School Board Candidate Michael Doyel Hopes to Make Mehlville a 'Destination District'

Michael E. Doyel, born in Holden, MO, has lived in the Mehlville area for 11 years. Doyel is running for the school board, and said that he’s been considering it for some time.

“I feel like now is the perfect time to run,” he said. “I am concerned with some aspects of the direction the board has taken in the last few years. There seems to be a disconnect between the board and the community.”

Doyel, who will be 41 on March 22, said he thinks that one of the biggest things the Mehlville school board needs is open and honest communication at all times.

“There cannot be any backroom dealings,” he said. “You have to be up-front about what your plans are and what you can accomplish.”

He believes that a team approach is necessary for the district’s success—one that involves everyone in the community—including people with and without kids, teachers, parents and school administrators.

Along with his education and work experience, Doyel said that his 17-year commitment in leadership positions with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) will aid him in his duties on the school board, if elected.

“I have been a Boy Scout leader for 17 years. And for the last 11 years, I’ve also trained adult leaders,” he said.

For the past eight years, he’s also been working with BSA’s Wood Badge Program, which provides advanced leadership for adult leaders, Doyel said.

“I will be the course director for the Wood Badge Program this spring,” he said.

Doyel, an Oakville attorney, said that while he was born in Holden, he spent much of his youth in Tipton, MO, until his family moved to Springfield when he was 16.

“My dad was in the grocery store business and worked for a small grocery store chain in central Missouri,” Doyel said. “He was also a baseball coach for Little League and a Boy Scout leader.”

He said his mother held part-time jobs, but was a stay-at-home mom sometimes, too. She would often help out at school as needed, Doyel said.

“I grew up in Mayberry,” he said, laughing. “That’s pretty much what it was.”

After graduating from Hillcrest High School in Springfield, Doyel completed his undergraduate studies at Drury University before attending Washington University for his law degree. In addition to his longtime involvement with the Boy Scouts, Doyel is a former youth basketball coach and the former president of the Mary, Queen of the Universe Parish Council.

He has been married to his wife, Hope, for 28 years, and they have three kids. Their youngest, Jordan, is a freshman at Oakville High School, their son Michael is studying at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, and their daughter Amy is at St. Louis Community College at Meremac. Michael and Amy also graduated from Oakville. Doyel has never held public office before.

He said his vision for the Mehlville School District is to make it what he calls a "destination district."

“When people think about moving to the St. Louis area, they can look at Mehlville and want to buy a house there because we’ll have the top schools in the area,” he said. “I think we have excellent schools here, but there is a perception that it’s not true. We want to be the premier district in the area.”

Doyel said the biggest problem he sees with the district now is the lack of funding.

“I think that part of the solution is fostering better communication and trust between the board and the community,” he said.

When it comes to budget cuts, Doyel feels that the first cuts to consider should be those that will have the least impact on the students and the quality of their education.

“So, in my opinion, that starts either in administration or support, things like that, which will not have any direct impact on the kids," he said.

He said that the board could also examine the start and stop times of district schools to see if there’s any way to make them more efficient, and that a four-tier bus system might be a good idea. Doyel doesn’t like the idea of oversized classrooms, and doesn’t feel that they’re an option for saving money.

“I think that has a negative impact on the kids,” he said. “One of the very last things we should consider is oversized classrooms.”

He said that he thought Prop C was a bad idea, and that it was part of the ineffective communication of the 88-cent tax increase that prompted him to run for the school board in the first place.

“And then we had the situation with the big raise they tried to give Mr. Noble, which he graciously turned down,” he said. “And then they tried to go and ask the taxpayers for even more. It was a disaster.”

He noted that his career as a lawyer and his experience with the Boy Scouts have given him the ability to work with anyone, so he doesn’t foresee any problems working with the other board members. He said that he feels strong in his ability to manage conflict and listen, as well as to adapt to differences in leadership styles and various stages of team development.

Doyel said one of his biggest strengths is his honesty, and he believes that will help him most when it comes to working with the school board. He said that his desire and willingness to communicate with everyone on the team will also come in handy.

“I’m not going to do anything that is not completely above board,” he said. “We have to have transparency.”

He said his only weakness when it comes to working on the school board is that he might get a little impatient when things aren’t moving forward.

When it comes to dealing with teachers and students in the district, Doyel said his reaction would depend on the issue.

“If it’s a policy issue that is proper for the board to consider, I’d suggest that it be taken to the board,” he said. “But if it’s not a policy issue and is more of an admin problem, the board isn’t the appropriate place for that and they would need to go through the proper channels.”

Doyel said in that case, he’d direct the concerned party to the appropriate person or office so the issue could be resolved.

He wants voters to know that he’s a very positive person who believes that “good enough” is not good enough. He wants only the best for Mehlville district students and thinks that the district has the ability to be great.

“I believe that the future of our nation and the world lies in the hands of our children,” he said. “To remain competitive as the world evolves, we have to offer them a top-notch education.”