All Local, All The Time
All Local, All The Time
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September 2018 was a big month for Flagstaff Academy Preschool. The program reached its 10th anniversary, and it also achieved a level five quality rating from Colorado Shines. Colorado Shines, a Colorado Department of Human Services and Department of Education free resource, enables families to find licensed programs in their communities that are committed to offering quality services. Using a comprehensive approach to evaluate early learning programs, the organization looks at health and...
Almost from the first day of school, most kids start looking forward to summer vacation. The average school year is about 180 days, which is a long time to wait if you’re a kid. Fortunately, aside from winter and spring breaks, the academic year is peppered with a day off here and there, so a kid can get a break from the daily grind. Then add in a few late start days, or early release days, just to keep things interesting. For working parents, these seemingly random days off can present a challenge—what will I do with my kiddo while I’m at work...
In a surprise announcement on Sept 10, St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) Superintendent Dr. Don Haddad informed those attending the school year’s first community meeting at Niwot High School (NHS) that the district has decided not to store an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle in the school as proposed by the Boulder County Sheriff’s Department. The sheriff’s proposal earlier this year was described as a way to allow school resource officers quicker access to a long range rifle to compensate for longer emergency response times to Niwot and L...
Back to school season is a sensible time to be evaluating who influences and makes decisions for our area’s educational institutions. November 6 is election day for the Colorado State Board of Education member from the Second Congressional District (CD2). A Niwot resident since 1989, Johnny Barrett (R) is challenging incumbent Angelika Schroeder (D) for the position. Schroeder is the chairwoman for the predominantly democratic board and has held the CD2 position for nine years. She was a...
Sunset Middle School (SMS) is welcoming 10 new staff members to its team this school year, starting with the top two administrative positions in the school - principal and assistant principal. Additional new staff members coming onboard include language arts, science, art and special education teachers, a new band director, a new school psychologist, attendance clerk, and school registrar. Anthony Barela is SMS’s new Principal. He grew up in Durango, CO, earned his master’s degree in edu...
On July 27-28, students from Niwot High kicked off the fabrication phase of ‘Cougars Creating Classrooms,’ a building project spearheaded by the Mwebaza Foundation to transform used shipping containers into instructional space for the Mwebaza Infant Primary School in Kyengera, Uganda. Over the two days, representatives from the football, girls tennis, golf, cross country, and track teams, as well as the IB program, Robotics Club, and Boy Scout Troop 161, unpacked materials for the project and...
Officials from the Mountain View Fire Protection District are asking for public input on a proposed mill levy increase that they say will help offset the costs of serving a rapidly growing population in east Boulder and south Weld counties over the next ten years. At a July 17 public information meeting at the Niwot Fire Station, Assistant Chief Keith Long and Finance Director Tonya Olson made a case for the potential tax hike, which will fund what they described as urgently needed equipment...
A dedication to problem-solving on Niwot’s behalf is among the reasons Niwot Community Association board members chose former chair Dick Piland to serve as the 2018 Grand Marshal of the town’s July 4 parade. “I am honored to serve as Grand Marshal,” Piland said. “But frankly, I was very surprised to be nominated. I think there are several others more deserving than I am.” Piland’s willingness to pitch in is a strength others appreciate. “Dick jumps into projects without reserve,” said...
A community meeting called by St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) to discuss the Boulder County Sheriff’s office proposal to store an AR-15 rifle inside Niwot High School (NHS) was quick to turn emotionally charged. An audience of about 150 people at Sunset Middle School on Thursday, June 6, unreservedly asked questions and offered opinions throughout the nearly three-hour meeting. SVVSD Superintendent Dr. Don Haddad led the discussion and was joined by five school board members, i...
Niwot High campus supervisor La’Mar West suspected something might be up when Principal Eric Rauschkolb invited him to an after school meeting with St. Vrain Superintendent Don Haddad last month, but he was absolutely “shell-shocked” when he found out that Haddad was there to present him with a Superintendent's Excellence in Education Award. “I had no idea it was coming,” he said. “I’m not one of those people who is big on awards or titles or anything, so the fact that I got it was pretty cr...
A little more than three years after they were ordered to suspend their educational programs due to violations of the Land Use Code, owners of Longmont’s Sunflower Farms received conditional approval from Boulder County Commissioners to operate as a Demonstration Farm, a move that will allow them to relaunch their SproutHouse preschool and day camps later this summer. At a public hearing on May 24, Commissioners Cindy Domenico, Elise Jones, and Deb Gardner voted unanimously to approve S...
The Longmont Downtown Development Association (LDDA) cordially invites alumni from all graduating years at Longmont, Skyline, Silver Creek, Niwot, Erie, Mead, Frederick, Lyons, Olde Columbine and the St. Vrain Online Global Academy to come downtown and enjoy food, music and old friends at the fifth annual St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) High Schools Reunion on Friday, June 8. Festivities kick off at 4th and Kimbark at 6 p.m., when SVVSD student band Bad Choices hits the stage, followed...
Last month, St. Vrain Valley School District superintendent Don Haddad was announced as one of four finalists for Clark County School District’s (CCSD) search for a new superintendent. CCSD serves over 75 percent of the students in the state of Nevada, including the Las Vegas area. CCSD’s school board’s selection was originally expected to be announced April 19. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, immediately following the announcement of the final candidates, the school board trustees balked at the absence of nominees from within the d...
Up-A-Creek Robotics Team 1619, comprised of primarily St. Vrain Valley School District students, came away from the 2018 FIRST Robotics World Championship competition in Houston with a third-place alliance finish, making this the most successful finish to a season for the team. Adding to the excitement of the finale, the team also earned the General Motors Industrial Design Award, which recognizes “form and function” for the robot that best performs each year’s assigned challenge. Prior to th...
Forty years of immersing himself in Rocky Mountain majesty and magnificence, countless miles of hiking and skiing to rugged, remote, and idyllic locations, and hours of patiently waiting for the perfect lighting, hues, and wildlife to be present has ensured that John Fielder’s epic images are now synonymous with the wondrous state of Colorado. Fielder spent the good part of last Tuesday at Longmont’s Flagstaff Academy. His initial meeting was with art teacher Natalie Reed’s photography 2 class...
The St. Vrain Valley School District has designated Friday, April 27 as a non-student contact day “in anticipation of high levels of teacher participation” at the Colorado Education Association’s Days of Action demonstration scheduled for Thursday and Friday at the Colorado state capitol in Denver. Citing concerns about “adequate supervision and instruction,” Superintendent Don Haddad called the cancellation “necessary” in an email sent to parents on April 18. “While this is a statewide initi...
February 21, 1947 – April 7, 2018 Dennis Jerome Hurianek, 71, passed away on April 7, 2018 at his home in Niwot. Dennis was born February 21, 1947 in Denver, CO to Jerome W. and Lois E. (Cushatt) Hurianek. Dennis grew up around the world with his family wherever his father was stationed as a US Army medic. He graduated from Kaiserslautern American High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. As a young man, he was a Boy Scout, achieving the Order of the Arrow, and a camp counselor. Dennis earned a B...
Winds gusting up to 65 m.p.h. knocked down power lines and snapped tree limbs as a quick moving front descended on the front range Tuesday afternoon. Power outages and street closures caused busing disruptions for students in the St. Vrain Valley School district, and many area athletic events were rescheduled. The girls soccer match between Niwot and Longmont will be played tomorrow at Niwot at 4 p.m., as will the baseball game against Skyline. Winds are expected to diminish overnight, and the...
Don Haddad, Superintendent of Saint Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD), is on the short list of candidates to be at the helm of Clark County School District (CCSD) in Nevada, the fifth largest school district in the country. Haddad was named as one of four finalists for the superintendent position from an initial pool of 77 applicants. Haddad, 56, has been an educator for 33 years and progressively moved up the ladder from being a teacher to entering the administration ranks, including a stint...
Two of Flagstaff Academy’s fifth-grade teams will be competing in the VEX IQ World Championships, which will take place Sunday, April 29 through Wednesday, May 2, 2018 in Louisville, Kentucky. One team, the Saphiras, earned the coveted STEM Research Project Award. This award is only given to one team with the best research and application project. The STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Research Project Award is presented to the team that shares the most effective STEM R...
St. Vrain Valley School District Superintendent Don Haddad opened the bond update and school safety town hall meeting held at Silver Creek High School (the fourth such meeting this month in the district) by emphasizing that for SVVSD, and for himself, student safety was an area of concern long before the recent shootings. Haddad pointed to the “summer of violence” that occurred in Denver in 1993 as the initial cause for the heightened worry over school safety. At that time he was working at a h...
Doing Democracy Day has been a St. Vrain Valley School District annual event for the past nine years. It’s a day when school board members, teachers, city council and students gather at the Longmont Civic Center to discuss and present issues within the community. This year, for the first time, select students from St. Vrain Middle Schools were invited to join with high school students to share their opinions and thoughts. The event was started so students could be involved with topics that a...
Local robotics Team 1619, based in Longmont, earned a significant honor this month at the Hub City Regional Competition in Lubbock, Texas - the Regional Chairman’s Award. Along with their alliance teams, the team also took first place out of 41 teams at the same event. Since the St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) team was formed in 2004, and dubbed Up-A-Creek Robotics, membership and facilities have dramatically improved. Its beginnings were humble, with the first meeting in a t...
Charges have been filed against two juveniles following a Feb. 16 “Safe 2 Tell” report at Niwot High School. Last month, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office responded to the report, but the school has been unable to report the incident to district patrons due to the investigation. Now that charges have been filed, the two students were arrested on Friday, March 16. Since they are both 16, names have not been released. “Safe 2 Tell” is an anonymous method for students to report suspicious behavior or knowledge of threats made by other students o...
Arrest warrants issued for two 16-year-old students today Niwot, Colo. - On February 16, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office received a “Safe 2 Tell” report that a 16-year-old juvenile male student at Niwot High School, located at 8989 Niwot Road in unincorporated Boulder County, made statements and posted a video on social media which were generally related to the recent school shooting in Florida. These online comments caused other Niwot students alarm and resulted in several Safe2Tell reports being made. The school district and law enfor...
For recognition of her efforts in technology education and outreach, the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) has selected Niwot senior Michelle Tran to receive the 2018 Award for Aspirations in Computing. Every year, NCWIT recognizes high school women “for their demonstrated interest and achievements in computing, proven leadership ability, academic performance, and plans for post‑secondary education.” Tran was one of just 41 students selected out of 3,600 appli...
It is with great sadness that we report the heartbreaking news that Ed Navarro, longtime sports photographer for the Courier, passed away Dec. 31 after a battle with pulmonary fibrosis. Though his death will be felt deeply by his wife Trudy, a retired teacher, and his two children, Ed “Lucky” Navarro and Emily Marcellus, his friends and the many lives he touched will also experience a great loss. I knew Ed as a lawyer in Longmont for many years before he took up photography. I recall seeing him...
It is with great sadness that we report the heartbreaking news that Ed Navarro, longtime sports photographer for the Courier, passed away Dec. 31 after a battle with pulmonary fibrosis. Though his death will be felt deeply by his wife Trudy, a retired teacher, and his two children, Ed “Lucky” Navarro and Emily Marcellus, his friends and the many lives he touched will also experience a great loss. I knew Ed as a lawyer in Longmont for many years before he took up photography. I recall seeing him taking photographs along the fence at a Niwot Hig...
Another statewide award has been given to administrators at Niwot High School, this time honoring assistant principal Andrea Smith. Smith earned the award from the Colorado Association of School Executives as Assistant Principal of the Year in the state, following NHS principal Eric Rauschkolb’s award earlier this year. “The recognitions we’ve received are really a reflection of the good work going on all over the place at NHS,” Rauschkolb said. “The teachers are amazing, the students for the m...
Niwot High School will soon have a new roof, but not the kind made of shingles. Thanks to a power purchase agreement, the St. Vrain Valley School District will be installing solar panels at NHS, Erie Middle School and Red Hawk Elementary over the winter. Dara Ward, energy and sustainability manager for the district, said that this will become a great opportunity for the students as well as the facilities and constituents. “Going into this project for the district, it was really important to n...
Niwot High School Principal Eric Rauschkolb was selected as the Colorado Association of School Executives principal of the year for 2017 and just returned from a trip to Washington D.C. for a national conference. The principals of the year for all 50 states met for the event, sponsored by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. “It was a combination of professional development, networking and advocating for public education on Capitol Hill,” Rauschkolb said. Rauschkolb had an...
Friday’s celebratory announcements at Niwot High School included the newsflash that students had earned an average ACT test score of 24 in the previous school year, a threshold that has not been hit since the year 2012. NHS principal Eric Rauschkolb said scores have hovered above 23 since that year, but this year saw the score tip up to 24. While students received their individual scores prior to the beginning of school this year, the composite score had not been publicized. Niwot High School’s average score gives it the distinction of bei...
Niwot gymnastics head coach Marisa Purcell believes she has all of the pieces in place for another serious run at this year’s Class 4A state title. With three proven all-around performers and a crop of talented newcomers, the Cougars should once again be in the mix come state competition in November. But as the coach of a very diverse group of perfectionist athletes, Purcell knows the road back to state championship glory depends on more than just individual talent and hard work. Leading the c...
Niwot High School is part of an effort to help reduce the carbon footprint of students and staff within the St. Vrain Valley School District. Two charging stations for electric vehicles were installed over the summer. “We’re pretty excited to take more green initiatives,” Niwot High School Principal Eric Rauschkolb said. “We’ve already seen it used this summer and we anticipate it being used more by the community as well.” The charging stations are limited to students and staff during the day, but are open for public use outside of school hour...
How to Support your Child and Niwot High School The 2017-2018 school year is only days away and the excitement for new opportunities and friendships is buzzing across Niwot and St. Vrain Valley School District. Now is an ideal time for students and parents to get a fresh start and consider the impact they want to have in the coming year. Below are recommendations for Niwot High School families to make the most of the academic year and ways to partner with the principal, administration, teachers and Niwot High School Education Foundation to supp...
In her three years as a varsity athlete, lacrosse goalie Morgan Pittser had at least one thing most other Niwot athletes didn’t -- a commute. Though girls lacrosse is the fastest growing high school sport in Colorado, there are still no teams in the St. Vrain Valley School District, so Pittser, who’s played lacrosse since grade school, had to join the team at Centaurus High in Lafayette. Late last month, Pittser capped her remarkable career with the Warriors with a CHSAA All-State Honorable Men...
The county’s preliminary plan for improving bike and pedestrian safety near Niwot Elementary School (NES) was met with opposition by area residents at a meeting held June 8 at the Left Hand Grange Hall. Two project phases were outlined by members of the transportation department staff, with Phase I slated for completion this summer. The construction phases are part of the St. Vrain Valley School District’s (SVVSD) goals for reducing car traffic while maximizing safety, according to co-presenter Cammie Piller Edson, a coordinator for the cou...
The fourth-annual St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) High Schools Reunion will take place on Friday, June 9 from 6-9 p.m. The Reunion will be held during the first Downtown Summer Concert of the season on Fourth Avenue between Main and Kimbark. Boulder-based band The Goonies will play all the hits from the 80’s. The night’s festivities will get underway with a Niwot High School student Jackson Cloud who will showcase his talents on the guitar and vocals, along with the rest of his Jackson Cloud Band. Alumni from all graduating years at...
A need for sturdier event, detour and road closed signs in Niwot led to a spring project for welding students at St. Vrain Valley School District’s Career Development Center (CDC). “This is a win-win for everyone,” said Niwot Community Association President Dick Piland.”We get better road signs and the high school students were able to put their skills to use on a community project.” Last winter, NCA board members investigated purchasing five stands for road signs, but were concerned about high...
Students from all over the world are preparing right now to leave their countries to come and study in America for the upcoming school year. These students are leaders in their schools. They exhibit great academic skills as well as a heart for volunteer work. These are the students who will impact their countries when they return home with the experiences they have had while living here in America. The students are placed with volunteer host families throughout the US. Host families are...
Each spring since 1988, the Colorado Council for Economics Education (CCEE) presents the Koebel Enterprising Teacher of the Year Award to an educator who demonstrates excellence in the teaching of economics and personal financial literacy. This year the council has selected Niwot High School economics teacher Ken Benson to receive this prestigious award. Benson currently teaches four sections of economics at NHS, two for the IB (International Baccalaureate) program and two AP (Advanced Placement) courses. Benson also sponsors the school’s Econ...
“We know you’re guilty.” Fourth grader Eden Zenz and her classmates accuse Kim Lancaster, director of St. Vrain’s APEX Homeschool Enrichment Program, the moment she walks into their Literature Detectives class in the sanctuary of Vinelife Church in Gunbarrel. The students are using clues prepared by their teacher to solve a whodunit as part of their unit on the novel Chasing Vermeer. Their list of suspects includes Lancaster and several other APEX staff. This scene is much like a typical...
The Niwot girls track and field team continued to dominate the local competition, picking up wins at the St. Vrain Re-1J District meet on March 23 and at the Broomfield Shootout on March 25. The boys also fared well at the District meet, finishing second out of nine teams, and placed 23rd at the Broomfield meet, in a 33-team field that included several Class 5A schools. It was another impressive week for junior Mary Gillett and her senior teammate Alexis Carroll. At the St. Vrain meet, held...
Daisha Agho, who has coached Berthoud volleyball for the past eight years, has been named the new Niwot High volleyball coach. Under Agho, Berthoud finished with a record of 21-6 last season, advancing to the state Class 4A tournament. There the Spartans beat Windsor before being eliminated by eventual state champion Lewis-Palmer. Berthoud finished 16-11 in 2015 following a 20-7 mark in 2014, and has made it to state in three of the last four years. Agho, who lives in Firestone with her husband...
Two important education items on the Nov. 8 ballot were the St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) bond issue for capital improvements and the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) mill levy override for operational expenses. Both were approved by voters. The SVVSD $260 million bond measure, which passed 61.88 percent to 38.12 percent by district voters in Boulder County, will address critical student and school needs. It includes various renovations throughout the district, additions to existing schools and building of new schools. A...
Two important education items on the Nov. 8 ballot were the St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) bond issue for capital improvements and the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) mill levy override for operational expenses. Both were approved by voters. The SVVSD $260 million bond measure, which passed 61.88 percent to 38.12 percent by district voters in Boulder County, will address critical student and school needs. It includes various renovations throughout the district, additions to existing schools and building of new schools. A...
On Nov. 4, Niwot High School head football coach Dylan Hollingsworth, 43, was arrested for assaulting a student during a weight lifting class the prior week. According to a media release from the Boulder County Sheriff’s office, Hollingsworth turned himself in to the Boulder County jail last Friday morning, and was booked on charges of second degree assault, a class four felony, and third degree assault, a class one misdemeanor. He was subsequently released on bond, and faces a hearing in B...
Boulder County Sheriff's Office On October 29, at around 1:40 a.m., a lone individual broke through a set of glass doors at Niwot High School, and caused damage inside the school to two interior windows, and a vending machine. The individual then exited the school and broke into three cars parked overnight in the parking lot, by smashing driver side windows on each car. All three cars appeared to have been rummaged through. A fourth vehicle showed signs of an attempt at entry by the suspect, but he was unsuccessful at getting inside. St. Vrain...
It’s a sad fact that Colorado is hamstrung by complicated provisions of the state constitution that prevent the state legislature from adequately funding public education, but fixing that problem is not on the ballot. As a result, local school districts are forced to turn to voters time and again to ask for bond issue approvals and mill levy overrides to keep pace with the demands of increasing populations and escalating costs. The St. Vrain Valley School District has proposed a bond issue (3A on the ballot) which would generate $260 million f...
Niwot Community Association (NCA) board members agreed to continue the group’s policy of serving only as an information conduit for the Niwot/Gunbarrel community when St. Vrain Valley School District (SVVSD) officials asked for the group’s endorsement of the district’s proposed mill levy increase on the November ballot. Although several board members expressed individual support for the measure and praised the school district’s student academic achievement and fiscal responsibility, the NCA board agreed that the NCA’s primary function...
