Hot Springs School District 23-2

Congratulations to these high schoolers for earning Honor Roll of Excellence (3.5-3.99) and Honor Roll of Merit (3.0-3.49): High School Roll of Excellence (3.5-3.99) Tailor Cunningham 9 Emilia Cupsa 9 William Erickson 9 Thor Fish 9 Loki Joeckel 9 Elizabeth Jones 9 Westin Klippenstein 9 Brody Lout 9 Karlie Mathis 9 Jacob Merrill 9 Von Mogen-Frankfort 9 Shayna Morgan 9 William O'Neill 9 Mira Palyan 9 William Robinson 9 Ruby Russell 9 Oakley Sowers 9 Emma Torres 9 Konnor West 9 Azbayar Bayambanorov 10 Benjamin Black 10 Autumn Bloom 10 Sierra Bristow 10 Taylen DeBoer 10 Brynley Erickson 10 Austin Heinert 10 Hunter Kunz 10 Holden Luper 10 Savannah Marshall 10 Olivia Moffitt 10 Reese Naze 10 Pavarisa Nunthong 10 Braxton Watson 10 Johnathon Close 11 Francis Cunningham 11 Alaina Daily 11 Canton Gingrass 11 Lilly Kasper 11 Zetta Kuhl 11 Kiana Lewis 11 York Naze 11 Ellaina Nichols 11 Daniel Pellicotte 11 Robert Preuss 11 Brock Schroeder 11 Katie Snyder 11 Oliver Sowers 11 Bryson Venables 11 Noah Wieseler 11 Braden Yeager 11 Rose Burchfield 12 Kolton Hagen 12 Kaemyn Klippenstein 12 Kenadee Maciejewski 12 Ethan Nowak 12 Senay Pulscher 12 Nia Romero-Perez 12 Laurel Rush 12 High School Roll of Merit (3.0-3.49) Journey Bashaw 9 Zachary Bell 9 Jada Berkley 9 Adysin Clasen 9 Cerah Duarte 9 Eli Jirsa 9 Nehemiah Lewis 9 Rowan Reineke 9 Nicholas Schaffner 9 Soleil Stone 9 Taya Amende 10 Gage Cumbow 10 Emma Davis 10 Nathaniel Horton 10 Alexander Madigan 10 Dakota McCulloch 10 Derek Mills 10 Sophia Nathan 10 Brant Person 10 Ray Sanders 10 Taysia Boehler 11 Sergio Cantu 11 Charli Christiansen 11 Cardar Halls 11 Duane Hannah 11 Jaydon Koffler 11 Connor Kramer 11 Wyatt Nellen 11 Taralynn Rudloff 11 Maximus Sam 11 Lakoda Shafer 11 Carl Stanton 11 Dylan Thompson 11 Owen White 11 Megan Wynia 11 Jayla Evans 12 Jacan Joeckel 12 Trenton Jordan 12 Adriana Red Cloud 12 Greyden VanDewater 12 Jace Watters 12

High School Band students performed solos for two music professors from BHSU - Dr Dave Berberick & Dr Skye Van Duuren on March 5, 2025. Due to the arctic temperatures in February, the Region 8 contest was cancelled. Our students got a chance to perform their solos and receive a rating from the judges. Shout out to the BHSU directors for driving down and sharing encouragement, support, & advice to our high school musicians. Great job to our high school band students for achieving this goal & completing the task at hand! Go Bison Musicians!!!

The HSSD is looking for current sophomores or juniors that are interested in being a cyber apprentice for the 2025-2026 School Year. The South Dakota Cyber Apprenticeship Pathway is an opportunity for high school students in South Dakota to earn college credit through the Governors Cyber Academy at Dakota State University while learning and working part-time as a cyber apprentice in their home school district or with a local industry partner. The goal is for students to gain on-the-job training while being mentored by IT professionals and learning from faculty experts. This opportunity is a paid position for up to five hours per week, either during the school day or on Fridays, depending on the candidate. Cyber apprentices are encouraged to complete their related technical instruction requirements by taking courses through the Governors Cyber Academy. Cyber apprentices are expected to enroll in a minimum of one class per academic year. Registered cyber apprentices will be reimbursed for tuition for courses taken at the reduced high school dual credit tuition rate through the Governors Cyber Academy at Dakota State. This program will be capped at 50 state-wide participants, and it would be amazing for a Hot Springs student or two. Email Mr. Orback (travis.orback@k12.sd.us) and/or Dr. Cumbow (Kyley.cumbow@k12.sd.us) if you are interested by May 1, 2025. CSC 150 Computer Science I CSC 134 Introduction to Cyber Operations CSC 147 Artificial Intelligence Survey CSC 163 Hardware, Virtualization, and Data Communication CSC 247 Introduction to Artificial Intelligence CSC 250 Computer Science II CSC 285 Networking I CSC 388 Computer Forensics Fundamentals CLI 101 Introduction to Cyber Leadership HIM 150 Introduction to Digital Health Informatics and Information Management

Parents, don't miss out on our Hot Springs School District Spring Spirit Wear Sale. You have one week left to save 20% throughout the entire store with code: SPRING. Help create more community engagement at Hot Springs and boost fundraising profits by shopping at https://1stplace.sale/114508

I appreciate the questions that were shared on our "snow day" post. I just wanted to share those responses. The 24-25 school calendar did not have any snow days scheduled however we will include one, if not two, snow days for the 25-26 calendar. This will provide families and staff with dates far ahead of time to plan accordingly. Another question regarded the choice to add the days onto the end of the school year. Instructional days are very important. The choice to add the day back into April reflects the desire to have that instructional day added before school-wide assessments and the state test. One could question how one day can make a difference, but one could also point out that our number of instructional days is the third lowest for all districts in South Dakota. Each day matters to our students. Every one of us wants them to be as successful (and more) than their counterparts in the state. And lastly, not all of our students have access to internet so expecting an "online learning day" would result in some of our students being behind when they return. I appreciate the comments and questions shared and if any of our parents or community members have any suggestions as we finalize our 25-26 calendar, please email me at kyley.cumbow@k12.sd.us and/or call 605.745.4159. Have a wonderful Monday. Kyley W. Cumbow, HSSD Superintendent

Mrs. Vande Stroet just sent a permission slip to 7th and 8th grade band students' parents/guardians. On Tuesday, March 25, those students will perform at the Black Hills Special Services Center. Please be sure your student returns the permission slip on Monday. Thank you.

Congratulations to our middle and high school students that earned a 4.0 GPA for third quarter. We plan to celebrate their academic success on Tuesday, April 1st at 6:00pm in the Case. We welcome all family, friends, and the community to acknowledge their hard work and attend this short program.

Look at how amazing our FFA students are: Many of our FFA students have qualified for State (all 1st and 2nd Place teams qualify for State). State is in Brookings again April 3-5th. Results today for teams and individuals placing in the top 20: Poultry Judging Team: 1st Place/4 teams total (by 200 points)! Hunter K 1st Place individual, Ray S 2nd, Lyzzie R 3rd overall Agronomy: 1st Place Team/3 teams total, Alex B 1st Place Individual, Jessica W 2nd Place Individual, Lilly P 8th Place Individual Floriculture: 2nd Place Team (by 3 points)/8 teams total, Ruby R 4th Place Individual, Shayna M 5th Place, Jayla E7th Place, Izzy B12th Soleil S 17th Horse Judging: 5th Place Team/9 teams total: Neva A 14th, Thor Fish 15th, Holden L 17th Livestock Judging: 2nd Place Team/10 teams total: Zetta K3rd, Sheldon N4th, Cale W9th, Tailor C 16th Meats Judging 2nd Place Team/5 teams total: Gaige S 4th, Dean N 7th, Maddie T8th, Kash B12th Milk Quality 1st Place Team (by almost 200 points)/5 teams total Sarah R 1st, Sierra B3rd, Cassidy M4th, Autumn B 6th , Colette A8th Nursery Landscape 1st Place Team/2 teams: Kadlin H1st, Alain R 3rd, Layton R 4th, Toryn J8th Range Plant ID 2nd Place Team/4 teams: Jessica W 2nd, Ray S4th, Zetta K5th, Landon M 13th Vet Science: 2nd Place team/9 teams total: Taralynn R 5th, Daniel P8th, Ava S11th, Haylee W 18th, Sophia N 21st

Another FREE opportunity for our juniors and seniors.

We sent this out on Monday evening to all of our Bison families via email and text. We want to make sure that all families have seen this announcement. To our Bison Families, We are reaching out to inform you that, due to the snow day earlier in the year, we will be making up that lost instructional time on Friday, April 25th. Given our already limited number of instructional days, it is important that we make up this day to ensure our students receive the full educational experience we strive to provide. Please mark your calendars, and we appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we continue to support the academic growth of all our students. If you have any questions, please reach out. Dr. Kyley W. Cumbow Hot Springs School District Superintendent

Almost time!!!

Music in our school

Greetings from the South Dakota Office of Indian Education! Please see below, and attached, for an important message from Angel Lee, Director at The Indian University of North America® about the deadline for an amazing opportunity for college bound HS seniors - 7TH GEN.® Summer Program at Crazy Horse Memorial®. Fred Osborn • Director Office of Indian Education SD DEPARTMENT OF TRIBAL RELATIONS fred.osborn@state.sd.us Office: 605.773.5975 • Cell: 605.280.0245 indianeducation.sd.gov The April 1st deadline for the 8-week college semester at Crazy Horse Memorial® is fast approaching, the 7TH GEN.® Summer Program has multiple student benefits: a summer scholarship, 12 transferable college credits, a credit-bearing paid internship, academic & postsecondary advising, cultural-educational activities, including field trips in the beautiful and sacred Black Hills, a $1000 Native American Jump Start stipend, and critical success strategies. Please feel free to share with any of your college bound HS seniors who may be looking for an alternative summer educational experience. If you need additional information, please feel free to reach out. Outreach Coordinator, Julissa Fillmore able do 30-minute Zoom presentations for any interested students. https://crazyhorsememorial.org/the-university/summer-program-application Angel Lee|Lakota Director The Indian University of North America® 605-673-2945 work 605-440-3227 cell angel.lee@crazyhorse.org

Parents of current 7th and 8th graders. This is such a great FREE opportunity. The deadline is March 31st. Dakota Dreams Career Exploration camps are back! The FREE five-day career camps for rising 7th and 8th grade students will be back this summer. Applications are open through March 31. The Department of Education and Board of Regents are asking principals at these levels to spread the word among your families. Our promotional toolkit contains social media graphics you can use, as well as a parent letter template. Roughly 100 participants will be accepted at each camp location. Visit the Dakota Dreams website to find dates and locations for the six Career Exploration Camps to be offered summer 2025.

Parents of high schoolers: For all of our current juniors (Class of 2026) and seniors (Class of 2025), the window to enroll in dual credit summer school for the 2025 term is now open!! For next the Class of 2026 and Class of 2027, please mark your calendars for April 1st. That is when the window to enroll in dual credit classes for the Fall 2025 term. Please read the email below for more information. Please note the code to use to enroll is: The access code for the Summer/Fall 2025 application will be: 2025enrollment Good morning! I’m reaching out on behalf of SDBOR to update you on the upcoming dual credit application periods. First, Summer 2025 registration will begin on March 1, with Fall 2025 registration opening one month later on April 1. The application for both new and continuing HSDE students can be accessed starting tomorrow on the SDBOR Dual Enrollment webpage. Application Access Code As we did last semester, in order to allow schools to gatekeep the application process (should they so choose), an access code will be included at the start of the application that will be required for all students completing the application. Students will select their high school, and then will need to enter a code to access the rest of the application. The access code for the Summer/Fall 2025 application will be: 2025enrollment Schools can handle the access code as they see fit, whether that is giving it out individually to students after meeting with them on their courses, giving it to a group of students after a dual credit meeting, or simply sending it out to all eligible students at your school. Gateway Certificates SDBOR universities have developed new Gateway Certificates that HSDE students have the option to enroll in, which will allow them to earn a postsecondary credential while still in high school. More information on the Gateway Certificates can be found on Our Dakota Dreams. Certificates are currently approved for Teacher Education, Agriculture, Business, and Engineering. Four new Gateway Certificates in the areas of Health Sciences, Architecture and Construction, Digital Technology, and STEM are set to be approved in April by the Board of Regents, and will be available for selection on the application. Students will indicate their interest in the certificates on the application, and High School Officials will either confirm or deny enrollment in the certificate. Students will only be enrolled in certificates that are confirmed by the High School Official. These fields will be located on the page of the application where students select their courses. As always, you can find all dual enrollment resources from BOR in one place on our webpage, including troubleshooting articles and reference guides for students, parents, and school officials. If you have any questions on the application, please reach out. Thank you!

Sharing pictures to get everyone ready for the production of the musical Legally Blonde. We hope to see everyone at one of the performances this Thursday, Friday, and/or Saturday.

From our PTA: Good afternoon! The PTA is doing an outer space craft night on Thursday from 4:30-6:30 during elementary conferences and providing dinner for the teachers. How can you help? If someone is able to help out with the craft time and clean-up that would be great. Or if someone can help clean after the dinner around 7, that would also be fantastic. Finally, can’t volunteer time, but can bring food or drinks? Sign-up using the link below and bring your items to the lounge by noon on Thursday! https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0F4AA5A72CABFAC25-55740244-elementary

Information from Lake Area Technical College- We are excited to invite you to participate in Student for a Half Day, an immersive experience that provides hands-on exposure to one of the 31 programs offered at Lake Area Technical College. This event offers a unique opportunity to explore our state-of-the-art facilities and gain firsthand insight into the skills and training our programs provide. What to Expect:  Hands-on, engaging classroom experiences  A fresh perspective on the programs and opportunities at Lake Area Tech  A fun and enriching experience to share with colleagues, friends, and family Please note: This is not a recruiting event, and there will be little to no interactions with current students. It is simply an opportunity for you and/or your coworkers to explore what Lake Area Tech has to offer in a relaxed, interactive setting. Registration & Details: Student for a Half Day Registration Space is limited – register soon! Flyer attached with more details. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out! Melissa Melissa Waldner Business Partner Specialist Lake Area Technical College PO Box 730 | 1201 Arrow Ave. | Watertown, SD 57201 www.lakeareatech.edu | O 605.882.5284 Ext. 263 Melissa.Waldner@lakeareatech.edu

The Hot Springs School District Spring Sale is underway, featuring all new designs! You'll save 20% with code: SPRING. Shop at https://1stplace.sale/114508

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