Backpacks, books and fun: District 93 launches new school year

IDAHO FALLS — The hallways are packed successful Bonneville Joint School District 93 arsenic students returned to their classrooms for a caller schoolhouse twelvemonth Monday.

“I’m really really excited for schoolhouse because during nan summertime immoderate of my really bully friends don’t unrecorded truthful adjacent to me, truthful coming backmost here, I get to spot each my friends again,” said Hillcrest High School freshman Gavin Lamph.

He is astir looking guardant to physics and weights classes and is excited to meet his caller teachers.

Members of nan Hillcrest Student Council welcomed 330 caller ninth graders to Freshmen Only Day Monday, helping them find their classrooms and navigate nan building.

Junior people typical Ali Maddux shared her proposal for incoming students.

“Just effort to beryllium connected clip to your classes,” she said. “Go to your classes. Be very respectful to teachers – that’ll get you really far. Try to salary attraction successful people arsenic overmuch arsenic you tin — (that) helps you truthful overmuch pinch homework.”

The precocious school’s normal schedule will resume Tuesday pinch nan full assemblage of 1,264 students successful attendance.

“We’re conscionable excited to get everybody backmost successful nan building and proceed nan affirmative momentum that we person going,” Hillcrest High School Principal Ty Salsbery said.

District 93 teachers will amended 13,725 students this year. Elementary students, seventh graders, ninth graders and Lincoln High School students started classes Monday, while eighth and 10th done 12th graders statesman connected Tuesday.

“We are doubling down connected our efforts to creation occurrence for each 1 of our students pinch a continued attraction connected utilizing evidence-based instructional practices to thief each students study to publication and to thief each students study to write,” said District 93 spokesperson Phil Campbell successful a connection Monday.

Districtwide, teachers are focusing connected helping students “identify main ideas and cardinal specifications successful some reference and writing” to thief students amended scores connected authorities assessments, he said.

This year, 2 precocious schools successful nan territory will beryllium led by caller principals – Justin Jolley astatine Bonneville and Trent Dabell astatine Thunder Ridge. Assistant principals Kristen McDaniel and Casey Faulkner will beryllium joining Jolley astatine Bonneville, pinch Brian Schultz astatine Thunder Ridge and Phil Abshire astatine Hillcrest. Nancy Jackson is nan caller full-time main astatine Praxium Mastery Academy.

The territory continues to connection a assortment of schoolhouse prime options to champion meet students’ individual needs.

Students tin be nan “Technical Careers High School, Lincoln Alternative School, Bonneville Online High School and Elementary School, arsenic good arsenic Praxium Mastery Academy, which enrolls students who suffice for Gifted and Talented Education,” Campbell wrote.

Additionally, this twelvemonth aggregate schools are piloting an In Focus programme to assistance students successful processing “successful behaviors.”

At Hillcrest, “our teachers person a really bully scheme for addressing schoolroom expectations and behavior,” Salsbery said. “We’re going to rotation retired immoderate caller things pinch that wherever each schoolroom is going to person nan aforesaid expectations.”

Teachers are implementing a collaborative compartment telephone argumentation schoolwide to thief students study to negociate exertion responsibly.

“We’re optimistic that if each coach does it nan aforesaid way, past nan kids will activity pinch us,” Salsbery said.

In sports, nan boys shot teams defeated Pocatello 1 to zero past Saturday astatine nan brand-new Westmark Stadium. An charismatic expansive opening for nan installation will beryllium held earlier nan Civil War lucifer connected Sept. 6 erstwhile Bonneville faces Hillcrest successful football.

Finally, Hillcrest’s main highlighted nan school’s impressive, debased turnover rate.

“We only person 3 caller teachers this twelvemonth … retired of 58. So we’re benignant of bucking nan inclination nationally of coach turnover,” Salsbery said. “We’re really happy pinch nan unit that we have.”

Nearby districts

Madison School District 321 courses besides kicked disconnected Monday.

In Idaho Falls School District 91, simple schoolhouse students, seventh-graders, ninth-graders and Emerson Alternative High School students return to classes connected Tuesday, while eighth and 10th done 12th grades commencement up connected Wednesday.

Pocatello/Chubbuck School District 25, Blackfoot School District 55, Fremont County Joint School District 215 and Sugar-Salem School District 322 each resumed schoolhouse past week.

In Jefferson Joint School District 251, nan first time of instruction is Sept. 3.

A student walks into Hillcrest High School connected Monday. | David Pace, EastIdahoNews.com