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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.
GraceMed Dental Days are:
SHES - January 22
NES/NHS - January 23
RVMS - January 26
Online Signup - https://gracemed.org/oral-health-outreach
(Paper forms will be available in the Building Offices.)
Ms. Catherine Leake and Mrs. Michelle Ernst named USD 309 Elementary and Secondary Teacher of the Year.
https://hutchpost.com/posts/092cae97-fc88-49c5-ac79-d14e916eacaa?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook
USD 309 is beginning a Strategic Planning Initiative. District families, employees, and patrons are invited to support this planning process by sharing personal perspectives in an online survey. As the strategic planning process continues this fall, it will depend on thoughtful input from across the community. Thank you for spending 10 minutes before August 30th, 2023 to share your opinions and ideas with us!
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/USD309SP
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is now available to all Kansas kids age birth through 5-years old. If you have or know of someone who has a child meeting the age requirements register today at imaginationlibrary.com!
The City of Nickerson is experiencing a water main break. It is anticipated both NHS and NES will be without water by noon. Buildings will be dismissed at 12:30. Buses are being mobilized to take bus riders home at that time.
We plan to have school tomorrow but should the water issue not be rectified by then, we will notify you as soon as we know.
NHS practices will proceed as scheduled.
We're building the future for our students. That is what makes the upcoming bond vote so important! Join us to learn more about the bond, which will take votes on May 16, 2023.
Remember to complete your voter registration by April 25th!
Panthers,
We have been informed that several law enforcement agencies and school districts across the state are dealing with false reports related to school violence. We have NOT received any such calls, nor have the local agencies that serve our respective areas (S. Hutch PD, Hutch PD, Reno County SO). The KBI and the FBI are actively working to identify and apprehend the caller(s). Dozens of similar calls were made in Colorado yesterday. That said, we wanted to make you aware that:
1) There have been no such calls regarding our schools;
2) Our Administrative team has met and gone over our response plan;
3) Chief Allen will be monitoring our schools from within;
4) We have been in communication with all law enforcement agencies to revisit our plans and to confirm our respective responses to such reports.
Student and staff safety is our number one priority. We will work closely with our local authorities should such a report be made and we will communicate with our families as soon as possible should such a response be needed.
Curtis Nightingale
Superintendent
Join us for a special board meeting and participate in the discussion about the scope of a proposed bond. We will be meeting at Reno Valley Middle School on Thursday, Feb 9th at 7PM.
Join us for a special board meeting to hear public comment on the proposal to move 6th grade from our two elementary schools to Reno Valley Middle school. This move would be in conjunction with the upcoming bond and would not affect students this year or next academic year.
Join us at the USD 309 District Office, 4501 W. 4th Ave., Hutchinson, at 7:00 on February 6th. Your voice matters!
#WeR309
We received a report this morning from students that two women in a red four-door stopped to offer them a ride as they walked to a bus stop in South Hutchinson. USD 309 Chief of Police Paul Allen and members of the South Hutchinson Police Department are investigating this report. As more details become available, we will share those with you. In the meantime, please use this opportunity to discuss safety with your students and ensure they know to refuse such offers, and to run from the area if necessary.
Please know that the safety of our students is our number one priority. The South Hutchinson Police Department will increase its patrol of our bus stops in an attempt to ensure student safety. If you have any information regarding this incident or have seen this vehicle, please contact 911.
The city of Nickerson is currently experiencing a power outage. We have been told power should be restored by 10:45. We will keep you informed as we are updated.
