May 2025

Principal's Corner

Holton families:

As we move down the final stretch for school year 2024-25, I’d like to recognize the following staff for their years of service.

5 years of service:

Tonia Declue: paraprofessional

Terry Gorman: Special Education Teacher

Kaitlyn Meineke: Special Education Teacher

Jessica Meza: Building Secretary

Leah Motl: Orchestra Teacher

Julie Shoars: Special Education Teacher

10 years of service:

Laurie Herman: 5th grade Math Teacher

Alison Witiak: Library/Media Paraprofessional

Shandi Taylor: Special Education Teacher

Alicia Ree: Paraprofessional

15 years of service:

David Eyre: 6th grade Social Studies Teacher

Evelyn Napton: Special Education Teacher

20 years of service:

Karen Hillman: Paraprofessional

Megan Schwenn: English Language Learner Teacher

25 years of service:

Ryan Schwenn: Physical Education

30 years of service:

Dave Brown: Dean of Students

We want to thank each of you for all you do for our students and for your loyalty to Austin Public Schools. On a more personal note, I want to thank all our families for being willing to partner with us to make your child’s experience positive and productive.

In addition, we would like to acknowledge the significant work our teaching staff has undertaken this school year. First, each teacher had to complete CORE training to fulfill requirements of the READ Act. This is a significant learning endeavor, and all our staff completed the training on time. Second, we are asking our teachers to make a huge change to their schedule next year as we move to a self-contained classrooms. Our teachers have worked tirelessly to organize department scope and sequence so they will be prepared for next year. We also worked on Co-Teaching with Special Education and ELL education. These are only the large picture learnings our teachers completed. There are numerous day to day changes and events they smoothly adapted to as well. So, we want to thank them for their professionalism and dedication to our students.

Mr. Schara

Mr. Malo's Shout Out

Dear Families,

As we transition into the beautiful spring season, we want to take a moment to express our heartfelt appreciation for your ongoing support and partnership. Your dedication to your children's education makes a significant difference in their success!

Important Announcements

Fourth Quarter Reminder: We are deep into the 4th quarter. Please remind your children to stay caught up on their classwork. As the weather gets nicer, it's essential not to let schoolwork fall to the wayside.
Summer School: Summer School will begin on June 9th. If you would like your child to attend, please contact the office at 507-460-1525.
Upcoming Testing Dates:
- Math STAR Testing: May 6-7
- Reading STAR Testing: May 14-15
- Please make sure that all fees and fines are paid May 21-30
- No School: May 26
Last Day of School: May 30

Celebrations from the Week

We are thrilled to announce that we have successfully completed the MCA testing! Thank you for ensuring your children arrived at school well-rested and ready to perform their best. Your support during this time was invaluable!

Additional Information

As we move forward into the final weeks of school, we encourage you to stay engaged with your child's learning. Please continue to check in on their assignments and encourage them to finish strong.

We appreciate your partnership in fostering a positive learning environment for our students.

Thank you once again for your continued support and involvement in our school community. Together, we can help our children thrive and finish this school year on a high note!

Best Regards,

Mr. Malo

Mr. Brown's Corner

Holton Friends and Families-

“Time is a valuable thing. Watch it fly by as the pendulum swings. Watch it count down to the end of the day. The clock tick's life away.” -Linkin Park

MCA testing is (nearly) complete. The snow is gone. Winter clothing has been replaced with Spring and Summer wear. Grass has turned green, and the trees are budding. That only means one thing: School is nearing its end. Of course, nearing does not mean over. We still have so much to do. We have 4th graders coming to visit Holton, 6th grade visiting Ellis, our last PBIS Celebration, another Book Fair, STAR Testing, lots of outdoor learning, and so much more.

I must confess. As Dean of Students, this time of year brings mixed emotion. Like everyone, I am excited for summer vacation but sad to see our students go. Knowing how hard they have worked and how important each and every one of them is to our school’s success makes saying goodbye difficult. Yet, exciting as we watch them move on and grow. The excitement that the end of the year brings sometimes overtakes the expectations we have on our students and unwanted behaviors do increase at this time of the year. Please encourage your child to finish the year strong. Don’t let the excitement of the end of the year create an issue that may put a damper on what a great year they have had.

Also, as a reminder, make sure our students follow the district established dress code. According to Policy 504 “Student Dress and Appearance” Appropriate clothing includes, but is not limited to, the following: Students must wear opaque (non-see-through) clothing including both a shirt or equivalent top, a skirt, pants, shorts, or equivalent bottom, and/or a dress. A student’s clothing must cover the front, back, and sides including the student’s private parts and abdomen.

Lastly, I can’t begin to thank you enough for entrusting your child to us. We are honored and privileged to see your child every day. Every staff member in this building is here because of his or her love of children. I hope your child felt that love every day. It has been an absolutely incredible year! We have seen so much growth in so many ways. As we Watch it count down to the end of the day. I say thank you!

Of course, we still have one month left. I’d be remise if I didn’t remind you that at IJ Holton, we encourage our students to be Respectful, Responsible, Safe, and to Do Their Best! If at any time you have any questions or concerns, please email me david.brown@austin.k12.mn.us or call me at 460-1525. Summer Break, we see you!!

David Brown

IJ Holton Dean of Students

Strategic Priorities Update

Support and resources to ensure a safe and welcoming learning environment :

Safe and Welcoming Learning Environment:

This year we had two particularly popular PBIS reward days: Rollercoaster making and our Culture Day.
Our student council hosted three dances this year that have generated enough revenue to fund our PBIS weekly rewards and our reward days.
Several of our student participated in the recent math master’s competition and our team was very successful.

Packer Profile:

In addition to our career pathway posters, we continue to find ways to add more Project Lead the Way classes and offer more career and college connections to our Core Classes.

MTSS for all Students:

All our Core teachers, special education teachers and our ELL teachers have successfully completed the OL/LA CORE training, the state mandated reading training.
Each of our core curricular areas has worked on their scope and sequence in preparation for self-contained classrooms next year.
Two of our building administrators, one counselor and three teachers attended the BARR conference last week in preparation for BARR implementation at Holton next school year.

Excellence in Resource Management:

We currently have hired for all our open positions.
We received a $20,000 grant from the Austin Public Education Foundation for classroom libraries. We will supplement that amount with building funds.
Our largest purchase this summer will be book shelves for classrooms.

Note from the Counselors

Parents and guardians,

We have made it to May and are nearing the end of a wonderful school year. We want to take this opportunity to thank you for sharing your student(s) with us! As the school year ends, there are a few things to highlight.

Students entering 7th grade will have an opportunity to participate in school organized sports. Eligibility to participate requires a sports physical has been completed and is on file with the athletic office. Austin Medical Center offers a free sports clinic every summer; once the date for this is released, we will post it on our social media pages. Sport physicals can also be completed at Mayo Clinic Express Care or various chiropractic offices. For athletes that have already had a sports physical, they are good for 3 years!

As we near summer vacation we encourage students to take advantage of various activities offered in our community. Community Education will again offer More than Pink for girls who have completed 3rd through 6th grade along with an exciting new program entitled Beyond Blue for boys who’ve completed grades 4th-7th. Parks and Rec and the YMCA offer several opportunities for students to get involved, stay active, and expand their interests over the summer months. If you’re able, please take advantage of these great opportunities!

Finally, for our 8th grade students heading to AHS, you will be eligible to start working on your volunteer hours for the Austin Assurance Scholarship starting on June 1. To qualify, students are required to log 50 volunteer hours, and those hours must be an unpaid activity that benefits or is a service to the community. Providing a service for someone with challenges related to age, illness or physical ailments may also be approved. More information about Austin Assurance can be found on their website: https://www.austinassurance.org/volunteer-hours

Contact information for grade level counselors for the 2025-2026 school year:

Farin Delaney - Grade 5: Farin.delaney@austin.k12.mn.us

Kirstin Norby – Grade 6: Kirstin.norby@austin.k12.mn.us

Lea Oelfke – Grade 7: Lea.oelfke@austin.k12.mn.us

Zack Langreck – Grade 8: Zachary.langreck@austin.k12.mn.us

Again, thank you all for a great school year! We hope you have a safe, fun and adventurous summer vacation!

Kirstin Norby, 5th grade (507) 460-1536

Lynn Keenan, 6th grade (507) 460-1533

Zack Langreck, 7th grade (507) 460-1513
Farin Delaney, 8th grade (507) 460-1517

Lea Oelfke, REACH (507) 460-1510

Rebecca Gullickson, SSW (507) 460-8306