are grants to establish school safety programs including training, physical security upgrades, and first aid equipment.
There are also many grants pertaining to the mental health of students and youth. Some include funding for the Missouri AWARE project which addresses the mental health needs of youth, a school based mental health coordinator, and the hiring of school counselors who deal with suicide and other behavorial health needs.
On top of that, there is funding for the homelessness problem. The bill gives money to a program to assist homeless students and help them overcome barriers and stay in permanent housing. It also facilitates identification, enrollment, attendance, and success for homeless students in school.
The bill addresses people with health conditions and impairments such as blindness and the hard of hearing. It also funds a reading assessment for elementary students to identify dyslexia early. It funds dyslexia programs as well.
HB 2 furthers the education in many subjects. It includes funding for the Missouri Holocaust Education and Awareness Commision and the procurement of a chemistry and physical science online learning platform for middle and high school students.
Although these are not all of the topics addressed in the bill, these are very essential grants to communities and schools across Missouri.
