Jefferson Community Newsletter

May Day! May Day!

We are less than 10 students days from summer. What are your plans for summer? I would encourage you to take advantage of everything that North Platte has to offer:

• North Platte Library (The library is more than books - check out their summer programs!)
• North Platte Recreation (We are blessed with a supportive community that will bring new water adventures to our community!) *Dr. E Tip: this link takes you to Cody Park Rides and Concessions! Their ice cream is the best!!!
• Community Events - Camps, Resources, and FUN!
• Nebraskaland Days - Parades, Fun Festival, Food, Rodeo and Concerts!
• Dusty Trails - Horses, cows, river rides and more!
• Buffalo Bill Ranch - What a gem of history!
• Lincoln County Historical Museum - check out the iron lung or a one room schoolhouse!
• Prairie Arts Center - you can learn to paint, scult and even crochet!
• Lincoln County Fair - what a great opportunity to see farm animals and talents of our county from young to experienced!

As a proud Lincoln County lifer, you can't ever say there is nothing to do! This life is what you make it and well . . .it is pretty good in NP!

As a school, we read in our classroom about the American Revolution and the Declaration of Independence. This 4th of July marks the 250th Anniversary of our Independence. Ask your student about the main characters of the American Revolution!

Educationally,

Dr. Tami Eshleman

We celebrate our students but let's give a shoutout to our staff. Mrs. DiGiovanni (Education) and Mrs. Nelson (Culture) were honored as the Women of Achievement. These two ladies have dedicated their careers to support students in their learning.

May 1st - 5th Grade DARE Day

May 4th - 3rd Grade Animals Inside and Out

May 4th - Kindergarten Josh the Otter

May 5th - 5th Grade Dare Graduation/ Promotion

May 6th - Graduation Walk

May 11th - 4th Grade Living History

May 12th - Field Day

May 13th - Last Day

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”. ~ Nelson Mandela Last year, Jefferson had several opportunities to get books into the hands of our students. We had a Book Blast, Bingo for Books, Toys for Tots Book Giveaway, One Book One School and RSVP books. We are going to continue to focus on the importance of Literacy but now we are adding Numeracy.

What is Numeracy? The ability to understand and work with numbers. Numeracy is the ability to apply strategies with accuracy and efficiency. This is more than memorizing math facts. Stay tuned. . .

North Platte Camps, Sports, and Learning Opportunities

North Platte Public Schools has created a site to check out all the different events for students in the North Platte area. Please check back often to see how your child can grow beyond the school setting.

Thank you for your support through our annual fundraiser. Those funds are used to support different projects for all students throughout the year. Annually, PTO co-sponsors our Teacher Appreciation.

North Platte Public Schools is committed to providing PE daily to our elementary students. Please make sure students either wear or bring tennis shoes to school daily.

North Platte Public Schools works collaboratively with families to ensure that students are in school. Jefferson has a goal of over 95% attendance. Jefferson had 95.93% attendance school-wide for the April 2026. Woot! Woot! Congrats to 1st Grade for having the best overall attendance for April 2026.

Mr. Furlong will be handing our Attendance Incentives. Mr. Furlong, along with Mrs. Hahn will be facilitating our Collaborative Attendance Plans.

North Platte Public Schools believes in the importance of children being in school. Jefferson Elementary will be monitoring building, grade, classroom, and individual student's attendance. We are gifted with prizes for students who maintain less than Five or More Absences. We also recognize students with Perfect Attendance. This year we are monitoring our Monthly Absences by Grade, please make sure your students are coming to school.

If your child will not be in school, please call the office before 8:00am. If students are seen by a medical professional, please provide a note to the office. Students who miss more than 10 days are required to have an Attendance Meeting with Principal and/ or Dean and Parents. As required by state statute, student who are chronically absent will have a referral sent to the County Attorney.

Students who have a temperature above 100* will be sent home and will not be able to return until they have been fever free for 24 hours without medication.

Jefferson Elementary participates in the Community Eligibility Program (CEP). CEP schools provide free breakfast and lunch to schools. We are fortunate to provide this resource to families. If students bring their own lunch and want to buy a milk, they must bring $0.50. Some students want to have a second entrée, parents would have to provide funds for additional entrées.

Here is the link to the Sodexo Website for North Platte Public Schools.

Hug and Go​

​Jefferson is a Hug & Go School. As a learning environment, we want to make sure our students have a positive experience. Our teachers and staff love your students and will take great care of them!

Arrivals

Students may be dropped off on 3rd Street and enter the doors by the gym or they may be dropped off at the Main Entrance Doors. After 8:00am, ALL students needs to be dropped off at the Main Entrance on 2nd Street.

Walking Club (Optional)

To assist families with multiple drop-offs and to get to work, we start Walking Club at 7:45. Students are expected to follow all school rules once they enter the building. This means that all cell phones and electronics are put away. Supervision begins at 7:30am when all students will report to East Gym where they will sit in their grade levels. At 7:45am, students will begin Walking Club.

• Kindergarten and 1st will walk in the East Gym.
• 2nd and 3rd will walk in the West Gym
• 4th and 5th will walk inside loop in the West Wing .

At 7:55, teachers will meet their students and transition to their classrooms.

Dismissal

Dismissal will take place in three zones:

• Kindergarten/ 1st - South Entrance
• 2nd/ 3rd and Bus plus Daycares - 3rd Street
• 4th/ 5th - Southwest Playground

If there are siblings, the older siblings go to the youngest sibling's dismissal.

At 3:35pm, all students not picked up (except Daycare) will be brought to the office and parents will be contacted.

Per Handbook, students are expected to be picked up or to leave school grounds immediately after dismissal. In the event no one can be contacted to pick up a child after school, police may be called after 4:00.

Parent Portal Link

Instructions: Login to Parent Portal (If you don’t have a parent portal account yet, email us at parentportal@nppsd.org
Click on “More”, then “Online Registration”
Click on “Start" by "Next Year Existing Student Registration”

You will see your students listed, then click “Begin Registration.” Follow the instructions to verify and update your family and student information. If you have any questions you can contact the Welcome Center by emailing parentportal@nppsd.org.
Note for new families to NPPS that have already registered their student(s) for this fall, do not need to do the annual OLR update at this time.
Note for split household families: The first guardian to sign-in to complete the OLR Update process will take precedence. The remaining household guardian will be unable to update information through the portal. If you have updates to your information please contact the Welcome Center by emailing parentportal@nppsd.org.

The Campus Parent App puts school information at your fingertips with real-time access to announcements, assignments, attendance, grades, schedules, and more.
Parent engagement has a direct correlation to student success. Students with engaged parents are more likely to have higher self-esteem, lower absenteeism and earn high grades or test scores. So what are you waiting for? Log into Campus Parent and get engaged today!

Jefferson Elementary is a Title I School. All teachers and paraprofessionals meet the professional qualifications as required by Federal Law. Parents have the right to request credentials of staff.