Nebraska Public School Advantage News

Nebraska Public School Advantage News

ESU 16's EDventurous PLC brings hundreds of educators together for collaborative discovery

ESU 16's EDventurous PLC brings hundreds of educators together for collaborative discovery

October 30, 2019
"What would we do without our ESUs?!" NCSA Ambassador Dr. Cinde Wendell, herself a retired school superintendent, posed the question on Twitter after taking in the EDventurous Regional Professional Learning Community (PLC) day-long event in Hershey on October 14, the second of three sessions offered by ESU 16 throughout the school year. Professional learning, especially for educators,...Read More

The Recovery Room: St. Paul Elementary shifts classroom climate with mindful innovation

The Recovery Room: St. Paul Elementary shifts classroom climate with mindful innovation

October 24, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren Just outside of St. Paul Elementary’s “Recovery Room”, on a billboard used for announcements encased in glass, there’s a message on display for all the school's students to see. “Mental health is something I’m very passionate about, and I would say our high school principal is also passionate about the mental well-being of our students,” said Elementary Principal Sara Paider. “...Read More

Inside the world of school-based mental health therapists, student wellness sits front and center

Inside the world of school-based mental health therapists, student wellness sits front and center

October 21, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren For Paul Kraus and Scott Walls, a pair of licensed mental health professionals (LMHPs) stationed at ESU 6 Headquarters in Milford with more than 20 years experience each, no day is ever remotely like the one before. Before we get to their story, it’s important to note that “stationed” is a term used loosely when it comes to Walls and Kraus. They’re rarely, if ever, stationary,...Read More

Breaking Down Barriers: Innovative, multi-tiered partnership delivers mental health services to students in need

Breaking Down Barriers: Innovative, multi-tiered partnership delivers mental health services to students in need

October 17, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren The conversation took place in 2015 between Paul Utemark and Mark Norvell. Utemark, Fillmore County Hospital’s Administrator, and Norvell, Superintendent of Fillmore Central Public Schools, worked, literally, across the street from one another. In a small town like Geneva, everybody, from the school to the hospital, is invested in the well-being of area youth. And there was a...Read More

Sincere and honest, "The Mind Inside: Episode Two" is an incredibly important watch

Sincere and honest, "The Mind Inside: Episode Two" is an incredibly important watch

October 11, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren “You swipe past it, but does that swipe the feeling away?” In the second episode of The Mind Inside, the filmmakers from I Love Public Schools take viewers on an eye-opening trip down the digital highway present-day students travel along every day. The 30-minute episode examines the inescapable pressures that come with living in a digital world, where an image is created,...Read More

Autumn Energy: Educators Rejuvenate, Collaborate at ESU 11 Fall Conference

Autumn Energy: Educators Rejuvenate, Collaborate at ESU 11 Fall Conference

October 10, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren Renowned motivational speaker Dr. Joe Sanfelippo stood on the stage in Holdrege's The Tassel, a state-of-the-art theatre, and delivered an inspirational message that, by the time it was over, left the 600 Nebraska educators in attendance buzzing with excitement for a day full of professional development. Sanfelippo, Superintendent of the Fall Creek School District in Wisconsin,...Read More

A Conversation with Mary Phillips, Director of Student Services at ESU 6

A Conversation with Mary Phillips, Director of Student Services at ESU 6

October 3, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren Prior to beginning her current role with ESU 6 as Director of Student Services, Mary Phillips spent 25 years at Lincoln Public Schools as a special education teacher, building coordinator, and, most recently, district supervisor. Phillips and the team at ESU 6 provide a wide array of mental health services to their 16 school districts, which span a five county-wide area, and...Read More

Cultivating Culture: Welcome to Shickley!

Cultivating Culture: Welcome to Shickley!

September 25, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren A Small School with a Powerful Culture The career path that led principal Erik Sokol to the delightfully quaint town of Shickley, Nebraska was, in essence, one long case of culture shock. Pleasant culture shock, that is. Sokol spent his first decade as an educator in the Phoenix, AZ area, where he was born and raised. He coached at the high school he attended. He loved what he...Read More

LIFEWTR's art project gives Stanton a colorful splash

LIFEWTR's art project gives Stanton a colorful splash

September 20, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren More than 300 Stanton students were surprised with a transformational splash of color Thursday afternoon, as local artists unveiled new murals throughout the building. The beautification project is part of a yearlong initiative from LIFEWTR, the premium bottled water brand, to invigorate and inspire students through the incorporation of art into education. Stanton Community...Read More

Up and Running: In McCook, Bison Tech Team is always on call

Up and Running: In McCook, Bison Tech Team is always on call

September 11, 2019
By Tyler Dahlgren The call came through some time around three in the morning, abruptly snapping Davin Brunswick, at the time a sophomore at McCook High School, out of a deep sleep. When the phone rings in the middle of the night, the news on the other end is rarely good. One of his peers, in a state of panic, did indeed present the dazed and groggy Brunswick with an emergency. “They had...Read More

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