Pattonville receives Pinnacle of Achievement Award for community connections

Pattonville is one of four districts in the nation that will be honored with a Pinnacle of Achievement Award from the Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) this fall. The award recognizes districts for their resourcefulness and creativity in solving challenges and championing education and creating innovative solutions to maximize resources and enhance student achievement. The award will be presented to Mary Jo Gruber, Pattonville’s chief financial officer, during ASBO’s fall conference. 

Pattonville received a Pinnacle of Achievement Award for utilizing the district purchasing process to create career exploration opportunities for students. Pattonville uses value-added services (VASs), additional offerings provided by businesses that go beyond its core product or service offerings, to create opportunities for students to learn from employees of a company or to experience work in that company first-hand through an extended learning opportunity (ELO). Starting in 2018, Pattonville has used ELOs as a way for students to explore real-world applications of their interests and career aspirations. This exploration occurs in a variety of non-traditional ways, including self-study and internship-like programs. 

In order to cultivate relationships for this program, Pattonville’s business office has revised its request for proposal (RFP) process to encourage companies to develop an opportunity for students to explore careers in that business area. As each proposal is evaluated, the district can award additional points to a company for innovative approaches that incorporate emerging technologies, project-based learning (PBL) or interdisciplinary studies to expose students to various focuses and careers in unique ways. 

“The purchasing process serves as a bridge between the business community and the district,” Gruber said. “By leveraging value-added services proposed during the purchasing process, districts can access a wide range of expertise, resources and innovative solutions to access extended learning opportunities for students and expose them to various focuses and careers.”

In addition to the RFP process, districts can actively collaborate with currently contracted businesses with the goal of fostering positive connections that can turn into ELOs that benefit the students, staff and the community at large. These community partnerships in learning make the district, business and the community as a whole stronger.

Students across Pattonville have benefited from these business-related opportunities. Numerous businesses have provided in-classroom opportunities for students to learn about that company’s field. This includes the Deloitte accounting firm visiting classrooms to connect current curriculum to real-life accounting practices and First Community Bank explaining to students the importance of opening a bank account, basic economics and investments by creating a well-balanced investment portfolio. Other opportunities include construction companies S.M. Wilson and Schneider Electric allowing students to job shadow or sponsor a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) day at school. Brightergy allowed teachers access to monitors to show solar power at work, Leonardo DRS sponsored robotics leagues and Schneider Electric provided scholarships for artificial intelligence events. The partnership also supports the businesses by providing a community connection that attracts customers, makes them stand out from other businesses and increases customer loyalty. 

“On behalf of ASBO International, I am pleased to congratulate the 2024 Pinnacle Award winners,” ASBO international executive director Jim Rowan said in a press release. “These districts epitomize what innovation and commitment look like, and we thank them for implementing positive, meaningful change for their districts.”

Sponsored by Virco, ASBO International’s Pinnacle Awards are presented annually to four school business administrators who have created outstanding and innovative practices to improve the efficiency of schools, contribute to the growth of the school business management profession and make a difference in the education of our nation’s students.

Since 1997, only six Pinnacle of Achievement Award recipients have come from Missouri, with three being awarded to three of the last four Pattonville CFOs. Pattonville last earned a Pinnacle Award in 2013 for its one-to-one laptop and iLearn program at Pattonville High School.