School News
![CPS Students Earn Missouri Scholars 100 Recognition]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1779123328/cpsk12org/pwrskv3teo1p0hzqau8s/MissouriScholars100.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1779123328/cpsk12org/pwrskv3teo1p0hzqau8s/MissouriScholars100.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1779123328/cpsk12org/pwrskv3teo1p0hzqau8s/MissouriScholars100.jpg","width":533}])
Four Columbia Public Schools high school seniors have earned the Missouri Scholars 100 recognition from the Missouri Association of Secondary School Principals. This year's honorees are Hickman High School Seniors Megan Zguta and Griffin Byrne and Rock Bridge High School Seniors Keaton Hall and Mira Tosh.
![Gold trophy with gold apple for 2025-2026 Nutrition Services Awards Recipients]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1778703884/cpsk12org/ifys7azextkzeh0cw8lj/2025-2026-Nutrition-Services-Awards-Recipients.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1778703884/cpsk12org/ifys7azextkzeh0cw8lj/2025-2026-Nutrition-Services-Awards-Recipients.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1778703884/cpsk12org/ifys7azextkzeh0cw8lj/2025-2026-Nutrition-Services-Awards-Recipients.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1778703884/cpsk12org/ifys7azextkzeh0cw8lj/2025-2026-Nutrition-Services-Awards-Recipients.jpg","width":1200}])
Celebrate the Nutrition Services Awards at Columbia Public Schools, honoring staff for food safety, service, teamwork, and student support.
![Columbia-Public-Schools-News]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1722026395/cpsk12org/hqlnqd1xgnarvo3rbcxw/Columbia-Public-Schools-News.png","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1722026395/cpsk12org/hqlnqd1xgnarvo3rbcxw/Columbia-Public-Schools-News.png","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1722026395/cpsk12org/hqlnqd1xgnarvo3rbcxw/Columbia-Public-Schools-News.png","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1722026395/cpsk12org/hqlnqd1xgnarvo3rbcxw/Columbia-Public-Schools-News.png","width":1200}])
Ryan Tolbert, Hickman High School journalism adviser, has been named the 2026 Rising Star Award recipient by the Missouri Interscholastic Journalism Association (MIJA).
A graduate of Columbia Public Schools is helping design technology that could one day support space exploration. Chase Stem, a graduate of Hickman High School, is a senior in aerospace engineering at the University of Science and Technology and serves as CEO of the university’s student-led Mars Rover Design Team.
Columbia Public Schools is proud to celebrate the achievements of several CPS students who were named winners in the 2026 Earth Day Art Contest, hosted by the City of Columbia in partnership with Boone County and the University of Missouri-Columbia
A Hickman High School senior has been selected to represent Missouri in one of the nation’s most prestigious student leadership programs.
Abdulrahman Adekunle, a senior at Hickman High School, has been named a 2026 delegate to the United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP). He will join another Missouri delegate during USSYP Washington Week, held March 7–14, 2026, in Washington, D.C.
Hickman High School's Ashley Fossum and John Warner Middle School's Cassidy Urie have earned National Board Certification, one of the most respected professional credentials available to PreK–12 educators, on December 6, 2025. Fossum and Urie are the only two educators from Columbia Public Schools to achieve this distinction in 2025.
![Hickman High School students stand behind tables in the school library, presenting handmade food truck displays inspired by books they read. The colorful projects feature illustrated menus and truck designs as students discuss their work.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1766162692/cpsk12org/tbxwcosacclkwr54seih/Hickman-high-school-food-truck-displays.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1766162692/cpsk12org/tbxwcosacclkwr54seih/Hickman-high-school-food-truck-displays.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1766162692/cpsk12org/tbxwcosacclkwr54seih/Hickman-high-school-food-truck-displays.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1766162692/cpsk12org/tbxwcosacclkwr54seih/Hickman-high-school-food-truck-displays.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1766162692/cpsk12org/tbxwcosacclkwr54seih/Hickman-high-school-food-truck-displays.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1766162692/cpsk12org/tbxwcosacclkwr54seih/Hickman-high-school-food-truck-displays.jpg","width":1920}])
Inside the Hickman High School Library, English 9 Honors students recently brought their independent reading to life through a creative food truck project that blended literary analysis with design and presentation.
![A large group of Hickman High School student council members pose together in a gymnasium. They are wearing bright green event T-shirts and smiling toward the camera. The group stands in front of a stage setup with speakers, lighting trusses, and school banners visible on the wall behind them.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1764184097/cpsk12org/pwrimfix6exov9thfqoi/Hickman-High-School-student-council.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1764184097/cpsk12org/pwrimfix6exov9thfqoi/Hickman-High-School-student-council.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1764184097/cpsk12org/pwrimfix6exov9thfqoi/Hickman-High-School-student-council.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1764184097/cpsk12org/pwrimfix6exov9thfqoi/Hickman-High-School-student-council.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1764184097/cpsk12org/pwrimfix6exov9thfqoi/Hickman-High-School-student-council.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1764184097/cpsk12org/pwrimfix6exov9thfqoi/Hickman-High-School-student-council.jpg","width":2200}])
Hickman High School was filled with excitement and energy as the school hosted more than 900 Missouri Association of Student Councils (MASC) student leaders from across the Northeast District for this year’s regional gathering
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC®) has announced the names of more than 16,000 Semifinalists in the 71st annual National Merit Scholarship Program, including eight students from Columbia Public Schools.
![Flyer for Montminy Gallery exhibit Art Is Who We Are featuring works by Boone County high school art teachers.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1756832210/cpsk12org/bmk8sng4f3zrmlaqoqxh/Columbia-Public-Schools-Educators-Featured-Montminy-Gallery-Exhibit.png","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1756832210/cpsk12org/bmk8sng4f3zrmlaqoqxh/Columbia-Public-Schools-Educators-Featured-Montminy-Gallery-Exhibit.png","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1756832210/cpsk12org/bmk8sng4f3zrmlaqoqxh/Columbia-Public-Schools-Educators-Featured-Montminy-Gallery-Exhibit.png","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1756832210/cpsk12org/bmk8sng4f3zrmlaqoqxh/Columbia-Public-Schools-Educators-Featured-Montminy-Gallery-Exhibit.png","width":869}])
Nine Columbia Public Schools high school art teachers are being honored for their creativity and passion with a featured exhibit at The Montminy Gallery at the Boone County History & Culture Center.
![A group of HOSA student members from Columbia Public Schools pose together at the 2025 International Leadership Conference, standing in front of a HOSA backdrop and large 3D “hosa” letters.]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1752852935/cpsk12org/tiyfwpofy2n5mt08gqql/Health-Occupations-Students-of-America-2025.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1752852935/cpsk12org/tiyfwpofy2n5mt08gqql/Health-Occupations-Students-of-America-2025.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1752852935/cpsk12org/tiyfwpofy2n5mt08gqql/Health-Occupations-Students-of-America-2025.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1752852935/cpsk12org/tiyfwpofy2n5mt08gqql/Health-Occupations-Students-of-America-2025.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_5/v1752852935/cpsk12org/tiyfwpofy2n5mt08gqql/Health-Occupations-Students-of-America-2025.jpg","width":1600},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_6/v1752852935/cpsk12org/tiyfwpofy2n5mt08gqql/Health-Occupations-Students-of-America-2025.jpg","width":2200}])
Students from the Columbia Area Career Center (CACC) represented their schools and community with pride at the 2025 HOSA–Future Health Professionals International Leadership Conference, held this summer.
Battle, Hickman, and Rock Bridge high schools each had an incredible showing at the MSHSAA Track & Field State Championship. Each school secured individual state champions.
The American Library Association (ALA) has selected forty-six (46) people to participate in its 2025 class of Emerging Leaders (EL), including Hickman High School's media specialist, Julie Ryan.
Five CPS students have earned recognition by the Missouri Scholars 100 program, a statewide program that honors 100 of Missouri's top academic students in the graduating class of 2025.