Dr. Mark Maus selected as superintendent

The Smithville Board of Education is pleased to announce that it chose Dr. Mark Maus to serve as the next superintendent of the Smithville School District, starting on July 1, 2023. Dr. Maus, who attended Smithville School District for his K-12 education graduating in 1996, will replace Mrs. Denise Harwood, who served as Interim Superintendent for the 2022-2023 school year.

The Smithville Board of Education used extensive feedback from students, staff, and community members to help guide them as they chose from a competitive national field of candidates. The Board received over 500 pieces of feedback during this process.

Board of Education President, Jeff Bloemker stated, “The Board of Education conducted a nationwide search to find the right candidate to lead our District into the future. It turns out, that candidate first walked through the doors of our District as a first grader at what is now Maple Elementary School. We are excited to welcome Dr. Maus home and believe his visionary leadership, energizing presence, and commitment to excellence for every child can help take us to the next level.”

Dr. Mark Maus has extensive experience in education and leadership. He began his career as a secondary math teacher before serving as High School Assistant Principal, High School Principal and Executive Director of Human Resources. Dr. Maus has most recently served as the Executive Director of 7-12 Academics in North Kansas City Schools, where he led the district’s secondary schools through the implementation of College & Career Pathways. While serving as the principal of Oak Park High School, he collaborated with community leaders, parents, students, and staff to develop a building-level Strategic Plan. Through the activation of this plan, the building moved from being barely fully accredited through the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to earning 99.6% of the points possible through DESE and Missouri School Improvement Process. With the development of North Kansas City Schools’ Portrait of a Graduate and the implementation of College & Career Pathways, Mark and his elementary colleague, Mrs. Kristin Havens, recently presented at the Harvard University: Proving Grounds conference in Charleston, SC to share about the “next practices” being implemented in NKCS. In preparation for the Superintendency, he recently completed the District Administration: Superintendency Academy, which focused on preparing current leaders with the goal of serving as Superintendent.

Dr. Maus grew up in Smithville and is a proud alum of Smithville High School. Mark graduated from Northwest Missouri State University with a major in Education and minors in Mathematics and Science and a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership. He earned his Specialist Degree in Educational Leadership and his Doctorate in PK-12 Educational Leadership from the University of Missouri in Kansas City.

Mark and his wife Katie, who serves as a Special Education teacher at Gateway 6th Grade Center, have three children. Hadlie is a sophomore at Oak Park High School who plays basketball and is interested in becoming a surgeon. Ava is an eighth grader at Antioch Middle School who is active in soccer, volleyball, swim, and track and is interested in political science. Quentin is a third grader at Clardy Elementary who plays football, basketball, and swims and is interested in becoming a scientist.

“I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to come back home to serve the community that has given me so much,” Dr. Maus said. “Smithville School District is a destination my wife and I have spoken about for several years based on the values of the community and commitment to education. We are excited to bring our children to Smithville and have them become Warriors. As we move forward, please know I will lead with integrity, focused on collaboration with our students, families, staff, and the community. Together, we will continue to advance Smithville to a premier school district!”