NMSHS Panther Post

Nederland Middle-Senior HS Community,

This morning, just before lunch, the entire school gathered in the auditorium to celebrate Liz Evans receiving the Impact on Education Blake Peterson Lifetime Achievement award. This award is sponsored by the Blake Peterson family and is given annually to a BVSD employee who has gone above and beyond for their career in the school district. While it was a surprise event, it was not a surprise that the Impact on Education foundation and the Peterson family selected Liz. We are very very lucky to have had such a high quality and dedicated teacher as we do with Liz Evans. She is one of a kind and has established a great legacy here in the Nederland community. If you do not know, Liz is retiring from her teaching position after 40 years of service. She has left a lasting legacy on Nederland Middle Senior High School. Congratulations Liz!

Good Morning Panthers. I am writing this from Steamboat Springs this morning. Today is the last day of our winter sports. Our High School Nordic Team finishes competing in the CHSAA State Championships today. They’ve done a great job this season, and are currently sitting in 7th Place for Girls’ and 9th Place for Boys’ after yesterday’s classic race. All of our 8 state athletes have done a great job, including Abby Hess (25th place yesterday), Maeve Dufton (30th), Amika Begin (31st), and Maddie Perry (45th) on the girls’ side, as well Ben Weber (37th yesterday), Jonny Moss (53rd), Finn Fitzer (55th), and Lukey Mahorski-Bodley (58th) on the boys’ side. They race skate this morning, followed by a mixed classic and skate relay this afternoon. Thank you to Coaches Dan Vardamis and Allie Wagner who have led the students this season. They really are a fun team to watch. Congratulations to all these Panthers!

High School Spring Sports officially started on Monday for both Track & Field as well as Girls’ Soccer. However, there is still time to sign up for Middle School sports. Middle School students register at this link. Completed registrations and payments through RevTrak are due before the first day of practice. If you have questions regarding registration, please contact Janet Turnburke. Spring sports offerings are listed below:

• Middle School Boys’ Soccer with Coach TBD (contact Sean DePaula) - practice starts 3/12, with completed registration and payment due 3/11

• Middle School Track & Field with Coach Mary Joyce - practice starts 4/8, with completed registration and payment

Finally, there is a Spring Basketball Mini Camp coming up for all 6th, 7th, and 8th grade boys and girls next week. This is a fundraiser led by our High School Basketball teams and coaches ($50/student), with fun drills and games covering footwork, shooting, passing, dribbling, rebounding, offense and defense. Please see the flyer later in the Panther Post for more information on how to register.

Go Panthers!

Congratulations to Keahi Pelkum Donahue for being named a National Merit Scholarship Finalist. Keahi earned this honor through participation in College Board’s PSAT-NMSQT exam. Read more about National Merit Scholarships and begin preparing for you highest PSAT/SAT exam score through the tools below:

SAT/PSAT Testing Guides: State testing planning for April is underway. Recently Ms. Jill met with high school students to talk about the upcoming exams. The PSAT prepares students in the 09th and 10th grades to take a future SAT. SAT stands for Scholastic Assessment Test. It's a standardized test that measures a student's readiness for college. In 11th grade students will take an April SAT. The SAT is widely used for college admissions in the United States. Students at Nederland High are already registered, and their April exam cost is covered. These exams will occur the week of April 14th (dates and time details to follow). Parents can find more about the exam information on the College Board website. Student study guides are available or students can practice skills through their Bluebook app or Khan Academy.

Spring 2025 Colorado PSAT 8_9 Student Guide.pdf

Spring 2025 Colorado PSAT 10 Student Guide.pdf

Spring 2025 Colorado SAT School Day Student Guide.pdf

Congratulations to Keahi Pelkum Donahue and Laila Waldron for their amazing achievement at the BVSD science fair. Both of these Nederland students were awarded high honors and are eligible for a spot in the upcoming statewide Colorado Science and Engineering Fair. If your high school student is interested in science fair participation, talk with Ms. Kristy Campbell about the Science Research Seminar class for Nederland High School. You can join the class for 25-26 school year.

2025 Spring College Fair in Denver is on Sunday, March 09.

1:00 - 4:00pm. See details, including a list of participating colleges, here.

Visit with admissions representatives and find out about the latest majors, campus life, scholarships and more.

RYLA Rotary Youth Summer Leadership Training: The Peak to Peak Rotary Club conducts fundraisers so we can offer free summer leadership camp spots to middle school and high school students. They are seeking Nederland 10th - 12th graders to apply to the summer RYLA Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, program. This is a week-long, overnight leadership-training program that promotes, encourages, and rewards outstanding young people. An all-expenses paid six-day conference brings together young people from Colorado, Wyoming, and Western Nebraska to share ideas about becoming better leaders. Students participate in activities that help build confidence and leadership skills (problem-solving games, challenge course, group discussions, and team building activities).

• High School RYLA is open to current sophomores, juniors, and seniors. Camp days are Sun - Fri, July 27 - Aug. 1. Students must be available to attend ALL 6 days.

• YoungRYLA is an all-expenses paid leadership camp and is open to all current 7th graders. Students who apply have their choice of 2 dates: June 22-27 or July 6-11 and must attend all days.

Both RYLA and YoungRYLA camps are held at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park.

Applications for both RYLA and YoungRYLA are open now through March 30 at www.rockymountainryla.org --Important: be sure to have your student select Peak to Peak Rotary Club when they apply. That will forward the application to our local representative.

RYLA Flyer 2.21.25.pdf

7th grade RYLA Flyer2.21.25.pdf

Newest local scholarships:

County Clerks Association Scholarship: The Colorado County Clerks Association Scholarship is established to aid outstanding Colorado graduating high school seniors in furthering their education, particularly in the field of public service. The regional scholarships will be awarded to qualifying students on an objective and non-discriminatory basis. The scholarships will be one-time awards on a regional basis:County Clerks Scholarship.pdf

Alan Green Foundation - The Alan Green Memorial Foundation provides several scholarships for students who reside in Gilpin County. Fill the attached application and upload your documents to the website by March 31, 2025. AlanGreenFoundation.pdf

Our local scholarship list contains opportunities that are advertised to Nederland High students. The list is updated as we receive them. See the list here. These are also shared with eligible grade levels, through the Nederland High google classroom.

Seniors: BVSD hosts drop in FAFSA help, see BVSD FAFSA help page, or connect with Ms. Jill for assistance.