By Adam Johnson

New York Mills Superintendent

The 2024-25 school year is quickly coming to a close. As I write this, there are 17 days left of school. The last day of the school year is May 28, which is a half day. There are still plenty of events coming up as well. The first one is Early Childhood Graduation that was held on May 8. This is a huge moment for our Pre-Kindergarten students and families. Congratulations to each of them on reaching this milestone and see you all next fall! 

There are also middle school and high school concerts coming up. On May 12, there is a 7-12th grade band concert. On the May 15, there is the 5-6th grade band and choir concert. And then on May 19, the 7-12th grade choir concert takes place. Elementary track and field for 1st-6th grades is taking place on the May 14. For kindergarten, track and field will take place on May 15.

Math Masters happened this past month as well. The fourth grade white team placed second overall. Harlow Carlson finished second overall in the competition. In Facts, Henry Schik placed third, Harlow placed fifth, and Jace Balbach placed seventh. The fifth grade blue team took first place. Millie Schik was first place as an individual and Kylie Weller took 10th place. For Facts, Shane Schornack and Kylie Weller tied for ninth. The sixth grade blue team also placed first. Zeke Geiser was first place as an individual, Sydney Jorgenson placed sixth, and Kalum Kneisl placed eighth. For Facts, Zeke placed sixth and Sydney placed 10th. Awesome job to all the students and great job representing NYM.

As we move closer to the end of the school year, for seniors, there are many big dates. On May 7, we held our Scholarship Ceremony, where the seniors received their scholarships for the upcoming fall. On May 15, the Seniors will have their kindergarten breakfast where they will see some of their school work and pictures of their kindergarten days. Following this breakfast, seniors will have their class picture with Caulfields. Their last full day of school for seniors is May 21. May 22 is half day for seniors and we will have graduation practice and the senior walk. On May 23 at 7:30 p.m., the New York Mills School Class of 2025 Graduation Ceremony will take place in the Sports Center. The doors open at 6:30 p.m. on graduation night. Congratulations to all seniors on this accomplishment and best of luck to every senior as they move forward!

On the activities side, congratulations to all of our state participants. FFA had a huge number of students make state. The highest placing teams were Nursery Landscape, who finished eighth and Farm Business Management, who placed 19th. The highest placing individual was Isaac Geiser, who placed ninth in Nursery Landscape. 

Speech had three state entrants and two state place winners. Peyton Lausten placed fifth in Prose Interpretation and Brooke Sonsalla placed seventh in Discussion. Elijah Geiser lost a tiebreaker to make it to the placing round. Congratulations to our FFA and Speech students on great seasons.

The following students also were rewarded in the MSHSL Regional Art Competition. Tiffany Hoefs and Trina Kovar both earned Superior ratings in painting. Brianna Honer, Payton Lausten and Gabi Vaden earned Excellent in painting. Also earning Excellent ratings were Marissa Goeller in sculpture, Ayla Olson in ceramics, and Annika Dunrud in crafts.

The track and field team continues to grow and improve during the season. Many of the students have reached personal records this year and are in line for great conference and sub-section placings. Softball is currently 6-4 on the season, with their trip to Jackson taking place last weekend. Softball playoffs start on May 20. Baseball is currently 7-6 on the season, after their trip to Virginia, Minn., to play Cherry and South Ridge. Baseball playoffs start on May 22. Best of luck to all athletes as they wrap up their seasons!

The school district is looking to complete a Facility Needs Assessment this summer and will be asking for public input on the building needs. There are groups set up to involve elementary and high school staff, school board, administration, supervisors, and students to give input. There will be community hearings as well. Please watch Facebook for times, dates, and locations to give your input in the state of our building.

Grand March, Prom and Post Prom were all awesome successes. Thank you to the advisors, students, parents and volunteers for making this such a great night.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the food service survey that was sent out last month. We had over 220 responses with great input into our food service program. Julie Peterson and her entire team do an amazing job, but we want to continue to improve in this area.

The last day of school is scheduled for May 28 with a half day. Summer recreation, summer meals, and summer child care are all coming up soon, so watch Facebook and mail for all the updates.

Have a great rest of the school year and go Eagles.