Jr. Sr. High School – Page 41 – Fairbury Public Schools

New Equipment Brings New Opportunities

BEATRICE, NE –Fairbury FFA received a $2,000 Working Here Fund grant for a plasma cutter to use in the ag classroom at Fairbury High School. The grant is provided through Farm Credit Services of America’s (FCSAmerica) Working Here Fund.

Fairbury FFA will purchase a plasma cutter to be used to teach students important skills related to future careers in welding or metal fabrication. The students will learn how to properly use the plasma cutter, gain skills through practice and training, and will be introduced to careers in welding and metal fabrication, a growing career opportunity for students.

“Our goal in the Fairbury Agricultural Education Department is to help students find a career that interests them,” said Thomas Dux, Fairbury FFA. “Welding is a great career to get students plugged into.”

“As members of the communities we serve, we’re actively demonstrating our commitment with contributions that serve the rural agriculture life we value so highly,” said Amy Blomenberg, vice president of retail operations at FCSAmerica’s Beatrice office.

Fairbury FFA is one of 68 organizations to receive a Working Here Fund grant in the third quarter of 2015. FCSAmerica awarded $120,870 during the latest grant cycle ending September 30, 2015.

About Fairbury FFA

Fairbury FFA is an agricultural science program located in Fairbury, NE. The chapter has 49 active AET student accounts and 1 teacher. The students are developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.

Farm Credit Services of America is a customer-owned financial cooperative proud to finance the growth of rural America, including the special needs of young and beginning producers. With $24 billion in assets and $4.3 billion in members’ equity, FCSAmerica is one of the region’s leading providers of credit and insurance services to farmers, ranchers, agribusiness and rural residents in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming. Learn more at www.fcsamerica.com.

Agronomy Grant

(Dorchester, Neb.) – Farmers Cooperative, has donated $3000 to the Nebraska FFA Foundation to directly support local FFA programming needs. Fairbury was one of seven FFA Chapters selected to earn a grant. The Fairbury Chapter has received $500 to be used for their student development.

The Fairbury FFA Chapter is looking to improve their plant science class with this grant. In their plant science class the students identify crop plants and seeds, weed plants and seeds, and discuss soil management that affects the growth of agronomic crops. The plant science class falls in the winter and spring months, therefore; the FFA Advisor is not able to collect all of the specimens necessary to show the class. With this grant the Fairbury FFA Chapter will purchase the specimens they are unable to collect from the Purdue Agronomy Club. This will help students prepare for the FFA Agronomy contest. This will also introduce students to a possible career in agronomy.

“We are happy to donate to these programs. The Farmers Cooperative knows that these young people represent our future customers, and employees, as well as our future community leaders. For these reasons, we believe that it important to support our local FFA Chapters and the work that they do.” Our slogan is “Investing in Our Owners’ Success! And the Farmers Cooperative believes that Investing in our Agricultural Youth today will insure our future success tomorrow. We are proud and happy to donate to the Nebraska FFA Foundation and support local FFA” says Ron Velder, Farmers Cooperative General Manager.

The mission of the Nebraska FFA Foundation is to enhance quality education/FFA programs in order to achieve excellence in leadership development, curriculum innovation and scholastic advancement of students.

15-16 CIVIC FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS

FAIRBURY CIVIC FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS

SCHOLARSHIP NAME	DESCRIPTION OF SCHOLARSHIP	CRITERIA FOR APPLYING	DUE DATE	AMOUNT	MICROSOFT WORD	PDF
HELEN V. SHEARON	Must be outstanding in music and/or drama	Upper 25% of the class academically	April 1^st	$200
FAIRBURY AREA JAYCEES	Must show a commitment to school, community, and mankind	Any senior showing an interest to further his/her education is eligible to apply and must include at least a 100 word essay explaining why you should be considered for this scholarship	April 1^st	$250
J.M. GOODSON	Must have indicated an interest to continue studies in the field of education, exhibit financial need, and have shown exemplary moral character	In the upper 25% of the class academically	April 1^st	$175
MABEL M. BURGER	Preference will be given to students exhibiting aptitude & ability in mathematics, indicated a desire to continue in the math field, exhibit financial need, and a member of the National Honor Society	Upper 25% of the class academically	April 1^st	$200

2015 Fall Academic All-State Award Winners!

The 2015 Fall Academic All-State Award Winners were recognized at the Fairbury Public Schools board meeting on December 14th. Students must have a 93% GPA and be a significant varsity contributor in order to receive the award. We are very proud of these FHS students!

Richard Zimmerman – 31 years of Excellent Service

I would like to take a moment to thank Mr. Richard Zimmerman for his excellent

service to our district! Richard has made the difficult decision to retire from the

Fairbury Public Schools Board of Education, effective this December 2015. His

dedication and service has spanned an incredible 31 years! Throughout his tenure,

he has also helped lead at the State Level as well, as he served as the President of

the Nebraska Association of School Boards in 2012.

During his tenure as a Fairbury Public School’s board member, there have been

momentous events that Richard has had the opportunity to observe, lead and to be

an integral part of since he began on the board in 1985! For example:

He has worked with 7 superintendents.
The East and West Elementary schools ceased being used as elementary attendance centers and we began using Central Elementary School.
The Fairbury Public Schools purchased The Southeast Community College building (formerly known as Fairbury Junior College) and it became Jefferson Intermediate School.
The district purchased the Armory Building for our use for the Life Program.
The successful bond election that allowed the district to build the current high school facility.

Thank you for your service Richard!

Fairbury Public Schools – Going 1:1 (Discounted Parent Fee!!)

Fairbury Public Schools will be rolling out the 1:1 Chromebook Initiative for Fairbury Jr. Sr. High School on December 21-22, 2015. The Chromebook program will include students in grades 7-12. Each student will receive a Chromebook to be used in the classroom as well as at home for educational purposes. Teachers will be using computer technology for instruction, assignments, projects, research and assessment.

Please Note: In order for students to receive a device, a parent or guardian must be in attendance at one of the two Parent Informational Sessions December 21, 2015:
1:25 – 3:35PM (with students) or
6:00-8:00 PM (Parents only)

There will be an informational session by Robert Truhe, KSB School Law Attorney in Lincoln, NE and a presentation on our Policy and Usage Handbook including Chromebook care, and acceptable use. There will also be several forms that must be signed. Families must pay a $30 Chromebook Asset Protection Policy Fee each year. The amount will be discounted to $15 this year if parents attend during our rollout on December 21st-22nd.

This is an exciting time for the community, our high school students and teachers and for the school district. We are moving into a new era! The immediate access to computers and increased use of computers in education will have a beneficial effect on educational outcomes. We hope to bring the 21st century to the forefront as well as engage students in critical thinking, collaboration and communication.

E-Registration
Just a reminder to parents that E-Registration must be completed before your student will be issued a Chromebook next Semester. If you do not have access to a computer, PLEASE contact the office BEFORE the rollout date of December 21. We will provide you the necessary items to have this completed!!

CHROMEBOOK POLICY–Parents
If E-registration is completed, parents/guardians are strongly encouraged to begin viewing and approving the Chromebook Policy. This approval process is through the parent access of PowerSchool and can be done any time. This approval MUST BE completed before your student will be issued their Chromebook next semester. If you have any questions, please contact the high school at 402 729-6116 and we will be happy to assist you.

We encourage parents to refer to our Website for more information on the 1:1 initiative. We look forward to seeing you at one of our Parent Informational Sessions in December!

Stephen Grizzle, Superintendent

Fairbury TV Announces Rollout

Fairbury Jr-Sr High Dedicates New Sign

Fairbury Jr-Sr High School recently dedicated a new sign near the entrance to the school drive that was generously donated by Endicott Clay Products. The latest sign is a bigger, better version, and there were contributions from former FHS graduates on the design and construction that make it even more special.

Mr. Gary Davis of Endicott Clay Products worked with Fairbury Public Schools administration to invite interested students to come up with possible design options for the new sign. After reviewing the designs submitted, Taylor Miller’s (‘14) rendition was chosen. There were some minor design modifications, but the essence of her original drawings inspired the creation of the new sign that depicts Fairbury Public School’s commitment to activities, the arts, and scholarly pursuits. Fairbury graduates, Jared Starr (‘94) and Justin Bennett (‘99) donated their time to complete all the masonry work on the project.

If you haven’t had the opportunity to drive by and see the new sign at the top of hill, please do so. We are very fortunate to have Endicott Clay Products and former graduates who are so willing to use their time and talents to bless Fairbury Public Schools with this beautiful new sign!!

Practice Pays Off for Livestock Judgers

On November 17th, 13 members of the Fairbury FFA Chapter competed at the District 5 Livestock Judging competition at Southeast Community College in Beatrice. The contest is split up between junior livestock evaluators that are in grades 9th and 10th and senior livestock evaluators that are in grades 11th and 12th. The top four teams in each division qualify for the state contest that is held during the Nebraska State FFA Convention in April. Fairbury was represented by four senior evaluators that consisted of Blake Bauer, Jonathan Engelman, Althea Estellar, and Madison Black. This team placed 5th and was one spot away from qualifying for state. This team, however, did have the district champion evaluator as Blake Bauer won the senior competition. Fairbury was represented by nine junior evaluators that consisted of Jordan Ruhnke, Evie Schwab, Michaela Buchli, Tori Likens, Kaylee Sipek, Olivia Koop, Tommy Kroeker, Colton Starck, and Kristin Branson. The team that consisted of Jordan Ruhnke, Evie Schwab, Michaela Buchli, and Tori Likens placed third and qualified for the state competition. Congratulations to all of the Fairbury FFA Livestock Evaluators for your hardwork and success.

November Junior High Students of the Month

Junior High Students of the month for November are 8th graders Adriana and Taylor, and 7th graders Page and Dylan. Students are nominated by their teachers based on effort and their behavior in the classroom. Congratulations Students!