Principal anticipates the arrival more than 30 new students

By DEB BENTLY

Staff Writer

NRHEG Elementary Principal Craig Kopetzki has had enough of summer.

“I want to be greeting students as they arrive. I want to be walking the halls and stepping into classrooms to see the activities there.

“The building has seemed very empty these past few months.”

As the school year gets started, the elementary site expects about 390 students, roughly 30 more than last year.

“I just want kids in the building,” says Kopetzki. “I look forward to that energy and vibrancy.”

Of course, with new staff workshop on August 21 and 22, and with teachers preparing their classrooms, the activity level has been rising gradually, and will be off to a good start with teacher in-service activities this week.

Kopetzki says he particularly anticipates the two days of “Day One” set for September 5 and 6. All families with elementary students have been given a 40-minute block of time during which they and their children will meet their teachers. Parents will have opportunities to ensure information and online accesses are up to date, peruse Panther-themed clothing offered by Court Sports and make any arrangements for the school snack cart, birthday treats and check on their lunch account balances.

“Yes, lunches are free for all students this year,” says Kopetzki, “but seconds are not, so some families will need money in their accounts for that.”

While parents are busy with those details, students will be demonstrating their skills in various subjects for teachers and staff.

“We’re checking to see whether students are up to speed, and whether there’s been any ‘summer slide,’“ says Kopetzki. “That way we can find any folks who can benefit from some extra support and get them started as early in the year as possible.”

Planning for this extended “Day One” began already last spring; most district families have had their time slot scheduled for months.

“We’re really grateful to Mr. Meihak and the school board for supporting this approach,” Kopetzki observes. “It’s something different, but we believe it can provide some genuine benefits.”

Although the district secondary site experienced significant turnover in teaching staff this past summer, the elementary site suffered only one loss, the resignation of preschool teacher Diane Foster. Some in-house shifts occurred, and the site has now added a new kindergarten teacher.

Kopetzki is glad to have retained so many staff members. “Visitors consistently comment about the dedication and professionalism everyone in our building shows,” he says.

A source of optimism for Kopetzki is the number of students open enrolling in the district. “Maybe the word is out about our gold-standard staff,” he speculates. “We seem to be getting calls almost daily from families as far away as Owatonna and Albert Lea that want to enroll their students here.”