District Dialogue

Nominations are due Monday, January 16, 2023 by 5 pm.

Teacher of the Year Celebration is Monday, February 27, 2023

In a proclamation on American Education Week 2022 from the White House, "During American Education Week, we celebrate the power of public education and thank the educators and staff who do so much to make our public schools the cornerstone of our democracy, prosperity, and strength."

We extend our deepest gratitude to all Sioux Falls School District educators, counselors, nurses, child nutrition professionals, education assistants, administrative assistants, custodians, substitutes, and other school staff who make a difference in our children's lives.

In honor of American Education Week, the Sioux Falls Skyforce is offering all Sioux Falls School District staff a FREE ticket to this Saturday, November 19th home game at the Pentagon. Additionally, family and friends will have exclusive access to $10 tickets for the game.

To receive your free ticket, along with access to discounted tickets, visit this link: https://fevo.me/americaneducationweek and use the code SFSD in the Offer Code section. One ticket will be free, and all others will be $10. (If you are in a household with multiple educators, you must purchase separately to receive more than one free ticket.)

The Sioux Falls Public Schools Education Foundation is hosting a Facebook contest in honor of American Education Week! Users can vote for one SFSD school to receive a FREE Scooter's pop-up coffee bar, courtesy of the Foundation.

To participate, “like” and comment on the post here: https://www.facebook.com/SFPSEF (and feel free to explain why you're nominating the school). Your vote only counts once, but you can share this opportunity with your family and friends and encourage them to vote too. Voting ends November 18th at 11:59 p.m.

Help us celebrate those who are going above and beyond to make a difference for their students and colleagues!

School Board Member, and former Washington High School teacher and coach, Marc Murren was recently inducted into the Washington High School Hall of Fame. Marc was honored recently as a person who was capable of turning around the lives of kids. He took many students who were average athletes and turned them into success stories by inspiring a hunger and loyalty to be part of the Warrior Way. Marc taught history and coached – 31 years of football, 27 years of wrestling, and track for 5 years. He is now retired, but still serving students as our school board member. Please help me congratulate Marc Murren.

It was a big weekend for high school football, with the Jefferson Cavaliers earning the 11AAA championship crown. Coached by Vince Benedetto and led by senior quarterback Taylen Ashley, and a whole slew of other kids with big goals, the Cavaliers went 12-0 on the year with a convincing 48-21 win over Harrisburg… in just their second year of existence. Congratulations to the Jefferson Cavaliers!

We were honored to have one of our current active duty military members with us at tonight's meeting. Chris Martin is a Technology Integration Facilitator in the Sioux Falls School District. For nearly 3 decades, he has been a proud member of Army National Guard. Chris was in attendance to share a few words about his military service, including past deployments and a new deployment coming up next month, as a way to honor and showcase all the individuals in our District who have or are currently serving our country.

We recently requested a list of current staff members who are veterans or active duty military personnel. You can see a list of those individuals in the graphic attached. Thank you to all the men and women of the Sioux Falls School District who serve!

(Note: the graphic may not contain all SFSD staff who are also military members. It was compiled as a good-faith attempt to recognize all of the men and women serving in schools and on the front lines. Additions can be emailed to DeeAnn.Konrad@k12.sd.us)

Garfield Elementary is our School Spotlight this month. Garfield is located in the heart of Sioux Falls and serves a diverse community of learners. Principal Kristin Skogstad was in attendance, along with a few teachers to share what makes Garfield a special place.

See the full report below.

A committee of Sioux Falls School District administration, two School Board members, and various staff has developed the proposed budget timeline for the FY24 Budget of all funds of the District. The budget guidelines will be presented to the Board at its November 28 meeting.

See the full report below.

On November 2, 2022, the School Board met at a work session to discuss legislative issues, including the proposed District Legislative Platform. The proposed platform includes proposals under the following District priority areas:

• Well Being – Juvenile Justice
• Effective Use of Resources and Staff Excellence – State Aid
• Effective Use of Resources and Community Engagement – School Board Terms

Other areas of interest include compulsory attendance age, early childhood education, dual credit flexibility, and the replacing the Smarter Balance test with the ACT for high school juniors.

See the full report below.

Ryan Kortemeyer is the Lincoln High School Welding and Automotive teacher. He was nominated for this award by his fellow LHS educator, Sarah Burkett, who shared this about Ryan, "Ryan Kortemeyer reflects all that is good in education: striving for excellence, creating high expectations for his students, and collaborating effectively with other educators. An automotive and welding educator, Ryan embodies the mission of the Sioux Falls School District as he supports diverse learners in his classes. He treats all students with dignity and respect while engaging them in hands-on activities that strengthen their job skills in the future. Ryan works diligently to foster positive relationships in his classroom while ensuring student success in auto mechanics and welding. Ryan has also supported new automotive and welding teachers at other schools; he willingly shares content and collaborates with his colleagues across the district. In addition to this, Ryan provides support to students outside of the classroom, including float building and participation in the Native American Day parade. His humility and dedication to our students is something to celebrate! Ryan is the ideal candidate for this recognition; he is humble, professional, and an asset to the education field."

Congratulations, Mr. Kortemeyer! Thank you for all you do for the Sioux Falls School District!

Education Support Professionals Day was first celebrated in 1987. Since then, the Wednesday of American Education Week is reserved to recognize and celebrate this important profession. On ESP Day, join us to honor and advocate for the ESPs who continue keeping students safe, healthy, and ready to learn.

Substitute teachers play a critical role in our Sioux Falls School District schools. Effective substitute educators make a significant contribution to the school program. They serve as educational bridges when regular classroom teachers are absent. Please take time today to help us say THANK YOU to all who have and continue to serve as a substitute in our schools!

Staff at IPC celebrated their patriotism and pre-Veteran’s Day pride by wearing red, white, and blue on Thursday.

A new year brings new health goals, and we’re making it easier to prioritize your health in the new year. All SFSD employees and their spouses that are on the SFSD medical plan have a chance to win a $100 Amazon Gift Card by participating in our Personal Health Assessment and wellness activities.

Learn more here:

Click the links below to register for Sand Creek EAP’s live November webinar.

• Wednesday, December 14th: 12:30pm - 1:30pm - Family Dynamics During the Holidays
• Wednesday, January 11th: 12:30pm - 1:30pm - Managing Your Money in Tough Times

Can’t attend a webinar? No problem! Visit https://allonehealth.com/blog/ to view all past webinars.

You’ve likely heard that exercise can help you live a longer, healthier life. When you hear the word ‘exercise,’ you might think of going for a run or hopping on a bicycle. Or maybe playing soccer with your kids or basketball with your friends after work. But these activities don’t include all the types of movements that are important for your health.

The examples above are cardiovascular exercises. These activities increase your breathing and heart rate. They can keep your heart and lungs in good shape and help prevent many chronic diseases. Exercises to maintain flexibility, balance, and strength are also important.

Stretching gives you more freedom of movement and makes daily activities more comfortable. Balance practice helps prevent falls, which become a concern as you get older.

Strength training is particularly important. It makes your muscles stronger, which helps you keep up the activities you enjoy—at any stage of your life.

Get started building muscle safely by following these tips:

• Start slowly, especially if you haven’t been active for a long time. Little by little, build up your activities and how hard you work at them.
• Pay attention to your body. Exhaustion, sore joints, or muscle pain mean you’re overdoing it.
• Use small amounts of weight to start. Focus on your form, and add more weight slowly, over time.
• Use smooth, steady movements to lift weights into position. Don’t jerk or thrust weights.
• Avoid “locking” your arm and leg joints in a straight position.
• Don’t hold your breath during strength exercises. That could cause changes in your blood pressure. Breathe out as you lift the weights and breathe in as you relax.

Adapted from Sand Creek

Each week, we want to introduce you to some pets in our Sioux Falls School District community! Say hello to Bart, Chili, Coy, Jax, Kato, Odin & Hugo, Pixie & Freya, Raja, Reggie, Rockne, Sadie, and Zeus!

Thank you to everyone that submitted their pets! We are going to continue to showcase those that were submitted but are no longer accepting new submissions. Stay tuned for our next District Dialogue feature!