Half of the candidates running for the Lee’s Summit school board say their biggest recent concern was a decision not to put a waiver on the ballot that would have allowed the district to raise property taxes.
This candidate Q&A is part of a series
Proponents said the measure could have raised funds for staff pay. But current school board president Jennifer Foley, who is running for reelection this April, said there has been miscommunication surrounding the reasons for the decision.
In recent years, the board has faced perceptions of a political divide, concerns that a single evangelical church has an outsized influence, and, just last month, reports that the board first voted not to renew the superintendent’s contract, then reversed that decision after pushback.
Responses to The Beacon’s questionnaire don’t show a sharp divide among the four candidates, who all selected the exact same response for three out of seven multiple-choice questions.
But local groups have lined up behind pairs of candidates that they want to fill the two open slots on the board.
Michelle Dawson and Nicky Nickens are endorsed by the Lee’s Summit Democrats; Strengthening Education Together, a political action committee promoting equitable public schools; and the Lee’s Summit National Education Association, the district’s teachers union.
Foley and Leon Weatherby spoke at a March 3 meeting of We The People of Jackson County, a conservative group.
All four candidates responded to our survey, including questions about teacher pay, immigration enforcement in schools and the bond issue also on the April 8 ballot.
Responses have been edited for grammar, clarity and Associated Press style.
According to its website, the Lee’s Summit R-7 School District covers Lee’s Summit, Greenwood, Lake Lotawana and Lake Winnebago, unincorporated areas of eastern Jackson County and parts of Blue Springs and Kansas City. If you’re not sure what district you live in, check your sample ballot.
Meet the Lee’s Summit school board candidates
Leon Weatherby
Occupation: Mechanical designer at Honeywell.
Background and qualifications: I am a career professional, entrepreneur and a vested member of the community.
Campaign website: https://leonforlsr7.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/leonforlsr7
Michelle Dawson
Occupation: Project assistant.
Background and qualifications: I am a parent of two students in the district, and I was selected to attend the 2024 Parent Academy, where I learned about many facets of the district’s operations. I am also an experienced project manager and operations project manager.
Website: https://dawsonforlsr7.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michelledawsonforleessummitR7boardofeducation
Nicky Nickens
Occupation: Professor of educational psychology at the University of Central Missouri.
Background and qualifications: After college I worked in an emergency children’s abuse shelter, then in mental health as a behavior specialist in schools. My doctoral degree is in educational psychology. I have been a teacher educator for more than 26 years.
Website: https://www.nickynickensforlsr7boe.com/
Jennifer Foley (incumbent)
Occupation: Director of professional sport.
Background and qualifications: I am in my third year on the Board of Education. During my time on the board we made significant increases to staff pay, advocated for additional math and literacy supports, and increased community engagement with our “Dinner with the Board” sessions.
Linktree: http://linktr.ee/jenniferforLSR7
Multiple-choice questions
Immigration enforcement in schools
Weatherby: They should contact the legal counsel for the district and get guidance on how to properly interact with the agents. This is an unlikely scenario as ICE recently stated, “No immigration enforcement has been conducted at schools or bus stops.”
Dawson: Our district’s policy complies with the 1982 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that all children residing in the U.S. have a right to attend public schools. ICE agents cannot access district facilities without a judicial warrant signed by a federal judge.
Nickens: The district does not know students’ immigration status and district policy bans unauthorized law enforcement from entering nonpublic areas of district buildings without a warrant except in an emergency.
Foley: They should not allow them to enter unless legally required, but I would never encourage anyone to not cooperate with law enforcement, especially if they were legally required to enter.
Teacher compensation
Weatherby: Entry-level to midlevel teachers need a significant pay increase to be competitive in the metro area.
Dawson: Some teachers at higher years’ experience levels are paid competitively. Starting teachers and several other staff roles are not competitively paid, including assistant principals, paraprofessionals, substitute teachers and others.
Nickens: Missouri ranks 50th of the states in teacher pay; district pay data for all staff, teachers and administration shows that many positions at many levels receive pay that is low (bottom third) compared to similar districts.
Foley: None of the above. Our veteran teachers make high salaries, but our starting educators are not among the highest. To address this is more complex than an across-the-board standard raise. We also should consider nonteaching staff.
Transgender students
Weatherby: We should make appropriate restroom accommodations to ensure all students feel safe and secure in the Lee’s Summit R-7 facilities. I am not opposed to any students using any name or pronouns they choose to use.
Dawson: Each student has their own unique circumstances that staff is not necessarily aware of. Although the district must comply with DESE or MSHAA requirements, they also need to reflect on how to support each student and meet their needs.
Nickens: Every child should feel respected and able to maintain their comfort and dignity. Teachers need to be able to make the best decisions to accommodate each student’s needs including those around gender identity. This may vary from student to student.
Foley: Unless federal law is changed, current legal guidance is to take this on a case-by-case basis with parent involvement to have an agreement between staff, parents and student on the appropriate accommodations to avoid possible litigation.
State government advocacy
Weatherby: Our district should focus its time and resources on its primary role of providing a first-class education to our students. The community members can advocate for statewide policies using their own time and resources.
Dawson: Board members should be advocating against legislation that diverts funds away from public education. Public education serves the needs of all students and is a benefit to the entire community.
Nickens: Public money should go to public schools. Voucher programs in any form defray funding for public schools.
Foley: Public schools advocate for public funding. It would be unwise to divert funding from public education to facilities that are not held to the same standards for that funding.
Sensitive topics
Weatherby: I feel my children’s schools overall do a great job addressing social issues in a respectful manner, but my children have on occasion mentioned political and religious topics discussed that I felt were better left for the home.
Dawson: Based on my experience as a parent of two students in the district, I support the district and how they are currently handling sensitive subjects with the students. As a board member, I am against legislative restrictions that impact this.
Nickens: The district provides professional development for teachers to understand differences among students such as race, gender, sexuality and religion and has several programs that help address differences in access to opportunities. Collaboration with families is also important.
Foley: Our district does not have a clear neutrality policy, and I have been contacted by concerned parents when a student has been assigned homework that was racially divisive or asked students about their sexual preferences. Not common, but has happened.
Technology in classrooms
Weatherby: I feel teaching our students to leverage technology will serve them well in their future careers. However, personal cellphones should not be the platforms in which we provide that curriculum.
Dawson: A recently updated cellphone policy addressed the appropriate level of students’ access to phones in the classroom. No policy has been established around AI or other technology.
Nickens: The district has recently created and implemented a policy banning cellphones during instructional time for high school and all day for K-8. The policy went into effect in January 2025, so I don’t think additional action is necessary at this time.
Foley: We have prohibited cellphone use during instructional time. AI is rapidly advancing and certain courses should be educating our students on appropriate use so that they enter the workforce prepared.
School bonds
Weatherby: Our bond currently on the ballot will provide much needed updates to our infrastructure. I will advocate to prioritize the needs of all schools to ensure that all students in the district have the resources and facilities needed to be successful.
Dawson: The bond issue on the April 2025 ballot is a no-tax-increase measure to pay for a number of needed infrastructure projects. I support this bond, and as a voter, I will be voting yes.
Nickens: The bond issue will fund multiple building projects, athletic fields and needed facility infrastructure and aligns with a priority of the board to provide and maintain world-class facilities districtwide.
Foley: We have safety concerns, ADA accessibility concerns and ongoing maintenance concerns that will be addressed with the funds from our 2025 bond.
If elected to the school board, what would you do to improve outcomes for students in your district?
Weatherby: I would ensure the district budget is leveraged to provide for the maximum amount of resources and opportunities for the students. I will advocate for more career readiness programs. I will ensure we have the resources in place to attract and retain talented staff.
Dawson: The district meets the needs of a majority of students, but there are still a number of students who struggle to succeed. As a board member, I would maintain the current 2024-2027 improvement plan (CSIP), which prioritizes supporting students with the greatest needs.
Nickens: I would advocate for needed staff salary increases to recruit and retain excellent teachers, work to ensure mental health supports for students and teachers, focus on reducing achievement gaps and advocate for public education.
Foley: I would continue to advocate for and support adding additional staffing and resources to meet the needs of our students. During my time on the board we have added structured literacy resources and math interventionists to help support our staff in equipping our students for success in these areas.
What is your biggest concern about the school board’s recent decisions or actions? Or where do you see room for improvement?
Note: Proposition C is a Missouri measure approved in 1982 that increased sales and use taxes to raise money for schools but required districts to reduce property taxes unless voters approved a waiver.
Weatherby: I think our current board has been doing a good job for the most part. I think some improvement can be made in the financial oversight function of the board and in their role of ensuring the community receives timely communication about district decisions that have a large effect on the community.
Dawson: The current school board just voted against putting a tax question on the April 2025 election ballot that would roll back Proposition C to address pay disparities for teachers and staff. The school board should be advocating for the district’s staff and allowing voters to decide.
Nickens: My biggest concern about a recent board action is that four board members voted against putting the Proposition C waiver question on the ballot for voters to determine in April. If passed, this waiver would have allowed for needed staff pay increases.
Foley: There has been a lot of miscommunication about the decision to delay the Prop C waiver. We had already set aside $6 million for salary increases. There was additional information requested for how to target pay gaps, and there were concerns about the impact on the April bond.
