Dear USD 309 Parents/Guardians,
Please check your email for the links we sent out this morning. You will find the following:
- Enrollment Instructions for Returning and New Students
- Food Service Info & 2024-25 Meal Prices
- Payment options
- PowerSchool Parent Portal support info
- School Supply Lists
- Health/Physical Information
- Upcoming Events
- Helpful Links
In-Person Enrollment Day: August 6th, 2024 at Reno Valley MS from 7am-7pm
All NEW students must attend the in-person Enrollment day. Returning students are welcome as well and computers will be provided for you to complete the enrollment process.
Several documents are also attached to the email for your reference. We are excited to get the 2024-25 academic year started and off to a great start!
Thank you!
USD 309 Administration
A few USD 309 mentor teachers spent the day at KMIC's (Kansas Mentor and Induction Center) Inspire & Thrive Conference, learning how to best support and encourage teachers new to the profession.
Summer school is in session! Students from across the district were busy at work this morning.
Congrats to Cody Spurlock and Haley McGill! Both qualified for the National Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida!
Bus drivers Julianne Whipple, 15 years, and Kathy Moore, 40 years, were recognized Friday for their years of service at USD 309. Thank you to all our bus drivers for everything you do for the students of Nickerson-South Hutchinson!
USD 309 teachers Michelle Ernst (secondary) and Catherine Leake (elementary) were recognized as nominees for the Region 1 Kansas 2025 Teacher of the Year at the KTOY Banquet on April 6th.
If you are or someone you know is interested in sending a child to USD 309 Preschool next year, please complete the online application link below. Acceptance will be on a first come, first serve basis. Acceptance letters will be sent out the beginning of May. Three year olds currently enrolled in USD 309 Preschool are guaranteed a spot in the 4-year-old program, but are still encouraged to complete an application. https://www.canva.com/design/DAF7lTILFns/FnhoJdg70vG8sG00hkmlbw/view?utm_content=DAF7lTILFns&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=editor
Explore free and exciting family events during the Week of the Young Child, April 15-20th in Hutchinson.
DATE CHANGE!
SHE PreK and KDG Roundup is now scheduled for Monday, May 13th at 6:00pm.
DATE CHANGE!
NES PreK and KDG Roundup is now scheduled for Monday, May 6th at 6:00pm.
Apply now!
Good Morning,
This morning, a student discovered a toy gun in a toilet at Nickerson High School. The student reported it to the office and it was retrieved by Police Chief Paul Allen. An investigation is currently underway in an attempt to determine who might have brought this to school. Again, this was a child's toy and presented no threat to students or staff. We just wanted to make you aware of the facts of the situation so you are not alarmed should you hear about this through different channels.
Curtis Nightingale
Superintendent
USD 309 thanks Mike Apfel and Dan Schweizer for their years of service as USD 309 BOE members and welcomes Stephanie Tucker as our newest member of the Board.
SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER VACANCY
The USD 309 School Board is accepting letters of interest from community members who would like to be considered for a vacant board member position. The board member who fills this vacancy will serve from February 12, 2024, through January 10, 2028. The applications will be reviewed and candidates interviewed at the February 12th School Board Meeting.
QUALIFICATIONS:
• Qualified voter of the District
• Not an employee of the District
• Resides in Position #1-South Hutchinson
APPLICATION DEADLINE: 12:00 P.M. February 6, 2024
Interested applicants can fill out a Board of Education Candidate Questioner by contacting the USD 309 Board Clerk at 620-663-7141 or email gayle.damato@usd309ks.org no later than February 6, 2024.
The National Weather Service has issued a Hazardous Weather Warning for our area through noon tomorrow. They are forecasting negative lows with wind chills reaching anywhere from -25 to -30 below. While temperatures may reach into the teens by the afternoon, this will not help our parents, students, or staff as they try to make it to school in the morning and the risks involved with that travel. So, unfortunately, school will once again be canceled for tomorrow, Tuesday, January 16th, 2024.
With the temperatures getting back to normal in the afternoon, Activities scheduled for tomorrow are tentatively unaffected.
As a side note, tomorrow will exhaust the number of snow days we have built into this year's school calendar. This is not an issue currently, but should we need to cancel school beyond tomorrow, we will be forced to schedule make-up days to satisfy the state requirement for attendance.
Stay warm.
While the condition of many of the main roads has improved, side and county roads remain problematic. The U.S.D. 309 Nickerson-South Hutchinson Schools will have a 2-hour Late Start for Thursday, January 11, 2024, to allow for safer commuting in the daylight.
Go slow and be careful out there.
In observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the USD 309 Board of Education meeting has been moved to January 22nd, 2024.
While our Maintenance Staff has put in many hours today trying to get our campuses ready for school, and the city and county road crews have worked hard on the roads and overpasses, many rural roads and bus routes remain unsafe with drifting snow and underlying ice. With temperatures tonight in the teens, it is out of an abundance of caution that U.S.D. 309 schools will be canceled again tomorrow. With highs projected to be in the 40s by afternoon, we will determine afternoon activities by noon tomorrow. Stay safe.
School will be canceled for U.S.D. 309 Nickerson-South Hutchinson tomorrow, Tuesday, January 9, 2024, due to the Winter Storm.
Stay safe.
