Hello LPOSD Families,

The 2024-25 academic year is off to a great start! As I visited every school in our district, what struck me was our daily culture of commitment to excellence. Our district recruits and retains professionals dedicated to enriching the lives of our students, people who welcome an opportunity to level-up their knowledge and skills.

To continue our district's high level of academic achievement and ensure the best possible outcomes for our students, I challenged every member of our school community to reflect on their “one thing.” I posed the question, “What is the one thing you do exceptionally well that helps us move the needle with students?” By harnessing the power of focused effort, we not only make meaningful progress in each classroom, we will collectively contribute to the significant upward trajectory for our entire district.

As I look toward the year ahead and ponder my “one thing,” student safety remains the centerpiece of my efforts. Students who feel safe, surrounded by a supportive community, routinely reach their fullest potential. Let’s work together to keep the focus and make this year a remarkable one for our students, bwm

Dr. Becky W. Meyer, Superintendent

Members of the 2025 senior class!

Sand Point High School senior Jenna Hughes, 17, joined an elite group of students this month. She is Bonner County’s sole National Merit Scholar semifinalist, awarded to fewer than 1% of all U.S. high school seniors. Hughes plans to study architecture at Montana State University in Bozeman, a town that reminds her of Sandpoint --- just much bigger!

• Inspirations?

“I've always grown up in a very academic household, so working hard in academics is just something that I've always been used to — and it's something I enjoy too. I enjoy the process of learning, and so I do it because I like it.”

• Leadership?

“I like to think of myself as a leader, at least among my peers. I'm in jazz band and I'm the lead alto saxophonist. I wanted to be a team captain for academic decathlon this year but it conflicted with AP calculus.”

• Role models?

“I get a lot of my math brain from my dad, but I also think it’s my peers and upperclassmen. There were a lot of teammates that I was friends with in academic decathlon, who graduated last year, but I could tell they were hard workers and I wanted to be like them."

• Favorite High School Memory?

"I think one of my favorite trips I did was going to Pittsburgh back in April competing at academic nationals. It was a super fun adventure. Being with my friends was super fun. Since I want to go into architecture, I love nerding out about buildings, and there was a lot of really cool historic architecture in downtown Pittsburgh."

• Family life?

“My dad is in software and he's a big history nerd; he majored in math so I can always ask him for help on my calculus homework. And my mom plays the organ at First Lutheran Church. I used to take piano lessons from her when I was six years old. I didn't stick with it, but just constantly surrounded by music, I think that's why I ended up playing the saxophone and being in band.”

• Finish this sentence…

Kids today need to “learn how to focus. If you take the time to find help, even if it's just Khan Academy, I think it's possible for everyone to succeed. I think you just really have to focus and put your mind to it.”

Thank you! Rotary Club of Sandpoint for the many amazing contributions, through the CHAFE 150 Fundraiser, which have made “Book Trust” possible in our LPOSD schools. Every student graduates a reader!

The district's vaping prevention effort was awarded a grant last summer that paid for 22 vape detectors, installed across the district’s three high school campuses.

"Every student matters. When we can deter them from this addictive behavior by educating them in health classes, our district education program and vape detectors, we blanket students with accountability and emphasize positive choices,” said JD McElroy, a LPOSD Campus Security Officer.

Students caught vaping for the first time are required to attend a vaping remediation course and are issued a citation.

This year, Oct. 9 is “International Walk and Roll to School Day,” a global event that encourages walking and biking to school on the same day.

It’s celebrated locally by Safe Routes to School (SRTS), a program working in your child’s school to make it easier and safer for students to walk and bike to school. Watch for more information about walking on Oct. 9 at your school.

Students who walk or bike to school get more physical activity, develop healthy habits that can last a lifetime, and arrive at school more alert and ready to learn.

Follow SRTS on Facebook at "Safe Routes to School Sandpoint Idaho LPOSD 84." If you are interested in helping to establish a regular walking/cycling group, volunteering for Walk/Bike to School Day, or Bike Rodeos, please send a message or email to erin.billings@lposd.org.

Thousands of Bonner County kids benefited from Lake Pend Oreille School District’s summer meals program. A small team of Child Nutrition Program professionals spent 58 days providing breakfast and lunch five days a week. From four locations, they served 19,000 meals — at no cost to families or the district because the program is federally funded. They served nearly four times more compared to the summer of 2023. See the link (above) for the full story.

The Sandpoint nonprofit Panhandle Alliance for Education (PAFE) is dedicated to supporting Lake Pend Oreille School District through its annual microgrant program. These microgrants are just one of the ways the organization supports effective teaching and learning. This year, PAFE will spread nearly $110,000 into 39 separate programs across district classrooms. Pictured here are some of the grant recipients who were recognized during last month's LPOSD welcome back breakfast for teachers and staff.