The National Resource Conservation Service or NRCS spent 3 days this past week here at Central School doing presentations for Earth Day. NRCS spoke to each classroom about soil conservation, animal wildlife here in Nebraska, and taking care of plants/trees. Little Blue Natural Resources District donated a lilac shrub to each student to take home and plant.
Five journalism students brought home medals from the NSAA State Journalism Competition Monday, April 25, helping the school finish seventh in the State Competition.
The competition provides an avenue for journalism students across the state to compete in timed competitions to determine top finishers in 21 events.
The publications department had nine students qualify to compete in the competition with five bringing home medals in four different categories including a State Champion and State Runner-up.
Tanner Novotny brought home the gold in Sports News Writing and Mary Lawrence finished runner-up in Photo Illustration. In addition to these top two performances, Paige Patton finished third in Yearbook Feature Writing; Shaye Stall placed fourth in Newspaper Layout; and Partrick Ondrak finished fifth inSports News Writing.
Along with the five medalists, seniors Michaela Bartels, Brooke Eisenhauer, and Halle Knigge qualified for the State Competition helping the school finish seventh in the team sweepstakes.
Personal Finance students embarked on an expedition to gain real-life knowledge and experience evaluating real estate. Realtor, Justin Schultis from Redstones Wolverhampton, met students at a home for sale in Fairbury to discuss the buying process, home values, and the importance of having a home inspection. Students gained a better understanding of the difference between the assessed, appraised, and market value of a house.
Students enjoyed the opportunity and learned a great deal from the excursion. Senior Brooke Eisenhauer described the experience by saying, “I think going on an actual visit made it easier to understand the process of buying a home. It made it easier to determine the things that you need to inspect before making a purchase of a home. The initial visit was a great way to apply what we know, and learn more about the house buying process. It was helpful to have a real estate agent there with us to answer our questions because he deals with this type of work on a daily basis. The overall experience helped a lot in making house buying more relatable.”
Hear ye! Hear ye! Meet the new Kings and Queens of handwriting! These little kinders just finished the last letter of the alphabet and now know the correct letter formation for each letter. Whether it’s making the letter “i” with a straight line down and dot in the sky or making the letter “x” with two diagonal lines, these kinders know how to do it all! To celebrate, each kinder colored a crown and embellished it with stickers, sequins and foam letters. They were also presented with an official handwriting certificate from the Royal Duchess.
Credit: The Primary Techie
The Jeff Golfers competed in the Fairbury Invite on April 20th. The Jeffs placed 2nd as a team. Individual medalists include: Nick, 3rd with a 78, Justin Peterson, 6th with an 81 and Zach, 10th with an 85. Good Job Golfers!
Current research shows that the incidence of Autism Spectrum Disorder in children is 1 out of every 68. There are many factors that have been identified as contributing to this number. Fairbury Public Schools takes pride in ensuring our teachers, support staff and administrators understand and meet the unique learning needs students with Autism Spectrum Disorders have. 24 FPS teachers, para-educators, and administrators, along with 13 parents attended the 2016 Nebraska ASD Network State Conference in La Vista. The two day conference was filled with entertaining, informative and educational keynote speakers and breakout sessions. Our local ESU 5 Interim-Administrator and Interim-Special Education Director, Dr. Brenda and Dr. Matt McNiff were the keynote speakers on Thursday evening. They gave their presentation from the perspective as both a parent of a child with ASD and educators. The conference was capped off with an AWESOME keynote presentation from Adolf Brown. His ability to inspire, entertain and move participants is truly unique and well received. Please contact Central or Jefferson Intermediate if you would like further information about this conference.
On Thursday, April 14th the Boy’s golf team competed in the York invite. York is a very difficult course that has hosted districts before. Conditions were tough with some stiff winds, picking up in the afternoon. Nick Christiansen led the Jeffs with an 87. Justin Peterson carded an 88, followed by Robby Meyer posting a 94. Zach Reikofski shot a 103 and Anthony Moyer rounded out the scoring with a 111. The Jeffs finished in 10th out of 16 teams shooting a 372. The Jeffs will next be in action on Wednesday, April 20 at their home invite with golf starting at 9 a.m.
On April 18, 2016 the Nebraska State Patrol visited Mr. Scott’s Driver Education class. Officer Charlie Cook, a former policeman from Fairbury himself, was the guest speaker. He is a full time Community Service Officer. His job is educate the public about vehicle safety with the topics “Don’t Drink and Drive”, “Don’t Text and Drive”, “Get Plenty of Sleep Before Driving”, and Always Wear a Seatbelt
“. He showed the students a roll over simulator. Students got to experience the simulator that represented a slow vehicle roll-over with and without belts. A child seat was in the passenger seat and it really hit home with some of the kids. He also talked about how large book bags full of books should not be carried in the car but in the trunk as they become projectiles when not fastened down or seat belted in. The safety dummy eventually was thrown from the simulator and landed on the concrete. Statistics have shown, you are more likely to live in a crash if you are wearing your seat belt. Students got to see videos, color pictures, and heard many stories of actual crashes he had worked. Students also got to experience the drunk goggles and tried to walk the line. I think it was a definite eye opener to safety behind the wheel. Thank you officer Cook!
The Fairbury FFA Chapter members attended the 2016 Nebraska FFA State Convention, April 6-8 in Lincoln, Nebraska. Chapter members attending the convention were Tyler Heidemann, Nathaniel Stapaules, Dylan Au, Cody Huss, Blake Bauer, Patrick Ondrak, Jon Engelman, Michaela Buchli, Tori Likens, Kaylee Sipek, Delaney Miller, Natalie Stapaules, Ryan Umland, Garret Ragland, Althea Esteller, Tony Grummert, Jake Maschmann, Jesse Graves, Paige Livingston, Evie Schwab, Shavara Kroeker, Jordan Ruhnke, Sarah McCown, Carson Bohlmeyer, Brock Barton, Madison Black, Trevin Likens, Brandon Reese, Miranda Heidemann
Nebraska FFA members and chapters were honored for their accomplishments at the 88th annual State FFA Convention. Events were held at the Pinnacle Bank Arena, hotels in Lincoln’s Haymarket, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln East Campus.
FFA members, advisors and guests supported chapters and award recipients. Attendees had the opportunity to listen to motivational speakers and retiring state officer addresses during convention sessions. They were engaged in leadership workshops, watched students compete in Leadership Skills Events and attended the annual Career Fair. Students also participated in the State Career Development Events on UNL‘s East Campus.
Individual award winners for the Fairbury FFA Chapter include the Agricultural Sales team consisting of Ryan Umland, Garret Ragland, Althea Esteller, and Natalie Stapaules received a white ribbon as a team while Natalie received a white ribbon individually. The Agriscience team consisted of Delaney Miller, Kaylee Sipek, Tori Likens, and Michaela buchli. Tori received a blue ribbon and Michaela received a red ribbon. The Agronomy team consisting of Blake Bauer, Cody Huss, John Engelman, and Patrick Ondrak received a blue ribbon as a team. Cody received a blue ribbon, John received a blue ribbon and Patrick received a white ribbon individually. The Natural Resources team consisting of Tyler Heidemann, Carson Bohlmeyer, Nathaniel Stapaules, and Brock Barton received a blue ribbon as a team and placed in the top 20. Carson received a purple ribbon, Nathaniel received a blue ribbon, and Brock received a red ribbon. The Welding team consisted of Dylan Au competing in the Gas Metal Arc Welding event, Tony Grummer competing in the OxyAcetylene welding event, and Tyler Heidemann competed in the Shielded Metal Arc Welding event. Tyler received a white ribbon. The Vet Science team consisted of Ryan Umland, Natalie Stapaules, Patrick Ondrak, and Sarah McCown. The Floriculture team consisted of Evie Schwab, Paige Livingston, Shavara Kroeker, and Jordan Ruhnke. The Meat Judging team consisted of Jesse Graves, Tony Grummert, Brock Barton, and Jake Maschmann. The Farm Management team consisted of Trevin Likens, Madison Black, Brandon Reese, and Miranda Heidemann. Garret Ragland competed in the Job Interview Leadership Skills Event and received a silver rating.
The Fairbury FFA chapter also had three members who received their State FFA Degrees and were chosen to sing in the State FFA Choir. Those members receiving their State FFA Degrees were Trevin Likens, Tyler Heidemann, and Cody Huss. Those members singing in the State FFA Choir were Ryan Umland, Madison Black, and Garret Ragland.
The Fairbury FFA Chapter had a great time at state convention and will be looking to keep building in their experiences and contest results for next year.
