Joel Matthews will be leaving the Fort Osage District this year. He will be working at the Excelsior Springs School District next year. He has taught for 14 years, all being at Fort Osage. Mr. Matthews believes that the best part about working at Fort Osage was the people he got to work with.

“Best thing about working at Fort, a lot of it was the people that I got to work with, both teachers and the students.” Mr. Matthew said “And then I also enjoyed being able to be in the same district were my daughters go to school as well.”  

Four other teachers and 2 staff members will be joining Mr. Matthews in leaving the school. Mr. Lance Barrett (math), Ms. Mary Hay (counselor), Ms. Lisa Wright (Sped), Ms. Rochelle Dyer (PLTW), Ms. Michaela Dudenhoeffer Health Room Para) , and Mr. David Moore (Science Teacher) are all moving to other jobs or careers.

Mr. Moore will teaching science at Center School District. He has been a teacher for five years, all have been at Fort. Mr. Moore’s favorite thing about working at the was his students.

“I had my class, the students that I coached,” Mr. Moore said. “They taught me a lot. It was something new everyday. I could laugh. I learned from them probably just as much as I taught them.”

Mr. Matthews and Mr. Moore were also coaches. Mr. Matthews was the high school assistant football coach and Mr. Moore was the Osage Trails Middle School track coach. Mr. Matthew thought it was fun, but also stressful.

“(There is) a lot of time that I don’t think people realize you put into it,” Mr. Matthews said. “It definitely challenged me in a lot of different ways but it also enables me to develop relationships with kids that I wouldnt of had otherwise.”

Mr. Barrett will be teaching in the Pleasant Hill School District next year. Freshman Heather Chiesi thinks that Mr. Matthews is a positive person and pushes his kids to do there best.

“He’s kind of just like a positive person in general like he pushes kids, because he knows kids can do goo,” Chiesi said. “He’s like a positive role model because there’s like a lot of teachers at our school who don’t care as much as they should and Mr. Matthews cares a lot about his teaching and about his students as well.”

Ms. Dudenhoeffer is leaving to go back to school and Ms. Wright will be working for the Wellington School District next year. Freshman Kiely Farmer believes that Mr. Moore put the students first.

“He’s always been caring about how you are and your grades,” Farmer said.

Ms. Hay and Ms. Dyer will be retiring from Fort Osage at the end of the year.