Spring 2025

A PUBLICATION OF THE NEBRASKA COUNCIL OF SCHOOL ADMINISTRATORS

CONNECTED AT THE HIP: SCHOOLS AND BUSINESSES BUILDING A STRONG TALENT PIPELINE STATEWIDE

Spring 2025

www.NCSA.org

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C ONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS On to New Horizons: Bryan Slone Moves On After Seven Years as Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO and President

by Tyler Dahlgren ............................................................................................. 4 A Conversation with Nebraska School Safety & Security Director Jay Martin

by Tyler Dahlgren ............................................................................................. 6 Connecting the Dots: Mining Empirical Data Helps NSWERS Provide Answers for Nebraska

by Tyler Dahlgren.............................................................................................. 8 Mentoring Matters Because Students Matter

by Ashton Honnor............................................................................................ 10 The More Things Change, Necessities Remain Constant

by Brian Fleischman......................................................................................... 12 The Pages of Yesteryear: Inside LPS's Quest to Construct a Virtual Chronicle

by Tyler Dahlgren............................................................................................. 14 Maintaining Momentum: Nebraska Elementary Principals Leading with Energy into Spring and Beyond!

by Dr. Amber Johnson...................................................................................... 16 Calendar of Events.......................................................................................... 17 Sponsorship..................................................................................................... 18

NCSA EXECUTIVE BOARD 2024-2025 Chair – Dr. Dan Schnoes Vice Chair – Nate Seggerman Immed. Past Chair – Dr. Melissa Poloncic NASA Representatives President – Dr. Chris Prososki President Elect – Dr. Dawn Lewis Past President – Dr. Dan Schnoes NASBO Representatives President – Dr. Chip Kay President Elect – Stacy Rodriguez Past President – Marianne Carlson NAESP Representatives President – Dr. Amber Johnson President Elect – Shelly Leyden Past President – Pam Lowndes NASES Representatives President – Amy Kroll President Elect – Missy Stolley Past President – Betsy Skelcher NSASSP Representatives President – Brian Fleischman President Elect – Marc Kaminski Past President – Nate Seggerman

NCSA STAFF

NCSA MISSION

Dr. Michael S. Dulaney Executive Director/Lobbyist

The mission of the Nebraska Council of School Administrators (NCSA) is to be an effective leader for quality education and to enhance the professionalism of its members. NCSA Today is a benefit of membership in the Nebraska Council of School Administrators, 440 South 13th Street, Suite A, Lincoln, NE 68508.

Telephone 402.476.8055 or 800.793.6272. Fax 402.476.7740.

Amy Poggenklass Finance and Membership Director

Annual membership dues are $435 (active members), $125 (associate members), or $50 (student members). NCSA Today is published quarterly.

Copyright ©2025 by NCSA. All rights reserved.

Dr. Troy Loeffelholz Associate Executive Director

Tyler Dahlgren Communications Manager Abbey Beardsley Event Manager Jen Sylvester Executive Administrative Assistant Brenda Petsch Administrative Assistant The opinions expressed in NCSA Today or by its authors do not necessarily reflect the positions of the Nebraska Council of School Administrators.

SPRING 2025 NCSA TODAY 3

CHA M B E R U PDATE

On to New Horizons: Bryan Slone Moves On After Seven Years as Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO and President

By Tyler Dahlgren, NCSA Communications Manager

Conversations around the Slone family dinner table in the 1960s almost always circled back to the happenings at school that day.

Before he traveled the globe, carving a fascinating career as a businessman and a politician, Bryan Slone would sit and eat and listen. He was a student then, his mother a teacher, and his father SLONE the district superintendent.

School, you could say, was common ground for the Slones.

“My dad would talk endlessly at the dinner table about this coach or that coach, this teacher or that teacher, and how proud he was of this coach or that teacher because of the influence they were having,” said Slone, who is retiring in June after seven years as president and CEO of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Those talks stuck with Slone through the years. Like his father before him, Slone’s a natural-born leader. You can hear it in his voice. You can see it in how people respond to him. Among his many career achievements, that’s what fills him with pride: the teams he’s been a part of.

“I literally don’t remember legal cases I was working on 30 years ago, or the congressional bill or this or that,” Slone said.

“I only remember the people, and I’ve just had great fortune to be on great teams all my life. And most recently with the chamber, that’s been no different.”

Slone is also a bridge-builder. NCSA has enjoyed a fantastic working relationship with the State Chamber in his time, and the foundation has been set for important collaboration to continue well into the future.

“There is no scenario in Nebraska where individuals win—we all have to win,” said Dr. Jim Sutfin, who joined Slone’s staff in 2022 after a 33-year career in education that culminated with the superintendency at Millard Public Schools. “That’s what sold me on coming to work for Bryan. His vision around 4

NCSA TODAY SPRING 2025

education, workforce development, childcare, business expansion, immigration, and how all of those pieces work together to make Nebraska the best place possible to live and to raise a family. We have to do it together, today.”

The COVID years illustrated how connected everything is in Nebraska from an economic standpoint, said Slone. It also accelerated the retirements of his generation, he explained, pushing workforce issues to the very top of the list of economic concerns for the next decade or two.

“Every student really matters, not only in terms of our communities, but in terms of the future success of our state,” Slone said. “Business and education are essentially tied at the hip for the next 20 years.”

At the top of the chamber’s legislative docket is LB 173, an appropriations bill that would expand dual enrollment opportunities for students across the state. NCSA, among other education and economic organizations, stood in support of the bill.

“We have to think in terms of retaining talent in the state, and the more opportunities we give our kids to attend community college while they’re concurrently enrolled in high school leads to higher retention of that talent and retention of those students,” said Sutfin. “The ability to work with career and technical education, in particular through the dual enrollment process, speaks directly to our manufacturers and our businesses as we prepare the next generation of workforce.

It is absolutely a win-win.”

The most powerful thing we can give our students in Nebraska is an opportunity. Slone’s a firm believer in that. He’s also a firm believer that this generation of young people is capable of extraordinary things.

Continued on page 7...

POSITION YOUR SCHOOL FOR THE FUTURE It has never been more important to effectively communicate your school’s value to your community.

IS YOUR SCHOOL READY? Better engage and educate parents and the community Enhance support and efforts for funding/bonding Leverage your website as a communication hub Harness the power of storytelling to promote your mission, values, and outcomes

You know the good work you’re doing. UNANIMOUS can help you ensure your community does too.

BeUNANIMOUS.com SPRING 2025 NCSA TODAY

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SCHOOL SA F ETY

A Conversation with Nebraska School Safety & Security Director Jay Martin

By Tyler Dahlgren, NCSA Communications Manager

When we last spoke to Jay Martin, almost exactly one year ago, Nebraska’s School Safety & Security Director was a busy man.

Between teaching digital parent academies in two to three school districts each week, navigating a legislative session that often induces time consumption activities, implementing Emergency Planning Operations (EOPs) through newlyestablished learning management systems, and expanding Safe2Help across the state, Martin keeps a stacked docket.

Flash forward to February 2025, and it’s still much of the same.

There’s a lot to do, and the busy days keep flying by. That’s how the always plugged-in and accessible Martin prefers it.

No days are dull, he said from a conference room at NDE’s headquarters in east Lincoln, and progress has been made on all fronts.

“The only way you can really figure out what people need is by being out there,” Martin said. “When I do presentations, I also

have conversations with the principals and superintendents and anybody else who wants to talk about what their needs are.”

At the beginning of the 2024/25 school year, Martin and his team implemented a badge system in which schools earn Diamond, Gold, or Silver status based on their established school safety and security practices. So far, more than 50 schools have received Diamond status badges, which they then proudly display near their main entrances.

“It’s just to help their community to recognize they’re doing everything they should be doing to keep children safe at their schools,” said Martin. “Unfortunately, with the tragedies that keep happening, everybody focuses on those and there’s a misconception that schools aren’t a safe place. Actually, schools are one of the safest places to be, and we decided to recognize schools and school safety teams for all their good work.”

The landscape of school safety has changed drastically over the past two decades, Martin said, emerging as a top priority in every school across the country. There’s nothing more important than student safety, and that’s what drives Martin and his team at NDE. “If the kids aren’t safe, they’re not learning,” said Martin. “They’ve got to feel emotionally safe too, and that’s another reason why I like to get my boots on the ground is to make sure they feel emotionally safe when they’re online and when new things, like medical marijuana, come into play. If you’re not having open conversations with kids, they’re going to learn it on their own by hopping online and potentially receiving a lot of misinformation. We want to make sure they’re receiving the right information.”

Nebraska School Safety and Security Director Jay Martin presents on his series of Digital Parent Academies to a group of new superintendents last spring. Martin visits schools weekly keeping staff and students in the know on all things school safety.

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With medical marijuana on the table, Martin went back to the well and has started giving presentations on

S C HO O L SAFETY substance abuse, something he did often during his law enforcement days. Regulations will come down the pike this fall. Policies are going to need to be put in place, and Martin’s getting out in front of it beforehand.

“Districts should already have a policy with Rule 59 and how they distribute meds in school,” he said. “The problem, and what people don’t always understand, is that medical marijuana isn’t the same. You don’t go to a pharmacy to get your prescription. You go to a pot shop and you get whatever’s there that you have access to. Honestly, we’re going to have problems, because it’s high potency stuff. It’s not marijuana anymore. Marijuana grown in a ditch had seven percent THC. This stuff can have the potential, if it’s put in a vape pen, to be almost pure THC. The edibles are anywhere between thirty and seventy percent THC, which can create marijuana psychosis.”

NCSA has been a proponent of Safe2Help since partnering with Boys Town and other agencies to get LB 322, which expanded the resource statewide, passed back in 2021. One year ago, 64 percent of Nebraska’s schools were utilizing the resource. That number has soared over 70 percent since, and it continues to grow. There are also 300 people or teams currently utilizing NDE’s learning management system, and a handful of schools have already submitted their EOPs through the platform, which allows schools to correspond

and collaborate with each other.

“If they’re having similar problems with the LMS or with an EOP, they can actually converse back and forth through the canvas,” Martin said. “It’s created an open door conversation that’s helped everybody to get on the same page and to make sure they’re doing what they need to do for their communities.”

Martin and his team have also focused on suicide prevention, contracting with retired school administrator Kim Jacobson to assemble a suicide prevention toolbox for students and a toolkit for parents. NDE is also preparing to release a psychological First Aid toolkit for schools as well.

If your district is interested in hosting a digital parent academy, or if you have any questions about anything you read above, just reach out, said Martin.

“We’ll find a time when I can come out, and I typically try to meet with students during the day, staff in the afternoon, and then parents typically in the evening,” Martin said. “We’ll even invite parents to come during the day, if it works out better, because the big caveat is always trying to get the parents to show.”

When it comes to school safety, the busier the better. ■

On to New Horizons (Continued from page 4) “The students I meet across the state, whether it’s K-12 or community college or four-year college, they’re smarter, more worldly,” he said. “They just have the potential to be far more accomplished than my generation because the technology and the world got smaller and their ability to know more faster.

This is an environment where it’s really important that young people explore careers at an earlier age and really go through that process of understanding their own personal strengths and where they fit and what they like to do. The sooner we can offer experiential learning, the better.”

With such a stellar team in place, and with the Chamber’s relationship with education, particularly with superintendents, in an excellent place, the timing was right for Slone to step away.

“That relationship is super important because our interests are totally aligned at this point,” Slone said. “Again, coming from that background as a child, I know that everybody cares

about the outcomes of every one of these kids. That’s what school superintendents and business leaders share. We all have a vested interest in the outcome of every single young student in Nebraska. Whether they’re city, whether they’re rural, whatever their economic circumstances, this is the most important thing we can do for the next 20 years.”

As for what’s next for Slone, he’s not completely sure. He only knows that his fascinating career isn’t over yet. Sutfin said there’s little doubt that Slone will continue to impact policy in Nebraska in a positive way.

“Where I like to be is at the intersection of business and politics, and that’s a little rare,” Slone said. “Some people like business, and some people like politics. I like both of them. I haven’t decided what I’m going to do going forward, but something tells me that I’ll continue to be very involved in these issues for some time to come.” ■

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P ROG RA M S POTL I G H T

Connecting the Dots: Mining Empirical Data Helps NSWERS Provide Answers for Nebraska

By Tyler Dahlgren, NCSA Communications Manager

The Nebraska Statewide Workforce & Educational Reporting System (NSWERS) was launched in the fall of 2020, but its history stretches back a full decade.

That’s when a group of leaders from NDE, the University of Nebraska System, the Nebraska State College System, Nebraska Community Colleges, and the HASTINGS Department of Labor came together in agreement that a better understanding of the relationship between education and workforce-related outcomes was desperately needed in Nebraska.

“People talk about that concept a lot, that we are educating our future workforce,” said NSWERS executive director Dr. Matt Hastings. “Those conversations are often driven by anecdotes and one-off examples, and have not historically been rooted in a lot of empirical connections between what’s happening in a K-12 environment and what that then yields in Nebraska’s workforce.”

LB 1160, which called for the adoption of the Nebraska Statewide Workforce and Education Reporting System Act, was introduced in January 2020 and passed with bipartisan support in August. Since then NSWERS has operated as a public interlocal agency that works on behalf of its aforementioned partners. The data Hasting’s team has mined over that period of time is as good as gold.

“The impact of this for decision-makers and policymakers in Nebraska is that we finally have the opportunity to provide some empirical answers to those big picture, salient questions that our state has been wrestling with for years,” Hastings explained. “Where do we have employment gaps? How well are we meeting our talent retention goals and addressing brain drain issues for the education side of the house? It’s really about being able to provide that roadmap for education leaders to really understand what’s happening to their students once they walk across the stage or once they exit that one place where they’re receiving their education.”

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In January, NSWERS rolled out Insights, a “web-based tool that informs decision-making for eight outcomes within Nebraska’s education and workforce training system.” Those eight outcomes (high school graduation, college-going, postsecondary persistence, postsecondary graduation, employment gap, time to employment, industry placement, and employment location) are the nucleus of all the data NSWERS digs up.

“This allows Nebraska writ large from parents to families, legislators, policy makers, and so on to see where Nebraska is at on those outcomes,” said Hastings.

Insights Plus, a secure partner-facing version of the platform, goes even deeper into the data. In March, Hastings’ team launched NSWERS Academies, a hands-on training program that allows school districts to see outcomes for particular students.

“We've tried to design a series of tools and resources that provide, for the first time, a clear line of sight from education to the workforce.”

Dr. Matt Hastings “We have about half a dozen public school districts that are going to be piloting that with us throughout the spring, and then we are going to open it up to any school district in the state that would like to begin utilizing it,” Hastings said.

Nebraska State Chamber of Commerce and Industry president and CEO Bryan Slone said in an interview with NCSA that education and business are going to be tied at the hip for at least the next two decades. Hastings fully agrees and sees the work being done by NSWERS as a bridge over which effective communication between the education and workforce spaces can occur.

“We’ve tried to design a series of tools and resources that provide, for the first time, a clear line of sight from education to the workforce,” he said. “So as Nebraska is planning

PRO GRA M S POTL I G HT

strategies, interventions, and investments to address workforce challenges, we really have empirically-driven information that can guide what policies and processes are going to work best.”

Solutions aren’t going to be the same in Bancroft as they are in Benkelman, Hastings continued, so all of these resources were designed to allow users to zero in on their own locale.

“Bancroft has to be able to zoom in on their population of students that they serve and they have to be able to put in place unique strategies to best serve them, for example,” Hastings said. “Benkelman has to be able to do the same thing, and they may not necessarily be the same. So we’ve designed a series of resources that can allow different partners we work with to zoom in and zoom out based on their sphere of influence to inform how we create meaningful strategies.”

Some people may hear the word “data” and immediately run for the hills. The sheer scale of information that has been made available by NSWERS is enough to make heads spin, but the website, and the Insights platform specifically, is easily digestible and user-friendly.

“It’s a challenge to try to communicate some of these insights and findings in a clear and actionable way,” Hastings said. “One of the core ways that we’ve tried to do that is by gearing our

work around the analysis of those eight outcomes.”

Hastings calls his staff “The Magnificent Seven”, and he’s not blowing trumpets. Other agencies around the country doing similar work with data have 30 to 40 people on staff. The NSWERS team, which works out of a second-floor office in UNL’s Nebraska Hall, is a small but mighty crew.

“They are fantastic,” said Hastings. “In my opinion, they’re the best staff in the country that does this kind of work. They’re completely committed to the vision behind what we’re trying to do, and that is to help our partners, help school districts, colleges and workforce developers, to solve these perennial challenges around the education and workforce pipeline in Nebraska.”

In Nebraska, we’re better together.

“Ultimately, it’s about the future of the state,” said Hastings.

“If we all have the ability to speak the same language while analyzing what we’re doing to contribute to talent retention at our school district, at our college, at our ESU, we set ourselves up for a scenario where we can all be rolling in the same direction and we have a real chance to move the needle.”

Visit insightplus.nswers.org to learn more! ■

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P ROG RA M S POTL I G H T

Mentoring Matters Because Students Matter

By Ashton Honnor, TeamMates Mentoring Marketing & Communications Manager

and communities across Nebraska, now serving over 150 school districts statewide.

“Since we have added the core value of strengths-based, this allows our mentors to give students that sense of hope, which is the greatest indicator of academic success,” stated Adams.

“Based on Gallup research, well-being leads to well-doing, which the TeamMates Mentoring program has been doing for the last 34 years.”

The TeamMates Impact TeamMates has served more than 49,000 students since its inception and proudly serves 10,000 students in 187 chapters across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota, and Wyoming.

Per 2023-2024 TeamMates annual survey results…

Dr. John Skretta (center) joined TeamMates CEO DeMoine Adams (left) and TeamMates Marketing & Communications Manager Ashton Honnor (right) on the February 18th episode of TeamMates Timeout with DeMo & Ash on 93.7 The Ticket.

Did you know that the TeamMates Mentoring program is not only the largest school-based mentoring program in the nation, but it is the largest mentoring program in the state of Nebraska?

TeamMates Mentoring is a nonprofit organization founded by Dr. Tom and Nancy Osborne in 1991 that positively impacts the world by inspiring students in third grade through postsecondary to reach their full potential through mentoring.

Meeting with a student just once a week in school for 30-45 minutes can make a positive impact on their life by providing a sense of hope, pride, purpose, and partnership.

“Mentoring matters because students matter,” said TeamMates CEO DeMoine Adams. “We are committed to serving students with compassion and respect. The safety and protection of the mentee and the mentor is our top priority.”

TeamMates Mentoring has been transforming school cultures

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•

59% of TeamMates mentees showed an improvement in grades.

•

71% of TeamMates mentees had fewer unexcused absences.

•

81% of TeamMates mentees report that they are engaged in their schools and/or communities.

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87% of TeamMates mentees had fewer disciplinary referrals.

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92% of TeamMates mentors report leaving their mentoring time in a better mood than when they arrived.

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93% of TeamMates mentees report that they are proud to be in TeamMates.

•

The graduation rate of our actively matched seniors at the end of the 2023-2024 school year was 97% and 80% of those graduates reported having a post-secondary plan.

“TeamMates Mentoring offers interested and qualified adult volunteers with a tremendous opportunity to make a profound difference in the life of a child. Over many years in educational leadership, I have been privileged to be involved with a wide array of school community partnership initiatives,” said Lincoln Public Schools Interim Superintendent Dr. John Skretta.

Continued on page 13...

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AF F I LI AT E L EAD ER S H I P

The More Things Change, Necessities Remain Constant

By Brian Fleischman, NSASSP President

Throughout my 27-year career in education, 10 as a middle/high school math teacher at Cedar Bluffs Public School and the past 17 as principal for Overton Public School, educators have endured mountains of change.

Assessment changes and requirements, technology advancements and the good FLEISCHMAN and bad that followed, spring 2020, constant new state and federal mandates, and too many others to mention have altered the landscape of education to a point where fundamental necessities can be forsaken by school administrators. I find the following to be necessities for all school principals to address to build a quality staff and school environment:

“Be empathetic, show gratitude, and never forget that food and chocolate can be great stress relievers.”

Brian Fleischman

Be Available for Teachers Have open lines of communication with your teachers. Be approachable and engage in meaningful discussions with your teachers. Show genuine interest in their concerns and listen more than you speak.

Praise Teachers When the national rhetoric around public education is less than positive, praising our teachers for their amazing work is more important than ever. I always tell my teachers to never underestimate the smallest interaction with our students. I have to remind myself of this with my teachers at times. The

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smallest interaction with your teachers can be the confidence boost or reassurance they need at that moment. Never miss an opportunity.

Support Teachers Supporting my teachers has always been an area of focus as a principal. Supporting their decisions in regard to curricular changes empowers them to be the change agent within their classroom. Supporting teachers with difficult parent issues allows them to remain confident during these meetings. If you are aware of potential issues, being able to advise them ahead of time further empowers them to be the leader of their classroom and teaching.

Reduce Stress We all carry emotional baggage each day of our lives. Being able to alleviate or, at a minimum, not increase the load our teachers deal with is one way to decrease their stress level during the school day. Assisting with student issues and knowing they have support is another way to reduce their stress level so they can effectively teach their students. Be empathetic, show gratitude, and never forget that food and chocolate can be great stress relievers.

Keep Teachers Updated Communication is a vital component to any successful business and schools are no exception to this. Providing teachers with necessary communications regarding students and general issues is essential. The tough thing for principals can be deciding what is "necessary" information. Will it impact their teaching? If the answer is yes, then it is necessary information. This can be tough for teachers to accept as they feel administrators are keeping things from them. Again proper communication can alleviate this feeling. Principals must also remember to communicate upcoming workshops that will benefit the teachers and their classrooms. We must all model continuous learning.

Include Teachers Teachers want to feel valued and seeking their input regarding policy matters, school calendar creation, curriculum adoptions, and other special events are a great way to include them and provide opportunities for their input to be considered.

A FFILIAT E LE A DERSHI P Know Your Teachers Due to the nature of the position, principal and teacher relationships need to remain professional but that does not mean principals cannot create great relationships with teachers.

Take a genuine interest in major life events, especially events involving their children and events occurring within their families outside school activities. Again never underestimate the smallest interaction.

Mentor Teachers Mentor and encourage teachers to model life-long learning.

Students emulate what they see from their teachers. Teachers who show respect get respect and teachers who promote their own learning have students who take pride in their learning.

Providing meaningful professional learning opportunities is a small way we can encourage this action.

There are many other items you might find a necessity for your staff that I have not included. Whether the list includes the items I’ve provided or your own items, determine what your necessary items are and commit to them. Never miss a moment and never underestimate the smallest interaction.

I want to conclude by thanking the NCSA staff for everything they provide our members. NCSA provides a model for the other 49 states to emulate in their support of school

“The smallest interaction with your teachers can be the confidence boost or reassurance they need at that moment.”

Brian Fleischman administrators. From meaningful professional development opportunities, in-depth legislative updates, mentorship of new principals and superintendents, or a well-timed social gathering so we can all decompress, NCSA is the best professional development all Nebraska school administrators can be part of.

I have said it many times but my time on the NSASSP board has been the greatest professional development I have participated in during my time as principal. From lifelong friendships to countless peer discussion groups NCSA and NSASSP have provided me with multiple support groups that are necessary to get through the tough times. Remember when you think you are alone on that principal island, there are hundreds of supportive peers just an email, text, or call away. Thank you to all principals for working tirelessly to make our Nebraska schools the model for others to follow. ■

Mentoring Matters Because Students Matter (Continued from page 10) “Amongst all of these, TeamMates transcends because it offers a safe, supportive, and school-based volunteer experience that strengthens and supports our collective efforts. I am proud to have been involved with this amazing program for many years, and I encourage my colleagues to join me as we continue to strengthen and build upon the academic, social, and postsecondary success of mentees achieved through TeamMates.

Let’s recognize and meet the need for more mentors!”

Head over to teammates.org to learn more about the TeamMates impact and how your school district can get involved. ■

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NPSA S P OT L I G H T

The Pages of Yesteryear: Inside LPS’s Quest to Construct a Virtual Chronicle

By Tyler Dahlgren, NCSA Communications Manager

Lincoln Public Schools has built an impressive collection of archives over its 102 years in existence, and now the district is bringing its rich history to life.

“There’s so many cool pieces of our history just kind of tucked away in all those file folders downstairs,” said LPS Director of Library of Services Dr. Chris Haeffner. “We’d been wrestling with how to make those archives open to the public for a long time.”

About a decade ago, an anonymous LPS donor with a passion for the district’s past requested that the archives be digitized.

A foolproof way of preserving history, Haeffner agreed, but no small task for a school district that serves more than 42,000 kids, the second biggest in its state.

“We’ve done little projects here and there, collections of photos and things like that, but that donor has been driving us to create public access to our school history for years now,” said Haeffner. “We didn’t really have a path for making that happen until now.”

It was the summer of 2023 when Dr. Haeffner and LPS cataloger/archivist Sara Scott decided to dive into their district’s past.

“It was important to us, because people care about this stuff, they want to see it, and we have it,” Scott said. “I get questions all the time about the archives. People want to donate things and they want to know what we have. It’s really interesting,

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and preserving the history of schools that have closed, too, we see that as our responsibility.”

The duo didn’t know exactly what the project would entail, or even where to start. They just knew they needed to start.

“It’s good that we kind of just jumped in that summer,” said Scott. “If we would have thought about it too hard, it would’ve gotten too complicated.”

They’d build the plane as they flew it, Haeffner said. And since this was being done for the community as much as it was being done for the district, why not ask Lincolnites where to start?

“We decided to begin with yearbooks,” Haeffner said. “That was really the lowest hanging fruit. It’s the thing we get the most requests for, especially around reunion season. That’s what people want.”

The late spring release of the school yearbook, as timeless a school tradition as mini milk cartons, Valentine’s Day boxes and spirit weeks. Tangible pieces of history, the yearbook’s pages tell the story of another school year come and gone.

For the people in the pages, a yearbook, and the memories stored between its beginning and its end, is priceless.

Haeffner knew the (now retired) librarian at Lincoln High School had been hard at work digitizing LHS yearbooks. She picked up the phone and picked her brain.

NPSA S POTL I G HT “Her efforts really inspired us to pick up the mantle and do it for all of our schools,” said Haeffner. “It was her work that kind of opened our eyes to what could be.”

Haeffner settled on Issuu, an electronic publishing platform renowned for its “flipbook” design and ease-of-use. They didn’t have the right equipment to efficiently scan yearbooks, so Haeffner turned her focus to machinery and settled on a refurbished scanner that she says resembles a Mack Truck.

With so much to comb through, they quickly discovered that the process was going to be tedious. They needed another hand on deck. More manpower. Enter Logan Burbach, a Lincoln High senior with an interest in arts and humanities and part time work.

“He does such a phenomenal job,” said Haeffner. “He moves fast and has done an incredible amount of work for us. We wouldn’t have been able to do it without someone in that position.”

Flash forward 18 months, and though a grand release to the public is still a little ways away, it’s remarkable to see what the small team of librarians-turned-curators of LPS history have accomplished. Each Lincoln high school (East and North Star will be done in the near future) has a database on its website filled with decades of accessible yearbooks.

“It is super cool to see how the different generations are represented through their yearbooks,” Haeffner said. “We look in the ones during the World War II era, and we see the tributes to students who had left to go fight in the war and to students who had died in combat. It’s a powerful part of our district’s story.”

There are schools that have been closed for a lifetime that they’re not going to forget either. Lincoln landmarks from yesteryear like Havelock, Whittier, Bethany and Jackson. Those pages will likely end up living on the district office library’s home page, Haeffner guessed.

“It’s really fun to see the excitement in the community when they realize they can find their own yearbook, or their dad’s yearbook, or their grandma’s yearbook,” she went on. “It’s something that has generated excitement about our schools, and it’s really fun.”

Communities form around schools, said Scott, and the interest the people of Lincoln have taken in their project has been invigorating and incentive enough to keep going, to flip to the next page.

that’s come before.”

In the future, they even hope to get to the middle and elementary school levels. They know that might get tricky, but they haven’t backed away from anything yet. It’s funny, what started as tedious, monotonous work has become more fascinating by the day.

“It has been so interesting,” said Scott. “My husband is really into history too, so I send him a lot of ‘You won’t believe this’ texts during the day. There’s just always something neat to find.”

A few weeks ago, Haeffner and her team invested in a 3D printer. She doesn’t know how it works yet, she admitted with a laugh, but the possibilities are endless. And her imagination seems to be running on full throttle these days.

“We still have a lot to figure out, but the vision is to have this really, really cool virtual museum,” she said. “We have lettermen jackets from the early 1900s, trophies and memorabilia from a hundred years ago, pompoms from the 1950s and different things that we could just take a picture and post online, but bringing those to life in 3D will be more fun for the public to interact with.”

Neither Haeffner or Scott grew up in Lincoln–Haeffner’s from Omaha and Scott moved to Nebraska from Kansas–but this trip down the Capital City’s memory lane has been an adventure they’ll never forget.

“When I found this job, it was perfect at the time,” said Scott, who is on her way to becoming a certified archivist. “It just continues to be perfect. It keeps growing into everything I wanted it to be.”

Just a while back, a gentleman from Lincoln who had caught wind of LPS’s project was surfing eBay when he found a series of yearbooks that happened to be missing from Lincoln Northeast’s online collection. The man bought the books and sent them Haeffner’s way.

It was a simple gesture, but sometimes it’s simple gestures that mean the most.

“Our alumni feel invested in Lincoln Public Schools, and we certainly feel invested in our alumni,” said Haeffner. “This is just a really great way to celebrate the history and accomplishments of LPS and everyone who’s been a part of this school district.” ■

“It’s really reassuring that people are invested and so passionate about this stuff,” she continued. “They really care about their schools and they really care about everything SPRING 2025 NCSA TODAY

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AF F I LI AT E L EA D ER S H I P

Maintaining Momentum: Nebraska Elementary Principals Leading with Energy into Spring and Beyond!

By Dr. Amber Johnson, NAESP President

JOHNSON

As the spring season quickly approaches, we find ourselves in one of the most busy and critically important times of the school year. As we are all aware, we are in the thick of heading into parentteacher conferences, spring activities, state testing, as well as planning and preparing for the transitions for the following school year.

Our responsibilities can feel overwhelming and trying to maintain stamina and momentum is critical in our position as the leader in our respective buildings. However, just as we begin each school year with excitement, energy, and a clear vision, it is essential to maintain that same drive and passion as we enter these final months. Although the challenge is our stamina, it is necessary to embrace the busyness and lead with continued enthusiasm for all of our students, staff/faculty, and school community.

As we enter into spring, this is a time for renewal and growth, not just seasonally, but within our schools, too. The long to-do list continues to grow longer, yet this season offers a variety of opportunities to celebrate our students’ progress, continue strengthening our connections with our students while simultaneously finishing the year strong. As Nebraska elementary principals, continue to remember that our energy and outlook set the stage for the coming months.

A positive mindset, regardless of what is on our plate, can inspire and motivate our educators and students to do the same. Think about it…at the beginning of each school year,

"Keep Up the Great Work, Nebraska Elementary Principals - You got this!"

Dr. Amber Johnson

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NCSA TODAY SPRING 2025

“A positive mindset, regardless of what is on our plate, can inspire and motivate our educators and students to do the same.”

Dr. Amber Johnson we are filled with enjoyment and excitement with all of the possibilities as we reflect on what our professional goals will be for the school year. As we enter into this season, the same sense of enjoyment and excitement should not be any different. We should see this last stretch of the school year as an opportunity to reinforce the goals we initially set and have worked so hard for ourselves, staff, and students.

As principals, it is important for us to be intentional about how we manage and maintain our energy and focus while continuing to lead with passion. Collectively, let’s commit to staying visible and engaged, continue to celebrate small victories and major accomplishments, maintain a forward-focused mindset that reflects enthusiasm and appreciation, continue fostering a culture of positive engagement and encouragement, prioritize your own self-care, and of course, lean into your network (attend your regional meeting and NAESP, friends!).

While our responsibilities are layered, it is important to remember the joy that comes with our role. We have built strong relationships, impacted a variety of lives in both adults and students, generated a sense of community to make the work we do be incredibly meaningful. As we approach spring, take a moment to reflect and re-engage the “why” behind our role as building leaders. Embrace and take time to see the joy our students are experiencing as we conduct walk-throughs, the laughter we hear within the hallways, classrooms, outside activities, as well as recognizing the great dedication and effort our teachers go to meet the needs of their students.

As Nebraska elementary principals, we have the unique privilege of shaping the experiences of our students and teachers. The work we do really does matter, and we will finish strong through the final stretch of the 2024-2025 school year. ■

CALENDAR OF EVENTS Mar. 26-27 Apr. 2

Celebrating Women in Leadership – Holiday Inn – Kearney Government Relations Information Teams (GRIT) – NCSA or Virtual

Apr. 10-11

NASES/NDE Spring Conference – Omaha Marriott at Regency – Omaha

Apr. 24-25

NASBO State Convention – Embassy Suites – Lincoln

June 26-27

Educators Academy for Legislative Advocacy – NCSA Offices

July 23-25

Administrators’ Days – YCC North – Kearney

July 30

New Business Manager Workshop – NCSA Offices or Virtual

Aug. 7

Preparing for Student Leadership Issues – NCSA Offices or Virtual

Sept. 17

School Law Update – NCSA Offices or Virtual

Sept. 20

NCSA Tailgate – NCSA Offices

Sept. 24-25

Educators Academy for Legislative Advocacy – NCSA Offices

October 1-2

Labor Relations – Embassy Suites – Lincoln

Nov. 3

Fall Ed Tech Conference – YCC South – Kearney

Nov. 19-21

State Education Conference – CHI Center – Omaha

Dec. 3-4

State Principals Conference – Cornhusker Marriott – Lincoln*

Dec. 10

Legislative Preview – NCSA Offices or Virtual

*Region meeting dates can be found on the NCSA website.

NATIONAL CONVENTION DATES NAESP & NASSP – July 11-13, 2025 – Seattle, WA AASA – Feb. 12-14, 2026 – Nashville, TN

ASBO – October 21-25, 2025 – Fort Worth, TX

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NCSA TODAY SPRING 2025

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SPRING 2025 NCSA TODAY

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