Education

Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) Business and Community Solutions is offering High School Drivers Education August 26-September 30. The course will be held from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays during that time frame at the NICC Waukon Center, located at 1220 Third Avenue NW in Waukon.

To satisfy the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT) requirements, students must attend 30 hours of classroom instruction and six hours of Behind the Wheel (BTW) driving experience. Attendance is required at all sessions. Students must have an Iowa driver’s permit before the first class.

The deadline for paid registration is August 19 (free and reduced lunch students should contact the school office). To register, call NICC Waukon center at 844-642-2338, ext. 6700.
 

Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC) Waukon Center held a “Build Your Own Business” Summer Camp July 28-29 for students entering fourth through sixth grades this fall. This two-day camp was a “Shark Tank”-style experience (based on the “Shark Tank” television series) where students learned basic business concepts and vocabulary, created a business plan, discussed customer service and created their own logo and business cards. Students listened to presentations from local businesses including Indi-Com Electric & Surveillance, WW Homestead Dairy and Decker Delish. The students concluded camp by presenting their business ideas to area business leaders who represented the “sharks” that provided feedback on the business ideas. Build Your Own Business Camp is sponsored by Northeast Iowa Community College, Allamakee County Economic Development & Tourism and the Allamakee County Community Foundation.

by Susan Cantine-Maxson

The regular meeting of the Eastern Allamakee Community School District (EACSD) Board of Directors held at Kee High School in Lansing Monday, July 19 dealt  mainly with the business of preparing for the new school year by reviewing and approving numerous items. Board President Heather Schulte attended by phone, and just two other board members were present, Bobbie Goetzinger and Melanie Mauss. School district staff and administration present included EACSD Superintendent Dr. Dale Crozier, Kee Middle and High School Principal Dr. Sarah Updegraff, and board secretaries Marian Verdon and

Michele Martin. Board members not attending included Tony Becker and Kelli Mudderman.

St. Patrick School in Waukon is beginning its registration process for the upcoming 2021-2022 school year. Parents will be receiving all registration/tuition forms through the mail this week of August 2-6. Parents are also required to have their child registered on Powerschool by August 24 as this school year gets underway.

Families interested in enrolling their child/children at St. Patrick School can contact the school office at 563-568-2415 or email Katie Fahey at kfahey@st-pats.pvt.k12.ia.us.

St. Patrick School will also be hosting an Open House at both of its school buildings Monday, August 23 from 3-5:30 p.m. Students can bring in their school supplies and meet their teacher.
 

The USDA has issued nationwide waivers allowing schools to operate the Seamless Summer Option during the upcoming 2021-2022 school year. Allamakee Community School District has elected to participate in the Seamless Summer Option during this time.

Free meals will be provided to all enrolled children and Applications for Free and Reduced Price School Meals/Milk will not be necessary to participate in Seamless Summer Option. Applications for Free and Reduced Price School Meals will still be available from the school, as an application may be needed for other benefits such as P-EBT. The Income Eligibility Guidelines are listed in the table below accompanying this article.

Households may meet Income Eligibility Guidelines one of four ways listed below:

The Allamakee Community School District is participating in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Summer Food Service Program, which will allow for a safe and streamlined service of nutritious meals. Meals will be provided to all children without charge.

Free meals will be provided at the Waukon Middle School Mondays-Fridays from August 2 through August 13. Those meals will include breakfast served from 8-9 a.m. and lunch from 11:15 a.m.-12:45 p.m.

In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA.

Pinterest Projects Class is being held Thursday, August 12 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in the lower level of Robey Memorial Library in Waukon, featuring the project Book Pages Wreath. Transform rolled book pages into a decorative wreath for any room. No pre-registration is necessary for the class.

Pinterest Projects Class is a bi-monthly class featuring a project found on Pinterest, and materials will be provided by the library. Pinterest is a visual bookmarking tool that helps discover and save creative ideas. Contact the library at www.waukon.lib.ia.us or 563-568-4424 for more information.
 

by Julie Berg-Raymond

Olivia Marti, who completed her freshman year at Waukon High School this past May, has been selected for the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange Program (CBYX). The program will send Marti, age 15, to live and study in Germany this fall for her sophomore year, with an August 21 departure date currently planned.

A highly competitive program (in recent years, the admission rate has been less than two percent), CBYX is a “unique, fully-funded scholarship program giving young people ages 15-18 a first-hand experience of the importance of international friendship and cooperation, which rests on shared political and cultural values” (www.germany.info/us-en/welcome/language-study-research/cbyx/1306006).

by Brianne Eilers

The Allamakee Community School District (ACSD) Board of Directors met Wednesday, June 30 for a brief special meeting. The following personnel were approved: Kaia Piggott as Payroll Secretary, Andy Reichard as Technology Director, George Farning as Custodian, Carley Sweeney as volleyball volunteer coach and Lori Jacobs as West Elementary Secretary. The board also approved an amendment to the Foodservice Administrative Assistant contract and accepted the resignation of Bailey Roth from her paraprofessional position.

Under new business, the board members approved an increase from $105/day to $115/day for certified substitute teacher pay. The meeting was then adjourned.

The ACSD Board met for its regular monthly meeting Monday, July 19. Board member Scott Melcher was absent.

SYNC is a free summer audiobook program for teens age 13 and older. Running through August 4 of this year, SYNC gives participants two thematically paired audiobooks each week. To participate in the SYNC program, register with an email at audiobooksync.com. Follow the instructions to download and set up the Sora app by Overdrive. Titles, once loaded into the app, are available indefinitely. Each title pair is available Thursday through the following Wednesday.

Titles include the following: