September 2023

Lexington Public Schools Yearbook Recognition

Students from Lexington High School recently won several state and national awards for their yearbook publications.  Several students joined their teacher to present to the board on their work.  Board members congratulated the students on their hard work and their accomplishments.

The Lexington yearbook has been honored with the following awards:

• Nebraska High School Press Association: Cornhusker Award
• Nebraska State Activity Association: State Qualifiers/Medalists/ Champions
• Nebraska & National Press Women Association: National Champion-Layout Design
• Columbia Scholastic Press Association: Silver Crown
• National Scholastic Press Association: 1st Place Best Of Show/Pacemaker, Finalist/All-American Rating

Lexington Yearbook Presentation

Hampton Public Schools Hawk Herd

Students and staff from Hampton Public Schools shared their story of who they are and their work with the Hawk Herd. Hampton has agriculture facilities at the school where students raise crops and livestock and learn more about agriculture. Part of the program includes a farm to table system that allows local producers to provide lunch to the schools twice a week.

Hampton Hawk Herd Presentation

Adopt the resolution to recognize September as Attendance Awareness Month and commence the “Nebraska Every Day Counts!” campaign

As Nebraska schools and districts continue to address academic and nonacademic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, student attendance and chronic absenteeism remains an important indicator of student success. During the 2022-2023 school year, approximately 69,000 were chronically absent, meaning they missed 10% or more of their time in the school. Chronic absence can be caused by many factors including physical and emotional health, lack of academic engagement, homelessness, among others.

As part of the State Board’s Nebraska Ready: Pk-12 Policy Priorities, the NDE is raising awareness about chronic absenteeism, its root causes, and potential solutions. The NDE is leading the “Nebraska Every Day Counts!” campaign, and has updated resources for parents, teachers, and administrators.

Attendance Awareness Month Nebraska Every Day Counts Resolution

Annual Presentation from the Nebraska Council on Teacher Education (NCTE)

The president of the Nebraska Council on Teacher Education presented their annual report. NCTE is an advisory body to the State Board of Education providing recommendations on the topics of rule approval and adoption and the teacher shortage.

NCTE Presentation

Nebraska Teacher of the Year Quarterly Report

Renee Jones, Nebraska’s 2023 Teacher of the Year presented her quarterly report to board members.  It has been a busy few months with two trips to the White House for school related events.  Jones also travelled to Nevada, Alabama, and Kentucky representing Nebraska at Teacher of the Year events. Jones has several speaking events lined up in Nebraska in the coming months as she prepares to wrap up her year.

Teacher of the Year Report

Nebraska Statewide Family Engagement Center and Nebraska Growing Readers Project

NDE staff presented on two projects that are aimed to address family engagement and early literacy. The NDE will commit $300,000 to the Statewide Family Engagement Center to continue to expand to new communities across the state and deepen services. The SFEC applied for additional federal funding, and paired with this investment, can continue to reach additional families and communities.

The NDE is also committing two million dollars to the Nebraska Growing Readers Initiative that will send age-appropriate books developed by Unite for Literacy to families and childcare providers across the state and support strategies and training for reading to preschool children, particularly in “book deserts.” With this investment, approximately 16,000 children across 12,000 households and 1,000 early childhood providers would be provided dozens of age-appropriate children’s books.