The Raider Report

January 2025

Happy New Year!! As we step into 2025, I can’t help but consider the importance of the year ahead. According to Chinese astrology, 2025 is the Year of the Snake – a symbol of transformation and renewal. The snake’s ability to shed its skin reminds us of the importance of letting go of the old to make way for the new.

While the idea of renewal is often associated with any new year, the symbolism of the snake feels particularly fitting for the ORR community. Over the past year and half, we’ve faced challenges that have asked us to honor traditions while considering the possibilities of the future. This is no small task. Change can be difficult, especially when it feels like we’re leaving behind all that is familiar.

BUT – just as the snake sheds its skin to grow, we should embrace the change necessary to continue building a strong foundation. Letting go doesn’t mean forgetting – it means creating space for new opportunities that enrich our legacy.

As we move into this new year, let’s hold tight to the values and memories that define us while opening our hearts and minds to innovation and progress. The Year of the Snake offers us a chance to transform, adapt, and renew our commitment to “building a school family that helps each member write their own success story.”

Here’s to a year of growth, resilience, and unity!!

Wishing you many Blessings in 2025~

Superintendent Hoeke

School Boards Make a Difference

School board members are ordinary people who demonstrate extraordinary dedication to our public schools. January marks School Board Recognition Month and is the perfect time we thank our school board members for their untiring efforts.

Too often we forget about the personal sacrifices school board members routinely make. Too often we forget about the important role school board members play in assuring local control over our public schools, control that is in the hands of people we know ... people who are our neighbors. Too often we forget that, in the tradition of a representative democracy, school board members are our connection to influencing how our public schools are governed. Too often we are quick to criticize school board members without really knowing all the details that went into any given decision. Too often the efforts of school board members go unrecognized and unrewarded.

This month we take a moment to recognize the value of their work to our students and our communities. This is a time to show our appreciation and to begin to better understand how school board members work together to provide leadership for our schools.

The school board works closely with parents, education professionals and community members to create the educational vision we want for our students. It then formulates goals, defines results and sets the course for an adequate and equitable educational program for all students. The school board is accountable to the public. It is responsible for assuring the public that the money allocated to the public schools is providing a good return on the investment. Thus, the board oversees regular assessment of the district’s students, staff and programs. The school board also is a strong advocate for public schools and is responsible for communicating the needs of the school district to the public and the public’s expectations to the district.

In January, join with others from throughout our district and state to salute the board members who provide grassroots governance of public schools. Make a special effort to tell each school board member his or her hard work has been noticed and is very much appreciated.

THANK YOU, Oldham-Ramona-Rutland School Board Members!

Lance Hageman, President

Lori Hyland, Vice-President

Carrie Schiernbeck

Jessica Anderson

Brooke Albertson

Article by: Hanna Coomes

This year's One Act play was called "The Velveteen Rabbit". It is about a little boy getting a toy rabbit for Christmas, his relationship with that rabbit, and how it becomes real. The little boy gets sick with Scarlett Fever and ends up having to burn everything he owns, and his toy rabbit is included in that. The fairy turned the toy bunny into a real bunny before that happened.
The One Act team consists of 3 seniors, 1 junior, 3 sophomores, 5 freshmen, and 1 ,8th grader. The team had a lot of fun during the season. They also went through a few obstacles, 1 member dropped out and another member got cut, so they became very flexible, to work with that and bring the play to life. They performed for the school on Wednesday the 22nd and will also be having a public performance on Friday the 24th. They compete in regions on Monday the 27th in Madison at the Playhouse.

Article by: Brayden Hanson

A lot has been getting done in FFA these past few weeks. Including the Kingsbury County Cattlemen's Association where Garet built a coffee table as a fundraiser which brought $800 at the auction. Lance also donated a cow to the school that will be fed to the school later in the year for real beef from our local area. Lance has made a huge impact on this donation for our school along with Jay Hojer also pitching in for the cost of the cow. With the prices of cattle right now this has been a huge donation for the school and the students and can’t thank Lance and Jay enough. Lance has been awarded a certificate of appreciation for the donation. The certificate was signed by Ms. Huper and the FFA officers. FFA will also be having a pancake breakfast at the Ramona Fire Department on February 23 from 7am to noon and it will be a free will donation. The profit from this feed will be going towards FFA competitions for CDE’s this spring. FFA is also planning dress up days and activities for FFA week February 18th through the 20th. FFA is also getting ready for the upcoming CDE’s this spring.

Article by: Bella Malisch

Georgia Simon, ORR Rutland site's 4th grade teacher, is this month's New Staff Profile. She has been a great addition to the ORR team. Fun fact her life motto is “education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten by BF Skinner” which is a great motto to live by and teach by. Mrs. Simon hopes her students learn to be curious and ways to find answers which from what I hear is going great! She is originally from Veblen, SD but lived in and taught in Rapid City for the last 30 years. She attended college for her Bachelors degree at USD and her Masters at BHSU. Georgia was inspired to become a teacher by her own kindergarten teacher who allowed her to help in her room when she was a junior and senior. She enjoys golf,playing pool and baking in her free time away from her students and school. She states that “she is most excited about being in a k-12 building. My last building was only a 4-5 grade school, so it is fun to see the progression and opportunities with so many grades together.” This is a great comment that shows her love for her students' futures and our school culture! Following that statement she says Community is the word she would describe ORR as which is great to hear. The ORR community is very grateful of Mrs. Simon’s dedication and love for her students and the ORR family.

Article by: Eva Sheeks

The One-Act Play “The Velveteen Rabbit” will be performing a matinee for the school on Wed Jan 22. There will be a public performance on Friday Jan 25. We will go to a contest on Monday Jan 27. Contest is in Madison at the Dakota Prairie Playhouse. Our school performs at 3:45.

The sixth graders had a fun lab! They have been learning about rock formation. They used starburst to mimic rocks. First, they cut the starburst down into small pieces like pebbles. The first rock type was sedimentary rocks. In order to create a sedimentary rock, they needed to layer the pebbles (starburst pieces) then applied pressure to the pebbles. This was done by using a textbook and using a little muscle. Once pressure was applied, the sedimentary rock formed showing it's layers of colors. Next, they create metamorphic rocks by using friction to produce heat. The heat softened the starburst pieces making them meld together. The igneous rock was difficult to produce because it needed excessive heat. So, we had a group discussion on how igneous rock forms, and explained how we could have modeled it with the starbursts. After our discussion, the 6th graders got to eat a few rock pieces.

Article by: Jace Schiernbeck

This month's senior spotlight is Mr. Dillon Renaas. Dillons family consists of Debbie, Doyle, AJ, Brianna, and Casey. Dillons favorite school memory was naptime in kindergarten with Mrs. Meyer. Dillion says that the teacher who had the biggest impact on him was Ms.Hoyles both in junior high and through his high school years. Dillon has has participated in Football, Golf, Track, and the Trap Team. When Dillon was younger he wanted to be a farmer just like his dad, how cute Dillon was with this dream. Dillon's plans after high school are to attend a 2 year college such as Lake Area Tech. Mr. Renaas says his best excuse for not getting homework done is “I forgot it at school the day before.” Dillons best class he has taken is Life Skills with Mr.Simpson because they did interviews and activities as a class. Dillon's favorite school meal is sloppy joes with baked beans. Dillon Renaas’s advice for younger students is “Go where there is no path and leave a trail.” Dillon's life quote is “Farming isn't for everyone, but hay it's in my jeans.” With only five months left in the semester, we are enjoying every moment we have left with the Class of 2025!

Article by: Emily Matson and Bailey Hyland

The Lady Raiders had a few tough games before Christmas break. Friday December 20 they played Deubrook Area and the Varsity lost 64-25. The next day they played Waverly-South Shore at Colman for the Entringer and lost 55-44. During break the JV and V played 3 games. On Monday December 30 there was a Doubleheader in Ramona against Arlington.The JV won 38-37 and the Varsity lost 64-27. We then had a few practices to work on things before our next game on Thursday January 2 against Bridgewater-Emery at Emery. The JV won 44-24 and the Varsity lost 72-51. The Lady Raiders then played Canistota on Saturday January 4 in Ramona and the JV won 25-20 and the Varsity lost 57-37. Pushing for a win the Lady Raiders practiced hard and were able to get the win against Freeman Academy-Marion on Tuesday January 7 in Ramona. The JV played 2 quarters due to injuries on the FA/M side and lost 16-17 and the Varsity won 53-47. On Thursday January 9 they played Colman Egan at Colman and lost 72-39. Determined for another win the girls practiced hard and went to Huron to play James Valley Christian. JVC had no JV, just JH and V. The JH lost 10-17 and the Varsity won 52-38. On Friday January 17 they played Dell Rapids St. Mary’s in Dell Rapids. The JH lost, the JV lost 12-46, and the V lost 87-49. The girls were supposed to play on the 20 but due to cold weather the game got moved to a DH Tuesday January 21 against Estelline-Hendricks. The JV won 23-21, and the V lost 63-56. The girls have played some tough Class B teams that are ranked and are working hard to improve every practice.

Article by: Hyde Hanson and Cooper Merager

This month in PRIME time we have done multiple interesting activities. The first day we returned to school we all took turns telling our groups how we spent our breaks. On Mondays, we do social-emotional learning which consists of group learning and group interaction. Tuesday is a study hall and a time set for you to go work with different teachers if needed. Wednesday is leadership day where we work together on our leadership skills. Some of these activities may include visiting Ramona Elementary, visiting Rutland Elementary, doing virtual escape rooms, and many more activities. Thursday is Pick Up a Book and Read (or PUB)l Friday is a day where we do miscellaneous activities such as playing cards or board games with each other. PRIME time is set up to help us get to know each other better and to spend time with students and staff that we may not normally be with.

Article by: Camlin Schneider

One of our senior spotlights this month is Kimberly Trystad. Kim has 3 brothers, Riley, Wyatt, and Logan. Her parents are Tina and Dan. Kim’s favorite school memory is Land Judging. Mrs.Chambers has had the biggest impact on Kimberly because she showed her to always follow her dreams. Kim has participated in golf, student council, and drama/play. Each of these she has participated in for 3 years. When Kim was little she wanted to be a scientist. After high school she plans on attending college, but did not say where. Kim’s best excuse for not getting her homework done is “My duck ate it.”. A fad she is embarrassed about being a part of is fidget spinners. Kim’s favorite class she has taken is Mr.E shop class because “he always brought something fun to the classroom.”. Her favorite school lunch is Teriyaki Chicken. Kimberly’s advice for younger students is “Don’t procrastinate!”. Her life quote Kim lives by is “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” - Eleanor Roosevelt. We look forward to spending 5 more months with Kim around the ORR School.

Article by: Roman Malisch and Brennon Bickett

During the winter break the boys varsity basketball team played in the Entringer Classic against the Iroquois-Lake Preston Sharks. The varsity boys lost with a final score of 42-59. The boy's varsity played on January 7th vs Freeman Academy/Marion. The game ended in another loss, the final score of the varsity was 50-68. The varsity boys had a total of 37 rebounds and 7 assists. There was another boys varsity game in Colman on the 11th of January against the Colman Egan Hawks. The game's final score was 36-79, with the Raiders varsity having a free throw percentage of 60 percent. On January 16 the Raiders boys basketball team made a trip to Dell Rapids Saint Mary. There, the Raiders junior high started, and the jv and varsity followed, the varsity lost with a score of 32-82, and with a free throw percentage of 67 percent. The boys continue to work hard as a team and learn the importance of working together as a team.

Article by: Hattie Hanson

The month of January is a hard time for students who just came off winter break. The elementary students at ORR are still having fun. At the Ramona site students are excited for the Prime Groups to start visiting them again. They got to go over to Rutland to watch the one-act play. The Ramona Elementary Student Council members met to discuss events for Valentines Day, and their next AR reading party. Over at the Rutland site the Kindergarteners are happy to have NHS and community members read them books. They also get a little dessert and drink while they read. Kindergarten also had an indoor snowball fight to review math class. All the elementary students are enjoying having their recess indoors thanks to the cold weather. Elementary basketball has started. The kids are very excited this season for their games, and spending time with their friends.