FEBRUARY 2017 Pleasanton Public School

THE BULLDOGMcKeon Encourages Reading with Christmas Activity December was very busy for librarian, Traci McKeon. Aside from decorating the library for the holidays and locating all the holiday books to put out on display, she undertook a fun project that involved wrapping over 250 library books in Christmas wrapping paper. “First I need to thank all the students and teachers who helped with the wrapping because without all of them this awesome project never would have happened,” she said. Members of the Circle of Friends group and several 7th, 8th and 9th grade students helped wrap over 250 books. Which leaves the question, why did she want to wrap over 250 library books? Everyone knows that kids love unwrapping presents. There is always a certain amount of excitement that comes with peeling back the paper to reveal whatever is hidden inside. One of Mrs. McKeon’s goals as the librarian is to get students excited about books and reading. So this project was a perfect opportunity to do so. But, Mrs. McKeon and her helpers didn’t wrap just any any books. The books they wrapped were among some of the best of best books found in our library. Beginning in early December Mrs. McKeon sent out a message asking each member of the staff to come past the library and pick out a minimum of one book for the project. The only criteria were: it had to be a book that they loved. A book that they remember reading as a child or one of their favorites to read to their own children or grandchildren. That is how McKeon knows the wrapped books were some of the best our library had to offer. Once the books were chosen McKeon and her helpers began to wrap them up. Wrapping was a tricky process because the wrappers had to make sure they had the book with the name of the staff member who picked it out and the correct barcode for each book attached to the outside of the package. When the books were wrapped there was no way to tell which book was which! The title and author of the book were hidden under the paper and remained a mystery until after the book was checked out. Once wrapped, Mrs. McKeon kept the books sorted into age/grade appropriate piles behind the counter so the proper books could be placed under the tree as each class came for check out. McKeon pulled leftover books and replenished the supply under the tree several times to make sure the selections were just right for each class.

Continued on next page

Encouraging Reading

Continued McKeon explained her wrapped book project to the students when they came to the library for their last check out before break.

Students choosing to check out a wrapped book had to agree to two things:

• #1 Accept the book with an open mind and then actually read it

“When a student first unwraps their book, it might be a book they never would have chosen for themselves. So the first lesson is one of gratitude…and keeping an open mind,” McKeon explained. This lead to the requirement to read the book — or at least the first two Chapters (or approximately 20-30 pages). This meant students were required to give the book a chance even if they did not at first think they would like it.

• #2 Talk to the person who chose the book

This part of the project was about creating relationships. After break, the students were asked to strike up a conversation about the book they checked out with the person who chose it. This gives them an opportunity to thank the person or to find out more about why they chose the book and what they liked about it. At the end of the last day before break approximately 20 wrapped books remained under the tree. Mrs. McKeon was happy that nearly 100% of the elementary students chose a wrapped book and an average of approximately 80% of middle and high school students chose to try a wrapped book. Now that break is over, several of the books have come back. Not every wrapped book is a success story but several students did check out a book that they would not have picked for themselves and have discovered they enjoyed reading it. Mrs. McKeon hopes to make this an annual event to encourage the staff to keep reading and to continue to promote reading and books for our students.

Parents Encouraging Parents (PEP) PEP is a statewide conference sponsored by the Nebraska Dept. of Special Education. This conference is for parents of special needs children with an active IFSP or IEP. The purpose of PEP is to bring parents together to share ideas, feelings and common concerns, and gain information on parenting and educating a child with a disability. This year the conference is March 16-18, 2017 at the Younes Conference Center in Kearney, NE. Registration is on a first come, first serve basis. There is NO registration fee. Two nights lodging (Thursday and Friday) and most meals are provided. Please register by February 20, 2017. To register, complete the registration form available online at www.education.ne.gov/sped/index.html or call 402-471-2471. If you have questions, contact Denise Giffin or Becky Eckhout at the school.

Speech Team Warming Up Pleasanton’s speech team competed at their first meet January 21. Although no one broke finals, novice, Saige Kiem, was awarded a 10th place medal for novice extemporaneous (or extemp) speaking. Extemp is an event where students are given one hour to write a speech over a topic they draw from a judge. It’s one of the most difficult events in speech and we are proud coaches! It was a great first meet and students received some good feedback. The speech team also competed at the Ord meet January 28. Cadee Nichols and Saige Kiem’s placed 2nd in novice duet, Conner hand placed 5th in novice entertainment, Cadee Nichols and Saige Kiem placed 1st in improv duet, Conner Hand and Grady Chandler placed 3rd in improv duet, and Samantha Phillips tied for 9th in varsity informative.

Speech Meets

1/21 Broken Bow1/28 Ord2/4 Gothenburg2/11 Burwell2/18 Loup City2/25 Centura3/4 Doniphan-Trumbull

Above, the speech team poses with driver Travis Martenson at the Broken Bow speech meet.

Every Saturday in February, the speech team will compete at a different meet. Students in speech include seniors Kendi Miigerl and Adriana Trent; junior Harley Scheuffele; sophomores Maleka Marshall, Koby Quintana, Samantha Phillips; and freshmen Cadee Nichols, Saige Kiem, Sarah Lucht, Marissa Bunger, Grady Chandler, and Conner Hand.

Storyteller Visits Pleasanton

On Wednesday, January 18 storyteller Andy Offutt Irwin visited Pleasanton. He spoke to the elementary and high school students separately and ended his performance with a funny, little song about petroleum jelly. His performance might have seemed for audiences younger than 7th-12th graders, but that’s because he thought it was for kids ages 7-12 years old! He has performed at many story telling festivals nationally as well as internationally. According to his biography website: “October of 2015 marked Andy’s sixth year as a Featured Teller at the National Storytelling Festival. He has appeared ten times as Teller in Residence at International Storytelling Center. Among other gigs, Andy has been a Guest Artist at La Guardia High School of Art, Music, and Performing Arts in New York (The “FAME!” School); he has been a Keynote Speaker/Performer at the Library of Congress-Virburnum Foundation Conference on Family Literacy; a Guest Writer Performer with the Georgia Tech Glee Club; and a guest composer with the Amherst College Men’s Double Quartet.”

Above, storyteller Andy Offutt Irwin sings a song as closing for the high school

Good Luck to the Girls and Boys Basketball Teams!

Both Pleasanton boys and girls basketball teams advance in the Fort Kearny Conference basketball tournament.

If girls win the game vs. Elwood at Elm Creek, they will advance and play Thursday, February 2 at the Viaero Event Center at 6 p.m. If they win that game they will play Saturday, February 4 at the Viaero Event Center at 6 p.m. If they lose the game vs. Elwood they will play a consolation game at Viaero Event Center at 2 p.m. If boys win the game against Amherst Tuesday, January 31 they will play a game Friday, February 3 at the Viaero Event Center. If they win Friday’s game, they will play Saturday, February 4 at the Viaero Event Center at 8 p.m. If they lose Friday’s game they will play a consolation game at the Viaero Event Center at 4 p.m. Good luck to the boys and girls basketball teams!

Heard in the Halls“I remember everything. Ask me something about Austria's new president!" -Saige Kiem

“We’re gonna do a human pyramid!” -Mrs. Smith

“Can I go talk to the wall?” -Conner Hand

Around the Flag Pole with Troop 688 By the Cadette Girl Scout Troop

We are the Cadette Girl Scout troop and we earning our Silver Award. We plan to do this by raising flag awareness in our community. To do this, we will be purchasing flags to be hung downtown during certain times of the year, we have already made flag etiquette posters that have been hung up

at the concessions stands, we have applied for and received a grant from the Pleasanton community fund, and we will continue to post flag facts in the Bulldog.

Look for us, “Around the Flag Pole”.

Here are three facts about the flag

1. The colors of the flag have important meanings: red symbolizes hardiness and valor; white symbolizes purity and innocence; and blue represents vigilance, perseverance and justice.

2. On August 3,1889, President Truman signed an act if congress that would designate June 18 of each year as National Flag day.

3. On May 30, 1916 President Woodrow Wilson issued a Presidential proclamation establishing Flag Day as the anniversary of the flag resolution.

Thank You!

Cadette Troop 00688

Sarah Loeffelholz Dalyn Rodriquez Taryn Flood Payden Tracy Jenna Neben Hailey Mollring

To submit your own quotes for“Heard in the Halls,”

email us at newsletter@pleasantonbulldogs.org.

Be sure to include what was said and who said it.

Several Pleasanton students shot deer this hunting season, others trapped animals.

Thanks to all who sent in pictures!

OH DEER. (And other creatures)

Senior Spotlight

Kayla Stubbs

What activities are you involved in?Volleyball, basketball, and track.

What is your dream job?To be a dental assistant.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?Graduated from college, and having a good job.

Where do you plan to attend college? I plan to attend college at CCC in Hastings, Nebraska.

Who is someone you admire and why?My sister, because she is smart and gives the best advice.

Favorite high school memory? My favorite high school memory is our bus rides to away games, there is never a dull moment. No matter what there is so much laughter, and also you make great memories being together. I will never forget them.

Favorite quote?I may not be there yet, but I’m closer than I was yesterday.

Advice for underclassmen?Do what is right, not what is easy.

Favorite teacher?Mr. Bednar, because he is always there for you. Whatever the problem is, he is always there to help you out the best that he can. Mr. Bednar is a great teacher and he has taught me so much in life

STUDENT OF THE MONTH

Mallory is an exceptional student and a great

friend! Mallory goes above and beyond to help

others and she always does it with a smile. She is

incredibly thoughtful and generous to those

around her. Way to go, Mallory! Keep up the good

work! -Mrs. Albers

Kenzie is a very thoughtful student. She is always

helping her classmates with their questions or

cleaning up their desk. She is always willing to

assist with cleaning up after snack or asking a

new student to play with her. Kenzie has a smile

on her face everyday and is a hard worker. I really

enjoy having her in my classroom. -Mrs. Belvins

Kobe got 100% on every science test during 2nd

quarter. He works very hard in the classroom.

Kobe always uses his class time wisely and

studies often. -Mr. Brummer

Emma is a very responsible and caring student.

Emma does a great job as Student Council

president getting our student body involved in

activities and running our meetings. She always

has a positive look on life and cares for others. -

Mrs. Smith

Preschoolers (Ages 3-5)37. Parent(s) has personal power and

models coping skills. 38. Parent(s) model high self-esteem.39. Parent(s) has a sense of purpose and

models these beliefs. 40. Parent(s) has a positive view of the

future.

Elementary-Age Children (Ages 6 to 11)37. Child feels he or she has some control

over things that happen. 38. Child has a high self-esteem. 39. Child has a sense of purpose. 40. Child is optimistic about her or his own

future.

Teenagers (Ages 12-18)37. Teenager has a healthy sense of personal

power. 38. Teenager has a high self-esteem. 39. Teenager believes her or his life has a

sense of purpose. 40. Teenager has a positive view of her or

his future.

A positive identity forms the foundation that helps young people feel secure in who they are. You nurture a positive identity when you: • Love and support them unconditionally; • Live a life filled with purpose, meaning, and

optimism and; • Help them find meaning and purpose for

their own lives.

The 40 Assets All Kids Need to Succeed1. Support--March 2. Empowerment--April 3. Boundaries and Expectations--May4. Constructive Use of Time--September 5. Commitment to Learning--October6. Positive Values--November7. Social Competencies--December/January8. Positive Identity--February

ASSETS #: 37-40 POSITIVE IDENTITY

How can you establish a positive identity?

This information is brought to you by the Pleasanton PEP (Parent Engagement Planning Committee). The 40 Assets That

Kids Need to Succeed are adapted from Starting Out Right: Developmental Assets for Children Copyright 1997 by Search

Institute. For more information about asset building, check out Search Institue at www.search-institute.org and stayed tuned

each month for the next installment of Assets.

Thoughts on Positive Identity

“It’s important to establish a positive identity in High School because it will affect you the rest of your life going

into college and even afterwards.”-Kendi Miigerl, ’17

“It’s important to have people model positive behaviors because some kids don’t get that at home.”

- Harley Scheuffele, ’18

Pleasanton Public Schools Annual Report

For the 2015-2016 School Year

Prepared by Superintendent Jeff Vetter The information contained in this report is provided in accordance with Nebraska Department of Education Rule 10 requirements for the 2015-16 school year. The historical data presented will hopefully provide insights about Pleasanton Public Schools. It includes financial, staff, and student information as well as state and local assessment data. It is no secret in Nebraska that property taxes are the primary source of revenue for public schools. Despite the intent of the current state aid formula (adopted in 1990, with 16 changes to the formula since then) to reduce the reliance on local property taxes, Nebraska still ranks 49th out of 50 states in the proportion of school funding that comes from state sources other than local property taxes. As valuations, and thus local property taxes have risen, state aid has diminished proportionately. Pleasanton Public Schools received $1,284.00 in state aid for the 2015-2016 school year. Below are the valuation changes for the designated types of property from 2015 to 2016 as reported by the Nebraska Department of Revenue, Property Assessment Division. Buffalo County is the top set of numbers, Sherman County is the bottom set of numbers.

Residential & Commercial & Total Total Real Recreation Industrial Agricultural Property % change % change Land % change % change ___________________________________________________________________________________________ +15.64% +9.66% +10.98% +12.43% +12.42% +4.54% +4.69% +5.79%

Total receipts during 2015-2016 were $2,945,355, of that $2,307,635 (78.3%) were directly from property taxes, the majority (98%) of which came from Buffalo County.

District Valuations The Pleasanton Public School district’s assessed valuation has steadily increased since the 2005-2006 school year. The chart below shows the total district valuation year to year for the past eleven years. The total dollar difference depicted is a change in valuation of $254,073,703. For reference, contrast the eleven year change in valuation prior to that from1994-1995 to 2004-2005, and you’ll find an increase of about $30,339,226, or less than half the rate of increase experienced in the most recent eleven year period.

State Certified Budget Authority As you know, the school levies taxes to generate the money from the district’s property valuation totals to provide the necessary financial support to operate Pleasanton Public Schools. The State of Nebraska actually certifies the maximum budget authority of all public schools each year. For the 2015-2016 school year Pleasanton’s state certified budget authority was $3,407,438. The total local budget request for 2015-2016 was $3,181,212, about a quarter million dollars less than what the state authorized.

Tax Levy Rates

Below is a chart that shows the total levy rate over the past eleven years, rounded to two places. Levy rates are based on $100 of property valuation. So if the levy rate is $.80, that means that for every $100 of value, you are taxed 80 cents to support the school. These figures appear on your annual property tax statement. Although not depicted, the bond levy which covers the cost of the recent construction, was at $.177, or about 18 cents/$100 of value at the end of 2016, while the regular or General levy (used for operations) was about 71 cents/$100 of value, for a total levy of 89 cents/$100 of value.

General Fund Tax Request from 2005-2006 to 2015-2016

Year General Fund Year General Fund

2005-2006 $1,107,610 2011-2012 $1,688182

2006-2007 $1,267,550 2012-2013 $1,823,083

2007-2008 $1,442,078 2013-2014 $2,118,901

2008-2009 $1,563,379 2014-2015 $2,117,449

2009-2010 $1,564,692 2015-2016 $2,547,879

2010-2011 $1,658,548

Teacher Information

2015-2016 Pleasanton Teacher Information Average Years of Experience at Pleasanton - 14.7 Years Number of Staff w/Bachelor’s Degree - 6 Teachers Number of Staff w/Bachelor’s + Graduate Hours - 8 Teachers Number of Staff w/Master’s Degree - 6 Teachers Number of Staff w/Master’s + Graduate Hours - 3 Teachers Total Number of Teachers 23

Enrollment Numbers

Grade 2008 2009 2010 2011

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

PK 22 16 14 31 33 34 25 20 17

K 14 23 15 12 28 22 21 21 19

1st 16 16 23 19 13 24 19 23 21

2nd 12 16 16 21 19 14 24 20 17

3rd 16 13 17 16 20 19 12 22 19

4th 15 16 14 16 18 20 18 12 23

5th 16 16 16 17 18 18 19 18 12

6th 11 16 18 17 18 18 18 19 17

7th 12 12 18 16 18 19 19 19 21

8th 12 12 12 19 15 17 16 17 18

9th 8 13 12 9 21 15 17 20 18

10th 15 11 12 10 8 22 17 16 22

11th 15 15 10 12 8 9 18 16 16

12th 23 13 17 12 14 10 10 21 14

Total 207 208 214 227 251 261 253 264 254

NeSA SCORES

SPRING 2016 (NOT ALL GRADES/SUBJECTS ARE TESTED)

GRADE/CONTENT %NOT MET %MET %EXCEEDED

3RD READING 44 56 0

3RD MATH 22 78 0

4TH READING 13 57 30

4TH MATH 17 78 4

5TH READING 18 45 36

5TH MATH 9 73 18

5TH SCIENCE 9 91 0

6TH READING 18 41 41

6TH MATH 12 65 24

7TH READING 5 59 36

7TH MATH 9 64 27

8TH READING 5 50 45

8TH MATH 10 90 0

8TH SCIENCE 15 65 20

11TH READING 31 56 13

11TH MATH 13 44 44

11TH SCIENCE 6 81 13

SCHOOL AVERAGE 15 64 21

DIBELS

DIBELS (Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills) testing is used to assess the acquisition of literacy skills. They are one minute fluency measures used to regularly monitor the development of early literacy and reading skills. The seven measures used are indicators of phonemic awareness, alphabetic principle, accuracy and fluency with connected text, reading comprehension, and vocabulary. DIBELS testing is used to identify children experiencing difficulty in acquisition of basic early literacy skills in order to provide interventions to address identified reading deficiencies. The following chart shows the percentage of students at or above benchmark at the end of each grade level for 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 school years.

GRADE 2014-2015 2015-2016 KINDERGARTEN 81% 72%

1st Grade 86% 89%

2nd Grade 84% 100%

3rd Grade 77% 83%

4th Grade 83% 87%

5th Grade 83% 91%

6th Grade 100% 94%

Average 85% 88%

COMPOSITE ACT SCORES

2012-2016 (COMPOSITE SCORES COMBINE ENGLISH-MATH-READING-SCIENCE)

YEAR STATE PLEASANTON

2012 22.0 24.3

2013 21.5 20.7

2014 21.7 20.6

2015 21.5 20.5

2016 21.4 21.8

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in its program and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc) should contact

the USDA’s Target Center at 202-720-2600(Voice & TDD) To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, director, office of Civil Rights, Room 326w, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Ave, Washing-

ton, D.C. 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5064(Voice & TTD) USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1Bkft: Donut

Lunch: Goulash, let-

tuce, bread stick,

pineapple, & milk

2Bkft: Muffin

Lunch: Chicken sand-

wich, smiley fries,

green beans, oranges,

& milk

3Bkft: Sausage round

Lunch: Mini corn-

dogs, chips, baked

beans, mandarin or-

anges, & milk

4

5 6Bkft: French toast-

Lunch: Nachos, car-

rots, peaches, apple

crisp, and milk

7 Bkft: Hash browns

Lunch: Hot beef

sandwich, mashed

potatoes, green beans,

apples, & milk

8 Bkft: Scrambled egg

Lunch: Sloppy joes,

potato wedges, peas,

banana, & milk

9

No

10

School

11

12 13 Bkft: Bagel

Lunch: Fajita. Re-

fried beans, cucum-

bers, pears, & milk

14 Bkft: Egg patty

Lunch: Sub sand-

wich, potato salad,

peas-n-carrots, straw-

berry/banana, & milk

15 Bkft: Sausage

Lunch: Tater tot cas-

serole, w/ vegetables,

dinner roll, canned

apples, & milk

16 Bkft: Frnch tst stks

Lunch: Salisbury

steak, mashed pota-

toes, corn, diner roll,

oranges, & milk

17

No School

18

19 20 Bkft: Bacon pizza

Lunch: Hamburgers,

french fries, baked

beans, fresh pineap-

ple, & milk

21 Bkft: Omelet

Lunch: Teriyaki

chicken, fried rice, stir

-fry veggies, roll,

mixed fruit, & milk

22 Bkft: Donut

Lunch: Pizza, FrenchFries, Applesauce,Muffins & milk

23 Bkft: Ham

Lunch: Chicken spa-

ghetti bake, lettuce,

bread stick, grapes, &

milk

24 Bkft: Bkft burrito

Lunch: Stromboli,

green beans, peaches,

& milk

25

26 27 Bkft: Bkft skillet

Lunch: Tacos, deli

nuggets, corn, pears,

& milk

28 Bkft: Pancakes

Lunch: BBQ pork

sandwich, sweet pota-

to fries, broccoli, kiwi,

& milk

February 2017

Pleasanton Activity Calendar February 2017 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 FKC BB Tournament

9a-3p Community Blood Drive

2 Groundhog Day FKC BB Tournament

8:15a- Hoops for Heart Assembly

10a- FKC Wrestling @ Buffalo County Fairgrounds

3 FKC BB Tournament

4 FKC BB Tournament

Speech at Gothenburg

Youth WR Tournament

5 Super Bowl

6 6:30p-JH Basketball vs. Elm Creek

7 BOOKMOBILE

1p- UNK TE 100 Visit

7p- FBLA Chapter Meeting

8

9

NO SCHOOL Teacher In-Service

FKC Honors Instrumental at Axtell

1p-8p Parent-Teacher Conferences

8p- School Board Meeting

10

NO SCHOOL

District Wrestling TBA

4:30p- Basketball vs. Loomis 4:30/6/7:30

11 District Wrestling TBA

Speech at Burwell

6:30p-Boys Basketball @ Bertrand 6:30/8

12

13 Girls Basketball Subdistricts

8a-School Mall Kickoff program for Elem.

14 Valentine's Day Girls Basketball Subdistricts

15 Girls Basketball Subdistricts

12:30p- JH Basketball @ Wilcox-Hildreth (Wilcox)

16 Girls Basketball Subdistricts

State Wrestling

17 NO SCHOOL

State Wrestling

8a-Last day to turn in School Mall booklets

6p-Boys Basketball vs. Ansley-Litchfield 6/8

18 Speech at Loup City

State Wrestling

19

20 Presidents' Day Boys Basketball Subdistricts

21 BOOKMOBILE

Boys Basketball Subdistricts

22 Boys Basketball Subdistricts

FKC Speech at Amherst

12:30p- JH Basketball vs. Overton

23 Boys Basketball Subdistricts

24 Girls Basketball District Finals

25 Speech at Centura

9a- JHBB Tournament at Ansley/Litchfield

26

27

28 Boys Basketball District Finals