Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing two or more days of school per month. And it has doubled in South Dakota since 2019. In July, SFSD was awarded a grant from the SD Department of Education to help combat chronic absenteeism. Through this grant we have hired six Attendance Liaisons who will develop relationships with students and work to identify/eliminate barriers preventing school attendance. The first step towards a student's success is simply showing up!
The theme for the 2023-24 school year is...Cultivate!
We maximize growth by planting the seeds for success. Being in South Dakota, this is an especially relevant concept. SFSD is committed to fostering nurturing environments of growth from early childhood up through graduation. Fresh ideas, innovation, and creativity are just a few tools we use to prepare each student for success in a changing world.
It's time for the first SFSD All Star of the 2023-24 school year! Xavier Tatum!
Xavier has gone above and beyond the call of duty as an O.S Mechanic. He worked with Ben Schumacher recently to create some much-needed, overdue, and very helpful training videos. When asked, Xavier never hesitated to put himself in a unknown and never-done-before situation. These videos have been a great reminder and a helpful tool for all the custodial staff. Much of our equipment is used seasonally and these videos are a great refresher for staff who use this equipment. Xavier is always on-time and has a great attitude about getting any task asked of him done... even if it is not a pleasant one! Congratulations Xavier - you are an All Star!
The SFSD leadership team is just as happy today as they were as Kindergarten students! This group has been "in school" a total of 150 years! Show us your "First Day" photos! #SFSDFirstDay
It's the first day of school 2023-2024! Lincoln High School was buzzing this morning!
School attendance is crucial. Providing free busing helps ensure students get to school daily. Information about bus routes, the free Stop Finder app, rules & expectations on the bus, maps & more info here: https://www.sf.k12.sd.us/page/busing-boundary-information
Thursday is the BIG day! The first day of school is an adjustment for everybody, & we want to make mornings less painful for everyone. New posters like this will be in your schools to help with the sometimes painful drop-off process. More info here: https://youtu.be/4dC9rGyNkcY
Today, we say a big THANK YOU to our community partners at Architecture Incorporated! Along with Sayre Associates, Structural Engineering Associates, and Associated Consulting Engineering Incorporated, their generosity has allowed us to start off the school year with new shirts for all staff! Our friends at Architecture Incorporated even helped us hand out shirts! (On what might be the hottest day of the year!?!) Longstanding community partnerships like these (going on 17 years now) are a cornerstone to the success of our students and staff alike.
Hawthorne Elementary 3rd Grade Teacher Lizzie Hansen took her teaching skills around the world this summer, spending nearly 3 weeks in Kenyan classrooms helping teach English and reading. What she brought back might be just as important. https://youtu.be/zXw_n8Hsl88
SFSD supports its teachers! Special education teachers were invited to participate in a make-and-take where they could choose supplemental materials and lesson ideas to make learning engaging and fun. The District’s Instructional Coaches developed the ideas to share with new and veteran teachers. Teamwork makes the dream work!
It's an earlier, abbreviated version of this annual event due to record heat, but the Roosevelt Marching Band Clinic is still happening this morning featuring Lincoln, Lennox and Roosevelt High Schools!
All of our teachers started this morning at the Sanford Pentagon with Tim Kanold's keynote, "Living a High-Energy Well-Balanced Professional Life!" So great to see so many new and familiar faces ready for a great 2023-2024!
The first day of school is six days away (Thursday, August 24th)! A variety of open houses will be happening in the coming days, so please check with your student's school to find info on important dates. See you soon!
Our marching bands work hard all summer, preparing for a strenuous & demanding performance & competition season. Saturday, all four high school marching bands will join other area schools to participate in a clinic hosted by RHS to continue to improve their 2023 shows. Here's a brief look at the weeks of work already in the books. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxCH78IjHgk&feature=youtu.be
Some of the summer construction wrapping up in time for the start of a new school year included brand new turf fields at Roosevelt and Washington High Schools! Soccer and football teams are already enjoying them, and so are marching bands!
Today we welcomed new teachers to the District! In addition to a day of professional training, 80 first-time first-year teachers received a First Time Teacher Grant from the Education Foundation to purchase material for their classrooms. Welcome to SFSD!
School starts Thursday, August 24! Superintendent Dr. Jane Stavem outlines new initiatives, the power of partnerships, and how parents will be invited to play a bigger role than ever in the education of our city's children. https://youtu.be/catx-WOvIPM
📢New podcast episode! Now streaming!📢
The SF School District works year-round to provide students with excellent learning opportunities. SFSD has many camp options to keep students active and engaged throughout the summer. Tune in to hear about camp from the perspective of 7th grader Ahlyvia, who has taken part in many camps over several summers. Click on the link below.
https://bit.ly/3qs3EZP
Today is the first of many substitute orientation trainings. Substitute teachers play a vital role in the education system, and SFSD relies on hundreds of subs each year to provide stability to the classroom when teachers need to be away. Thank you for everything you do!
SFSD congratulates its valued partner Steve Hildebrand of Promising Futures! Steve recently received the Community Service Award from the Associated School Boards of SD for his work to remove economic barriers so all students can see their bright futures ahead. Thank you, Steve!
