Boyd County Schools

The Lady Spartans finish 12-9 with loss to Hartington-Newcastle in the first round of D1-4 sub-district volleyball.

The Lady Spartans played Hartington-Newcastle in the D1-4 sub district game hosted by Hartington Cedar Catholic Monday October 26th.  After 4 sets of play, the Lady Spartans came up short with the scores of 19-25, 25-21, 16-25, and 13-25.  Junior Daydra Zeisler led the team with 8 service points and 1 ace serve while Junior Rylie Haun had 6 service points and 2 ace serves.   Senior Audrey Mohr finished with 8 kills, 1 solo block and 4 assisted blocks.  Junior Haylie Carson, Junior Daydra Zeisler and Senior Lauryn Hoffman all contributed with 5 kills each.  Junior Daydra Zeisler was a dominant force at the net with 3 solo blocks and 4 assisted blocks.  Senior Lauryn Hoffman set the ball 77 times with 17 assists.  According to Head Coach Janet Brown, “This group of Lady Spartans played with intensity and heart, never giving up.  Overall, this team always gave it their all and continued to meet the expectations set for them. I was very proud of how they played all season.  This is truly an amazing group of girls I was so blessed to get to coach.”

Isaac Koenig, senior, and Natasha Zeisler, sophomore, laced up their spikes for the Nebraska State Cross Country Championships on Friday, October 23, 2020.  The course was hilly, and the weather was cold and blustery.  Zeisler finished her season placing 66th out of 121 runners with a 22:59 time.  Koenig finished his XC career placing 50th out of 133 in an 18:38 time.  Congratulations to both of you on a success season and great state meet!  The Spartan's Cross Country team would like to thank everyone who came out and supported us this season.  

Admin Article

October 27, 2020

Winter has come to Northeast Nebraska!  As has been the case in the past, we will do everything in our power to make a decision on the status of school the night prior to allow for families to make alternate plans as needed.  With our district covering a large area geographically, we have to take into consideration that the weather on the East side of the district may not mimic the weather on the West side of the district.  If you feel it is not safe for your students to attend school, due to weather conditions, please let the school know, as you are a better judge of the road conditions at your home at any given time.

As the Administration, it is our responsibility to ensure the public is well-informed, and given the most factual and up-to-date information possible on the state of the school district.  It has come to our attention that there may be some misinformation out there when it comes to some items at the school.  First and foremost, the Accreditation of the school has come into question.  We can reassure you that Boyd County Public Schools is fully accredited by the Nebraska Department of Education and has always been.  Every year the school has to be accredited by NDE, and there is a very lengthy process, with many items that needs to be met.  This list, otherwise known as NDE Rule 10, REGULATIONS AND PROCEDURES FOR THE ACCREDITATION OF SCHOOLS, TITLE 92, NEBRASKA ADMINISTRATIVE CODE, CHAPTER 10, and the school has met all requirements.

Second, the schools’ NSCAS ratings have been questioned.  NSCAS is what NDE calls our statewide testing model.  Schools are scored on how they perform as compared to other schools in the state.  Testing is given once a year with Grades 3-8 testing in English Language Arts and Mathematics, Grades 5 & 8 testing in Science, and Grade 11 taking the ACT, or college entry test.  With the pandemic shutdown last year, NDE suspended statewide testing, so our numbers are based on the 2018-2019 school year.  Our data came in as Good for the Lynch and Butte Elementary buildings, Great for the 5 & 8^th graders and Needs Improvement for the 11^th Graders, who would’ve graduated in 2020.  Comparing our ACT composite results to those of the state average:

State:                  (2017)-19.3        (2018)-19.4        (2019)-19.4        (2020)-No Data

Boyd County:     (2017)-20.2        (2018)-20.7        (2019)-18.0        (2020)-No Data

Along the same lines, not all students have the same vested interest in the ACT, as some students will not have a desire to go on to college, placing smaller emphasis on their performance on the test.  This information is accessed via the following website:  https://nep.education.ne.gov/

Finally, the question of the number of our students attending college has been criticized.  Based on the numbers from 2018-2019, which is our students who would have graduated in 2018, we did fall slightly below the state average, as we were at 69% and the state was at 71% for the same time period.  Though we would like to see all student go on to further their education at a 2 or 4-year College, we make it our point to ensure that all students realize their potential and personal desires past high school.  Some students choose the workforce, others may choose the military, and we all know that not all students are ready to pursue a college degree at that point in their life.  We offer work study and job shadowing experiences for our students, as well as college prep coursework, all leading to well-rounded citizens in our experience.  Our students have the ability to take college coursework, at a reduced rate, while attending high school, with some students earning in excess of 21 college credits while in high school.

As always, my door is always open, please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.  The focus of Boyd County Schools is “Building Competent Successful Citizens” and our efforts are to ensure every step is taken to meet that statement.                               

Michael T. Brown, Superintendent           Michael Shoff, 5-12 Principal              Cindy Johnson, PK-4 Principal

Here are the results of the NVC XC meet held on Friday, Oct. 9 at the Neligh Golf Course.  Top 15 earn medals and top 10 earn All Conference Honors

Varsity Girls:

6th Natasha Zeisler in 21:23

10th Jenny Goesch in 23:24

15th Andrea Hipke in 24:08

21st Kaci Mashino in 27:01

25th Zoe Kaczor in 30:22

Girls Team placed 3rd

Varsity Boys:

5th Isaac Koenig in 17:47

13th Kaesin Ellwanger in 18:56

20th Brayden Almgren in 19:34

34th Joshua Kersch in 21:19

36th Nathan Koenig in 21:47

41st Kaleb Kaczor in 27:19

Boys Team placed 5th

JH Girls:

10th ReNae Kluckman 10:05

20th Jada Harmon 11:12

23rd Michaela Roth 11:51

JH Boys:

6th Ethan Zeisler 9:01

7th Brook Strom 9:02

17th Alex Lechtenberg 13:54