The Backstory: How Francis Howell Ended Up Paying a Quarter-Million for a Failed Hire (Superintendent Debacle, Part I)

After hearing about the failed hire for an FHSD superintendent, most of us are still picking our jaws up off the floor. The truth is, to understand how all of this unfolded—and cost our district a staggering sum—we have to go back a ways...

This story begins and ends with the culture wars. When the Francis Howell Families PAC formed (2021), they funded five candidates who promised attention on academics, fiscal responsibility, and common sense. But once they were elected, intense moral panic held their focus; their sites were set on policing library books and gender and sowing general distrust of district educators. While they held the majority, the FHFamilies board:

• Blocked curriculum updates and resource renewals (iReady Math, BrainPOP, and more)

• Accused educators of predatory behavior

• Gutted professional development for teachers

• Overhauled over a dozen district policies (forcing librarians to run every book through them and preventing concerned stakeholders from sharing election information with parents on school grounds)

  
  

Like Wentzville before us, the hostile environment has proven expensive. Under the FHSD5, the district saw a steep increase in staff and administrator turnover, including a highly competent superintendent. Dr. Ken Roumpos—who resigned a year before the end of his contract—made the reason for his departure clear in a speech to his new district, where he said he was eager to be in a place where a district walked the walk regarding equity. 

The search for a new superintendent then spiraled into a costly debacle. Political upheaval in prior years had pushed out seven incumbents, leaving every board member in their first term and stripping the board of institutional knowledge. With another election on the horizon and Dr. Roumpos’s departure looming, the board pushed to fast-track the search, which resulted in poor vetting. After a 6-1 vote, FHSD was unknowingly saddled with a leader fleeing a wake of harassment and incompetence rumors from his previous district. Just months later, the vote for his resignation was unanimous. Now taxpayers aren’t just out the $250,000—we’re a laughingstock—and likely to be a repeat target of a state audit. 

Please Note: For more details about the search for the almost-superintendent, look for Superintendent Debacle, Part II.

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