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A note from the Superintendent,

As the new school year begins, I am excited about what lies ahead. I welcome you all back for another enriching year of learning and growth in the Klamath Falls City Schools. Whether you are a returning member of our community or new to our district, I welcome each of you.

Our district is a vibrant and diverse community dedicated to empowering every student, enriching every mind, and transforming every future. We strive to be a world-class educational community where all students are prepared for future success in college, career, and life.

I want to acknowledge and extend best wishes to all our schools:

• Klamath Early Childhood Development Center
• Conger Elementary School
• Mills Elementary School
• Pelican Elementary School
• Roosevelt Elementary School
• Klamath Home Learning Academy
• Ponderosa Middle School
• Klamath Learning Center
• Eagle Ridge New Tech High School
• Klamath Union High School

Each of these schools plays a crucial role in shaping the minds of our future leaders, and I am confident that this year will be filled with remarkable achievements and meaningful experiences.

Our dedicated teachers, staff, and administrators have been working tirelessly to prepare for the upcoming school year, ensuring that our schools are ready to provide a high-quality education to all students. We are committed to creating a positive environment where every student feels valued and supported.

To our parents and guardians, thank you for entrusting us with your child's education. Your partnership is vital to our success, and we look forward to working together to support your child’s academic journey.

To our students, I encourage you to embrace the opportunities that this new school year presents. Set high goals for yourselves, be kind to one another, and always strive to do your best. Your hard work and determination will pave the way for a bright and successful future.

I am also very pleased to be able to share with everyone that beginning this school year 100% of our schools have air conditioning that provides clean air for our staff and students, regardless of outside air quality.

Once again, welcome back to school! Let’s make this year the best ever.

Regards,

Keith A. Brown

Stay up to date with what is going on at Klamath Falls City Schools. Search "Klamath Falls City Schools" on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and click follow or subscribe.

Photo: Klamath Union senior wide receiver, Octavio Ortega, breaks a tackle during the second quarter of the Canal Bowl against Mazama High School Thursday night at Modoc Field.

By Joaquin Aguilar-Flores, KFCS media relations specialist

Final score: Mazama 55, Klamath Union 24.

The 46th Canal Bowl came early this season as the Vikings and Pelicans faced for the first time in recent memory in a non-league matchup to start the year. It was the first time in 22 years the two schools opened its football season's against each other.

Klamath Union will have all brand new opponents this year as it will be playing against OSAA Class 3A opponents, a part of 3A-SD5 Special District 5.

The Pelicans will face fellow Southern Oregon schools in its new district, which include Lakeview, St. Mary's, Medford, Cascade Christian, North Valley and Phoenix.

New Coach, Memorable Night

Klamath Union welcomed its new head coach, Josh Overstreet, a teacher at Ponderosa Middle School.

Though a very desirable victory against Mazama was not meant to be, Overstreet and his Pelicans impressed the faithful crowd at Modoc Field Thursday night.

It was also the debut for a new quarterback at KU, sophomore, Reese Johnson, who helped KU with four passing touchdowns on the night. It was Johnson who kept the rivalry game with Mazama close in the second quarter after he impressed everyone with a statement to open the anticipated matchup.

In response to a touchdown run to open the game for the Vikings, Johnson amazed all of Modoc Field when he found wide receiver Anthony Weiser alone for a 73-yard touchdown.

The Pels were able to get within one possession of the Vikings in the second quarter when junior Gavin Coe caught a 28-yard touchdown pass from Johnson to make the game 20-12 with 6:47 left until halftime.

KU had a glimmer of hope and a chance to tie the Vikings when it recovered a fumble on its 3-yard line but fumbled on the ensuing play. The Vikings then pushed on the gas and scored three consecutive touchdowns before a 15-yard touchdown pass from Johnson to Octavio Ortega stopped the bleeding, and made the score, 41-18, with 3:53 left in the third quarter.

Off a screen pass from Johnson, Weiser scored the Pels' final points, a 52-yard touchdown with 2:41 left in the fourth quarter.

The sophomore quarterback finished his debut 16-of-23 in passing for 225 yards. Weiser ended with three receptions for 121 yards and two touchdowns.

"I am proud of everyone of our guys for how they played hard today," Overstreet said. "We kept up with Mazama and we kept coming and attacking, without giving up for the entire game. All our players should be very proud."

Canal Bowl History

The 31-point margin was the smallest in a Canal Bowl since 2019.

Klamath Union's 24 points was the most the football program has scored against Mazama since 2013.

This year's Canal Bowl was also the highest-scoring game ever in the series. Thursday night's 79 combined points beat the 68 points set in 2020.

For a full photo gallery, look through Klamath Falls City Schools' Facebook page or website.

Photo: Klamath Union High School varsity football head coach, Josh Overstreet, encourages his team during a timeout in the third quarter of the Canal Bowl against Mazama High School Thursday night at Modoc Field.

Photo: Klamath Union sophomore quarterback, Reese Johnson, goes for a lengthy run during the second quarter of the Canal Bowl against Mazama High School Thursday night at Modoc Field.

For the second year in a row, Dads on Duty is welcoming Ponderosa Middle School students right before the bell rings of their first period class.

Started by the Ponderosa PTO, Dads on Duty not only gives fist bumps and high fives to students as they first enter school. Dads on Duty not only hands out stickers to a student running to make it to school on time, it gives parents and students the peace of mind they will be safe before and during school.

Dads on Duty who were present for the first week of school were Matt Amuchastegui, Michael Armijo, Jefferson Harmon, Sam Stewart and CJ Rilely.

As we look towards the future of our community, I want to bring to your attention a critical need that we must address to ensure the success and readiness of our students: the replacement of Ponderosa Middle School.

Klamath Falls is on the cusp of growth, and we need to be prepared to meet the educational demands of our expanding population. Last year, during our community conversations, we received a clear message: our community wants our youth to be life and career-ready. Specifically, there is a strong desire for more hands-on, applied learning opportunities, such as Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs.

Effective career-ready programs must begin with robust middle school initiatives. During the Board’s visit to California last year, we saw firsthand the exceptional programs at Mad Tech Middle, which serve as an inspiring model for what we can achieve here. These programs are essential for setting our students on a successful path through high school and beyond.

Our district is diligently working to build these programs at the high school level and forge strong connections to postgraduate destinations like the Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT) and Klamath Community College (KCC). However, to truly accelerate our students along this track, we need a middle school that supports and enhances these efforts. Unfortunately, the current Ponderosa Middle School is outdated and does not meet the needs of our evolving educational goals.

The urgency of this need cannot be overstated. While the current middle school building is safe, our engineers have indicated that it could become unusable at any time because it is located on an active fault line. Our trusted advisors and the Long-Range Facilities Planning Committee have unanimously agreed that the time to act is now.

We estimate the budget for replacing Ponderosa Middle School to be around $120 million. This number may fluctuate slightly up or down as we consider incorporating other essential items, such as security upgrades and early learning facility support, into the overall bond. We may also determine that we can build at a lower cost depending on what year we decide to call a bond election to support the possible project in the future.

Replacing Ponderosa Middle School is not just about updating a building; it is about investing in the future of our community and ensuring that our youth have the tools and opportunities they need to succeed in life and their careers.

We appreciate your continued support and engagement as we take these crucial steps forward. Together, we can create an educational environment that prepares our students for the challenges and opportunities of tomorrow.

Over the next year, we will engage more with our stakeholders about Ponderosa. We will also schedule tours of the building for the community to see the current facility.

We do want to be very clear that we have not set any date for a potential Bond election. We just want to make sure our community is aware that we are working on a solution to replace Ponderosa on a different site that does not have an active fault line on it.

For anyone who has any questions about his message please e-mail Keith A. Brown at brownk@kfalls.k12.or.us.

The new district website has an Alumni page for graduates of KU. This past week, six KU alumni sent us updates on their lives since they graduated. Take a look on the KU Alumni page on the district website. And, if you are an alumni, be sure and send us YOUR update!

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PARENT LINKS
Click Here for the Family Friendly 2024-2025 School Year Calendar - English

Synergy SIS Portal/Registration

Electronic Flyers for Your Students School

Andrea Jensen, Zone 1, Roosevelt - andrea.jensen@kfcityschools.org

Andrew Biggs, Zone 2, At-Large - andrew.biggs@kfcityschools.org

Vanessa Bennett, Zone 3, Conger - vanessa.bennett@kfcityschools.org

Kathy Hewitt, Zone 4, Mills - kathy.hewitt@kfcityschools.org

Trina Perez, Zone 5, Pelican - trina.perez@kfcityschools.org

Patrick Fenner, Zone 6, At-Large - patrick.fenner@kfcityschools.org

Ashley Wendt-Lusich, Zone 7 At-Large - ashley.wendt-lusich@kfcityschools.org