Dr. Hux says Excelsior Springs is “The Right Place, the Right Time”

When it comes to his new role as Superintendent for the Excelsior Springs School District Dr. Travis Hux is taking some advice from his seven-year-old daughter, Bella. Dr. Hux says she’s not nervous at all. “For her this is so exciting, there’s a whole town full of kids and people who she’s going to get to know and love, and that’s how I see it too.” Dr. Hux comes to Excelsior Springs from Raytown School District where he worked for the past fifteen years, twelve of those years as their assistant superintendent. Dr. Hux didn’t always have plans of being an educator, but now he feels fortunate to have found his calling.

From a very early age he thought he’d become a lawyer, and it’s what he would tell people whenever they asked. But something about being the son of a principal, where he would spend all day, every day roaming the corridors and classrooms must have rubbed off on him. When he went off to college to take the first steps of becoming a lawyer, he was moving towards a general education degree, but something didn’t feel quite right. His father encouraged him to pursue an education degree to “have something to fall back on.” That advice changed the course of his career.

“As I went through college and experienced working in different schools, with all the kids, I thought, this is awesome!” said Hux. He felt like he had found his path, and he moved quickly down it. Out of college he got his first job, not far from his hometown of Dexter, in Cape Girardeau teaching 6th grade, which he did for four years. He immediately started working towards his master’s degree in administration, and at the ripe age of just twenty-three he began interviewing for principal positions across the state. He interviewed at more than twenty-five schools and ultimately landed a job in Charleston, MO as an elementary assistant principal.

“At the time there were about twelve-hundred kids in that district, many of them were rural, poor kids with very hard lives.” Hux said. In Charleston Hux began to realize how much of an impact he could have on the community. He recalled the story of a young man who had been kicked out of school because he had ringworm, and who wouldn’t be allowed to return until he had received treatment. “I knew he didn’t have the support at home, so I went and got the medicine he needed, drove around the neighborhoods until I found him, put the medicine on him and said, you are now officially being treated, come back to school!” It was those kinds of small but meaningful interaction that drove Hux to continue up the ladder.

A poem written by one of his former students is kept in his office to help remind him of the impact he has on students and their families.

Going to School, is something I dread
Dragging my feet, up, out of bed.

Once through the doors, I see his smug face.
Thinking the day, will be a disgrace.

My name on the board, no recess outside.
Is teaching me fast, his rules I’ll abide!

But then he chills out, and think of his band.
Asking me next, “Is Korn on the stand?”

We talk of our ramps, his music and mine.
And learning… he’s cool, just give him some time!

We have our favorites, that we both knew.
Green Day, Korn, Metallica, too!

He wants us to learn and at the same time,
have fun doing so to sharpen our minds.

The school year’s been great, despite all the tests.
Keep up the good work, Mr. Hux, YOU’RE THE BEST!

Jeryd Brumbaugh, 6th grade 98-99

It was in Raytown where Dr. Hux was given the opportunity to become the assistant superintendent and also where he grew more confident in his abilities. In Raytown he was given the task of updating the school safety protocols. When he asked to see the current guidelines, he was pointed to a shelf in the corner. “There was a dusty binder that looked like it hadn’t been updated since 1985,” said Hux. This was the early 2000s and by then school shootings were a common occurrence across the country. He poured himself into the research, “Every school emergency across the nation became a learning opportunity for us and showed us a way to put additional measures into place,” he said. By the time he was finished in Raytown Hux had put a system into place that made Raytown one of the most secure schools in the nation.

But Dr. Hux realizes he’s not in Raytown anymore, “Just because I did something there doesn’t mean that’s what right for here. I’m going to do what’s best for Excelsior Springs,” he said. When he came to Excelsior Springs, he knew he would be coming to a place where he could move forward without spending a lot of time fixing existing problems, “The district is in good shape. I didn’t feel like this is a job where I’d have to grab the fire extinguishers and immediately start putting out fires,” he explained. Immediate projects he’s looking forward to are the continued revitalization of our schools, including Lewis Elementary, and building a comprehensive school improvement plan, which will tell us “where we’re at, where we want to go, and how were going to get there.”  But he’s not flying solo, a self-proclaimed “committee man,” he wants input from the entire community, parents, teachers, administrators and the business community. “In my experience getting everyone involved helps you do the greatest good for the greatest number of people,” he said.

When asked why he ultimately chose Excelsior Springs Dr. Hux explained, “I’ve had opportunities to become superintendent in other districts, including Cape Girardeau, down where I grew up, but ultimately it didn’t feel like the right fit… I think it’s just as important to know when something isn’t right for you… Being in Excelsior Springs, I feel I’m in the right place, at the right time.” From the moment he arrived here he said he felt like he was in a “Norman Rockwell painting” and he’s got no plans to leave anytime soon. “My goal is to retire here, I was in Raytown for fifteen years, so I’m not a job jumper. I see a future here for my family. My kid is starting second grade here at Cornerstone. We’re bought in, we love this community already.”

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