Board Update - May 15, 2026 - Fathom Jensen

As the end of the 2025/2026 school year is quickly approaching, I’m reminded how fast time goes by.  Spring sports are coming to an end, end-of-year banquets, athletic signings, and senior showcases are among the few events kicking off the end of the school year. 

There are several accomplishments worth celebrating as we draw to the end of the year.  One of the biggest celebrations still to come is the Commencement Ceremonies for our Seniors at Rifle High School and Coal Ridge High School.  With that, I encourage everyone celebrating to please be safe, have fun, and enjoy this time with family and friends.  A new chapter is starting for all graduates, whether it’s college, joining the workforce, taking a year off and traveling, or joining our Armed Forces, these are fun and exciting times, cherish it!  We wish you all the best in the journey ahead, and we know you’ll prosper. That’s what Re-2 students do.  For those of you joining our Armed Forces, Thank You for your service. 

At our Board Meeting on Wednesday, May 13th, we were able to celebrate and Shine the Light on our Health Clerks.  Because of our Health Clerks, we have been able to provide CPR training to 928 participants, including staff, 4th, 5th, 7th, and 8th grade students, complete 2811 vision screenings resulting in 319 referrals, 2644 hearing screenings resulting in 43 referrals, and 592 Smiles for Student checks.  Including all screenings and training, our Health Clerks have had roughly 18,280 visits to the nurse’s office this year.  Our Health Clerks do amazing things; they help promote the safety and well-being of our most precious assets, our students.  The work they do always amazes me. Thank you. 

Not only did we focus on our Health Clerks, but we also celebrated and recognized the years of service and all the work and dedication Officer Josh Allison has put in as our school resource officer.  Starting in the 26/27 school year we will have a new School Resource Officer, they will have some big shoes to fill, but I’m sure will be another partner.

This year, Coal Ridge and Rifle High Schools' student councils held the 2nd annual 4th Grade Mini Career Fair.  This started with different groups from the student councils visiting the elementary schools and surveying 4^th graders to see what they were interested in.  The interests were broken down into six categories: Environmental, Creativity, Trades, Safety, Support, and Business.  From there they took it a little deeper to see the top-rated career in each area, we had Park Ranger, Artist, Chef, Police Officer, Fashion Designer, and Lawyer.  The student councils were able to secure 15 presenters this year, up from 12 the previous year.  Planning and executing this Mini Career Fair is not only beneficial for our high school students to teach them to plan, organize, pivot when something doesn’t go as planned, but it also helps the younger students to see the other opportunities that they have available to them.  Thank you, Rifle and Coal Ridge, for putting this together. I can’t wait to see how this progresses. 

Policy focus is a constant for each board meeting.  We are continuing to review the policies by section to maintain relevance to our district and community.  I look forward to our next meeting on Wednesday, May 27, starting at 4:30pm at the Grumley Pierce Building to Shine the Light on our One Door Program.  Until then, stay safe, and CONGRATULATIONS to our 2026 GRADUATES.