Around 656
Sharing the great work of Faribault students and staff
Homecoming!
Homecoming parade video
School spirit on display at the middle school
Elementary cross-country meet
National Coaches Day
Otaifo Esenabhalu
-on former girls basketball coach Bill Bardal
Alesandro Salinas
-on boys soccer coach Brendan Cox
Owen Schultz
-on middle school wrestling coach Brad Babcock
Staff Spotlight
Joey Clapp
Education: Faribault High School (2009)
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (2014) Bachelor of Science
Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota (2017) Master of Education
Years with Faribault Public Schools: 3
What are some of your hobbies and interests?
Coaching swimming
Line judging Faribault volleyball games
Exercising at the Fielitz Fitness Center
What’s something interesting about you that not a lot of people know?
I was a 12-time first-team All-American in Division 3 swimming.
Why did you decide to pursue a career in education?
My parents along with many former and current Faribault Public School teachers.
Steve Clapp: 67 year old 3rd/4th grade educator. Retired from ISD 656 in 2010 after 32 years of service
Diane Clapp: 64 yr. old retired 3rd/4th grade educator. Retired from ISD 656 in 2014 after 33 years of service
What do you enjoy most about working with students?
Seeing their potential manifest into fruition.
What do you enjoy about being part of Faribault Public Schools?
This is where my educational journey began and continues to grow.
Valerie Henry
Education: Faribault High School Class of 2015, Winona State University: Bachelor of Science in Teaching - Secondary Mathematics
Years with FPS: 2
What are some of your hobbies and interests? I love spending time with family, especially going camping, hunting, and playing euchre at our land in Wisconsin! Go Pack Go! I'm also learning to play guitar and really enjoy being involved with dance at both the high school and Studio of Stars.
What’s something interesting about you that not a lot of people know? I first started talking to my high school sweetheart in Mrs. Brown's math class at FHS!
Why did you decide to pursue a career in education? Growing up, I was very involved with leadership opportunities in my school and community. Connecting with students and helping them achieve their goals is what motivates me to teach!
What do you enjoy most about working with students? The relationships built with students are so rewarding. I have already had so many past students come back to visit - it's the best!
What do you enjoy about being part of Faribault Public Schools? It truly is a family. I have been so honored to be giving back to the school that helped make me who I am. Once a Falcon, always a Falcon!
Sheena Sheldon
Job Title: Preschool Teacher at McKinley
Education: Lincoln High School - Thief River Falls, MN. Bethel University - Elementary Education and Early Childhood Education. MSU Mankato - Masters in Reading K-12
Years with Faribault Public Schools: 3
What are some of your hobbies and interests?
I love spending time with family and friends, being out in nature with my husband, and exercising.
What’s something interesting about you that not a lot of people know?
I am health and fitness coach, leading a healthy lifestyle by example. I help people get started with their own health and fitness journeys with at home workouts and nutrition guides. It’s so rewarding seeing others become so proud of themselves for making themselves and their health a priority.
Why did you decide to pursue a career in education?
I decided to become a teacher because both of my parents led the educator lifestyle and I realized it was a very family friendly career. I grew up with the natural desire to be around children and interact with them, showing them that they matter. I was always babysitting younger cousins, so I figured I’d job shadow in a care-taking field. After job shadowing in the ICU, I knew the medical field wasn’t for me. It was then that I knew spending time educating children was where my passion was.
What do you enjoy most about working with students?
I enjoy their conversations the most, quite honestly. Language is so important and I love being able to hear their ideas and stories. I also enjoy seeing how proud they are after accomplishing tasks, and how much confidence they gain through the year.
What do you enjoy about being part of Faribault Public Schools?
I enjoy the community I work with and team I'm a part of. Faribault Public Schools reminds me so much of the district I grew up in, where the staff are advocates for their students.
Athletics Update
Football: On Sept. 20, the Falcons came from behind to score their first victory of the season 28-24 at Albert Lea. Nick Ehlers finished the night 15 of 25 for 239 yards and a touchdown. Alex Gardner tallied 83 yards on 14 attempts with three scores.
Taylor Day had 8 catches for 100 yards and a TD. The Falcons take a 1-5 record into back to back road games to end the regular season.
Volleyball: The Falcons scored a 3-1 win over Austin to start homecoming week and evened their record back up at 12-12 with a 3-1 home victory over Owatonna Tuesday. Payton Evenstad helped put the Huskies away, accumulating 20 kills, 14 assists and 13 digs. Bennett Wolff added seven blocks, 14 assists, 11 digs and seven kills.
Cross country: The boys and girls cross-country teams prepped for next week's Big 9 meet by running well last Tuesday at Mankato East. The boys just missed out on the team title, placing second on the sixth-runner tiebreaker after finishing tied with East at 48 points. Mitchell Hanson (4th) and Ethan Krueger (5th) each cracked the top 10. The Falcons' top five runners placed in the top 16 out of 46 runners. The girls team also placed second, with Madelyn Skjeveland (3rd), Gabrielle Yetzer (10th) and Mariana Foxhoven (11th) leading the way. Earlier this season, the boys placed first and the girls second at Zumbrota (pictured below).
Boys soccer: The Falcons put together another successful regular season, posting a 10-5-1 record. As the No. 3 seed in the section, they took on Worthington Saturday and lost 2-1.
Girls soccer: The Falcons finished the regular season 3-12, with wins over Cannon Falls, Worthington and Glencoe-Silver Lake. They made the long trip to Marshall for section play and dropped an exciting 4-3 contest in overtime.
Girls tennis: At the Big 9 Conference tournament, Abby Goodwin and Erica Johnsrud led the Falcons by placing third in No. 1 doubles.
Girls swim and dive: The Falcons won 10 of 12 events while earning their first team win of the season over Albert Lea Sept. 19. They host Owatonna next week before they begin preparation for the Big 9 Championships Oct. 25-26.
For more information and Athletes of the Week, go to https://www.faribaultfalcons.com/
Twin Day at Jefferson
New multipurpose room at FMS
Something's cookin' at FMS
Sixth-grade FACS students made french toast and puffed pancakes!
Alumni Day at FHS
Twenty-six Faribault High School alumni returned to speak with current students about their education and career experiences at the second-annual Alumni Day event Oct. 4.
Alumni sat at tables in the practice gym and students chose who they wanted to talk with based on what career field they were interested in. Among the FHS alumni in attendance were a production manager, an engineer, an interpreter, a physical therapist, a lawyer, a cyber-security manager, a radio program director, a bank president, a financial advisor, a hardware designer, an optometrist, a chemical health specialist, a television reporter, a librarian, an athletic development director, a clinical counselor, a program manager, a hospital birth center director, a police officer, a social worker and an airline pilot.
“It makes me really proud that we’ve had so much success,” senior Kelsie Demars said. “This gives students a lot of hope that we can be whatever we want to be when we grow up.”
Demars chose to meet with Stephanie Kelly, who is Director of Athletic Development at North Dakota State University. Demars said she learned a lot from the conversation, both about potential careers and her college options.
“NDSU is the college I want to go to, so she was able to give me information about that for next year,” Demars said. “We talked about the type of industry I want go to into and she gave us insight into what the job outlook might be.”
Kelly said it’s a rewarding experience to come back to FHS and help students prepare for their futures.
“I always come back when they invite me because I’m excited for what’s happening at FHS,” she said. “These kids are making decisions about their careers and education and I’m happy to be able to come back and share my experience with them. It’s rewarding to be able to give that back.”
Thank you to all the alumni who joined us!
Students attend Nobel Conference
In September, FHS students interested in science had the chance to attend the world-renowned Nobel Conference at Gustavus Adolphus College.
The trip is now in its 30th year, having been organized by science teacher Dave Wieber every year since he came to Faribault High School in 1990. Wieber first attended the conference in 1983 and attributes his decision to become a science teacher to that experience.
“It’s always a historic occasion,” Wieber said. “You see some things you can’t see anywhere else. You learn a lot, and get an appreciation of the work that it takes to do the kind of research that these people have done.”
Eleven attend Big 9 Leadership Conference
In September, 11 FHS students attended the Big 9 SuperFan/Leadership Conference at Wood Lake Meeting Center in Rochester. Students watched a presentation on leadership and networked with student fans and athletes from other schools in an effort to make the Big 9 Conference a better place to compete.
"This event is a great opportunity to build a community of Big 9 student leaders who are able to create positive playing environments at each of their schools," AD Keith Badger said. "Faribault students had a great time networking and making connections with other Big 9 students and brought back great ideas to continue to make Faribault a great place."
Alumni Update: Brent Peroutka
Education
FHS Class of 1998
Augsburg College, 2002: Major – Business Management-Finance, Minor-Management Information Systems
University of St Thomas, 2008: Master of Business Administration (MBA)
Professional Career
Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards: Certified Financial Planner (CFP) 2015
My experience was outstanding with Faribault Public Schools. The leadership teams and staff offered the opportunity for me to grow and develop as a person. This includes academically and preparation for college, as well as with extracurricular activities (sports, music, student council, and more). I do not want to leave anyone out, but I had a number of teachers that were outstanding role models in my life. The great part about this as a Certified Financial Planner® and business owner in Faribault, I get to share stories and experiences with them in the Faribault Community as many are still involved in various activities and nonprofit groups in town.
I have three children that are in the Faribault public school system and know they have outstanding leaders and teachers in each of their schools. I find they are being challenged to become a better version of themselves on a daily basis, which will help prepare them for their journey in life.
Things to Know
We're on Instagram
Operating levy vote coming up Nov. 5
Go to our levy website to find answers to frequently asked questions, information on how to vote, the tax impact, and what opportunities approval of the levy would open up for our students:
https://www.faribault.k12.mn.us/district/2019_operating_levy_resources_and_information
The school board and Superintendent Todd Sesker will host a levy discussion at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 14 at the district office.
Adopt-a-Highway Oct. 16
Faribault Public Schools
Email: msteichen@faribault.k12.mn.us
Website: faribault.k12.mn.us
Location: 710 17th St SW, Faribault, MN, USA
Phone: 5073336000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/faribaultpublic/
Twitter: @District656