Lincoln School News
August 2026
Hello Lincoln Families,
Welcome to the 2026-2027 school year! We are just a few weeks away from the start of the year and we are gearing up to welcome all our staff back and to welcome you! You might be returning for another year or you might be joining us for the first time. Either way, we are happy to welcome you!
If you are new to Lincoln, allow me to introduce myself. I’m Justin Lang, your building principal. I am starting my 18th year in the district and my third year as Principal at Lincoln. I live in Northfield with my wife Andrea who is a special education teacher in Northfield. We have two amazing children, August who will be a 4th grader this year and Forrest, who is going into Kindergarten! My previous experience includes 15 years as a special education teacher within the Owatonna Public Schools. I started here at Lincoln in 2009 serving 2 years before moving to Willow Creek for one year. I was then asked to join the McKinley staff where I taught until rejoining the Lincoln Family as principal. I thoroughly enjoy my role here and I look forward to connecting with you all.
Now Serving Breakfast!!
New for this year, we will be serving hot breakfast every day in the lunchroom. We are excited to be able to offer this to our students as it will get warm food options to them daily and it should allow for additional instructional time that was previously taken up with breakfast in the classroom. This is free for all students.
We will serve from 7:45-8:10. Staff will let students come in at 7:45 and eat in the lunchroom. They will then head back outside until 8:00 when we open the building up for all students to enter. For those riding the bus who want breakfast, we will have them come in door 6 and head right to the lunchroom. If they do not want breakfast, we will have them join the rest of the students on the east side of the building. This will change our drop off process so please keep reading for those updates!
Morning Drop Off and Afternoon Pick Up
Drop Off and Supervision
Morning supervision begins at 7:45. If you plan to drop your students off before 7:45, please know they will not have adult supervision. Due to staff hours and contractual requirements, we are unable to send staff our prior to this time.
NEW this year, grades 1-5 will be entering through the front doors. We will not be entering door 8 on the north side of the building. In the past, this has been a door that 1st graders commonly entered. However, with serving breakfast, we want the majority of students to enter our main doors.
We will still have our Kindergarten students line up outside door 7 by the Kindergarten classrooms. We will have staff bring them down for breakfast if they are going to eat breakfast.
To help make this transition a success, please work to pull forward in the drop off lane. You will likely see me in the drop off lane waving you forward or letting others pull in. After you have dropped your student off, you can pull into the “through” lane and exit the parking lot.
If you want to walk your student to the front doors or the Kindergarten doors, I ask that you park in the lot or on the street and walk from there. Parking in the lane will cause backups and slow down our drop off process.
Please be patient as we move through this process. I will work to help make the drop off experience at Lincoln safe, while working to make it as smooth as possible.
Dismissal
Students will be released at the end of our day which is 2:40. Classroom teachers will bring students outside to the buses or to those who are being picked up in the pick up line. Please plan to pick your students up between 2:40 and 2:50. If you arrive after 2:50 and do not see your student(s) waiting, they may be in the office. If students are not picked up we will make a call to the primary contact to confirm plans for pick up.
Absence Reporting
In the event your student(s) will be absent from school please be sure to communicate this with the office. You can call our attendance line at 507-444-8105 and leave a message. You can also call our main office at 507-444-8100 during office hours and talk to Pam or Cheryl. If you have a planned absence, please complete the absence pre-approval form, located in the office. Please do not rely on the classroom teacher to communicate the absence. We ask that you work through our office attendance process when communicating absences.
New Learning for 2026-27
This year, our entire building will be implementing a new math curriculum. Illustrative Math, or IM as we like to call it, is a nationally recognized, research-based math curriculum. It is designed to give students a deeper understanding of mathematics through real-world applications, hands-on activities, and meaningful discussions. IM aligns with the new Minnesota math standards and provides consistent, high-quality learning experiences across grade levels.
Last year we also kicked off our new Language Arts “Knowledge” curriculum, called Wit and Wisdom. We will be continuing to keep both resources at the forefront of our student experience to ensure we are delivering guaranteed, viable curriculums. We look forward to the growth we will see with our students!
Lincoln Families Facebook Page
Feel free to join the Lincoln Elementary Families Page on Facebook. We are excited to use this platform to share our story. You can find updates, events and celebrations going on at Lincoln.
Each month I will add some notes and highlights from the main office, as well as the rest of our building. Be sure to read the whole newsletter each month so you can stay informed. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions, comments or concerns. I am happy to connect in person, on the phone or through email. Have a great rest of your summer and we will see you soon for Classroom Connection Days.
Justin Lang
Principal, Lincoln Elementary
507-444-8100
August, 27th-Classroom Connection Day Kdg through 5th grade-7:30am-1:00pm
August, 31st-Classroom Connection Day Kdg through 5th grade 11:30am-7:00pm
September 1st-Classroom Connection Day 1st grade-5th grade 7:30am-3:00pm
September 2nd-1st day of school for grades 1-5 and Kdg A-M students
September 3rd-1st day of school for kdg N-Z students
September 4th-No School
September 7th-No School
September 8th-First day for all kdg students together
September 8th-PTO meeting at 6:00pm in the art room
September 9th-PTO fundraiser kick off
September 10th-PTO Back to School Bash on the east playground at Lincoln 5:30pm-7:00pm
September 23rd-Lifetouch Picture Day
September 25th-Bring your Parent to PE Day
September 29th-4th Grade Kindness Retreat
October 2nd-Homecoming Early Release at 12:40pm
Smile! Picture Day is just around the corner. Students will have their individual school photos taken during the school day on Wednesday, September 23rd and picture re-takes with group pictures will be Tuesday, October 20th.
These photos will be used for school records, the yearbook and are also available for families to purchase. If you do not want your child's picture taken, make sure you indicate this when filling out the annual update. Please help your child come prepared by dressing in clothing they feel confident wearing.
We can't wait to see all those bright smiles!
We are looking for responsible and dependable students to serve as Safety Patrols! Safety Patrols help to keep are students safe and are important leaders in the school.
Safety Patrol Training will be on the following days. Students may pick one of the days below to attend. Meet in Mrs. Sturges' room at Lincoln. Room 213.
- Wednesday, August 26th from 3:30-4:30
- Monday, August 31st from 10:00-11:00
We will continue to donate lost and found items the last Thursday of each month. Thursday, September 24th is the day will donate unclaimed items in September.
Thank you to the Lincoln student council for their help in keeping these items organized.
Lincoln Elementary School
Website: https://lincoln.isd761.org/
Location: 747 Havana Road
Phone: 507-444-8100
Facebook: Lincoln Families Facebook Page