FUEMMELERS SHARE CAREERS AS SUPERINTENDENTS

She may be the superintendent now, but Cheri Fuemmeler still likes for children to read to her at Meadow Heights School, including first-graders Dustin Davis, left, and Mandilyn Holt.

Marriage is about sharing -- and that means sharing everything from housework to bills, but sharing a career is unusual for most married couples. However, David and Cheri Fuemmeler do just that -- share a career in education.

Both Fuemmelers are superintendents at area schools and both are former elementary school principals. Since 1991, David has been superintendent at Nell Holcomb School. Cheri was named superintendent at Meadow Heights in early August.

"It's a lot of sharing of what things happened today," David said.

Having another superintendent in the family has helped her make the recent transition, Cheri said, adding that she is the first female administrator to hold that title in the Meadow Heights district.

"I call David my mentor," she said, while relaxing on a green leather couch in their home. "If I'm not sure, I know I can call and get an answer."

School finances are difficult to understand because the formulas are constantly being changed, David said. "No day is the same."

But the flexibility is one facet of the job that both Fuemmelers enjoy. Neither admits they have a routine schedule, but the day starts early for both -- at 5:30 a.m. Both commute to work. David has a 20-minute drive to Nell Holcomb, and Cheri has a 45-minute drive to Patton. Their work day ends around 5 p.m., unless there is a school activity or meeting they must attend, which usually means two meetings a week.

When they arrive at school, the workday often starts with checking the building and talking to staff, teachers or parents. "You are never bored in your role as an administrator," David said. "You may not like it all the time but you never get bored." There's always a new twist or event."

Some of the new events, like more meetings and school activities to attend, just come with the job, particularly during the first year. "What you don't learn in a classroom, you learn on the job. Your first day of a superintendency you are as nervous as your first day of teaching," David said, adding that the two were very similar experiences for him.

Because this is Cheri's first year as superintendent at Meadow Heights, she has already learned a lot. "It's been a busy year," she said, adding that the school board is considering some building renovations and the addition of classroom space.

Cheri was named superintendent after Tom Waller resigned amid accusations of falsifying school attendance records. She was appointed interim superintendent and then accepted a one-year contract.

Being a superintendent means having a bigger role in implementing new programs at the school, which is a responsibility that both David and Cheri relish.

Both Fuemmelers are natives to the area. They met as students at Notre Dame High School and married while in college. Both hold undergraduate degrees in education and master's and specialist degrees in administration from Southeast Missouri State University.

Cheri, who also has a counseling certification, worked in the Scott City district for 21 years before taking a job at Meadow Heights. For 16 of those years, she was a sixth-grade teacher. Then she became elementary counselor and director of special education services. In 1991, she was hired as elementary principal at Meadow Heights.

Prior to coming to Nell Holcomb in 1991, David was the junior high and high school principal at Scott City.

He also had worked as an assistant principal, teacher and grant coordinator in the Egyptian School District in Tamms, Ill., for 11 years.

The couple has one daughter, Stephanie, and are expecting their first grandchild in the spring.