Meeting date 2/8/18
23 member + guest (Eric Stueckrath
Led in prayer & Pledge by Rolly Kleeman
Treasurers report: $2,148.09
Announcements: Lunch Bunch will meet on February 14th at Shevy’s. Bring your Valentine home some leftovers – if you dare!
Other announcements/discussion: President Mike distributed a survey to gauge the collective thoughts on the club’s breakfast dilemma. If you were not in attendance or did not get a chance to fill out the survey yet, Neil has also forwarded a copy via email on 2/8/18. Thanks to all for participating in the survey and we hope for no Russian collusion as the results are analyzed.
The Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) is a weekend long camp held a Camp Kitaki for high school sophomores and juniors. There is an interest within the club in providing an opportunity to local students to participate. Judy Ackland, Bary Habrock, Ron Mortenson and Jim Tomanek have stepped up to work on the processes for identifying interest within the three local high schools. Individual donations to support this effort are also accepted. Please let Ron know if you would like more information.
Next week’s speaker will be Elkhorn native Dr. Michael Feilmeier.
The speaker was Dr. Bary Habrock, Superintendent of Elkhorn Public Schools. He
was eloquently introduced my some guy that was walking by, who closely resembled Dr. Roger Breed.
Dr. Habrock’s purpose was to help explain the District’s proposed $149 bond issue that will be on presented for citizen vote on March 13th.
The project list includes a third high school to be constructed at 180th Street and West Maple Road and could open as soon as August 2020. The estimated cost to build is $78.5 million. The high school would help balance enrollment at Elkhorn and Elkhorn South High Schools.
Bond funding would be used for the construction of the district’s twelfth elementary school at a cost of $19 million, and the fifth middle school at a cost of $32.3 million.
Other projects to be funded by bond dollars include:
» Expanding the stadium at Elkhorn High, which is used by both high schools and also would be shared by the proposed third high school, at an estimated cost of $2.4 million.
» Adding an early childhood center at Blue Sage Elementary, at an estimated cost of $2.5 million.
» Replacing and repairing HVAC/mechanical systems at Elkhorn High, Elkhorn Middle, Westridge and Hillrise Elementary Schools and the district headquarters, at a cost of $2.6 million.
» Buying land for two additional middle schools and three future elementary schools, at an estimated cost of $6.8 million.
The district has grown to serve over 9,000 students and has welcomed 600-700 new students each year consistently for the past several years. Based upon the new housing starts and extreme popularity and success of the school, these numbers are not expected to curtail. EPS will become the fifth largest district, surpassing Grand Island, within the next few months.
Dr. Habrock finished by sharing several recent accomplishments of the EPS including, but not limited to:
Best Public Education District in Nebraska
Elkhorn Public Schools was recently named the “Best Public Education District in Nebraska” by Business Insider. The list was determined based on the following factors: the strength of academics, health and safety, diversity, and the quality of teachers, with EPS earning A+ rankings in three of the four categories.
2018 Best School Districts in America
Of over 9,500 eligible districts, Elkhorn Public Schools was recently ranked number 311 and one of only two districts in Nebraska named to the “2018 Best School Districts in America” list, compiled by the National Council for Home Safety and Security. Districts on the list were reviewed and ranked based on several factors, including school funding, poverty rate, dropout rate, and student performance.
100th Percentile for Learning Growth
The New York Times recently reported results from a Stanford University study that looked at the amount of learning growth that is achieved by districts across the nation. Elkhorn Public Schools was scored at the 100th percentile, which is the top possible rating in the study. The review indicated that EPS students achieved 6.4 years of growth during 5 years of school.
Secretary’s personal note: Thanks to Dr. Habrock and to the great faculty and staff of Elkhorn Public Schools for their hard work and dedication to the students. Thanks too for adding tremendous value, quality and pride, for all who live in the school district.
