Highlights of the October 27 Lincoln Board of Education regular meeting

The Lincoln Board of Education held its regular meeting on Tuesday, October 27, at 6:00 p.m. at the Lincoln Public Schools Steve Joel District Leadership Center, 5905 O Street. You can watch the full regular meeting video on YouTube.

Celebrations of success

Helen Cooper - East High School

Helen Cooper, Lincoln East High School English teacher and theater director, was named the Nebraska Thespians Theater Teacher of the Year. The award highlights teachers who have gone above and beyond in activities such as play production and school musicals.

You can watch a highlight of the celebration for Cooper on YouTube.

Sarah Staples-Farmer - East High School

Sarah Staples-Farmer, Lincoln East High School English teacher and Key Club advisor, was honored by Key Club International with the Key of Honor award. The award recognizes individuals who have made a significant impact on youth through service and leadership. Key Club is a student-led service organization that encourages leadership, character development, and community involvement through volunteer service.

You can watch a highlight of the celebration for Staples-Farmer on YouTube.

First reading

Newly annexed property to the City of Lincoln

The Board of Education assigns school attendance areas to property newly annexed to the City of Lincoln. This action establishes school attendance areas prior to the sale of residential lots, allowing purchasers to know what schools their children will attend.

Staff propose assigning the newly annexed area near North 27th Street and Arbor Road for the 2026-27 school year to Kooser Elementary School, Schoo Middle School and North Star High School.

The Board will hold a second reading and vote on the proposed assignments at the next meeting.

Second reading

Newly annexed property to the City of Lincoln

The area near 88th Street and Pioneers Boulevard was recently annexed into the City of Lincoln. The proposal assigns the newly annexed area to Maxey Elementary School, Lux Middle School and East High School.

The Board held a second reading and voted to approve the assignments.

Informational items and reports

Board committee updates

Government Relations and Community Engagement committee

Committee chair Mara Krivohlavek reported that the committee met last Friday to listen, discern and discuss current and upcoming legislative issues at the state and federal level. The committee also heard an update from the Community Learning Center Director Nola Derby-Bennett.

Derby-Bennett highlighted the stability and retention in CLC staffing and the evaluation and reporting system that comes from the Nebraska Department of Education in being helpful in reflecting and setting goals for this year for each site. It was also shared that there are 5,992 students utilizing CLC programming at 31 sites, and the number of students served is projected to be over 11,000. Part of the programming seeing great success includes CLC sports (basketball, soccer, volleyball, flag football) at the sixth grade level in six middle schools.

Krivohlavek wrapped her report up by sharing that LPS Associate Superintendent for Civic Engagement Brad Jacobsen shared information about the state budgeting process and the state funding mechanism that supports schools.

Multicultural Education committee

Committee chair John Goodwin shared that the Multicultural Department, under the leadership of Brittney Hodges-Bolkovac, is taking a broader approach to making sure every student and staff member feels welcomed, valued and supported throughout the district. This work includes building a culture of belonging across all of the schools through training, professional development and classroom learning opportunities.

Ad Hoc Insurance committee

Committee member Bob Rauner shared that Wellness Coordinator Michelle Welch is attending two national conferences to learn more about workplace wellness programs and get ideas for Lincoln Public Schools to consider.

Student Learning committee

Committee chair Bob Rauner shared that there will be presentations and information that will include data shared in upcoming meetings.

Superintendent update

LPS Superintendent John Skretta opened his comments sharing his volunteering experience at Everett Elementary School at the food market in cooperation with the Lincoln Food Bank, Kiwanis, Downtown Rotary and Grace Chapel.

“In about ninety minutes, these dedicated volunteers and the Everett team packed up nutritious and nourishing food for 366 students to bring home to their families,” added Skretta. “Without the positive community engagement demonstrated by these civic and church organizations, this vital support to tackle food insecurity would not be possible.”

Skretta also shared that he and board members also participated in a scenario-based immersive experience reflecting on food insecurity in our community and the challenges our families face. This event was a partnership between the LPS Multicultural Department and the Lincoln Food Bank.

It was also shared during the update that Union Bank & Trust recently gave $50,000 to the Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools to help fund assistive technology in the LPS Special Education Department.

Skretta also said, “There’s perhaps no greater indicator of the difference the Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools makes than the 340 emergency fund requests totaling nearly $70,000 that have already been fulfilled this year.”

Skretta closed his remarks celebrating the conclusion of the biennial Student Vote event.

“Thank you to our students for demonstrating the importance of civic engagement in a participatory democracy. And thank you to LPS Web Communications Manager Brian Fitzgerald for creating a really neat dashboard of votes cast, incoming votes, and votes by hour and level for us today!”