Rotarian Angie Cox (left) hosted guest speaker Dr. Lori Rapp, the first female superintendent of Lewisville ISD. LNR club president Dirk Dahlke joined the two after the meeting. Dr. Lori Rapp, the first woman superintendent of Lewisville ISD, shared her vision for the district during last week's club meeting, placing strong emphasis on the need for community involvement in local schools. Rapp first joined LISD in 1996 as a secondary math teacher and has worked her way up in the ranks as a teacher and administrator for her tenure with the district. She holds a Ph.D. in educational leadership from Dallas Baptist University and was elected as LISD superintendent in February 2022. She decided to become a teacher as a young girl, after her father left when Rapp was in the 3rd grade. Although the community stepped in to lend support to her family, her teacher, Mrs. Robertson, made school a safe place when home wasn’t. It was then that Rapp decided she wanted to make the same impact for others, and she has demonstrated her passion for quality education throughout her career. Said Rapp, “Our teachers are the ones building our future doctors, lawyers, scientists and entrepreneurs.” Education has to keep up with what students need to become productive members of society after graduation, she added, and her goal is to make LISD schools better every day. Among her top priorities, Rapp wants to improve communication between the district and the local community, to get more people engaging with teachers and administrators in the schools and supporting education initiatives. As an example, she noted that plugging in businesses with the schools empowers students to learn about and pursue various vocations, from HVAC and cosmetology to public service and finance. Said Rapp, “We’re all advocates for students at the end of the day. They are our future.” |