Cloudcroft’s December School Board Meeting: Takeaways

What'd you miss at last night's Board of Education meeting?

Last weekend, the Cloudcroft Bears fought hard against the Cliff Cowboys for the championship games at the annual Mountain Top Basketball Tournament.

Last night was the final public Board of Education meeting for 2025, marking Cassandra Saffle’s last time behind the dais before newly elected Michele Anthony joins the board for 2026.

Saffle was appointed to former board member Kody Adam’s seat when his spouse, Nolene Adams became the Elementary and Middle School Principal. Before serving on the board, Saffle founded the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) for Cloudcroft Schools, where she remains an active member.

Superintendent Jocelyne Gillespie and Activities Director Joni Watson highlighted some of the school’s recent achievements.

• School Performance Highlights: All three Cloudcroft schools (Elementary, Middle, and High School) earned a Spotlight designation—the highest performance category in the New Mexico Vistas accountability system. The state sent official recognition banners to each school, which will be displayed publicly before being hung permanently inside the buildings.
  
  According to Gillespie, our schools are outperforming state averages by 20 percentage points or greater in multiple areas.

• Participation Rates and Why They Matter: Participation rates measure the percentage of students who took the state assessments. The state requires 95% or greater participation.
  
  All Cloudcroft schools met or exceeded the 95% threshold in math, reading, and science assessments.

• Extra Mile Staff Member: English teacher Windey McKelvie received multiple letters from students praising her kindness, diligence, and determination. A National Honor Society sponsor, McKelvie, “goes above and beyond for kids all the time” and “pushes students to do their best and work hard,” according to High School Principal Cody Skinner.
  
  “We need a world full of Windey McKelvie’s for this world to be a better place. She’s just a great lady,” Skinner said.

• Athletics: At last weekend’s Mountain Top Basketball Tournament, both the boys and girls Varsity Basketball teams took second place after battling Cliff for the top seat.

  
  At the end of the month, Hotshot the CHS mascot will cheer at the Citrus Bowl. Look foward to our interview of Hotshot, aka CHS Junior Alyssa Singer, coming soon.

Go, Bears!

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