Winter in Nebraska

It has been a long winter in Nebraska! The bad news is, winter is not quite done yet with cold temperatures and possible snow the next week or two. The good news is, spring is just around the corner with its promise of warmer temperatures, April showers, and May flowers. The question on everyone’s mind is, how will we make up our snow days?

A bit of history might be helpful. The State of Nebraska requires that students attend 1,080 instructional hours at the middle school and high school and 1,032 hours at the elementary level. PLCS typically schedules 175 instructional days per year, so if we have three or fewer snow days, we are well above the state requirement. To be safe, we typically build extra days into the calendar at the end of the year and designate them as make-up days if four or more snow days are used.  We put these dates on the calendar a year in advance so parents and staff can plan accordingly.

This year, of course, was unusual. In my previous five years as Superintendent, we had three or fewer cancellations every year. As of today, we have canceled school six times. Following the calendar adopted by our Board of Education, that means our last day of school will be pushed back from Thursday, May 23 to Wednesday, May 29. The 29th will be an early release day. Seniors last day will be pushed back from Thursday, May 9 to Friday, May 10. Bringing back students and staff after Memorial Day isn’t ideal, but the alternatives are equally challenging.

We considered adding minutes to the school day, but this solution has many drawbacks. We would likely need to add at least 25-30 minutes per day until the end of the year to make up the three extra snow days. This would create issues for parents at pickup/drop off, create challenges for our busing schedule, and would push back evening activities. Likewise, we discussed taking back days that were scheduled for break, including Spring Break. However, we know many families schedule vacations during this time and holding school on these dates would create hardships for many.  We did not want to suddenly change a calendar that was published a year in advance with designated snow days.

If your family is like mine, everyone is getting cabin fever and looking forward to being outside. We understand that coming back for 2-3 days after Memorial Day will create some issues for staff and families, but we believe it is the best way to make up lost teaching time while also satisfying our state requirements. Thank you for all you do to support our students and our schools. Stay warm and #Be Kind!

Be Known For Kindness

We are past the mid-way point in the school year, and Winter Break is but a distant memory. January and February can be difficult months even for hardy Midwesterners accustomed to Nebraska winters. A combination of the post-winter break blues, cabin fever, short days, and bone-chilling weather can test even the most optimistic among us. A recent article published in USA Today even declared that January 21 is the most depressing day of the year. For these reasons, the Be Kind movement has never been more important.

The Be Kind movement has generated positive momentum across the entire metro area. Every public school district has adopted the “Be Kind” theme for the 2018-19 school year and significant progress has been made highlighting the importance of kindness and compassion. At PLCS, we started the year with our keynote speaker discussing the importance of kindness. We followed this up with “Kindness notes” and many schools have put up “Be Kind” bulletin boards to highlight the acts of kindness by staff and students. We have accomplished much, but we don’t want to lose the positive energy we’ve created.

Thanks to the efforts of the Superintendent’s Student Advisory Council, some terrific ideas have been generated to keep the movement alive. This Advisory Council, which consists of 8 PLHS and 8 PLSHS students, meets with me once a month over lunch (Raising Canes is always a favorite!). The students create the agenda, and we discuss issues ranging from school safety to class rank. Meeting with this group is always one of the highlights of my month.

The students suggested that we hold a “Be Kind” week from February 11-15 and designed Monarch Maroon and Titan Blue “Be Kind” t-shirts for sale. Hopefully you were able to purchase one! We will celebrate the importance of kindness at the boys and girls basketball games on Friday, February 15. Most exciting of all, our students suggested we use the proceeds from the shirt sales to benefit the Student Emergency Fund through the PLV Schools Foundation. This is truly kindness in action.

Thank you for your support, don’t forget to wear your Monarch or Titan “Be Kind” t-shirts, and we’ll see you on Friday, February 15. As always, #BeKind!

Be Known for Vision

Happy 2019, PLCS staff and families! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and restful Winter Break. The Rikli’s hosted my side of the family the weekend before Christmas. Hosting is a lot of work, but it’s always fun to catch up with family. Presents were opened on Christmas morning, and then we traveled to Grand Island to spend some time with Amy’s parents. It was a fun break, but I’m always excited to get back to work.

I try to spend a bit of time around the holidays reflecting on the past year and looking forward to what the new year will bring. I’ve never been a fan of New Year’s resolutions, but I have set several personal and professional goals for myself for 2019. In my personal life, I would like to spend more time with my wife and family. I would also like to spend more time reading for pleasure. Work demands for all of us can be challenging at times, so I resolve to do a better job balancing my personal and professional obligations.

Likewise, the Papillion La Vista Community Schools will also have new goals for 2019. The District started a new Strategic Plan shortly after I was hired in 2013. A community advisory group was formed, and five long-range planning goals were developed. Through our Strategic Plan, we have made great progress in several key areas including adding World Language to our middle schools, expanding our Early Childhood Program, and increasing supports for mental health needs. But much work remains. School districts typically develop new Strategic Plans every 4-5 years, so it is time for us to restart the process. In the past, we have intentionally focused on a small number of goals. We can do anything we want, but we can’t do everything we want! The plan will serve as the District’s road map, and any future goals will be discussed with our staff, community and Board of Education so that everyone’s voice is heard. Please watch our newsletters and website for information about how you can stay informed.

Here’s wishing everyone a happy, healthy, and productive 2019. Let’s make it the Kindest year ever! #BeKind

Happy Holidays

Happy holidays everyone! It doesn’t seem possible that we’re already at the end of the first semester. For our elementary and middle school families, I hope it has been a productive and enjoyable first term. For our high school families, best of luck as you complete your final exams and prepare for second semester.

The holidays are a special time in the Rikli home. My wife Amy loves to decorate our home with holiday trimmings, and the Christmas tree is usually up by the time the Thanksgiving leftovers are eaten. We have two very naughty elves, Holly and Jolly, who create mischief and mayhem every night, much to the delight of our youngest son Sam. Holiday music is a staple, of course, and we love reading “The Night Before Christmas” to our kids before waking up on Christmas morning and unwrapping gifts. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

Across the District, our students and families are creating their own holiday traditions and growing the #BeKind initiative in the process. This year we have demonstrated a commitment to #BeKind through a variety of projects and initiatives. As we entered the holiday season the acts of kindness flourished throughout PLCS.  Over 90 families were supported with holiday gifts. Over $11,000 was raised for charities. Over 1,000 toys were donated.  Over 7,500 diapers were donated and over 8,500 food items and supplies were given to those in need. It is truly amazing to be a part of this school district where students, staff and families are so very quick to open their hearts and demonstrate kindness.

We are so blessed, all of us, to live in this great country and this great community. I hope all of you are able to spend time with loved ones, take a break from work and school, and reflect on 2018. It was a very good year in so many ways, and the coming year promises to be even better. So, from the Rikli family to yours, here’s wishing everyone a happy, safe, and relaxing winter break and holiday season. See you in 2019!

First Taste of Winter

Now that we’ve gotten our first taste of winter, I thought it might be helpful to discuss snow days and the process behind the decision-making.

We will always make decisions with student safety as our top priority. I have three school-age children, and my wife and I both work outside the home. I certainly understand getting kids to school on bad weather days can be stressful. If you don’t feel safe sending your children to school because of inclement weather, please keep them home. Every day, parents drop off their children late and/or pick them up early for reasons ranging from athletic contests to dental appointments. We want to see regular school attendance, of course, but we also trust parents to make good decisions for their children.

I understand many families get upset when we don’t cancel school after snow or ice. We live in Nebraska where bad weather is a weekly — If not daily! — occurrence, but we don’t cancel school every time it snows. I suspect most parents understand this, but it bears repeating. Snow days create challenges for many families. Many students live in single parent households or in homes where both parents work. Cancelling school can create hardships for families who need daycare for their children. Some parents are forced to leave young children at home with little or no supervision because they can’t miss work. This too is a safety issue.
When bad weather is anticipated, I typically communicate with area superintendents throughout the evening and early morning. We will always make a decision that is best for Papillion La Vista Community Schools, but if one school district in the metro cancels, generally all public schools in the metro cancel. There are exceptions, but since weather patterns don’t stop at school district boundaries, it makes sense that area school leaders discuss closings. Yes, I do wake up at the crack of dawn to drive our streets and check on snow removal. No, I don’t drive a monster truck! (haha).

It is my goal to communicate the decision as soon as possible, but in most cases, I prefer waiting until the morning. Snowfall projections are notoriously fickle, and we are blessed with outstanding snow removal crews, so we don’t want to cancel too early. We will always communicate on the District website, Facebook, and television. If you want to get a jump on the announcement, please follow me on Twitter @AndrewRikli. I typically post snow day cancellations there first. Students, a bit of good-natured complaining on social media is expected and occasionally funny, but please don’t be mean to my family or use profanity. We are better than that. Above all, #BeKind!

Veterans Day

We formally celebrated Veterans Day on Sunday, November 11. However, many of our schools held celebrations in honor of our nation’s veterans last week and this week. Veterans Day is important for all of us to remember. We truly live in the world’s greatest country. As Americans, we have rights and privileges that citizens in other countries can only dream of. These rights and privileges have been purchased in a large part by the hard work, dedication, and sacrifices of the men and women who have worn our nation’s uniform.

Veterans Day is particularly important for this community given our proximity to Offutt Air Base and the number of servicemen and women who live and work in our school district. I personally attended Veterans Day celebrations at several of our schools. At each event, we asked students and community members to stand if they served in our armed forces or have family members who have served. It was incredible to see the huge number of people who were recognized. It made me very proud as a school leader and community member.

Veterans Day holds special meaning to my family. My stepfather was active duty in the U.S. Army and served oversees in Germany. An uncle was active duty Air Force. A nephew is currently a crypto-linguist in the Air Force. One of my grandparents was a B-26 bomber pilot who was killed during World War II. Another grandparent was a Marine who served in the South Pacific. Upon returning home after the war, my grandfather brought back a Japanese katana blade. When my grandfather passed, the sword was given to me and it hangs with great pride in my office at home. I have deep respect and admiration for all who have served.

We have so many families who live and work in our District who are veterans themselves, as well as those who are currently serving. To all our residents who have served in our armed forces in any capacity, thank you for your service and thank you for helping make Papillion La Vista Community Schools such a special place.