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Seward High Sophomore, Krystyn Harris of Seward, was selected, through written application and by a live-in person interview to be the 2022 Hugh O Brian Youth (HOBY) Leader for Seward High.  The interviews were held Friday, September 10 at the Seward United Methodist Church-across the street from Seward High.  She will represent SHS at the spring HOBY Seminar-the first week-end in June, with the location to be announced.  She is the daughter of Kirtis and Kari Harris of Seward.  First Runner-up and alternate for the HOBY Award is Rachel Kuss who is the daughter of Cindy and Brian Kuss, also of Seward.

Other student finalists participating in the interview process upon the completion of their application were Julya Metschke, Hank Hughes, Nixon Seegebarth and Layla Sugden. 

Judges for the interviews were Rotarians Jon and Bonnie Kruse, who also represented the GFWC Seward Women’s Clubs, and Dr. Louis Reith, who represented the Seward Kiwanis.  Clark Kolterman and Greg Zabka served as the hosts for the interviews and Noelle Baker coordinated the applications at the SHS Counseling office.

The annual Hugh O’ Brian (HOBY) Leadership seminar brings over 10,000 high school sophomores from across the country to participate in one of HOBY’s 70+ State and Virtual Leadership Seminars to develop their leadership skills and learn how to apply them to become effective, ethical leaders in their home, school, workplace and community.  The program is endorsed by The General Federation of Women’s Clubs, Inc (GFWC), Rotary International, Optimist International, and Kiwanis Clubs.  The program was first organized and founded by actor Hugh O’ Brian and is a worldwide youth leadership effort today.  

The HOBY mission is to inspire and prepare future leaders for a life dedicated to leadership, service and innovation.  HOBY empowers young people to dream big, make an impact and change the world.  The leadership program is designed to educate, motivate and activate students, giving them the tools they need to turn their ideas into action and reach their goals.  Each program adheres to the five core HOBY values-Volunteerism, Integrity, Excellence, Diversity and Community Partnership.

Locally the HOBY student is sponsored by the School District of Seward High Ability Learner Program (HAL), the Seward Rotary Club, GFWC Seward Woman’s Club, GFWC Seward Junior Women’s Club, Seward Kiwanis Club and Seward Optimist Club.

PHOTO: LR Rachel Kuss-HOBY First Runner Up and Krystyn Harris-SHS HOBY Representative for 2022.

It is the sixth time in a row that Seward High captured the Nebraska State Fair Education Division Competition High School Sweepstakes trophy, based on number of entries in the fair’s education competitions-both static and live contests and placement of the students-the number of wins in that division.  Accepting the Sweepstakes trophy were the SHS Coaches/Sponsors for the school’s State Fair competitions-SHS teachers Melissa Pohl-Language Arts and Nathan Knott-Art and Jeanna Snyder-SHS Senior, who placed first of 68 entries in the State Fair Short Story Contest. Shelby- Rising City High School placed second and Lincoln Public Schools placed third in the Education Division’s annual State Fair Education Division Competition. The 2021 Sweepstake trophy has been placed on display at Seward High.  

The SHS students competed in a variety of contests-both” live”-in person contests such as Quiz Bowl, testing in Science, Math, Nebraska History, Spelling, and Grammar, along with Impromptu Speaking, Improvisation Drama Teams, Poetry Presentations and Speech.  The static contests included art, visual-wall art and three dimensional, photography, Community Service-both individual and group, along with writing contests such as short story contests, cursive penmanship, poetry, and essay writing. 

Four items from Seward High were selected to be on display at the State Capitol during the Statehood Day Festivities in March 1, 2022, featuring the First Place winning photo by SHS Olivia Volzke, the First Place winning art-watercolor by Kaitlyn Porter, the Individual Community Service Project by Julya Metschke and the winning Team Community Service Project by Hannah Kolterman-Wagner and Miriam Voehl. 

Each high school student that entered the competition was awarded a free tee shirt and a free ticket to the State Fair.  First place winners were awarded $100 scholarships upon High School graduation, a plaque and First Place Rosette.  

A complete list of all the results will follow at the conclusion of the State Fair upon the posting of the winners, naming the award winners.  

Photo: LR Holding a sample of the State Fair Education Division Student Tee Shirt  is SHS Senior Jeanna Snyder-First Place winner in the Short Story Competition of the Nebraska State Fair.   SHS Art Teacher/Sponsor Nate Knott and Co-Sponsor Melissa Pohl accept the Nebraska State Fair Sweepstake Trophy from the State Fair Education Division for 2021. 

Congrats to Meiissa Pohl –SHS Language Arts Educator, who was selected the 2021 Nebraska State Fair Education Division’s State Fair Teacher of Excellence 2021.  She was recognized for her outstanding student’s static entries, her devoted two day sponsorship of the students at the State Fair, her serving as a reader for the State Fair Education Quiz Bowl and her work with the SHS Students and their “live” competitions.  She was awarded a special “Apple Trophy” thanking her for the efforts to make the 2021 State Fair experience memorable for her students.  

The new International Student at Seward High, Alma Fredriksson, of Molndal, Sweden-a small community located near Gothenburg, Sweden, was introduced and welcomed at the recent Seward Rotary Club Meeting on Wednesday, September 01, 2021 at their luncheon meeting at the Jones Bank Auditorium.  

Alma is the daughter of Claes and Linda Fredriksson in Sweden and her host family are Rotarians Brady and Jill Johnson of Seward.   She is 17 years old and arrived in time to kick-off the school year.

Alma is a member of the SHS Women’s Golf team and enrolled as a full time student at Seward High.

She was introduced to the membership and presented with several welcome to Seward mementos/gifts, an American Flag, the Rotary Club banner and a packet of printed material on Seward and Rotary.

She promised to return in May and report on her experience as an International student at SHS.  She is the only international student enrolled at Seward High this year.

Photo: L-R Welcoming SHS International Student Alma Fredriksoon of Sweden to Seward is Rotary Club President Elect-Zane Francescato, Alma Fredriksson, and Seward Rotarians Dr. Jill Johnson, Brady Johnson.

Seward High sent four Quiz Bowl teams to the 2021 Nebraska State Fair Quiz Bowl contests on August 28 and 29 at the Bosselman Conference Center-competing against other schools from across Nebraska in the first General Knowledge Quiz Bowl Contest for the new school year. The SHS High School Freshman team placed First Over-all in their contest on August 28^th.  

Members of the SHS Freshman Quiz Bowl team were Dalton Mobley, Ben Nottingham and Abigayil Wunderlich.  They received a $100 scholarship each, plaque, rosette and tee shirt.

SHS had three teams in the High School Division and they place Second Place and Third Place in their Division.  Placing second was the SHS Team of Madison Kramer, Elianah Wunderlich, Sjoen Munk and Evett Howe. They each won a $50 scholarship and a plaque and tee shirts.  Lincoln East High School won the overall Championship. 

Placing third at the tourney was the SHS team of Jacob Mueller, Noah Fields, Maddie Viger, Sam Schroeder.  They each won $25 and free tee shirts. 

The other SHS Quiz Bowl team competing was Natalie Axt, Krystyn Harris, Julya Metschke and Taylor Hostert.  The SHS Quiz Bowl Coach is SHS Educator Melissa Pohl-English/History, who was the sponsor both days.  Melissa Pohl of Utica and Dr. Louis Reith of Seward served as volunteer readers at the Quiz Bowl contests.  

The contest was a General Knowledge Quiz Bowl –with questions centering around Math, Science, History, Music, Language Arts and other areas as well. The contest was sponsored by the Nebraska State Fair and the NEBRASKAland Foundation, with all contestants also given a free pass to the State Fair.  

Photo L-R Madison Kramer, Elianah Wunderslich, Sjoen Munk and Evett Howe-named First Runner-up at the HS State Fair Quiz Bowl.

Students from Seward High competed in the recent Education Division competitions at the 2021 Nebraska State Fair on Saturday and Sunday - August 28 and August 29, 2021, in the Bosselman Conference Center and Fonner Park Pavilion on the State Fair Grounds. 

SHS HAS MANY “FIRST PLACE” HONORS

In the high school division receiving first place in art were Kalen Knott in pen and ink and Kaitlyn Porter in watercolor; first place in 3-D art was Jaxson Bierman; first place in photography was Olivia Volzke; first place in short stories was Jeanna Snyder; first place in freshman quiz bowl were SHS freshmen Dalton Mobley, Benjamin Nottingham and Abigayil Wunderlich; first place in improv were Natalie Axt, Elianah Wunderlich, and Julya Metschke; first place in impromptu speaking was Julya Metschke; first place in the team division for community service project were Hannah Kolterman-Wagner and Miriam Voehl for their “Environmental Awareness” FCCLA STAR Project, and first place in individual community service was Julya Metschke for her “Helping the Homeless” FCCLA Star Project.

Julya Metschke was also presented the annual Brad Fossberg award and trophy for her outstanding verbal stage presentation at the Nebraska State Fair.  The award honors the late Brad Fossberg, who served as a key judge for the stage presentations for the education division of the Nebraska State Fair for years.  

SHS educators Melissa Pohl and Nathan Knott prepared the entries for the competitions.  Melissa Pohl was the volunteer faculty sponsor for both August 28 and 29 and served as a quiz bowl reader, along with community volunteer Dr. Louis Reith of Seward.

The entries and winning presentations are on display at the Nebraska State Fair through Labor Day and are located at the Grandstand at Fonner Park building on the State Fairgrounds.  

Each student who entered the competition was awarded a free tee-shirt and a free ticket to the State Fair.  First-place winners were awarded $100 scholarships upon high school graduation, a plaque and a first-place rosette.  

A complete list naming other award winners will follow at the conclusion of the Nebraska State Fair.

Photo one: Julya Metschke-Winner of the Brad Fossberg Award at the NE State Fair Education Division.

Photo two: First place winners in freshman QB contest - SHS freshman quiz bowl team: Dalton Mobley, Benjamin Nottingham and Abigayil Wunderlich.

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.