Longhorn Notes

March 4, 2021

Welcome to March! While I know we are sure to get another short bout of winter at some point, as we usually do, it has been great to welcome warmer temperatures and sunshine this week. It has definitely had a positive effect on the mood of staff and students at the school. Everyone seems to walk with a bit more of a bounce to their step!

I have a lot of information to share with you this month! First, I want to showcase several Students of the Month. We have an outstanding senior class and are excited to start planning their graduation celebration on May 15th! Next, I will provide highlights of student activities that have taken place in February including the Civics class' "Just for Jake" project and the student talent show. Finally, I will provide some general information about a few items and upcoming events. I hope you enjoy reading the latest edition of Longhorn Notes!

FYI - you can click on any picture to enlarge it for a better look!

Melai Casimiro is a senior in Kimball Public Schools. Her parents are Melanie and Patrick Casimiro. In her free time, she enjoys baking, innovating and expanding the uses of virtual reality, and when she can, rock climbing. Melai is the captain of the cheer team which she has participated in for 4 years and also the captain of the speech team which she has participated in for 4 years. She has also been in show choir for 2 years, choir for 2 years, band for 4 years, jazz band for 4 years, one-act for 2 years, mock trial for 2 years, and FFA for three years. After high school, Melai will hopefully attend Syracuse University to double major in Pre-Med/Genetics and minor in Spanish. After university, she plans to attend medical school to become a certified dermatologist. Melai would like to give a special thanks to her FFA advisor, speech coaches, cheer coaches, and music teachers for their unconditional support and helping her stay positive when things get tough.

Ethan has been in many activities throughout high school. He is an athlete, participating in four years of football, one year of wrestling, 4 years of track, and one year of basketball. He enjoys working hard and the opportunity to compete. He loves music and will find any way possible to create rhythm to soothe his ever-racing mind. He was part of the band and pep band his freshman year and also completed 3 years of choir and show choir. Ethan is also a member of the student council and is a member of the superintendent advisory committee. Ethan maintains over a 3.2 GPA and earned his first straight-A semester last semester. He plans to attend Chadron State College in Chadron Nebraska and major in Criminal Psychology. His quote for the first half of his senior year, "you can't rewrite the past, but you can overcome it."

Corey served as the dance captain of the show choir as well as captain of the speech team. Corey has participated in football for 2 years, one act for 2 years, Interact Club for 3 years, speech for 4 years, and choir for 4 years. He plans on attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, dual majoring in communications and civil engineering. Corey would like to personally thank his friends, family, teachers, and dog.

Cole has participated in Show choir for 4 years, Cross Country for 3 years and decided to do Football his senior year. He has also played Basketball for 3 years, and Golf for 4 years. Cole has also been a member of Interact club for 3 years, Math Club for 3 years, and Student Council for 2 years. This year he is a Longhorn Ranch leader for student council. He also has been on Honor Roll all 4 years of High School. Cole plans on attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the fall and will pursue a degree in Architecture.

Christian Allen-Van Pelt was previously highlighted in the October 21st edition of Longhorn Notes where he was recognized for the Lion's Club September Student of the Month. He has also been selected as the Wolf Automotive Student of the Month for November.

Each year, Mrs. Ferguson and her Civics class takes on a project that benefits others. On November 20th, Jake Reader was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a blood cancer. The Civics class selected Jake to focus on for this year's project. Students designed a theme and organized a fundraiser for Jake's benefit.

"Just for Jake" bracelets were sold at the school and throughout the community for a $5 donation. Students started a Go Fund Me account for his benefit to allow family and friends outside of the community to contribute as well. During the week of February 15th, students sold snacks and organized weekly dress-up days. Tuesday was Jammies for Jake (wear pajamas), Wednesday was Joggers for Jake (wear running clothes), Thursday was Just Do It for Jake (wear as much Nike clothing as possible) and Friday was Lumberjacks for Jake (wear flannel). Staff were permitted to wear jeans each day for a $5 daily donation. On Friday, the seniors made and sold flap-Jakes (pancakes) before school.

Their goal was to raise $1000 during the course of the benefit. If they could meet their goal, Mr. Anderson would approve a fun afternoon on Friday, February 19th to celebrate.

Amazingly, they met their goal after the first day of the benefit! As Friday approached, the fun afternoon was planned with a three-legged race between students and staff. After the competition ended, the students presented Jake a check for over $9,000!

On a personal note, the outpouring of support for Jake and our family has been overwhelming. We can't thank the school and community of Kimball enough for the generous donations toward Jake's medical expenses. A special thanks to Mrs. Ferguson and the seniors for all of their efforts. We are so fortunate to call Kimball home!

I've included a few pictures below of events from the week.

At the end of the race, Jake was presented with a check. He spoke to the crowd expressing his gratitude and updated them on the progress of his journey.

On Friday, February 26th, the Kimball Jr/Sr High School hosted a talent show. Each Longhorn Ranch submitted 2-3 acts for the show - some were individual and some were groups. We have a lot of hidden talent in our school and it was fun to give everyone an opportunity to showcase their abilities!

Some of you may have seen Respect Contracts come home last week. This is an area on which we are going to focus for the remainder of the school year. For some reason lately, there has been an increase in disrespectful behavior in the building. This behavior ranges from students refusing to follow staff directions, using profanity in classrooms and hallways, refusing to do classroom work and disrespecting each other. We have high expectations for each student in our building and want to create the best environment for our students to learn. By making this our focus, we plan to bring respect back to the building.

The students have been challenged to have fewer than 15 disrespectful incidents by the end of the school year. If they meet the challenge, we will have a fun day toward the end of the semester. In addition, each week, one teacher will be randomly selected to identify their most respectful class/period, and one student will be randomly selected to identify the staff member and student who was most respectful to them that week. Those selected will receive a donut from the Kimball Bakery.

Juniors have started ACT prep during Interventions. If your student doesn't have an intervention period, they have access to work on it before or after school. The ACT test for juniors will occur on April 6th. The same day, we will also offer the Pre-ACT test to all sophomores and any freshman who requests to take it. The ACT test is important to all students as it measures student achievement for our school at the state level. It is also important to all students who intend to continue their education at 2-year or 4-year institutions. In addition, the higher the ACT score, the more potential students have for scholarship money!

Every junior who completes the prep course will earn $15. All students who score a 20 or better on test day will have a shot at a $100 cash prize and the student with the highest score will also receive a $100 cash prize.

Thank you Clean Harbors for your generous contribution to help encourage our students to do their best!

Prom is coming up on April 10th from 8 - 11 pm. This year Prom is open to all 9th-12th grade students. If your student plans to bring an outside date, they need to complete our Kimball High School Dance Guest Form. The junior class sponsors and parents have been working hard planning the prom and post prom activities. Encourage your student to keep his/her grades up as students must be eligible to attend!

I hope you enjoyed browsing through the latest edition of Longhorn Notes. If there is any area you want to see highlighted in future editions, send me an email or give me a call!

The end of the quarter is March 12th. We have a few students who aren't passing one or more classes. Please encourage your student to turn in any missing work or take advantage of any re-take opportunities prior to next Friday.

Parent-Teacher conferences will by March 18th from 4:30-8:00 pm. We hope to see you then!

Email: Dreader@kpslonghorns.org
Website: Kpslonghorns.org
Location: 901 S. Nadine St.
Phone: (308) 235-4861