LAPS Newsletter

Friday, December 19

End of Fall Semester

Monday, December 22 - Friday, January 2

Winter Break

Monday, January 5

Staff PD and Planning Day

No school for students

Tuesday, January 6

Start of Spring Semester

Wednesday, January 14

2026 All-State Music Conference

Performance by Los Alamos High School Jazz 1 (2026 NMMEA State Honor Jazz Band)

Popejoy Hall

Monday, January 19

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

No school for staff and students

Friday, January 23 and Saturday, January 24

District Science Fair

Wednesday, January 28

District Spelling Bee

New Mexico School Boards Association (NMSBA) has selected the Los Alamos Public Schools Board of Education as the 2025 Large District School Board of the Year. Los Alamos was recognized for their exemplary governance, visionary leadership, and significant impact on student success across the district.

Members of the Los Alamos Public Schools Board of Education from left, Melanie Colgan, president; Sondra Wyman, vice president; Lauren Coupland, secretary and members Ellen Specter and Ryan Adams.

Read more here.

The last few weeks of the fall semester have included music performances, and choir, band and orchestra concerts at several school sites.

The Barranca Bobcat Choir went caroling at Aspen Ridge. The high school choir visited several businesses, the Senior Center and the public library.

Students at Barranca Mesa Elementary enjoyed spirit days before the end of the semester, including pajama day.

Aspen and Barranca Elementary Schools' Girls on the Run programs had 40 girls participate in the community-invited Jingle Bell Run in Santa Fe earlier this month. All the girls finished the 5K, many of them for the first time.

Congratulations!

The Alpha Hawks Robotics Team 7813 from Los Alamos Middle School placed second in New Mexico region’s first qualifying match earlier this month. This FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) competition was held in Albuquerque at the La Academia de Esperanza Charter School.

Seventeen teams from New Mexico and Arizona competed in this year’s challenge, ‘Decode’, where teams design, build, and program their robots to compete in an alliance format against other teams. Team 7813 Alpha Hawks won three of five matches.

The Alpha Hawks also received the Control Award, which recognizes the use of sensors and programing in the robot’s operations. The next qualifier competition will be in Alamogordo, NM in January 2026.

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

Monday, January 5

Staff Planning Day, no school for students

Tuesday, January 6

Start of Spring Semester

Monday, January 19

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

No school for staff and students

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

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

Monday, January 19

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

No school for staff and students

Friday, January 23 and Saturday, January 24

District Science Fair

Wednesday, January 28

District Spelling Bee

Find out more information about your school.

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

Monday, January 19

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

No school for staff and students

Friday, January 23 and Saturday, January 24

District Science Fair

Wednesday, January 28

District Spelling Bee

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. The next event will be on January 22.

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

Monday, January 19

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

No school for staff and students

Friday, January 23 and Saturday, January 24

District Science Fair

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.

Presidential 1776 Award
The U.S. Department of Education has announced the launch of the Presidential 1776 Award, a nationwide competition recognizing exceptional student knowledge of America's founding. This award program establishes a national scholarship contest that evaluates students’ understanding of civics and the principles that shaped the United States.

High school students will compete in three rounds of multiple-choice and verbal examinations developed independently by the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation. Three winners will receive scholarships totaling $250,000, with the national finals to be held in Washington, D.C. in June 2026.

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 High School Jazz I has been selected as the 2026 New Mexico Music Educators Association (NMMEA) State Honor Jazz Band. The group will perform at the 2026 All-State Music Conference on January 14, 2026 in Popejoy Hall. Click here for more information and tickets.

All-State Band, Orchestra and Choir concerts will take place on Saturday, January 17.

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.

Newly elected school board members Antonio Jaurigue and Margie Serrato will be sworn in at the first January meeting.

Next Meetings

Tuesday, January 13 @ School Boardroom

Thursday, January 22 @ Barranca Mesa Elementary School

Los Alamos Middle School

Basketball (Boys)

Wednesday, January 7 vs. Pecos Middle School @ Los Alamos Middle School Brousseau Gym, 7th grade 4 pm, 8th grade 5 pm

Monday, January 12 vs. Carlos Vigil Middle School @ Carlos Vigil Middle School, 7th grade 4 pm,

8th grade 5 pm

Wednesday, January 14 vs. Pojoaque Middle School @ Pojoaque Middle School, 7th grade 4 pm,

8th grade 5 pm

Friday, January 16 vs. Monte Del Sol @ Monte Del Sol Academy, 7th grade 4 pm, 8th grade 5 pm

Los Alamos High School

Boys Basketball

Saturday, January 3 vs. Sandia Prep @ Sandia Preo High School, 9th grade 10 am, JV 11:30 am,

Varsity 1 pm

Monday, January 5 vs. Belen High School @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 2 pm, JV 3:30 pm, Varsity 5 pm

Tuesday, January 6 vs. Capital High School @ Capital High School, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 5:30 pm,

Varsity 7 pm

Tuesday, January 13 vs. Albuquerque Academy @ Albuquerque Academy, 9th grade 4 pm,

JV 5:30 pm, Varsity 7 pm

Thursday, January 15 vs. ATC @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 5:30 pm, Varsity 7 pm

Saturday, January 17 vs. Mesa Vista High School @ Griffith Gym, JV 11 am, Varsity 2 pm

Girls Basketball

Monday, January 5 vs. Belen High School @ Belen High School, 9th grade 2 pm, JV 3:30 pm,

Varsity 5 pm

Wednesday, January 7 vs. Capital High School @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 5:30 pm,

Varsity 7 pm

Thursday, January 8 vs. Valencia High School @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 5:30 pm,

Varsity 7 pm

Tuesday, January 13 vs. Robertson High School @ Griffith Gym, 9th grade 4 pm, JV 5:30 pm,

Varsity 7 pm

Saturday, January 17 vs. Mesa Vista High School @ Griffith Gym, JV 12:30 pm, Varsity 3:30 pm

Swimming & Diving

Saturday, January 10, Academy Invite @ Albuquerque Academy

Tuesday, January 13, Academy Quad 3 @ Albuquerque Academy

Wrestling

Friday, January 2, Conflict at Cleveland @ Cleveland High School

Saturday, January 3, Conflict at Cleveland @ Cleveland High School

Saturday, January 10, Sammy Vivian @ Socorro

Friday, January 16, Clash at the Coliseum @ Aztec High School

Saturday, January 17, Clash at the Coliseum @ Aztec 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.

Six Los Alamos Students Attend 2025 American Indian Senior Day At University Of New Mexico

Los Alamos High School DECA Students Collect 1,238 Pairs Of Socks For Homeless Shelters

Chamisa K-Kids Donate To Los Alamos Animal Shelter

Toppers Swim & Dive Team Honors Seniors At Hudson Invite

LAMS Students Deliver Donations To Animal Shelter

Topper Wrestling Team Falls To Belen Eagles 25-40

Topper Swim Team Hosts 9th Annual Bill Hudson Invite

Los Alamos Public Schools Board Of Education Named 2025 New Mexico Large District School Board Of The Year

Toppers Host Diving At Bill Hudson Swim/Dive Invite

Start 2026 working for Los Alamos Public Schools. We're looking for Educational Assistants at all school sites, as well as several other opportunities. Click here for more information about working for LAPS and all current job openings.

Los Alamos Middle School students in Christina Wadlington’s 8th grade Leadership Class delivered items they collected from fellow students and faculty to the Los Alamos County Animal Shelter.

Photo by John McHale/ladailypost.com

Los Alamos High School (LAHS) DECA students collected1,238 pairs of socks for area homeless shelters during their annual Sock Drive. The Alamos High School NJROTC partnered with DECA for this service project.

For more information about events in Los Alamos, check out the Los Alamos County 2025-2026 Winter Activity Guide.

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

The Santa Fe Symphony offers several music programs.