Como Park Senior High Newsletter

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After an amazing and definitely challenging school year, It's hard to believe it is coming to an end. We are proud of all our students' accomplishments and know that this would not be possible without the support and dedication of our wonderful Como families and community. We endured some hardship in our community this last winter, but we were blessed to have met and worked with so many of our generous Como Park neighbors and families. Those meaningful relationships had a positive impact on our students, families, and school community and we are forever grateful. Como Park is a special place and we feel honored to be a part of it. Enjoy your summer!

June

23-July 23 Summer School in Person at Como Park or Online

24-28 Student Council Boundary Waters Trip

July

28-Aug 13 Online Summer School Only

August

8-17 Spain Trip with Students

There is an important new school bus safety rule in Minnesota. The moment a school bus’s red lights begin flashing, drivers must stop at least 20 feet away from the bus, whether the stop arm is fully extended or not.

Previously, the law stated that drivers needed to stop once the arm of the bus is down.

SPPS is thankful to the State of Minnesota and Department of Transportation for taking this important step to keep our students safe.

Fall athletics registration officially opened up Monday, June 8th. We will be transitioning to a registration system called "Bound". Here is a guide for Registering Your Student for an Activity.

Free Summer Meals for Kids 18 and Under

Summer meals are available at NO COST to kids 18 and under, and those over 18 with a disability who are enrolled in a school program. Meals will be served at schools and community sites starting June 17. The SPPS food truck will also serve meals at parks and community centers from June 22-August 21. For more information and locations, visit spps.org/summermeals

Metro Transit Summer Student Passes

Students enrolled in an SPPS high school can get a summer's worth of rides on buses and light rail for just $30 with the Metro Transit Summer Student Pass. To purchase a pass, you must provide your school's name and student ID number. Graduating seniors may also purchase a summer pass. Visit metrotransit.org/summer-pass for more information.

Are you interested in exploring medical careers, helping with public health service projects like the school blood drive, or possibly joining an international organization called HOSA-Future Health Professionals (HOSA-FHP) to compete against other chapters in MN and even states or countries at professional conferences? (To learn more, see MN HOSA-FHP Website and National HOSA-FHP Website)

If interested, please email Dr. NB at heather.norton-bower@stpaul.k12.mn.us and she'll let our student leaders of HOSA-FHP know so that you get on our email list! All grade levels are welcome and we especially encourage incoming 9th graders to learn more!

Our medical club/HOSA-FHP will be transitioning next year to meeting during after school hours so that we can have longer, more productive meetings and accommodate the PSEO schedules of many of our students. All are welcome to join the Como Park Medical Club and it's very flexible! HOSA-FHP requires an annual $25 dues/person and more commitment for success. Students can explore the HOSA-FHP option in the fall at our meetings and sign up by mid-October to be able to attend the first conference. Hope to see you in the fall!

Koua and Brandon, our athletic director and asst. athletic director, cofounded this tennis program along side a Como Park alum, Matt Olson. Training takes place all summer long right here at Como, and is open to kiddos aged 5-18. If you have young folks in your family, or friends that are interested, you can have them connect with us. Interested families with financial barriers can connect with Koua or Brandon directly.

Minnesota now requires Personal Finance for high school graduation. Starting next year, most 11th-grade students will take AP Business & Personal Finance. This course will be integrated with our school’s 3DE program to provide an opportunity for college credit and real-world business experience through 3DE's corporate partners. The course is designed to help students learn essential life skills, including budgeting, investing and financial psychology.

Current 10th-grade students who earned credit in the course this year will have met the requirement. Please talk to your student’s counselor if you have any questions regarding the Personal Finance graduation requirement. If you have any questions regarding the course content, please reach out to Brandy Siddiqui (brandy.siddiqui@spps.org).

Español, Hmoob, Soomaali, ကညီ

Will your student be participating in a fall sport at Como? Come to the fall sports dinner! It's a great way to get to know the coaches, other teammates and their families, and our athletic directors before the next school year starts.

Attention parents and guardians:

The College Success Pipeline is a free summer program designed to help students prepare for life after high school through college readiness, career exploration, and financial literacy. Students will also receive FAFSA and scholarship support and may earn college credit through Minneapolis College.

We encourage families to connect with their school counselor to learn more about the program or click here to apply.

SPRING ATHLETIC HIGHLIGHTS

Boys Tennis

A great finish to the boys tennis season: a conference championship in 20 years; John Murray and Zaid Saha with a fourth place finish in doubles and Micah Treiber surpassing his seed, earning a 3rd place finish in singles. Nice job Cougars!

Watch this video from NSPN: https://youtu.be/D_XjsrYyzpA?si=BAEm0ki5BmBYsnfR

Softball

Our overall softball record this season was 7-13. We placed 4th in Conference behind a team we beat 17-1. We played a tough schedule this year and unfortunately we had a lot of unforeseen injuries happen throughout the season which was tough. It often left us short handed and playing our starting players out of position, many in positions they have never played before. Our starting pitcher was out our entire season with a back injury .

Our team faced so much adversity this season, we were hit hard by a relentless wave of injuries. Lineups shifted daily. Players routinely stepped out of their comfort zones, playing completely out of position to fill the gaps. It was not easy and most teams would've just given up!

Instead, this team did something exceptional: they fought.

Every single game, these girls showed up, worked hard, and refused to give up. When a teammate went down, another stepped up without hesitation. They didn't complain about the unfair bounces, the tight schedules, or the scoreboards that didn't fully reflect their talent. They just played for each other and I couldn't be more proud of them!

All conference players

Ariana Silverio

Marcela Deloye Romero

Lilly Coyle

Adriana Adams

Zoey Bestmann

All Conference honorable mention

Brigid Corniea

Ela Cantellano

Badminton

The 2026 badminton season was a memorable year of growth, learning, and success for our Como Park athletes. With a new Head Coach and Assistant Coach, the season began with many adjustments as coaches and players got to know one another and build team chemistry. While we faced some challenges and tough conference matches throughout the season, our athletes continued to work hard, support each other, and improve every day. Their dedication and positive attitude helped the team finish the season strong and represent Como Park with pride.

Season Record

Varsity: 8 Wins – 6 Losses

Junior Varsity: 1 Win – 13 Losses

Team Accomplishments

• 3rd Place Team Finish at the State Tournament

Individual State Accomplishments

• 3rd Place Singles Finisher - Niko Solheid
• 4th Place Singles Finisher - Tuski Solheid

Most rewarding parts of this season was having the opportunity to serve as Head Coach for the first time, getting to know and work with such an amazing group of athletes, and being part of the Como Park team as a Como alumnus. I am incredibly proud of the growth, effort, and resilience shown by our players throughout the season. Thank you to all of our families for your support and encouragement. Your support helped make this a successful and memorable season for everyone involved. Oo Meh, Head Coach

Boys Golf

The 2025-2026 Como Boys Golf team was bursting at the seams with 16 golfers. After restarting the team in 2018, the team struggled to get enough players to field a varsity team of six players. With the added depth and youth, the cougars were able to field a full varsity and JV squad for the first time. The team was led by four seniors (Henry S, Sparrow L, Finn M, and Charlie B), two 10th graders (Logan B and Louden D), 7 8th graders (Elliot L, Charles Y, Duncan P, Luc D, Auggie J, Isaac V, and Landon W-N), and 3 7th graders (Frank C, Rhodes Z-F, and Hank T). Even with the depth the team was plagued by random injuries this season, but the strength of the team showed through all year.

The Varsity squad placed 3rd in the SPPS Conference in solid fashion. This was the second year in a row doing so. The team posted record scores throughout the season in comparison to years past. The Conference Finals were led by a 5th place individual finish by Henry S, 8th place by Elliot L, and 10th place by Sparrow L. In Sectional 4AA, the team placed 12th in an extremely difficult section, moving up one slot from the prior year. Elliot L was the first Como Golfer to move onto Day 2, a rare feat.

On the Junior Varsity side, the team was able to get tons of rounds and practice with our new Assistant Coach Alvin Leary. Even though there are no team scores, each and every player improved drastically. Coach Dale Engman was honored as Coach of the Year for the second year in a row. Later in July, the team will volunteer to caddy at the 3M Open pro-ams to raise funds for the team. The team plans to upgrade their team bags, uniforms, and get a golf simulator to practice on at school. Things are looking up for the future of Como Golf for years to come!

Track

Charlie Loth completed the triple crown STATE CHAMPIONSHIP winning the cross country title, 3200 title, and the 1600, with a winning time of 4:17; ALL IN THE SAME YEAR! WHAT AN ACCOMPLISHMENT! CONGRATULATIONS CHARLIE, COACHES, AND COUGAR FAMILIES!

Ben Clark and Tate Prinson also qualified in the mile and hurdles respectively. Many athletes achieved personal best! Way to go Cougars!

Our newest Unit Leader (Unarmed Color Guard Team), Cadet Sergeant Noreah Chatman-Hurley in action this Memorial Day at the Woodbury, Minnesota Memorial Day Celebration. Semper Fi.

Sophomore led. The MCJROTC annual Battle of Company event was orchestrated well and smooth sailing for this four hour of comradery and fun. Sports and Milk Relay 🤮 Competition between the four companies to crown a winning company. Okay, Alpha (Seniors); say it, isn’t so again this year. 🤔

Cultural Day at Como Park is always a big hit with the students. Here are our MCJROTC cadets in support of the Schools Cultural Appreciation event.

🤠Korkow Ranch CLC26. In the books, but never forgotten memories made with Ken & Liz Korkow and their slew of the greatest volunteers. A four day event bonding all of us for life in SY26-27. Comradery and Leadership that cannot be explained, you had to be there to get it. God bless America.🤠

The final awards for the 9.6 3DE cases are attached if you would like to see who received final awards. Congratulations to Mr. Willis and Mr. Salonek, whose teams were co-winners of the 9.6 Delta Case and Mr. Youle's team who won the 10.6 State Farm Case! Until next school year...!

Case 9.6 Winners

Case 10.6 Winners

The American Indian Education Program held its annual Senior Recognition event on May 19th at the Minnesota Historical Society. SPPS Indian Education graduating seniors were honored with a medicine pouch, a graduation stole and an eagle feather. An eagle feather ceremony was performed by community elders Jerry Dearly (Pine Ridge Oglala Lakota) and Charlene Day (Boise Forte Ojibwe), with honor songs from Opiee Day and Toka Maza.

Xzarin Beaulieu, Red Lake Ojibwe at Como Park Senior and Dexter Paasch, Ho Chunk at Harding Senior were the student speakers. Both shared experiences with student leadership, language learning, cultural knowledge and growth they experienced while attending Saint Paul Public Schools. The following Como Seniors received an eagle feather they earned for graduation Xzarin Beaulieu Red Lake Ojibwe, Orca Furney-Gouge Turtle Mountain Ojibwe, Vivian Furney-Gouge Turtle Mountain Ojibwe, Jean-Paul (JP) Gunderson Red Lake Ojibwe, Freya Kaul White Earth Ojibwe, Calee Kinchelow Cherokee, Evonnie Wilson Cherokee.

Ramsey County Emergency Assistance

• What it covers: Rent, housing costs, and utility payments for those facing a sudden financial crisis.
• How to apply: Apply easily online via the state's MNbenefits platform. For immediate questions, call the Emergency Assistance Hotline at 651-266-4884

Legal & Tenant Support

If you have an upcoming court date or need advice on an eviction notice, you can access free or low-cost legal advocacy through:

• Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS): Call 651-222-5863 or visit the SMRLS website.
• HOMEline: Call 651-291-9560 or visit HOMEline Minnesota to get free, confidential legal advice for Minnesota tenants. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]