FROM THE PRINCIPAL

Dear Leawood Families,

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for your generosity and support in making our new monkey bars a reality! Your contributions, whether through donations or participation in Raise Craze, have made a lasting impact on our school, and we truly appreciate each and every one of you.

Participating in Raise Craze was about more than just fundraising; it was a great reminder of the power of kindness. Seeing our students, families, and staff come together to support our school while spreading kindness throughout the community has been truly inspiring.

On behalf of our staff and students, thank you for your generosity, participation, and belief in making Leawood Elementary an even better place to learn and grow. The students have been so excited to use the monkey bars, and I am so grateful to be part of such a supportive community!

CMAS Reminder

A friendly reminder that CMAS testing for grades 3rd-5th will commence on April 8th. Testing will be from April 8th-April 16th. Our 4th and 5th grade students will have some days in which they will take 2 tests in a day. Since 5th graders have to take a science portion as well, their testing schedule is slightly different. Please try to avoid appointments or pulling your children on these mornings to help alleviate the amount of make-up exams. Let's support our students as they showcase their knowledge and skills on the CMAS exams.

Staffing Update 

I wanted to inform you of a recent development regarding our PE department for the 2025-2026 school year. Unfortunately, Coach Mulready will not be returning to Leawood Elementary School next school year due to the district’s pairing process, which has led to his assignment at another school. The pairing process occurs when there is not enough funding/students to have three full-time specials teachers, which is common in many of our Jeffco elementary schools. 

I want to express our sincere sadness in seeing Coach Mulready go. His dedication and enthusiasm for physical education have had a positive impact on our students these last two years, and he will be greatly missed by all of us at Leawood.

Please know that this decision was not made by me as the principal but rather as part of the district’s process.

Despite this change, I am pleased to announce that we will be warmly welcoming three highly regarded PE teachers to our school community Kristi Vaninger (Red Rocks Elementary), Carrie Erickson, and Amanda Deich (who are doing a job-share from Mortensen). These three teachers will be splitting the position. We are confident that they will bring fresh energy and a passion for promoting health and fitness among our students.

As we transition to this new chapter, I encourage you to join me in thanking Coach Mulready for his service and in extending a warm welcome to our incoming PE teachers. Together, we will continue to prioritize the well-being and physical development of our students at Leawood Elementary School.

Thank you for your understanding and support during this time of transition.

Panorama Survey Results

On Friday, we received our results from the Panorama Survey that was given to our 3rd- 5th graders. While the School Accountability Committee will dive more deeply into these results in our next meeting in May, I wanted to share some of the exciting results we received. 

One of the biggest areas of growth this year was in students' excitement about going to class. When asked, “Are you excited about going to class?”, 18% more students responded positively compared to last year! Even more importantly, the question, “How high are your teachers’ expectations of you?” saw a 16% increase—showing that while students are enjoying their learning experience, they also recognize the high expectations their teachers have for them. This balance is important because it means students find their classes engaging and fun while still being challenged to do their best.

Another key area of progress was in students’ sense of belonging at Leawood. When asked, “Overall, how much do you feel like you belong at Leawood?” our score increased by 7%, reaching 79%. While our goal was 80%, we came very close and should be proud of the progress we’ve made in fostering a welcoming and supportive school community.

Thank you to our students, staff, and families for your continued efforts in making Leawood a place where students feel excited to learn, challenged to grow, and valued as part of our community!

Your Proud Principal,

Kevin Kolasa