Board of Education

School Board election

Voters elected newcomer Deanna Olson and incumbent Billy King to serve on the Ray-Pec School Board. 

They will be sworn in during a reorganization meeting on April 19. Six candidates filed to vie for the two positions available. They were elected to serve three-year terms.

Deanna Olson

Deanna Olson

Billy King

Billy King 2018 image

School Board candidates

Candidate(s) for the April 6, 2021, School Board election:

  • Billy King, Raymore
  • Athenia Ingram, Peculiar
  • Thomas Walsh, Raymore
  • Janet Jones, Raymore
  • Deanna Olson, Raymore
  • Susan Edmonsond, Raymore

The candidates are listed on the ballot in the order of filing.

School Board election image

Board Member Ashley Jones resigns from postAshley Jones 2018

Ray-Pec School Board Member Ashley Jones has resigned from the School Board. She submitted a letter of resignation, effective Feb. 4.

Board Policy 0324 states that the Board will conduct an interview process to select an individual to fill the vacant seat until the next school board election. Jones's term expires in April 2021, and she chose not to run for re-election.

Because the election is less than two months away, the School Board on Feb. 11 voted to suspend board policy and leave the seat vacant until someone is selected in the April 6 election.

Board President Ruth Johnson thanked Jones for her service on the Board. As a parent in the community and a Special Education professional in another school district, Jones has provided helpful insights during her term. Jones was elected to the Board in April 2018.

2021 School Board candidate filing information

The Raymore-Peculiar R-II School District will accept Declaration of Candidacy from any qualified person interested in running for a position on the School Board in the April 6, 2021, election. Interested persons may file at the school district Administrative Services Center, located at 21005 S. School Rd., Peculiar.

Filing will begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2020. Filing will end at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021. In between, candidates may file by appointment only. Please contact Board Secretary Pam Steele at 816-892-1311 or pam.steele@raypec.org..

Except for the first and last day of the filing period, filing will not occur on days that the district offices are closed due to inclement weather or health-related reasons. Filing will also not occur when the school district's office are closed: Dec. 23, Dec. 24, Dec. 25, Jan. 1, and Jan. 18.

There are two positions available with three-year terms. Board members whose terms expire in 2021 are Ashley Jones and Billy King.

Placement on the ballot

Order of filing will determine the placement on the ballot. This is in accordance with Board Policy 0320.

2020-2021 Meetings

Month Board Meeting Joint Cities Meetings*
July July 23, 2020  
August Aug. 27, 2020 Aug. 19, 2020 (Hosted by the City of Raymore
September Sept. 10, 2020 (Work Session)  
  Sept. 24, 2020   
October Oct. 8, 2020 (Work Session)  
  Oct. 22, 2020  
November Nov. 12, 2020 (Work Session) Nov. 18, 2020 (Hosted by the Ray-Pec School District)
  Nov. 19, 2020 (Third Thursday)  
December Dec. 17, 2020 (Third Thursday)  
January Jan. 14, 2021 (Work Session)  
  Jan. 28, 2021  
February Feb. 11, 2021 (Work Session) Feb. 17, 2021 (Hosted by the City of Peculiar)
  Feb. 25, 2021  
March March 10, 2021 (Work Session)  
  March 16, 2021 (Special Meeting)  
  March 23, 2021  
April April 19, 2021 (Reorganization)  
  April 29, 2021  
May May 27, 2021 May 19, 2020 (Hosted by Cass County)
June June 10, 2021 (Retreat)  
  June 24, 2021  

* The Joint Cities meeting is a quarterly meeting that includes staff and elected officials from the Ray-Pec School District, the City of Peculiar, the City of Raymore, and Cass County. The meeting is open to the public. 

IMG_2633

From left: Ruth Johnson, Paul Coffman, and Kim York were sworn into office during a special School Board reorganization meeting on Thursday, June 11.

Coffman, Johnson, and York take oath of office

Paul Coffman, Ruth Johnson, and Kim York were sworn into office during a Board reorganization meeting on June 11. All three were re-elected to 3-year terms. 

Board Secretary Pam Steele administered the oath of office after the Board certified the results of the June 2 election. (See table below.) 

The Board elected Ruth Johnson to continue as President, and Paul Coffman to continue serving as Vice President. 

Pam Steele was re-appointed to continue as Secretary, and Cynthia Byous to continue as Treasurer. The Board also elected Ruth Johnson to serve as Missouri School Boards Association Delegate and Billy King as the Alternate Delegate.

The next regular meeting of the School Board is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, June 25, at the Administrative Services Center, 21005 S. School Rd.

official election results June 2 election

School Board election

The winners in the June 2, 2020, School Board election were Paul Coffman, Ruth Johnson, and Kim York. All three incumbents were re-elected to serve another three years. 

The unofficial results from the Cass County Clerk’s office show these vote totals:

  • Paul Coffman, 1,995 votes
  • Ruth Johnson, 1,916 votes
  • Kim York, 1,855 votes
  • Thomas Walsh, 1,109 votes
  • Susan Edmonsond, 1,037 votes
  • Shauna Stephanchick, 846 votes
  • Precious Ali, 480 votes
  • Write-in, 36 votes

The Board will certify the election results at a special meeting at 6:45 p.m. June 11. Board Secretary Pam Steele will administer the oath of office to the re-elected Board members, and the Board will take action to re-organize by electing a president and vice president. Currently, Ruth Johnson is Board President, and Paul Coffman is Vice President.

School Board Recognition Week is Feb. 9 to 15, 2020

Communities across the state are honoring the service of boards of education Feb. 9 to 15, 2020, for School Board Recognition Week. Ray-Pec School Board members volunteer their time and energy to help shape the future of the district. We appreciate their hard work and dedication! Thanks to our Raymore-Peculiar School Board members:

  • President Ruth Johnson
  • Vice President Paul Coffman
  • Aaron Howlett
  • Ashley Jones
  • Billy King
  • Bill Lowe
  • Kim York

School Board Recognition Week is sponsored by the Missouri School Boards’ Association.

Ray-Pec School Board May 2019

Front row, from left: Kim York, Ashley Jones, and President Ruth Johnson. Back row: Aaron Howlett, Billy King, Vice President Paul Coffman, and Bill Lowe.

Board announces new superintendent

The Raymore-Peculiar School District Board of Education has selected Dr. Mike Slagle to serve as superintendent of the district, effective July 1, 2020. He will replace Superintendent Dr. Kari Monsees, who is retiring at the end of this school year.

In a special meeting on Saturday, Nov. 23, the Board officially approved hiring Dr. Slagle to serve as the next superintendent. Slagle is currently the deputy superintendent for the Blue Valley School District in Overland Park, Kan.
The Blue Valley School District has an enrollment of about 22,400 students.
School board members were pleased with the large pool of candidates who applied for the superintendent position, and selected eight candidates to interview.

Ray-Pec school board members said they were impressed with Slagle's experience, leadership skills, financial expertise, experience working with a growing district, experience in strategic planning, and knowledge of initiatives currently under way in the district. He also has been involved in successful bond and levy campaigns.

Board President Ruth Johnson said, "The Board is excited to bring on Dr. Slagle. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise that will benefit our District in the years to come." Read more

Mike Slagle 2019

Board President honored

Ruth Johnson, president of the Ray-Pec Board of Education, is the recipient of the 2019 Carter D. Ward Excellence in Advocacy Award presented by FutureBuilders, the education foundation of the Missouri School Boards' Association. She was recognized on Sept. 28 during the 2019 MSBA Annual Conference at Lake of the Ozarks. The award is designed to honor an individual school board member who exemplifies leadership skills in the area of public education advocacy. Read more

Ruth Johnson Award

Contact


Pam Steele, Secretary to the Board of Education
pam.steele@raypec.org

21005 S. School Rd., P.O. Box 789, Peculiar, MO  64078

Ph: (816) 892-1311
Fx: (816) 892-1380

Hours


Monday - Friday
8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

The seven-member Board of Education is elected by District patrons. Members are elected to serve three-year terms without pay. View all Board Members

Meetings


  • 7 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of the month
  • Administrative Services Center, 21005 S. School Rd., Peculiar, MO 64078