Dr. Curtis Cain

Dr. Cain was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he attended Milwaukee Public Schools and is a graduate of Rufus King High School. Dr. Cain holds a doctorate degree and a Master of Science in Educational Administration from Iowa State University and a Bachelor of Science in Social Science Education from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. While at Iowa State, he was named a George Washington Carver Doctoral Fellow and awarded the Jordan Larsen Outstanding Dissertation in Educational Administration Award. In 2009, he was honored as the Iowa State University Outstanding Young Professional Award winner by the College of Human Sciences and in 2023, he was named recipient of the school’s Virgil S. Lagomarcino Laureate Award for distinguished achievement in the field of education.

Dr. Cain began his teaching career at Dollarway Junior High School in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, where he taught social studies. From there, he was a senior research associate and then a program manager of the School Improvement Model Center at Iowa State. He also served five years as the director of curriculum and professional development at the Park Hill School District in Kansas City, Missouri. He was an associate superintendent for educational services in the Shawnee Mission School District in Overland Park, Kansas, for six years prior to being named superintendent of the Wentzville School District in 2013. He spent nine years leading Wentzville before taking the position as superintendent in Rockwood in 2022.

Dr. Cain is a nationally certified superintendent who was named the 2022 Missouri Association of School Administrators (MASA) Superintendent of the Year and the AASA School Superintendents Association National Superintendent of the Year. In 2016, he was named the MASA New Superintendent of the Year for the St. Louis region. Dr. Cain is also a certified lead auditor with Curriculum Management Systems Incorporated (CMSi) and has served on audits across 11 states and in the nation of Bermuda. He has also served as president and past president of MASA.

Dr. Cain is a member of Phi Delta Kappa (PDK) and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) Emerging Leader programs. In 2018, he completed the American Association of School Administrators National Superintendent Certification Program. Nationally, he also serves on the PDK International Board and currently serves as the Chair of the PDK Foundation Board. Dr. Cain serves on the Missouri Commissioner of Education Advisory Council, the Kansas/Missouri Superintendent Leadership Forum Advisory Board and the Missouri State High School Activities Association Constitutional Committee. He also volunteers locally on the St. Charles Economic Development Council Board of Directors and serves on the St. Charles County Partners for Progress Education Committee, Compass Health Network Governing Board of Directors, the Partners for Progress Healthy St. Charles Leadership Council and the Barnes-Jewish St. Peters and Progress West Foundation Board. He also served as the president of the St. Charles County Centers for Advanced Professional Studies.

“I am both humbled and honored to be joining the Rockwood School District,” said Dr. Cain upon his hiring in 2022. “This is a proud district with a noteworthy tradition of educational excellence. I look forward to becoming an active member of the community, building relationships and partnerships that will continue to support outstanding opportunities for students. I plan to spend a great deal of time listening and learning and bringing people together to focus on all students and their growth. I’m truly grateful and excited to join the Rockwood family.”

Dr. Cain lives in Chesterfield with his wife, Dr. Tori Cain, who is currently the assistant superintendent of student services for the Pattonville School District. They have two children: Kailey, who attends the University of Kentucky, and Kaden, a sixth-grader in Rockwood.