Okoboji High School

Attention Okoboji School District Resident Families! Mark your calendars for a special opportunity to participate in satellite voting on October 21st from 1:00 to 7:00 PM at the elementary school. This is your chance to make your voice heard and have a say in the future of our community and schools! Voting at your convenience helps ensure that every family can engage in the democratic process. Your participation matters whether you're a first-time voter or a seasoned pro. Don't miss out on this important event—let's come together to shape the future of our Okoboji School District!

A Message from Okoboji Superintendent Todd Abrahamson: Pioneer Families, I am writing to inform you about a change to our school calendar regarding the upcoming Parent/Teacher Conferences. Initially scheduled for November 5 and 7, the conferences have now been moved to October 21. On October 21, conferences will be held from 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Details on signing up for conferences will come out in early October. This change aims to minimize disruptions for you, as we understand that many families have already arranged daycare for October 21. As a result, we will have full school days on November 5 and November 7. Additionally, November 8 will remain a no-school comp day, and November 11 will continue as a Professional Development day. Furthermore, this adjustment allows the district to host a satellite voting station for the upcoming election from 1:00 PM to 7:00 PM at the elementary school. The ballot on October 21 is the same as the ballot on November 5. This allows parents to cast their full vote on October 21 or November 5, providing greater flexibility in their schedules. Thank you for your understanding and support as we make this adjustment. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Warm regards - Todd Abrahamson, Superintendent

Our very own Keaton Verner (School Resource Officer) was recently on the Okoboji Broadcast with Jeff Thee. Officer Verner was there to go through some bus safety reminders as school has started back up for the year! Please check it out when you have time so we can all work together to keep our kids safe! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BnMiBqYNKc

Iowa High School Cross Country Preseason Rankings have been released. The Okoboji Boys Team opens the season as the number one ranked team in Class 2A while the girls team is ranked 14th in Class 2A to start the season! We can't wait to see these outstanding athletes perform this fall! Come and see them at Fall Sports Preview Night this Thursday, August 22 starting at 5 on the track at OHS!

We are excited to be spending the day with our new team members today! We have new staff from all three buildings who will be serving our students as teachers and paraprofessionals this year. We are spending the day getting to know them and teaching them about our district and the great things they will do here!

Here are some important dates for your calendar for the months of August and September! Remember ALL OCSD activities and events can be found on our new District Activity Calendar on our Bound site here: https://www.gobound.com/ia/schools/okoboji/calendar

If you or your son/daughter will be a ninth-grade student, or a new student at Okoboji High School this fall, mark your calendars for an important event! We will hold an open house on Wednesday, August 21 from 6-7 PM and we encourage incoming ninth-grade and new students and their parents to attend! There will be a short but informative presentation on making a successful transition to Okoboji High School and you will have some time to explore the building and ask questions. We will meet in the OHS Auditorium starting at 6! We hope to see you all there!

As you are likely aware, Okoboji Commuity School District Superintendent Todd Abrahamson will be retiring at the conclusion of the 2024-2025 school year. The OCSD School Board has partnered with Grundmeyer Leadership Services to lead the search process for our next great school leader. A first step in the process is to gain input from all stakeholders as to the qualities , skills, traits, etc we are looking for in our next leader. In that effort, a brief survey has been created to gather this input. If you have not yet done so, we encourage everyone to take a few moments to fill it out and share your thoughts. You can access the survey here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfBkLPcRjqYnQ1oEI59E4T7sGDTnLsOvKnfJl7zoIm6tyebWw/viewform Survey deadline is August 31, 2024.

Online registration for the 2024-2025 school year is now open! New and current families should visit the link below to complete this quick and simple process! Current families received an email this morning with more information and the same link. https://www.okobojischools.org/o/ocs/page/enroll-at-okoboji

BIG NEWS! At the July Board Meeting, the OCSD School Board voted to increase daily subsitute teacher pay from $135 to $150! This represents an 11% increase in pay and a nearly 50% raise in pay over the last ten years PLUS the addiiton of a free lunch every day! Substitute teachers play a vital role in the health of our schools and the growth of our students. If you are interested subbing at Okoboji Schools, please contact Danni Bockman at the OCSD District Office. You can email her at dbockman@okobojischools.org, call the office at 712.338.4757, or stop in the office at 1205 7th Street in Milford during business hours!

As you may or may not know, Mr. Abrahamson (our current Superintendent) is retiring at the conclusion of the 2024-2025 school year. The Okoboji Board of Education recently hired Grundmeyer Leader Services to support the search for a district superintendent. The search will begin immediately and conclude with the hire of a successful leader. Your feedback regarding what desired qualifications is most important for this position will ensure the hire is a good fit for both the school district and community. Please see the link below to provide input and feedback for this incredibly important position! https://bit.ly/OkobojiCSDSuptSearch2024

Today is School Lunch Superhero Day! It is a day to celebrate and thank the school food service team members that work hard every day to make sure all of our kids (and many staff members) have the nutrition they need to grow, learn, and succeed! They are often here well before the start of the day ensuring that breakfast and lunch will be ready for all of our hungry learners! Thank you to OCSD Food Service Director Carrie Stethem and her outstanding team! OHS Brieanna Nabb Naoko Menting Deb Malchow OMS Carrie Stethem Lindsey Chaffin Tia Hofmeyer Michal Nabb Mia Bacco OES Sherryl Jones Patty Hofmeyer Jackie Anderson Mary Demuth Sandy Hoffman Nancy Kissner

Today is Administrative Professionals Day! We depend on our outstanding team every day and quite literally could not make our school run without them. They do countless things to support the learning, physical, and mental health of all of our students and staff every single day and we want to show them our appreciation today and EVERY day! Thank you Gayle, Lenae, Amanda, Kizze, and Missy, for all you do for all of us every day!

Okoboji 8th Grader Collin Kats was involved in a very bad accident over the weekend and is currently receiving medical treatment in Sioux Falls. Collin's birthday is Wednesday and he is a big fan of the Minnesota Vikings. Let's all wear Vikings gear, or purple and gold, on Wednesday to show Collin we are supporting him!

April 3rd is School Para-Professional Day! Okoboji Schools depends on our amazing team of para-professionals in all of our buildings every single day. They are often the first smile a student sees as they walk in the door and they often spend more one-on-one time with individual students than anyone else in our district. They impact the lives of our students, teachers, and families in countless ways and we could not imagine our schools without them! Thank you to all of our outstanding para-professionals today and every day!

This is the sight of nearly 200 student musicians in grades 5-12 being led by just two conductors and playing in beautiful harmony! What a wonderful Parade of Bands Concert we had tonight! Thank you to our musicians, directors, and everyone who came out to enjoy the show!

We are one week away from SPRING BREAK at OCSD! All OCSD school buildings will be closed and on break from March 11-15. Whether you will be travelling or staying local, we hope the time off gives all a chance to recharge and refresh for the last ten weeks of the school year!

March 1st is Maintenance and Operations Appreciation Day! Today we take a moment to thank Derek Chappas, OCSD Maintenance Director, and Tim Blair, OCSD Head of Grounds, for all of the hard work they do each and every day. Derek and Tim work tirelessly in ways seen and unseen to ensure our facilities and grounds are safe, operational, and in top condition to support the learning of all OCSD students. Thank you, Derek and Tim!

Concert season is upon us! You don't want to miss the chance to see these wonderful upcoming performances from both Okoboji Middle and High School students! Admission is $5/person with activity passes accepted. Tickets can be purchased with card at the door or ahead of time through the Bound App at this link: https://www.gobound.com/ia/schools/okoboji/tickets

February 22nd is National School Bus Driver Appreciation Day! Today we want to salute our Director of Transportation, Steve Clayton, and ALL of the outstanding drivers who get our students to and from school and activities every day safely! Through wind, snow, and rain, they always keep our kids safe and get them where they need to be to learn, perform, and grow! Thank you to all of these outstanding OCSD Bus Drivers! Steve Clayton Rod Blau Tom Sporrer John Walters Pam Trosin Daniel Clements Michal Schoning Michael Umscheid Don Nolan Aaron Sloan Brett Simpson Adam Quail Brett Ferguson Doug Otto Heidi Wittrock Tiffani Reese Dennis Houseman