Ballard Dimensions
March/April 2021
From the Superintendent's Desk
At this point, the snow is melting and it feels like spring! What a welcome change from the cold snap we endured in February. Those late starts and cancellations are such a challenge for families and staff! Thank you to everyone for keeping your spirits up during that period. Speaking of the calendar changes, we are currently scheduled to end school Thursday, June 10th. As we do every year, the Board will evaluate our end date this spring and consider modifications. Keep in mind, two constraints the Board works with is ensuring the teachers fulfill their 190 contract days and students have a minimum of 1080 hours of instruction.
Vaccine clinics are underway at Ballard. All staff wishing to have a Phizer vaccine will complete their initial shot and booster by March 22nd. 201 employees will receive the vaccine, which is about 80% of staff. The vaccine is not mandatory.
Stadium renovations will resume in March, with a completion goal of August. This will end a 4-year period of planning and construction, including both elementary buildings, the middle school, and stadium. Projects were funded with PPEL, SAVE, and General Obligation (GO) bond funds totalling nearly $25 million dollars.
During this time, the Board has saved approximately $2.5 million in interest expense through a combination of refinancing and debt prepayment. The recent February refinancing saved $450,000. Prior to the resale of this issuance, the district received an Aa3 bond rating, the highest rating in Ballard’s history. Ballard’s facilities and financial position have arguably never been better. Add to that the strong academic performance of our students in all buildings, and one can conclude the state of the district is strong.
As always, thank you for your continued support, especially in a tough year like this one. Enjoy the March thaw, and GO BOMBERS!
Ottie
2021-2022 Registration Information
Registration is now open for all Preschool - 12th grade students
New Family to the District
You do not have any children currently enrolled at Ballard or any of our local preschool programs
Current Ballard Family
You already have a child enrolled at Ballard Schools (EK-12) or one of the local preschool programs
For all families who have had a child enrolled in Ballard Community Schools or one of our 4 year old preschool programs, please log into your Infinite Campus Parent Portal account and select Online Registration from the menu. You will be able to register any existing students and add any new students to your existing household.
3 year old preschool
Ballard West offers a 3-year-old preschool program. To be eligible for 3 year old preschool, a student’s birth date must fall between 9/16/17 – 9/15/18. Registration procedures are the same as the 4-year-old program. This program requires a monthly fee.
4 year old preschool
Ballard Schools, along with several community partners, participate in the Statewide Voluntary 4-year-old Preschool Program through the Department of Education. To be eligible for 4 year old preschool, a student’s birth date must fall between 9/16/16 – 9/15/17 for the 2021-2022 academic year. This program is FREE to all families. If you are interested in your child attending any of the following preschool programs, please follow the steps below for registration.
Participating Four Year Old Programs
Ballard West Preschool: 515-228-3890
Ms. Hollie’s Preschool: 515-291-5604
Miss Wendy’s Preschool: 515-597-3478
Lily Pad Learning Center: 515-597-5437
Whistle Stop Academy: 515-597-3637
Registration
Call your program of choice directly to be added to a roster. *You must get confirmation from the preschool program that you are on their roster before moving to Step 2.
Register online for preschool on the Ballard Community Schools website. Regardless of your child’s attendance center, you MUST register online.
You may submit the required paper documents in one of the following ways:
1. To the Registrar at the District Office, 509 N Main Ave, Huxley, IA 50124
2. Via mail: Ballard Community Schools Attn: Registrar, 509 N Main Ave, Huxley, IA 50124
3. Via email: ajungst@ballard.k12.ia.us
Contact District Registrar, Amber Jungst with any questions or concerns about the enrollment process.
Email: ajungst@ballard.k12.ia.us
Phone: (515) 597-2811 ext. 1002.
Ballard Health Department
Immunization Requirement
• All students entering, advancing or transferring into 7th grade and born after September 15, 2004, will need proof of one dose of meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MenACWY). All students entering, advancing, or transferring into 12th grade and born after September 15, 1999, will need proof of two doses of meningococcal (A, C W, Y) vaccine; or 1 dose if received when the student was 16 years of age or older.
• Meningitis vaccine protects against meningococcal serogroups A, C, W, and Y. Meningococcal disease caused by any serogroup is a very serious, life-threatening illness. It is caused by bacteria that can infect the blood, brain, and spinal cord. Meningococcal bacteria are spread through upper respiratory droplets, such as saliva (kissing, living in close quarters). About 10 to 15% of people with meningococcal disease die even with appropriate treatment. Twenty percent of people recovering from meningococcal disease suffer from serious effects including permanent hearing loss, limb loss, or brain damage. Meningococcal vaccines are very safe and effective at preventing meningococcal disease. The meningococcal vaccine is 85 - 100 percent effective at preventing infection from the subtypes of meningococcus found in the vaccine.
West Elementary News
Ballard Preschool
Bridges Math K-2
Last year our district adopted a new K-5 math curriculum named Bridges in Mathematics. This program is designed to support student learning in the math standards through real-life contexts, manipulating or visualizing numbers and operations, and making connections between mathematical concepts clear through classroom discussion.
One way we have been able to support student math learning this year, when sharing hands-on resources is limited due to COVID mitigation strategies, is through the use of online mathematical tools. All of the tools created by the Math Learning Center are accessible online and free to all users. You can find them at https://www.mathlearningcenter.org/apps.
I would like to discuss a few of the apps our first grade distance learning students have been using recently to share their thinking in a way that is both visual and representative of their understanding of the underlying mathematical concepts they are learning.
Number Rack App
Number Pieces App
Number Line App
Submitted by Kara Dietrich
West Instructional Coach/Distance Learning Teacher
East Elementary News
Celebrating Growth in 5th Grade
Woo hoo! See how we grew! The fifth-grade teachers wanted to showcase the growth all of our students have made so far this year. What better way to celebrate that student success than with a confetti wall! Students had an opportunity to earn a piece of confetti for each of our four tests; aReading, CBMR, aMath and CAP. Each piece of confetti signified individual growth from the Fall test to the Winter test. After each test, students got their name added to a piece of confetti and the confetti made its way onto the wall. It was so fun watching the amount of confetti continue to grow after each test. It even started to outgrow our wall! We cannot wait to continue to celebrate the growth our 5th graders make throughout the rest of the year!
Submitted by Ashley Cunningham, 5th grade Teacher
Middle School News
High School News
The Drallab Community Talent Show and Lutefish and Lefse Feed Fest
What does the play director do when the musical director has to cancel back-to-back shows? Invites the music program to do a co-sponsored show for the spring! Lisa Ronca, Peter Krum, Shelly Holly, and Kaily Walsh are excited to announce that we will be doing a play/musical on April 16 and 17. (There is a possibility of an additional performance day depending on audience numbers.) The students are excited to have a show; it is giving them a sense of normalcy, and we are so in need of fine arts fun!
Written by Lisa Ronca, the play is called, "The Drallab Community Talent Show and Lutefisk and Lefse Feed Fest." It is a spoof about a small Norwegian-loving community (Drallab) hosting a talent show for the locals. Complete with dad jokes, Norwegian jokes, a Masked Singer, a Ventriloquist, a Napoleon Dynamite wannabe, an Impersonator, and multiple acting, singing, and dancing groups, this is show has something for everyone (Well, unless you are looking for something serious. There is none of that--we need laughter right now, folks!)
Cast list is below. Come see some of your favorite performers, and there will even be a live vote for your favorite performance! Tickets will go on sale in March.
Cast List (In order of scenes): Emcee 1: Rachel Stephany (Fri.), Aurora Olson (Sat.) Emcee 2: Jude Albrecht Crew 1: Andrew Lindsay Crew 2: Sarah Hartman Stage Manager/Jason: Jonathan Zugay IBO: Lad Darter Boogie Bobbles: Mya Patterson, Gracie Jepsen, Fernando Avalos, Connor Drew, Mason Murphy, Sam Petersen, Nolan Schonhorst, Kyler Watson Les Miz Group: Emily Connell, Ellis Giles, Delaney Halverson, Kaylee Van Pelt, Wright, Sunny Sigurdardottir, Abby Zielke, Melody Rhodes, Nora Nosekabel Allison: Aurora Olson (Fri.), Rachel Stephany (Sat.) Mom: Nora Nosekabel You Can’t Stop the Beat: Emily Connell, Ellis Giles, Delaney Halverson, Kayla Evans, Zielke, Maddie Miller, Gracie Jepsen, Caitlin Maher, Mya Patterson, Kaylee VanPelt, Isabelle Ramer Sven Svenson: Jack Chism Violet: Kaylee VanPelt Julio: Hudson Nebbe Light Show: Molly Ihle, Caitlin Maher, Quinn Thompson, Meg Rietz, Audra Jahn, Brooke Loewe, Lily Gowen, Kate Miller, Ashley Wuestenberg Never Gonna Give You Up: Surprise Sam: Katie Bollig Chrissy P: Emily Lanza Popular: Ellis Giles Les McBurney and Boat Captain: Alex Wiech Kim: Maddie Miller Helen: Kayla Evans Guy and Earl: Kade Miller Jake and Fiancee: Ethan Lederer Daffodil: Delaney Halverson Marcy and Cow: Isabelle Ramer
Jennifer: Emily Connell
Kayla Evans, Emily Lanza, Katie Bollig, Natalie Wilson, Amelia Gogerty, Erica
Espinoza, Makayla Cornelius, Courtney Block, Rachel Huisinga, Lundyn Jones, Sabrina
Emily Lanza, Katie Bollig, Makayla Cornelius, Lundyn Jones, Sunny Sigurdardottir, Abby
Community Resources
Dollars For Scholars Enrichment Fund Donations
In memory of Gregg White from Class of 1982
In memory of Bart Mason from Henry & Janice Rumbaugh
In memory of Dennis Parmenter from Florence Krause
In memory of Dennis Parmenter from Robert & Julie Krause
In memory of Dennis Parmenter from Gene & Marita Rouse
Huxley Communications
In memory of Ruth Larson from Steve & Louella Larson
In memory of Mike Stensland from Steve & Louella Larson
In memory of Dennis Parmenter from Steve & Louella Larson
Ballard Elementary PTO
Ballard Education Foundation
Ballard Dollars for Scholars
Ballard Fine Arts Boosters
Ballard Activities Boosters
Digital Backpack
Ballard Community School District
Email: ajungst@ballard.k12.ia.us
Website: www.ballard.k12.ia.us
Location: 509 North Main Avenue, Huxley, IA, USA
Phone: 515-597-2811
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BallardCSD
Twitter: @BallardCSD