Rountree Elementary, An IB World School

Rountree is one of three PYP schools in Springfield Public Schools, and we are excited to host our 2nd Annual PYP Week. This special week gives us the opportunity to celebrate and share the unique learning experiences that come with being a Primary Years Programme school.

Tonight, we are excited to welcome families into our building to see learning in action. Parents and students will have the opportunity to review artifacts from their most recent Unit of Inquiry, explore grade level inquiry boards, and help celebrate our 5th grade students as they present their Exhibition projects. Exhibition is a culminating experience that showcases the research, collaboration, and action our students have been working on throughout the year.

To wrap up the evening, our Kindergarten and 1st grade students will present their musical performance as the grand finale. Please note that the musical performance portion of the evening is open only to K–1 families.

Join us tonight from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. We cannot wait to share our learning with you.

We are so thankful for Mr.Don! He is the best crossing guard and we are so thankful he is part of our Rountree family.

"I love the kids. I retired when I was 58 years old after I worked for Walmart for 15 years. I went as long as I could, and then I just couldn’t do it anymore. Then I sat around, and sat around, and sat around — there’s only so many things around the house that you can do. So I said ‘I gotta do something’ and I saw a girl over on Mt. Vernon street crossing kids and she turned me over to Josh. I met with him and in no time and he said ‘You’re hired, Don.’

I’ve been a crossing guard at a lot of schools. I do Rountree Elementary, An IB World School and Pershing K-8 now. When I came over here to Pershing, no one would wave. Everyone had stern faces, didn’t want to wave or nothing and I waved anyway, smiled at them. After about three weeks, you’d get a couple once in a while. Now everyone waves at me. And if I don’t wave back they get mad at me, I can tell. I’ve met so many nice people over here. The kids come by and they wave and they want to talk to me. There’s kids that just go crazy about wanting to wave at the crossing guard. I met two real nice people who have just about become family. I used to think I didn’t like people, but now I’m starting to realize that maybe I do like people.

My wife passed away two years ago of cancer and when the people over at Rountree found out, they just surrounded me like I was family. They told me right off the bat, about three months into working over there, ‘Don, you just fit right in here, like you live around here.’ And I said, ‘Well I feel like I live around here.’ They were just wonderful and they still are. The kids, I just can’t get over the kids. I just love it. So many people tell me, ‘You’re such a good crossing guard,’ ‘You do your job so well,’ and ‘I don’t know if you know it or not, but you’re such an asset to this community.’ I’ve never had things like that happen before becoming a crossing guard."

- Don Richards, crossing guard

Looking for someone to fill our HEART!! Only a few days left...

Let’s finish strong, Springfield! 🤝❤️

We are officially in the final week of our Love SPS campaign, and our heart map is looking beautiful—but we still have schools waiting to be claimed! Our goal is to hit $50,000 by Valentine’s Day, and we need your help to get there.

Your donation goes into the Foundation’s general fund to power district-wide programs that change lives, including: 🎒 Back-to-School Grants that help teachers innovate in the classroom. 🚌 Pay to Ride Waivers (88 students helped this year!). 🧥 Coats for Kids (keeping nearly 500 students warm). 🎓 Scholarships for graduating seniors.

Help us turn every single school on this map red by Saturday. Whether you are an alum, a parent, or just a believer in our students, let’s show our schools some love!

❤️ Donate and leave a Valentine's message for SPS Today! www.supportsps.org/lovesps

We LOVE SPS.

Join Foundation for Springfield Public Schools' community-wide campaign, providing a heartfelt mid-year boost to our incredible educators.💕🧑‍🏫💌 Visit www.supportsps.org/lovesps to directly fund innovative projects and programs that empower students and teachers across the district.

Congratulation Ms. Julie on your retirement beginning--TODAY! Ms. Julie has served breakfast and lunch in the Rountree cafeteria for the past four years and served in Springfield Public Schools, Springfield, MO for the past twenty years--we are so thankful for the thousands of meals and students you have served. You are going to be missed, but we wish you well in your retirement.

Tomorrow is Day #1 for AMI.

Snow Day #2…stay warm and safe!

Springfield Public Schools will not be in session Tuesday, Jan. 27, due to inclement weather. District offices will remain open. Both seated classes and live virtual instruction for all students are canceled. Information about activity and athletic cancellations will be shared via the district’s social media accounts. For more information, visit the district’s website at sps.org.

Stay safe and warm Owls!!

Springfield Public Schools will not be in session Monday, Jan. 26, due to inclement weather. Both seated classes and live virtual instruction for all students are canceled. Information about activity and athletic cancellations will be shared via the district’s social media platforms. For more information, visit the district’s website at sps.org.

Don't forget tonight is Rountree Night at Bambinos Cafe on Delmar, be sure to snag dinner and a portion goes to our fabulous PTA.

Welcome back OWLS--we are gearing up for some great things in 2026, starting with our 2nd grade students and we need your help.

If you have a family member that lives outside of Springfield, we would love to connect with them, even better if they live in a different country, and hear from them via postcard.

For additional questions reach out to Mckenzie Pon at [email protected].

Before you put away all of your Halloween decor and costumes, consider donating your costumes to our Rountree PTA starting tomorrow. We have big things planned for OWLAPALOOZA next year.