Nebraska Public School Advantage News

Nebraska Public School Advantage News

By Tyler Dahlgren The sun couldn't help but shining on the 10th annual Northeast Nebraska Spring Sprints on Friday, where 215 athletes from 20 school districts competed in what has become "the happiest day of the year." "This helps enrich the culture of our school," said Misty Beair, Special Education/Early Learning Center Director for Wayne Community Schools. "It's just my favorite thing. It...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren You can't miss the Cardinal Welcome Center while cruising down Main Street in Crete, and that's the point. For a school district eager to connect with its community, the sparkling new facility on the east side of the street in the former ShopKo location is a one-stop shop for everything Crete Public Schools. "This is the hub for everything," said superintendent Dr. Josh McDowell...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren As S-E-M’s K-12 music teacher, Justin Bosak has come to believe that any spark is a good spark, a belief that explains the energy and enthusiasm oozing from his room at any given time on any given day. He’s also learned that if you can show without doubt how a particular endeavor can benefit a student’s educational experience, S-E-M will get behind said endeavor 10 times out of...Read More
The following conversation took place on a Friday morning in early April in a Schuyler Central conference room, where NPSA was joined by Principal Dr. Joey Lefdal, Assistant Principal Samantha Ladwig and Activity Director/Assistant Principal Travis Steinhoff. We reached out to chat about the district's soaring fine arts programs, and left with a conversation too good not to share. Enjoy! Q: What...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren Laurie Smith will talk about her 2021 National Rural Teacher of the Year Award, but there are two things all inquirers should take note of before slipping off I-80 somewhere west of Kearney and heading north to Sumner. First, and for the sake of perspective, foremost, Smith doesn’t necessarily view the award as hers , per se. She doesn’t see much use for such a prestigious honor...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren Life has in its repertoire an array of knee-buckling curveballs, and though that’s precisely the lesson organizers behind ESU 17’s “An Intro to Life” wanted to pass along to the approximately 140 area sophomores in attendance, they weren’t exactly expecting another reminder themselves. High winds swept snow across The Sandhills on Wednesday morning, throwing a potential wrench...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren Cesar Ramirez doesn’t let working in a soap factory keep his hands from getting dirty. They might always smell good, one of several perks of working at Pacha Soap Co. for a trio of ESU 9’s 18+ Program students who spend their mornings at the company’s fulfillment facility in downtown Hastings, but they’re not unaccustomed to the dusty residue of a solid day on the job. “Getting...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren The bright flame from Jessica Jackman’s chemistry experiment always draws excited gasps and wide eyes, but perhaps the loudest Oohs and Aahs on this Monday morning in February came from the back of the room, where a pack of fellow Cross County teachers stood and observed. It’s a mini-culture shock for a kindergarten teacher to find themselves in a high school science lab, but...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren Downtime is a rare commodity in the course of Qua’Niquia Damper’s typical day. The 2016 Omaha North graduate is a medical assistant in the Hematology-Oncology Department at Children’s Hospital, where she puts in a full eight hours before heading to Maple Crest Health Center for another shift. Damper is a talented hair stylist, too, and books appointments on the side. Damper, you...Read More
By Tyler Dahlgren Nazeer Rahy tends to hit the ground running. When his family came to America from Afghanistan through the Special Immigrant Visas (SIV) in 2014 (his father worked with the U.S. military for years prior), it didn't take as long you'd think for the then-12-year-old to acclimate to new surroundings. For example, though his favorite sport is and always will be soccer, Nazeer took...Read More

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