October Newsletter

October 2017“Preparing All Students to be Successful in Life” Congratulations CONTENTS to our Superintendent’s Message September Principal TalksStudents of the Month Contact Us Information Parent Portal Mobile App (Left to right): FCCLA News & Events High School Student of the Month Colby Malsam Elementary Guidance High School Student of Character Tess Liester Earn $ for the School Middle School Student of the Month Ella Branham Lady Dawgs Volleyball Middle School Student of Character Haley Newburn Mrs. Berg’s 4th Grade Kindergarten Butterflies Mrs. Whipple’s Class is Tired Homecoming Royalty Homecoming King & Queen Homecoming Dress up Days Hall of Fame 2017 Krogstad’s Dairy Farm

From the Superintendent/Elementary Principal Robert Sittig October 2017 Newsletter Article The school year is off to another great start. By the time you read this article, homecoming will be over and we will have had our first Parent-Teacher Conferences. P-T Conferences were moved earlier in the school year in order to promote close working relationships between parents and teachers. We welcome feedback from parents on whether moving conferences earlier in the year was agood idea. Please feel free to email me at [email protected] with any thoughts you have on thatsubject.EnrollmentLast year, Baltic’s K-12 enrollment hit an all-time high at 498 students, but that included the largestgraduating class ever of 45 students. With such a large graduating class, it was not surprising for ourenrollment to decline this school year. Our incoming kindergarten class is an average class of 39kindergarten students, and with students moving in and moving being about equal, our K-12 enrollmentdeclined to 493 students. This could happen again the following year as we will once again graduate a largeclass of 42 seniors, but that is followed up by one of our smallest classes in quite some time of 25 juniors.The good news is that our pre-school enrollment is at an all-time high with 45 three and four year oldsattending pre-school this year.Digital SignIf you have driven through Baltic recently, you probably noticed our new digital sign along Lovely Avenue.The sign would not be possible without the generous contributions of several businesses, organizations andindividuals, who donated $36,500 of the approximately $40,000 cost of the sign. Those entities includeAlliance Communication, First National Bank Community Card Program, Sioux Valley Energy, oneanonymous donor, and the Baltic PTO, Athletic Boosters, and Music Boosters. The sign is an attractive andfunctional way to promote our school and community, and to inform the public of upcoming events, etc. Itshould also be noted that getting electricity to the sign was a joint project between Baltic School and theCity of Baltic. Thanks to all of the businesses, organizations and individuals who made the sign possible!Other Projects As is typical each year, we have a few projects and purchases that are needed to keep our facilitiesand programs up to date and operating efficiently. This past summer we installed a new wireless Internetaccess system to make sure our students and staff can access the programs and sites needed for oureducational programs. When you have 1 to 1 computers from 3rd-12th grades and 1 to 2 computers forgrades 1st-2nd, it is important to make sure they have appropriate and reliable connectivity, and what we didthis summer should insure that for the next 5-8 years. A second project completed this summer was the installation of new digital security cameras. Theprevious system was reaching obsolescence, and it lacked coverage of many areas of the school. The new

system more than doubled the number of cameras, and the quality of the video is much greater thusachieving more functionality. One important characteristic of the new system that it allows off-site access,which in the case of an intruder would allow law enforcement to access the camera video to see what isgoing on in the building in order to assure the safety of our students. Once again, if you have driven by the school you may have noticed the parking lot is black with newstripes. While it looks nice, it was not done for cosmetic purposes but rather to increase the longevity of thesurface. The previous summer, the parking lot was crack-sealed, and this summer it was chip-sealed, andthe combination of the two projects should help it remain a functional surface for the next few years. Thefact that it looks great is an added bonus. Lastly, we recently had a major mechanical problem with of our busses with the cost to fix the busmore than the value of the bus. The school board decided the best option was to replace the bus, so theyauthorized the purchase of a new model bus being used by the bus company as a demo bus. The demo bushad approximately 8,000 miles with a price of $77,250. Ouch! While that is a lot of money, it is importantthat we have safe and reliable busses to get our students to and from school and activities, and we view it asan investment rather than a cost. The bus was delivered September 18th and has already been put intoservice.Important DatesPlease note the following important dates.October 9 – No school for teacher in-serviceOctober 10 – Regular school board meeting moved to this date because of a conflict with a home volleyballmatchOctober 23 – End of first quarterNovember 16 – 2:00pm dismissal for teacher in-serviceNovember 22 – 2:00pm dismissal for Thanksgiving BreakDecember 14 – 2:00pm dismissal for teacher in-serviceDecember 22 – 2:00pm dismissal for Christmas BreakDecember 23-January 2 – No school for Christmas BreakJanuary 3 – 2nd semester beginsJanuary 15 – No school for teacher in-service

Secondary Principal Jim Aisenbrey Homecoming-2017 was celebrated the week of September 25th. The Royalty Court for 2017 was Carrington Entringer, Sydnie Fiala, Tessa Steinmiller, Jayda Tidemann, Samuel Brown, Keaton Lenderts, Jayden Pittmann and Jon Wilhelmsen. From this group, Keaton Lenderts and Tessa Steinmiller were chosen by the student body to reign as King and Queen over the week’s homecoming festivities.Congratulations to Keaton and Tessa, and to all members of the Royalty Court, for their selection from thehigh school student body. Homecoming was a great week with spirit days, exciting volleyball matches, the parade, studentgames, a pep rally, coronation and a very exciting football game. The volleyball team beat Dell Rapids St.Mary on Tuesday 3-0 and then played in the Tri Valley Conference Tournament. The week capped off witha very exciting football game against Freeman-Canistota on Friday night. Students and staff were active participants in spirit days. It was enjoyable to see the differentcostumes worn throughout the week. Spirit Days consisted of College Jersey Day, Student/Teacher Day,Hero/Villain Day, Crazy Day, and the traditional blue and gold day called Blue and Gold Pride Day. As we head in to the month of October, we can see the leaves beginning to turn and the beauty of thefall season all around us. The end of October also means that school is already 25% complete. The firstquarter ends on October 23rd. There will be no school for students on Monday, October 9th, as the teacherswill be in an all-day in-service here at the school. I ask that all parents take an active role in the school livesof their children. Check parent portal frequently to assess their child’s progress, contact teachers andschool officials when necessary, and become active participants in their extra-curricular activities. Studieshave shown that the more parents are involved with their children, the better their children will do both inthe classroom and in their social lives. To the parents of seniors, a Josten’s representative will be in school on November 2nd at 10:30 toprovide all the information the seniors will need for ordering graduation supplies. Their year will go by veryquickly, so enjoy all aspects of their final year of high school. The seniors will also be taking the National Career Readiness Certification assessment. This is anassessment the tests students on the skills necessary to be successful in the work force. Students arequizzed on math, science, written skills, and vocational skills. Once completed, the students can earn aproficiency certificate of gold, silver or bronze. They can then use this certificate as part of their resumewhen applying for jobs. Although the program is not very well understood in the business world, theDepartment of Labor is increasing their efforts to educate employers on the benefits of this program. Thisassessment will be Wednesday, October 11th, beginning at 9:15 am. I would like to remind parents of our SRB program. This program is designed under the concept of“failure is not an option.” Students are held to a higher degree of accountability by being required to turnin quality work on time. As parents, you may have received notification through a text and/or e-mail thatsays your child is missing an assignment. The student is required to attend a 30 minute study session at

the end of the day with the teacher with whom they are either missing work or have a failing grade in theirclass. When the missing work is completed to the satisfaction of the teacher, the student is free to leave.Students who have a failing grade in a class the first school day of a week are required to stay in SRB theremainder of the week with the teacher that they need the extra prep work with. Thus far, students andstaff have been very receptive to this program. I would like to take this opportunity to commend the students and staff for the tremendous start tothis school year. I have boasted many times what good students we have in our school. Our staff takes apersonal as well as a professional interest in all our students. It is a great joy for me to come to school justto work with our students and staff and watch the nurturing and learning taking place every day. I have heard many times this year from students, staff and parents what a great start we have had tothe school year. I attribute the positive atmosphere to several things. First, I believe the students are activein their learning and are striving to achieve success at a higher level. They feel better in and out of theclassroom because they are being challenged at a higher level and they understand the expectations thathave been placed on them. We see the impact of student success in the classroom and in our extra-curricular activities. We have more students involved with various school activities and classroom projectsand more students in the hallways regretting their decision not to be more active this fall. Hard workdevelops confidence, and confidence develops a winning attitude. Our fall programs and classroom successare living proof of the success we are celebrating. Second, I attribute much of our success to our staff. Teachers, aides, custodians, and all our districtemployees have raised the level of expectation of our students and the students are working to meet thoseexpectations. We began the year with the challenge to increase expectations and foster relationships. Fromthe success we are seeing this year; I believe we are meeting the goals we set out with. Thank you toeveryone for a successful start to a new year.

IMPORTANT CONTACT INFO Superintendent/Elementary Principal Bob SittigElementary School [email protected] Secondary PrincipalMiddle/High School Jim Aisenbrey605-529-5464 [email protected] www.balticschool.org Business Manager Marsha PolzinLive Chat [email protected] Network Director Collin Reynolds [email protected] Elementary Counselor (K-7th) Abby Danko [email protected] Middle/High School Counselor Marilyn Schmitz-Stadem [email protected] Activities Director Steve Gunderson [email protected] Special Services Director Jennifer Even [email protected] Liester – President SCHOOL BOARD [email protected] Jenny HeftyScott Brende jenny [email protected]@k12.sd.us Darin Larson [email protected] Steve Schmidt [email protected]

INFINITE CAMPUS PORTAL: THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT! The Campus Mobile Portal app is available for free, for both android and IOS devices. Once the app has been installed, parents and students can access grades, attendance and schedule information virtually anywhere. Parents/guardians with more than one student in their family can easily switch from one to another’s information with the flick of a fingertip. One feature of this app is the opportunity to receive notifications. Once notifications have been enabled by the district, this feature will allow parent and student subscribers to receive notifications regarding changes to assignments, grades and attendance changes according to their individual notification preferences. It’s also integrated with the advanced, object-oriented Campus Security system, so each student in the family can only view his/her own information. Parent Portal is a Key for Parents to stay up-to-date on the progress of your child and a great tool for communication!Download the Infinite Campus Portal Today!

Congratulations to Brigette Nelson from the Baltic Chapter on her new position as the National Vice President of Finance. This is a first in Baltic FCCLA history. Brigette was chosen as a national officer at the National Leadership Conference this July in Nashville and will serve as a national officer for one year and a member of the FCCLA Board of Directors for 2 years.It’s time to join FCCLA. Membership forms (and all other chapter forms) can be found in the FACS roomor on Mrs. Ries website. Check it out here http://suzyries.wixsite.com/facs/fcclaThanks to everyone for your help making our Sioux Empire Fair Dairy Barn fundraiser a success. Weappreciate your time and dedication.High School FACS Welcomes Miss VanderVorstThe Baltic High School FACS Department and FCCLA Chapter is pleased towelcome student teacher Morgan VanderVorst. Morgan, originally fromGettysburg, is a senior at SDSU in the Family and Consumer Sciences EducationDepartment. She will earn her bachelor’s degree this May and hopes to stay inSouth Dakota to teach. At SDSU she is involved in intermural sports (volleyball,basketball and slow-pitch softball), Human Services Club and past officer of theAAFCS/FCCLA Alumni Association. She works at Brookings Area Habitat for Humanity and likes to go onwalks, rollerblade, play sand volleyball and color in her spare time.October Events:October 1: Deadline for $100 Cluster Meeting down paymentOctober 1-2: Leadership and Rookie Camp in HuronOctober 6: Magazine/cookie dough and online coupon book sales dueOctober 13: Deadline to apply for Washington DC Leadership CampOctober 19: Spooky pal sign up forms dueOctober 20: Spooky pal pairings handed outOctober 20: Bowling and Corn MazeOctober 23: Team of the quarterOctober 25-31: Spooky PalsOctober 31: Halloween Carnival for the Food PantryOctober 31: Now Trending Member of the Month and Officer of the Month

Current FCCLA Fundraisers: Online Coupon Book: customize your own coupon book for only $25.00. All you have to do is use your smartphone to redeem. Check it out at www.pushsave.com/bhsfccla. Cookie Dough, Magazines, Gifts, Wrap and More! www.gaschoolstore.com Click “Shop Now” School code: 2664290For more information on any events contact advisor Suzy Ries at [email protected] or 529-5461. Allforms and more fundraising information can be found at http://suzyries.wixsite.com/facs/fcclaSome fun shots from Leadership FCCLA

Dear Parents & Guardians, It is exciting that another school year has just begun! I had a wonderful summer with myfamily, and am now ready to start another fantastic school year here at Baltic Elementary. I wouldlike to share some of the initiatives my school counseling program has to offer during the 2017-2018 school year.Abby Danko Each year individual and small group services are available for students, as well asGuidance KG – 6th classroom guidance. These services promote personal and social growth, which, in turn, raise academic standards. Students have the opportunity to seek out individual counselingservices by coming to my office, which is located down the middle school wing. If I am not available, students mayleave a note under my door or complete a referral form on my website. Teachers and parents may also referstudents to the counseling office. Parents, please feel welcomed to contact me at any time if you feel that I cansupport your child through individual counseling or group counseling services. The discussions that I have with yourchild during individual sessions and/or during group counseling sessions are confidential unless your child would likeme to share information or if something he or she shares requires me to report due to someone being in danger. Counseling groups are offered throughout the school year to provide additional services to children withcommon needs. Students may be invited to a school counseling group to help strengthen their skills or to help otherstudents. The goals of small group counseling are for students to build connectedness to a group and to build onskills that will strengthen their character. Students, teachers, parents and I can recommend small group counselingservices for your child if there is a need. If you feel that your child may benefit from a counseling group, please feelfree to contact me at any time. Groups are scheduled as similar needs arise. Common group topics are listed below. New Student Groups Changing Families Groups Deployment Groups Boys/Girls Groups Friendship Groups Social Skills GroupsFeelings Management Groups How to Handle Worries Groups Grief Groups School Success Groups Organization Groups Relaxation/Sensory Groups Your child will see me in their classrooms at least once a week. Each month I will be teaching lessons tosupport social/emotional growth, academic growth, and career awareness. I have listed our school counselingthemes for this school year below. Please make note that these general themes may change and be added to as theyear goes on depending on the needs of each of the individual classroom environments.August: Intro to Counselor/Students January: Self-Concept & Growth MindsetSeptember: Building Community February: Respect/DiversityOctober: Feelings March: School Success/Test-TakingNovember: Safety/Abuse Prevention April: CareersDecember: Coping/Resiliency May: Transitions & Summer Safety I value any insight and information that you wish to share with me. Please feel free to call me, email me, or fillout a contact form on my school website at any time throughout the school year so I can support your child. If youhave any questions about school counseling services, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am excited to beworking with your child this year. Sincerely, Abby Danko, MS, NCC, Professional School Counselor

$$$$$ HELP BALTIC SCHOOL EARN FREE MONEY $$$$$We hope you enjoying our fall weather and activities. We encourage you and your students to be watching for itemsthat have Box Tops. Clip them and send to school. Elementary kids will be coming home with a baggie to put themin. For each Box Top brought to school in their baggie, a tootsie roll is earned as a reward!  Thousands of Box Tops are set to expire this fall 2017. Please send saved Box Tops to school with your child so we don’t miss out!  We will be submitting again mid-October to ensure Baltic school receives this free money!  Baltic School has earned thousands of dollars through this program to purchase items for education materials and classroom incentives.  We cannot accept expired Box Tops. Formally Sure Fine, now known as Best Choice, also has a Save-a-Label program. For each item with the Best Choice UPC submitted and sent to school, the school will then earn 3 cents. 3 centsdon’t sound like much but it adds up quickly! Products may be found at County Fair, Sunshine Foods, and Franklins Food Marts in Sioux Falls. Please help us earn the school free money! We also collect Campbell’s Labels for Education. Each label is worth 1 point or more that the school then can use toward the purchase of classroom supplies, manipulatives, or playground & gym equipment. These labels are found on lots of different items, not just soup cans, so keepyour eye out for the dotted line and point value! The UPC code and point value must be intact to earn points, so ifyou are not sure where to cut, just send the whole label and we’ll do the work for you! Note: Campbell’s Label forEducation program is ending soon. Fewer store items will have labels on them but if you have some saved at home,please still send to us. We are still able to purchase items with our label balance while supplies last! UPCs clipped from Village Hearth and Country Hearth products earn the school 5¢ each. Please visit their website http://www.loaves4learning.com/ for a list of eligible products and send the UPCs with your child. The UPC is inside a dotted line and shaped like a loaf of bread Thanks for your help in earning free stuff for the Baltic School! Scott and Amy LangnerCoordinators Hanson Heather

Bulldog Volleyball Breaking through the door!! The Bulldog volleyball team is off to an 8-4 start. We started practice August 9th with 23 players and the teamhas been working very hard on both their individual and team skills, and practices have been competitive and fun asthey push each other to new performance levels. The coaches are really proud of the Excitement, enthusiasm, andenergy they have been practicing with. The Bulldogs have been very competitive this year. They are really playing well as a team. The team issacrificing for the better of the team and it shows as they compete and push each other to new heights. The teamreally plays for each other, community and school. With homecoming coming up next week the volleyball girls will be going down and visiting with theelementary students during the week. They really enjoy going and having lunch with them but also getting to gooutside at recess. The students have a lot of fun asking questions and talking with them. It’s an honor for ourstudents to enjoy some time with future Bulldogs. We want to thank the teachers for allowing the team to have thisopportunity to do this. On October 5 we will be having senior night. Come watch the Team perform on senior night as we take onViborg Hurley. JV starts at 6:15 with varsity to follow. The seniors have really put in a lot of time and effort for ourprogram and have earned this special night. This is there night come out and join them. They will be signingautographs and taking pictures afterwards. The volleyball team will be getting into the meat of their schedule with the games coming up. Here is a lookat the next few home games and what is going on. On Thursday, October 5 Viborg Hurley 6:15 senior night On Monday, October 9 Dell Rapids 6:15 5th grade will be coming in On Thursday, October 12 Sioux Valley 6:15 6th grade will be coming in On Tuesday, October 17 Howard 6:15 Think Pink Cancer awarenesso Be Bold were pink and come support the cause.Our Bulldog volleyball athletes are putting a lot of time and effort into the season; they are working hard inpractice and on games for games. This is a group of talented and motivated athletes who are a lot of fun to watch,so please join us for some enjoyable evenings in the gym with the team. We would really appreciate our fans tocome out and cheer us on!Thanks for your support,Matt KonzHead Volleyball Coach

Mrs. Berg’s Fourth Grade NewsFourteen students in Mrs. Berg’s class are already working on creating their very ownmagazine with their various writing assignments. The topics of their magazine werefootball, basketball, dogs, horses, sharks, rabbits, cats, mountain lions, and wolves.Students have written their editor in chief and are now using their keyboarding skills to typethat project. Soon we will be writing poems and doing research on our topics.In math, we have completed basic multiplication and division, as well as patterns. Placevalue of numbers will be the main focus in Topic 3 in math.Students seem to enjoy the daily trivia questions posed to them each morning. They canearn pounds up the “top producer” board for correct answers. Art is another area thatstudents are happy about.Each week in grammar there is a certain skill that we work on all week long. The four typesof sentences, subjects and predicates, compound and complex sentences are a few of theskills we have mastered.Our classmate, Jack, was sick and in the hospital for several days. We are happy to havehim back in class.Watch for upcoming editions and perhaps the 4th graders will share some of their writingpieces about their topic. Mrs. Berg’s class all dressed-up in their “jerseys” for Homecoming. Go Bulldogs!

The Baltic Kindergarten classes havestudied the lifecyle of the Monarchbutterfly over the past 5 weeks of school.Both classes have seen the lifecycle changebefore their eyes! Various caterpillars haveformed a chrysalis and then butterflieshave emerged...all in the classroom for thechildren to see!Mrs. Lambert's class released theirbutterflies at the community garden lastweek. There the butterflies can enjoy thesweet nectar that the pollinator garden hasto offer! Mrs. Whipple’s class seemed to be very tired and needed a nap! All the kids dressed up for pajama day on homecoming week, they were having a great time!

Homecoming Royalty 2017(Left to right) Jayden Pittmann, Sam Brown, Jon Wilhelmsen, Keaton Lenderts, Tess Steinmiller, Carrington Entringer, Jayda Tidemann, Sydnie Fiala (Front row) Austin Hanson and Regan Porter CONGRATULATIONS KING KEATON LENDERTS QUEEN TESS STEINMILLER

Seniors during “Crazy” Dress Up Day!Freshman during “Crazy” Dress Up Day!

Some of our high school staff, dressed in their normal attire. (Oh, maybe it was for “Crazy Day”!)Homecoming Parade Marshal Games Allie Wirkus Mrs. Lambert’s class wore their favorite jerseys! (By the way they are yelling, “Bulldogs”!)

You can find these photos & many, many more on our website for you to enjoy! Click on the link below: http://baltic.rschoolteams.com/ Ms. Specht’s room is showing off Their favorite jerseys, too!Let’s not forget Mrs. Hoekman’s class…we have spirit too! Mrs. Swenson’s class was the loudest saying, “Bulldogs”!

Mrs. Berg’s class was so good at following instructions! Mrs. Oschner’s class was so busy studying, we didn’t want to interrupt them…shhhh. Mrs. Lesnar’s class was having some fun…who would want to stop that!

Bob Sittig - Graduating Class of 1974 Kassy Hegge - Graduating Class of 1999 While a student at Baltic High School, Bob Sittig was Kassy Hegge was an outstanding basketball player andvaledictorian, all-state basketball, scored over 1,000 points in student. During her four years as a basketball starter, Balticbasketball, 3-time all-conference basketball, all-conference football, won three State B Championships, one 3rd place state finish,a member of track team that placed 2nd at the 1974 State Track and accumulated a record of 90-10. Her basketball awardsMeet, and he was on track relay teams that set four school records included SDHSBCA Player of the Year nominee, 1st Team All-with the medley relay record still standing in 2017. He was also State in 1998, State B All-Tournament in 1997, and 1998, 5-active in drama, band, and choir including state one-act play and all- time letter winner, All Conference in 1996, 1997, and 1998, andstate chorus. she ended her After attending Augustana College, Bob began teaching math career 4th in school history in rebounds (618), 5th in schooland coaching at Baltic in 1979. He became secondary history in scoring (1050), and 4th in assists (250). Kassy was aprincipal/activities director in 1993, superintendent in 1999, and starter on the 1996 Baltic GBB team that set a national recordsuperintendent/elementary principal in 2004, a position he still holds for team field goal percentage in a season. She was also ain 2017. National Merit Scholar semi-finalist, and she was co- valedictorian with a 4.0 grade point average. In addition, Kassy Bob was the head girls’ basketball coach for 17 years during was named All-Conference volleyball, and she was active inwhich time his teams had a record of 299-96 making him the FFA where she achieved a State FFA Degree.winningest basketball coach in school history. He was the coach ofSD State B Girls’ Basketball Champions in 1995, 1996, 1998, 2001, After high school, Kassy attended SDSU and the University ofand 2003, 3rd place in 1997 and 6th place in 2004, he was SD Girls’ Sioux Falls where she participated in basketball and was partBasketball Coach of the Year in 1995 and 2001, and he was the SD of a national NAIA semi-final basketball team. FollowingAssistant Boys’ Basketball Coach of the Year in 1993. He coached college, she attend the USD School of Medicine where shein the SD High School Girls’ Basketball All-Star Game, the SD vs. was named to Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) honor society, whichWyoming All-Star Game, the SD vs. Nebraska All-Star Game, and is one of the top honors for medical students nationally. Shehe was the Augustana College Alumni Coach of the Year in 1997. completed her pediatrics residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and she currently is a licensed physician in the As superintendent, Bob was the 2012 SD Superintendent of the Sioux Falls area.Year, a member of the American Association of School Administrators(National Superintendent’s Organization) Governing Board, President ofthe SD Superintendent’s Association, a member of the SD High SchoolActivities Association Board of Directors, President of the SD BeadleClub, and he received a SDHSAA Distinguished Service Award. Inaddition, he was principal of Baltic Elementary 2015 National BlueRibbon School, and he was superintendent during the construction ofthe K-8 school, the football/track complex, and the fitness center.

Mrs. Lambert’s class had fun visiting theKrogstad’s Dairy Farm