SHS Senior, Alivia Hartmann of Seward was introduced at the Seward Youth Rotarian by Rotarian Anita Foor at the recent Seward Rotary Club meeting on Wednesday, October 6^th, 2021 at their noon luncheon.  Alivia is the daughter of Christina Minarik and Zachary Hartmann.

Alivia has been a member of the SHS Honor Roll many times and received numerous PRIDE awards from members of the SHS faculty.  

Alivia loves music and has taken piano lessons for 13 years.  She also is a member of the SHS Marching Band-enjoys playing the Bass Clarinet.  She has participated also in the Symphonic Band, Pep Band and Wind ensemble at SHS.  She was a section leader in the SHS Marching Band and lettered in band.  She has been accepted many times for the Seward Concordia Honor Band, the UNK Honor Band, the Doane University Honor Band and Conference Honor Band.  She has also competed at the District Music Contest successfully, and at the Crete Music Contest. 

She is an athlete, and played softball for over ten years, and a past member of the SHS Softball team-playing center field.  She has lettered in the softball.  She also loves the sport of Soccer and played soccer at SHS for the last three years and served as Captain of the SHS Soccer Team, lettering in soccer the last two years-and playing as a soccer forward. 

Alivia has been elected Senior Class President this year and a member of the SHS Leadership Team (Student Council) for four years.  

She was selected to be the Seward High representative for the HOBY (Huge O’Brian Youth) Leadership Summit/Seminar.  She is a leader in the SHS Key Club and involved in the Multicultural Fair for the last three years-promoting international understanding.  She also has assisted in coordinating a statewide fundraiser program for children with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).

Her interests and hobbies include all forms of music and especially playing the piano and being with her friends.  

Her employment experiences include serving as a Nanny, working as a checker at Pac and Save, and is currently serving as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) at Ridgewood, as she has enjoyed working with older adults and preparing for her nursing career. 

In the area of “Service Above Self” she has worked in countless hours of volunteer projects with her high school service clubs-such as Key Club and working with the Rheumatoid Arthritis program for children.  She also worked as a counselor for the Outdoor Education program at the Seward Middle School. Her service hours are above 150 plus hours.

She plans to attend either Kansas University or Colorado Denver University in the field of Nursing with a goal of hoping to become a traveling nurse practioner.

Alivia was recognized and thanked for her outstanding efforts and work to help others.  She was presented with a bag of mementos from the Rotary Club, a Rotary Banner and a Seward Rotary Book Scholarship.  She will be honored again in May at the annual SHS Honors Night and is a finalist for the Rotary Club Youth Rotarian of the Year Scholarship.  Applications for the Seward Youth Rotarian award are available in the SHS Counselor’s office.

https://sites.google.com/sewardschools.org/sps-covid-19-data-dashboard/home

Below you will find more information about ESSER III funds provided to school districts across the nation. The list below is the allowable expenditure categories. The categories highlighted below are the areas that Seward Public Schools intend on using the funds allotted.  Seward Public Schools has been allocated $860,890 and has until fall of 2024 to expend these funds.  The goal of these funds is to help support students without having recurring costs to the district after the ESSER III funds are gone. If you have any suggestions regarding the use of these funds, please contact Dr. Josh Fields, Superintendent, at Josh.Fields@sewardschools.org

ESSER, passed as Section 18003 of the CARES Act in March 2020; ESSER II, passed as Section 313 of the CRRSA Act in December 2020; and ARP ESSER (ESSER III), included in Section 2001 of the American Rescue Plan Act, H.R. 1319, provides billions in funding for state and local educational agencies to spend on allowable activities to respond to COVID-19. ESSER is its own, separate, flexible program intended to assist with the COVID-19 response. ESSER I, II, & III funds must be tracked separately.

The ESSER III funding has the same allowable activities as the ESSER I and ESSER II funds; however an LEA must reserve not less than 20 percent of its total ARP ESSER allocation to address learning loss through the implementation of evidence-based interventions, such as summer learning or summer enrichment, extended day, comprehensive afterschool programs, or an extended school year programs, and ensure that such interventions respond to students’ academic, social, and emotional needs and address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underrepresented student subgroups.

LEAs may use their ARP ESSER funding on the following allowable activities under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act:

1. Administration – 10% administrative cap, includes indirect cost rate charged against direct costs. Reference.

2. Any activity authorized by the ESEA of 1965, IDEA, AEFLA, and Perkins. Note: McKinney-Vento was not included as an allowable use under ESSER III ARP Act.

3. Coordination of preparedness and response efforts.

4. Providing principals and other school leaders with resources necessary to address the needs of their individual schools. Note: Not included in ESSER III/ARP Act.

5. Activities to address the unique needs of low-income students, children with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities.

6. Developing and implementing procedures and systems to improve the preparedness and response efforts of LEAs.

7. Training and professional development for LEA staff on sanitation and minimizing the spread of infectious diseases.

8. Purchasing supplies to sanitize and clean the facilities of a LEA, including buildings operated by such agencies.

9. Planning, coordinating, and implementing activities during long-term closures.

10. Purchasing educational technology (including hardware, software, and connectivity) for students who are served by the LEA that aids in regular and substantive educational interaction between students and their classroom instructors, including low-income students and children with disabilities, which may include assistive technology or adaptive equipment.

11.  Providing mental health services and supports.

12. Planning and implementing activities related to summer learning and supplemental after-school programs.

13. New ESSER II Addressing learning loss among students, including low-income students, children with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities, students experiencing homelessness, and children and youth in foster care, of the local educational agency, including: 1. Administering and using high-quality assessments that are valid and reliable, to accurately assess academic progress and assist educators in meeting students’ academic needs, including differentiating instruction.

    1. Implementing evidence-based activities to meet the comprehensive needs of students.

    2. Providing information and assistance to parents and families on how they can effectively support students, including in a distance learning environment.

    3. Tracking student attendance and improving student engagement in distance education.

14. New ESSER II School facility repairs and improvements to enable operation of schools to reduce the risk of virus transmission and exposure to environmental health hazards, and to support student health needs.

15. New ESSER II Inspection, testing, maintenance, repair, replacement, and upgrade projects to improve the indoor air quality in school facilities.

16. New ESSER III Development of strategies and implementation of public health protocols that align with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance on reopening and operating school facilities to maintain the health and safety of students, educators, and other staff. CDC Guidance can be found at: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Operational Strategy for K-12 Schools

17. Other activities that are necessary to maintain the operation and continuity of services in LEAs and continuing to employ existing staff of the LEA. Any entity that receives funds under the Education Stabilization Fund shall, to the greatest extent practicable, continue to pay its employees and contractors during the period of any disruptions or closures related to COVID-19.