Throughout May, STOPS (Students Together Offering Peer Support) students from Faribault High School are taking fifth-graders on tours of the middle school to help them prepare for the transition next fall.

May 7 was School Lunch Hero Day! Thank you to the food service staff at each school for all the hard work you do to provide nutritious meals for our students every day!

Congratulations to the Personal Finance team of Henry Schonebaum, Paige Ross, Avery Rein, and Thomas Malecha for finishing in 2nd place in the 2021 Minnesota Personal Finance Decathlon Challenge! They finished in 2nd place out of nearly 100 teams competing around the state to represent Minnesota in the National Personal Finance Challenge. The team, led by advisor Mr. Jared Kegler, qualified for the state finals by being one of the top 12 teams in the exam portion of the challenge. In the states finals, they reviewed a case study scenario for a couple struggling financially in many aspects of their lives. They then prepared and delivered a financial consulting presentation to judges.

Faribault High School's class of 2021 will have five valedictorians. Victoria Carlsten, Ruby Gernandt, Makayla Keilen, Kylie Petricka and Alli Velander have all accumulated a four-year grade point average of 4.0. All five will speak at the commencement program at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 6, 2021 at Faribault High School.

Victoria Sandra Carlsten is the daughter of Kyle and Emily Carlsten. She is involved in gymnastics and is a coach at Faribault Gymnastics Club. She is a foster and volunteer with Secondhand Hounds. Victoria will attend the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. She is undecided on a major but her potential focus is in Pre-Optometry. Carlsten's advice to her classmates is, “Make sure you do a career that you enjoy and if you end up not being happy with it, don’t be afraid to switch to something else!”

Ruby Marie Gernandt is the daughter of Lee and Monica Gernandt. She is a Link Crew member and involved in cross-country, track and field, and a member of the Minnesota Honors Society. Gernandt will attend Bethel University studying biokinetics/kinesiology and run cross-country and track. Ruby’s advice to her classmates is, “Nothing good comes easy so always work hard and be the best person you can be. Believe in yourself and your abilities, you can do more than you think you’re capable of.”

Makayla Lee Keilen is the daughter of Craig and Becki Keilen. She is involved in a number of activities including Big Brothers Big Sisters, Link Crew, Student Council, Prom Committee, STRIVE, Minnesota Honors Society, and Yearbook. She is a member of the varsity dance team, on the Junior Board of Directors at 1st United Bank and a church volunteer. Keilen will attend Minnesota State University, Mankato and major in Early Childhood Education. Her advice to her classmates is “I believe that remembering the importance of persistence and determination is key. You can achieve anything you want by just pushing through the difficulties and keeping your head up. Never give up on a dream of yours, because everything is achievable.”

Kylie Victoria Petricka is the daughter of David and Shalinie Petricka. She is involved in tennis, basketball, softball, speech, orchestra (Pit, Chamber, and Philharmonic), math team, DECA, Minnesota Honors Society, STOPS, Link Crew and Big Brothers Big Sisters. Petricka will attend the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities and study Biomedical and/or Computer Engineering. Kylie’s advice to her classmates is, “Enjoy your life while you can; these four years of high school flew by as we’ve seen this past year, our lives can change in the blink of an eye. What will happen in the future is never certain; try not to stress yourself out so much, have fun, and live your life one day at a time.”

Alli Linae Velander is the daughter of Bob and Kelly Velander. She is involved in hockey, softball, Minnesota Honors Society, STRIVE, Link Crew and a student representative for Faribault Public School Board. Velander will attend the University of Minnesota Duluth and major in graphic design with an emphasis in marketing. Alli had this to say to her classmates: “The past couple of years were nothing like any of us expected for our final two years of high school. We all have had to overcome our own obstacles, but also overcome obstacles together. We have built stronger relationships with each other and with those around us. Through these challenging times we have learned to not take anything for granted. We have learned to live every day as if it is our last and to do everything with a purpose. We have learned that things can change and be taken from us with a blink of an eye. From these lessons, we have all become better people. I encourage all of you to take these lessons and apply them to your future beyond high school. For whatever you choose to do, do it with a purpose. Do it to succeed. You never know when it could be taken from you and you do not want to look back and wish you acted differently. I know that each and every one of you are capable of amazing things. So go on to prove those who doubted you and show them that you can.” Velander would like to be remembered for always working hard to achieve her full potential at every task she did.

8th grade students in Mrs. Gerr’s and Mrs. Hart’s 8th grade AVID classes made tie pillows and tie mini blankets to give to programs in the community. The pillows were presented to Ruth’s House and will be used to welcome the children of new residents to the facility. They will be a cozy welcome to children who are in uncertain and difficult situations. Students shared the motivation behind their act of kindness and had a great discussion with Sandy, the Donations Coordinator for Ruth’s House of Hope.

In addition to crafting pillows for children, 8th grade AVID students wanted to create something to help animals as well and decided on making small tie blankets for cats and dogs. The students enjoyed presenting these to Furball Farms Pet Sanctuary in hopes of helping them with their mission of providing shelter, care and adoption for cats in our community. Students had fun investing their time and efforts in something that benefits various aspects of our community.

On May 12, students from Mr. Dunnigan's Leadership 1 class volunteered their time at the Community Action Center in Faribault. They cleaned up debris and materials, pulled up old carpeting, swept and cleaned, organized shelving units, and packed some boxes of food for the community.

The goal is to get the facility ready for the contractors to begin their renovation work in early June.

Earlier this month, the Leadership 2 class teamed up with some members of the wrestling and track teams, as well as Faribault Parks and Rec, to celebrate Arbor Day by cleaning up parks and trails around Faribault.

"One of the big goals for the Leadership class was to create some pride and momentum in the community, and it was fun to see members of the community thanking the students for their service as they cleaned," teacher Kevin Dunnigan said.

Tiffany Tripp, Janice Nelsen, Amelia Knudson-Griffin, and James Lehman (1st Semester) all stepped in as permanent substitute teachers this school year.