VIENNA — Vienna High School Principal Tim Metcalf recognized the accomplishments of student teams and organizations during the first month of the school year when he reported recent VHS activities to the Board of Education at the Sept. 24 meeting.

Metcalf began his report by showing board members a photograph of a plaque the student council recently purchased to commemorate the 2020 Vienna Eagles Baseball team, which had its season ended early by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent school cancellations. The plaque, which the organization funded through the morning coffee cart, is on display at Vienna City Park.

Vienna Lady Eagle Softball began the year 8-2 with the school’s first win in the Show-Me Central Conference when it defeated Jamestown 13-3 on Sept. 16. Senior Adelynn James threw a no-hitter against Newburg on Sept. 19. The team had three batters hitting over .500 through 10 games. During the board meeting, Metcalf acknowledged those achievements and the team’s effort to teach three new student-athletes the game.

Metcalf also said Vienna Eagle Cross County is having a great start to the season with many runners setting new personal records during the first few meets of the season. The middle school boys’ cross country team won its division at meets in New Haven and Vienna. The middle school girls’ team placed second at its home meet.

At the high school level, the VHS boys team had its highest placement at the Steeleville Invitational when it placed second. The 26th Vienna Eagle Invitational on Sept. 11 featured 270 runners from 18 area schools. VHS hosted the first Show-Me Central Conference cross country meet on Oct. 8.

The middle school boys’ and middle school girls’ basketball teams both started the season with winning records.

The Vienna Eagle Pride Marching Band won Outstanding Visual, Outstanding Music and First Place Overall at the Sullivan Marching Band Festival.

The archery club had its first meeting of the school year with 57 students signed up to participate in the program.

Metcalf also highlighted other things happening at the high school. Counselors Natalie Martin and Alyssa Smith had been training students on identifying signs of suicide in their peers, recognizing when they feel depressed themselves and seeking support when they identify those signs.

High school and middle school students now have the choice to get lunch at the salad bar in the cafeteria.

Teachers had begun to assign students to tutoring for extra help during the Eagle Time advisory period. Students who need extra help are on a rotation for tutoring in multiple subjects. The period also gives closer help to students with missing assignments to ensure they do not get too far behind.

Metcalf said he and Superintendent Teresa Messersmith had attended a recent presentation by author Dr. Sean Siebert that the Vienna Chamber of Commerce had hosted. The administration is considering scheduling a presentation for students so Siebert can share his message about motivation and thinking about how people can make a living with their resources and skill sets.

Special Education Director Joe Edwards also shared his monthly report with the board during the meeting.

Submissions for final expenditure reports for the 2023-24 school year opened. Edwards said he would send the report to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to ensure that the district receives reimbursement for some of its expenses during the previous school year.

Special education staff met with a consultant from Project ACCESS, a program through Missouri State University focused on providing training, resources and support to school staff who work with students with autism and related developmental disabilities. The program planned an onsite visit for early October to observe and offer more ideas to Maries R-1 staff.

At the time of the meeting, 53 students had individualized educational plans, seven students were in the reevaluation process, 18 students had been referred for special education and 31 students had 504 plans.