As part of their study of Ecology, Roseville Area High School students in the Biology A class participated in a pond study. According to RAHS biology teacher Samantha Padellford, students gathered macroinvertebrates and observed plants, animals, and the amount of biodiversity that exists. They followed up the next day to classify what “critters” they find and discussed what they eat as well as the overall health of the pond.

Roseville Area Schools sometimes lands in the news. Sometimes it's good news and sometimes it's bad news. Last week, we had both.

As most of you know, we had two separate incidents of students who brought guns to Roseville Area High School. I can't speak more highly of how our student support staff members and the RAHS administrators responded to the situations. They were professional and focused and acted in the best interests of student and staff safety.

The most frequent question we have received since then is how are we going to keep our students and staff safe. I can unequivocally say that safety and security is a top priority. We speak often of the ongoing work of our District Safety and Security Team. This is a group of staff from across the district that is responsible for not only determining the best possible means to keep our students and staff safe but also to provide ongoing information and training to our staff members. Their work runs along two key lines -- traditional safety & security measures and violence prevention. It's ongoing, important work and we will continue to highlight their work in these newsletters throughout the year.

The other news, which made it all the way to Newsweek magazine (see link below), was surrounding the alleged stance of a candidate for our school board. While we as a school district are not allowed by law to speak about specific candidates, I will say this loud and clear:

There is no place in Roseville Area Schools for anyone who denies the horrors of the Holocaust nor the deep history and contributions of the Jewish people in our nation and the world.

Now for the good news. *whew*

On Sunday, the Star Tribune ran a lengthy article about Minnesota schools that they say have "beaten the odds." These are high poverty schools that continue to show improvements in standardized test scores. Schools were ranked as "better than expected," "As expected," and "Falling Short."

NONE of our schools ranked as falling short, and in fact three schools -- Edgerton, Emmet D. Williams, and Falcon Heights -- were ranked as Beating the Odds.

Congratulations to all of our school staff and thank you for your hard work that made this wonderful news possible!

Here's to a peaceful week --

Jenny Loeck

Roseville Area Schools will be recognizing Indigenous Peoples' Day on Monday, October 9. The Office of Educational Equity will be preparing lessons that will be shared with all students in grades K-12. According to the National Museum of the American Indian, "Indigenous Peoples' Day is celebrated on the second Monday of October and recognizes the resilience and diversity of Indigenous Peoples in the United States."

Are you interested, or know someone who is interested, in working as a school nurse? School nursing is aligned with public health nursing and is an opportunity to make a positive difference in the lives of our students. Positions available now:

• Two full-time school nurse openings. Licensed School Nurse position requires a BSN. You can be in the process to get your LSN license. Experience is preferred, but not required. New school nurses will mentor with an experienced school nurse, and receive support from the whole nurse team.
• School nurse on-call subs. BSN required. We will offer training to nurse subs.

Click below to visit the Careers webpage. Go to ‘’Health Services” for applications. For more details, please call or email Taylor Anderson, Assistant Director Student Services, at 651-635-1636, taylor.anderson@isd623.org.

In Roseville, we know that each student who walks into our schools is somebody's somebody. It’s our job to keep our schools as safe as possible. That is why we are implementing the Standard Response Protocol as a part of our school safety plans. The Standard Response Protocol is a set of research-based actions/drills designed to prepare students, staff and parents for emergency situations. It is based on the response to any given situation.

The Standard Response Protocol demands a specific vocabulary. The premise is simple - these five specific actions that can be performed during an incident. When communicating these, the action is labeled and is then followed by a directive. The Standard Response Protocol includes the following:

• HOLD: When there is a “hold”, students will remain in the classroom and we will continue teaching and learning. It’s business as usual. A “hold” is the protocol used when hallways need to be kept clear. For example, it could be a medical emergency.

• SECURE: When there is a “secure” students should get Inside and lock outside doors. We call a “secure” when there is a threat outside the building. No one in or out when we are in “secure”. This is protocol used to safeguard people within the building and it will replace the term lockout. Lockout is a term we are moving away from because it can easily be confused with lockdown.

• LOCKDOWN: When there is a “lockdown” it means locks, lights, out of sight. We will lock the doors, turn off the lights and get out of sight. This is the protocol used to secure individual rooms and keep occupants quiet and in place due to a threat inside the building. It’s also important to note that we do need to practice lockdown drills each year. The state of MN requires all schools to do five lockdown drills each year. If you come to the school and the school is in “secure” or “lockdown” , you will see posted graphics on the doors that are preprinted. For the safety and security of the building during a “secure” or “lockdown” no one is allowed in and no one is allowed out.

• EVACUATE: When we evacuate we would leave the building. This protocol is used to move people from one location to a different location in or out of the building.

• SHELTER: If we were to “shelter” it means there is a hazard and staff would lead students in the safety strategy.

Keeping students and staff safe is of utmost importance. The recommendation to implement the Standard Response Protocol came from the District Safety Security Team. If you are interested in serving on the District Safety and Security Team for the 2023-2024 school year, please contact Assistant Superintendent Melissa Sonnek at Melissa.Sonnek@isd623.org.