LAPS Newsletter

School Board Meeting

Tuesday, December 9

School Boardroom

Friday, December 19

End of Fall Semester

Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2

Winter Break

Congratulations to the Los Alamos High School NJROTC Topper Company who walked away from the Northern NM Area 20 district meet as champions and secured their ticket to take place in the regional drill meet in Phoenix, AZ at the end of January.

Barranca Mesa Elementary had 23 participants this seaon. All runners were paired with their running buddies, and every single girl crossed the finish line! Top three finishers include:

• 1st place: Elanie Hopwood
• 2nd place: Julia Moss
• 3rd place: Kvetka Caruthers

Aspen Elementary was also well represented at the Jingle Bell 5K.

Congratulations to the Barranca Mesa Elementary Spelling Bee winners:

1st Place: Annabel Tucker

Congratulations. to the winners in the Piñon Elementary Spelling Bee:

The District Spelling Bee will be held on Wednesday, January 28, 2026 in the Los Alamos High School Speech Theater.

Preschool hours are 8:10 am - 2:40 pm, Monday through Friday.

The PreK3 program is in session Monday through Thursday. The morning session runs from 8:00 am - 11 am, and the afternoon session runs from 11:40 am - 2:40 pm.

Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2

Winter Break

Elementary School hours are 8:10 am - 2:40 pm.Check your school site for daily bell schedules.

Tuesday, December 9

Mountain Elementary School Spelling Bee

Wednesday, December 10

Chamisa Winter Concert

Mountain Band, Orchestra & Choir Concert

Mountain Choir Caroling

Thursday, December 11

Pinon Band, Orchestra & Choir Winter Concert

Friday, December 12

Barranca Winter Band, Orchestra & Choir Concert

Tuesday, December 16

Barranca 3rd & 4th grade Music Program

Piñon 1st & 2nd Grade Musical

Thursday, December 18

Bobcat Choir & K-Kids Caroling

Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2

Winter Break

Aspen and Mountain Elementary Schools (joint): Thursday, December 11

Barranca Mesa Elementary School: Thursday, December 11

Chamisa Elementary School: Wednesday, December 17

Piñon Elementary School: Wednesday, December 10

The District Science Fair is scheduled for Saturday, January 24, 2026.

Find out more information about your school.

Monday, December 8

Choir Concert

Duane Smith Auditorium

6 pm

Tuesday, December 9

Students of the Semester, 7th grade

Cafeteria

7:30 am

Tuesday, December 9

Lunch Crafts - Winter Wish

Wednesday, December 10

Winter Band Concert

Duane Smith Auditorium

6 pm

Thursday, December 11

Students of the Semester, 8th grade

Cafeteria

7:30 am

Thursday, December 11

Orchestra Concert

Duane Smith Auditorium

6:30 pm

Saturday, December 13

Saturday School

Tuesday, December 16 - Friday, December 19

Final Exams

Friday, December 19

End of Fall Semester

Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2

Winter Break

Monday, January 5

Staff Planning Day, no school for students

Tuesday, January 6

Start of Spring Semester

Final exams for the fall semester are scheduled for Tuesday, December 16 through Friday, December 19.

School hours at the middle school are 8:40 am - 3:30 pm. Click below to view the A/B calendar and bell schedule.

Hawk Hangout is a free event held every month during the school year for Middle School Teens. Events are held once a month on Thursday in different locations locally and regionally.

Monday, December 8

Choir Concert

Wednesday, December 10

Winter Band Concert

Thursday, December 11

Orchestra Concert

Friday, December 12

Choir Caroling @ Senior Center

Saturday, December 13

Saturday School

Tuesday, December 16 - Friday, December 19

Fall Semester Finals

Friday, December 19

End of Fall Semester

Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2

Winter Break

Final exams for the fall semester are scheduled for Tuesday, December 16 through Friday, December 19.

School hours at the high school are 8:30 am - 3:40 pm. Click below to view the A/B calendar and bell schedule.

Check out the dates for ACT and SAT weekend testing.

Please note: Due to schedule conflicts, the December 6 SAT and December 13 ACT will not be given at Los Alamos High School. Students interested in testing on these dates are encouraged to check out other testing locations.

Elks National Foundation Scholarship Programs

Elks Most Valuable Student Scholarship

Legacy Awards

LANL Foundation

LANL Foundation Scholarships

WM Four Corners Scholarship Program

WM Four Corners Scholarship

Toyota High School Scholarship Challenge

Click here for more information.

New Mexico Educators Association

NMMEA Music Scholarship

Need to get caught up on missing assignments or late work? Sign up to attend Saturday School!

December 13 is the last day for Saturday School before the end of the fall semester.

Saturday School is open to all Los Alamos Middle School and Los Alamos High School students as an opportunity to catch up on late work, complete missed assignments, take make-up tests and receive help with homework.

All Saturday School sessions are in person in E-wing at LAHS. Sessions run from 8:30 am - 12:00 pm.

Saturday School FAQs

To register, email lahssaturdayschool@laschools.net with the student's name and date requested.

Click here for more information.

Math Kangaroo USA is a national nonprofit organization with a mission of helping students love math. For 26 years, Math Kangaroo has organized an annual international mathematical competition for thousands of students in grades K-12 (though kindergarten students must be fluent readers). Math Kangaroo's focus is on improving students' math scores and teaching them new strategies for solving word and logic problems, helping them with critical thinking and gaining confidence in the classroom.

Piñon Elementary School will be a host site for the Math Kangaroo International Competition on March 19, 2026. Students self-prep using the online resource provided, or in whatever way you wish, and the small registration fee is paid by parents directly to the organization. The test site is an in-person, paper & pencil test site and we are offering two sessions, 10:00am and 1:00pm. It is open to all grade levels and schools in northern New Mexico.

Go here for more information: https://mathkangaroo.org/

Go here for detailed registration directions: Registration Directions

Curricula: The Math Kangaroo Curricula are presented as a general guideline on what may be expected at the Math Kangaroo competition test.

Math Kangaroo Curriculum for grades 1 and 2

Math Kangaroo Curriculum for grades 3 and 4

Math Kangaroo Curriculum for grades 5 and 6

Math Kangaroo Curriculum for grades 7 and 8

Math Kangaroo Curriculum for grades 9 and 10

Math Kangaroo Curriculum for grades 11 and 12

The Los Alamos Public Schools Board meets on the second Tuesday and fourth Thursday of each month with the exception of April, November and December. All meetings are held in person and live streamed via Zoom beginning at 5:30 pm. Click here for more information about the School Board meetings.

November Meeting

Tuesday, December 9 @ School Boardroom

Los Alamos Middle School

Basketball (Girls)

Monday, December 8 vs. Memorial Middle School @ Memorial Middle School, 7th grade 4 pm,

8th grade 5 pm

Wednesday, December 10 vs. St. Michael's Middle School @ Los Alamos High School Griffith Gym,

7th grade 4 pm, 8th grade 5 pm

Los Alamos High School

Boys Basketball

Tuesday, December 9 vs. Kirtland Cengtral High School @ Kirtland Central High School,

Varsity 4:30 pm

Thursday, December 11 vs. Valencia High School @ Valencia High School, JV 4 pm, Varsity 5:30 pm

Friday, December 12 vs. Santa Fe Prep @ Santa Fe Prep, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 4:30 pm, Varsity 6 pm

Tuesday, December 16 vs. Escalante High School @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 5:30 pm

Saturday, December 20 vs. St. Michael's High School @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 11 am, JV 12:30 pm, Varsity 2 pm

Monday, December 29, Tuesday, December 30 and Wednesday, December 31,

Stu Clark Tournament @ New Mexico Highlands University, Varsity

Girls Basketball

Tuesday, December 9 vs. Kirtland Central High School @ Kirtland Central High School, JV 4:30 pm, Varsity 6 pm

Thursday, December 11 vs. McCurdy School @ McCurdy School, JV 4 pm, Varsity 5:30 pm

Thursday, December 18, Friday, December 19 and Saturday, December 20, St. Michael's Holiday Tournament @ St. Michael's High School, Varsity

Swimming & Diving

Friday, December 12, Demon Invite @ Genoveva Chavez Community Center

Wrestling

Saturday, December 13, Taos Tangle in the Jungle @ Taos High School

Saturday, December 20, Tucumcari Rattler invite @ Tucumcari High School

Los Alamos Public Schools is accepting nominations for the 2026 Athletic Hall of Fame. All submissions are due no later than Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026.

Nomination forms are available on the Athletics webpage or at this link: Hall of Fame Nomination Form.

New inductees will be notified by Feb. 1, 2026. The Hall of Fame brunch will take place on Saturday, April 11, 2026.

View a list of past inductees here or click here for more information about the program.

Los Alamos Public Schools (LAPS) is pleased to offer a free breakfast and lunch to all of our students.

LAPS utilizes the Offer Versus Serve (OVS) model pertaining to USDA and NSLP requirements. This model provides students with more of a choice for both breakfast and lunch service.

If you have any questions or comments regarding the school lunch program please send an email to m.johnson@laschools.net.

Los Alamos AP Government Students Organize Food Drive

LAHS Holds Fall Letter Of Intent Signing Day

NJROTC Presents Holiday Gift-Wrapping Fundraiser

Topper Boys Basketball Falls To Portales Rams 63-88

Los Alamos Public Schools is hiring for several positions, in particular Educational Assistants and Substitutes. Click here for more information about working for LAPS and all current job openings.

Educational Assistants are especially needed at the middle school. There are also positions available at the elementary schools.

Students in the Los Alamos High School AP US Government classes organized a food drive during the month of November which supported the county's I Can Help program. Partnering with the National Honor Society, the classes set out to collect non-perishable items to help local households supplement their SNAP benefits. By the end of the drive, students had gathered a significant amount of canned goods, pasta, peanut butter, and other staples that will go directly to households in need. Read more here.

LAPS is aware that many of our families and staff are impacted by the current government shutdown, If you are experiencing any hardship there are resources available.

Los Alamos Public Schools are supporting the community's efforts through "I Can Help". Los Alamos County Social Services Division has joined forces with LA Cares, Self-Help, Trinity on the Hill, Los Alamos MainStreet, and other community partners to launch the “I Can Help” program. This is a collaborative effort to provide emergency food meal kits and coordinate community donations for those in need beginning Nov. 7 at designated locations. You can find detailed information here. Working through "I Can Help" is the best way to make donations or request support.

The Los Alamos YMCA offers several programs for youth and teens.

The Santa Fe Symphony offers several music programs.