The following is a list of the district's awards and honors :
R-7 was among 16 percent of the nation's school districts receiving the "What Parents Want" national award in spring 2012. The award is offered by SchoolMatch.
The school district is a winner of Missouri’s Distinction in Performance Award, the state’s highest recognition for academic achievement. During fall 2011, the R-7 School District was recognized for being among a handful of districts in the state to earn a perfect score on criteria for the Distinction In Performance Award each year for the last 11 years.
R-7 guidance counselors reported that approximately 88 percent of the 2012 graduates have indicated that they plan to attend college, based on information gathered from students.
The class of 2012 was offered close to $25 million in college scholarship potential during spring 2012.
Lee’s Summit R-7 students consistently score above state and national norms on all tests, including the Missouri Assessment Program Tests and ACT college-entrance test.
The Lee’s Summit R-7 composite ACT score was also one of the highest among Kansas City metropolitan area school districts, including those in both Missouri and Kansas. On the Missouri side, ACT averages for the three Lee's Summit R-7 high schools ranked first, second and third.
The R-7 School District is a three-time winner of the national Magna Award for its Senior Citizens' School Tours, the 21st Century Learning program and for the capital campaign conducted by the Lee's Summit Educational Foundation for Great Beginnings Early Education Center.
Summit Technology Academy is a partner in the Missouri Innovation Campus, which received a $500,000 Community Development Block Grant to help launch a program designed to train students for career opportunities in high-demand fields, cut the time it takes to earn a college degree and reduce debt. Other partners include the University of Central Missouri and Metropolitan Community College.
Great Beginnings Early Education Center was recognized by the Missouri School Boards' Association as a finalist for the association's FutureBuilders Early Childhood Education Program of the Year.
Lee's Summit R-7 was among 10 educational organizations from across the nation to earn the 2011 Green Cleaning Award from American School and University magazine.
All three R-7 School District high schools offer the International Baccalaureate program, a rigorous curriculum offering students the opportunity to compete with high-achieving students worldwide. Only 10 high schools in Missouri offer this program.
The A+ program is offered at all three high schools. Qualifying students enrolled in this state-funded program are eligible for reimbursements at Missouri community colleges, vocational/technical institutions and some four-year colleges.
Money magazine named Lee's Summit R-7 schools as 27th best in the nation in its 2010 annual "Best Places to Live" issue focusing on the nation's top 100 small cities.
Schools
There are 28 schools in the district, including: Elementary
Dr. Emily Miller is the acting superintendent. She was named superintendent on July 23rd, 2019, by the school board. Previously Dr. Emily Miller served as the district's assistant superintendent of operations and the district's assistant superintendent of special services. Dr. Dennis L. Carpenter served as superintendent of the District from July 1st, 2017, to July 23rd, 2019. He resigned amid racial-equity policy disagreements between himself and entities in the Lee's Summit community. Upon his exit from the school board, the District paid $750,000 to Carpenter as part of his negotiation to step down as superintendent. Dr. Carpenter was the first black superintendent of the Lee's Summit R-VII School District.
