One year nearing its end, plans already underway for the next one

The end of another school year is quickly approaching and what an interesting year it has been. These past few months we have been able get through the cold days of winter and leap into the much-anticipated warmer weather of spring. We were even able to sneak in a couple of snow days, which are a big hit still for all our students.

Our third quarter wrapped up during the end of March. This concluded the students’ odd period courses for the school year due to our switch to block scheduling. It was a good quarter for us, highlighted by an FFA week, FCCLA week and a FBLA week. All these organizations do some amazing things in and around our school. It is great to see so many students get involved with these clubs and activities. Our junior class also took the ACT exam and other grades began prepping for the Wisconsin Forward exam. I am confident that all of our students will do their best on all of these exams.

Our junior and senior high sports teams wrapped up their winter seasons in late February. All of our student athletes represented Loyal very well throughout their seasons. Sometimes games and seasons don’t end the way we would like, but as you look back on the growth in skills, abilities, teamwork, etc. all seasons were a success! Spring sports officially started the first week of April with junior high baseball, softball and track. High school sports seasons kick off on April 19. Good luck to all!

We recently had the opportunity to recognize some very special seniors. First, Jenna Waldhart was selected as our valedictorian and Savannah Schley was selected as salutatorian. Olivia Piller received the state Invest Write Award as her essay from the Senior Investing class was selected as the state winner. Katlyn Lindner and Matthew Szymanski were selected as the Cloverbelt Scholar Athletes and Jenna Waldhart and Savannah Schley were selected as the Cloverbelt Scholars. Congratulations to all of these seniors on their great accomplishments.

Our Junior Prom will be held on Saturday, May 8 at Rustic Occasions. The junior class and advisors are taking the necessary steps to plan and host a great event for our high school students. Senior graduation is scheduled for Saturday, May 29, at 1 p.m. We are excited to be able to plan and conduct what we feel will be a pretty normal graduation ceremony. The senior awards banquet will be on Wednesday, May 19 in the high school gym at 6 p.m. As you can see, May will be here soon and there is a lot going on.

Mrs. Scherer continues to meet with students on their schedules for next year. The master plan with the switch to trimesters is coming together nicely. I believe our students and staff will enjoy the 68-minute periods and a normal lunch break next year. We are excited to continue to offer dual credit and college/technical school courses to our students. This is a great opportunity for our students to get a jump start on their post-secondary education while still in high school.

We have several businesses looking for summer workers. Information has been posted on our announcements and social media platforms along with flyers posted at school. More great opportunities for our students who might be interested in summer employment.

Lastly, with the end of the year coming we will continue to plan for the start of the next school year. We realize it will look different, but we are committed to student learning as we continue to do our best to give our students the best education they deserve.

As always, feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. I encourage you all to take a positive, active role in your family’s education.

Take care.

Loyal Junior/Senior High Principal Doug Dieckman