One of the cornerstones of an effective leader is accessibility.

Since assuming the superintendent’s post of the Mehlville School District on July 1, Eric Knost has strived to be accessible to the community. We believe he has succeeded.

Seldom have we seen a superintendent go to the lengths Knost has to make himself available to the public.

In several letters to the editor this newspaper has published, Knost has included his office telephone number — (314) 467-5001 — and has offered to meet one on one with residents, including district critics.

We believe Knost should be applauded for going above and beyond making himself accessible.

But we believe Knost has taken accessibility to an unprecedented level for a Mehlville School District superintendent with the district’s town-hall meetings.

Knost last week conducted the district’s third town-hall meeting of the current school year.

As we’ve previously written, though it was billed as a Mehlville town-hall meeting, we believe a more appropriate title for the evening would have been “A Conversation With the Superintendent” because, once again, that’s what it was.

Seldom have we seen someone in Knost’s position willing to meet face to face with residents and field their questions.

Again, the superintendent emphasized he had no agenda for the meeting other than to hear residents’ questions, comments, suggestions and concerns in an informal setting.

In other words, Knost’s desire was for the community to drive the conversation as he fielded questions about the district’s auditorium project, a proposed solar energy project and the district’s new tennis-court complex.

His transparency and willingness to listen to residents has been a major factor in helping Mehlville regain the positive momentum needed to move the school district forward.

Since becoming superintendent, Knost has been upfront about his goal of uniting all segments of the community. While all segments of the community will not always agree on everything, we believe Knost’s approach has helped foster a sense of civility in which people can disagree without being disagreeable.

And that in itself is quite an accomplishment. In his short time as superintendent, Knost has accomplished more than some of his predecessors did during their entire tenures.