Bancroft-Rosalie School won the Class D division of the Norfolk Scholastic Contest at Northeast Community College. The school will receive a $1,000 scholarship from the Northeast Community College Foundation for taking first place. The scholarship is to be presented to a student from the winning school who participated in the 2018 Scholastic Contest, will graduate this spring, and register as a full-time student at Northeast for the 2018-2019 academic year. This is also the third year that Northeast will award tuition waivers valued at $1,000 to 12 seniors in each class that earned first place in their exam. The winners will be determined based on the highest percentage earned on the respective tests.
The team is coached by James Hulstein

Top 5 Finishers

Morgan Bonneau Accounting I 4th
Jacob Zuhlke Accounting II 3rd
Devon Darnell American History 5th
Ben Bassett Auto Technology 2nd
Riley Gomez Basic Construction 1st
Kelsey Larsen Biology 1st
Miguel Madrid Business English 1st
Zach Bridges Business Law 3rd
Miguel Madrid Chemistry 3rd
Zach Bridges Computer Literacy 1st
Vicki Gatzemeyer Drafting 1st
Luke Kramer Spanish II 3rd
Kariden Briggs Psychology 4th
Anna Currier Literature 1st
Kelcee Bacon Medical Terminology 1st
Teagan Steinmeyer Music 4th
Parker Paulson Welding 5th

Anna Currier Serious Prose selected for "Best of the Best"

Congratulations!  Anna Currier, Class D1 Serious Prose Speaking Champion, has been chosen to appear on the NET production of the NSAA Championships:  Best of the Best.  This is a special presentation of the top speech champions.  It will be taped on Tuesday afternoon, April 3, 2018, at the NET studio in Lincoln.  The program is scheduled to be aired on Sunday, April 22, 1:00 p.m. on NET.

Bancroft Public Library receives Sparks Grant

The Bancroft Community Library received a grant to connect with Bancroft-Rosalie School to provide high speed internet to community members at the Public Library. Here is the email from the State of Nebraska Library Technology Specialist.

"Thank you for submitting an application of interest for the IMLS Sparks Grant, Nebraska Schools and Libraries – Breaking the Ice and Igniting Relationships. The five communities that have been initially selected are Bancroft, Genoa, Imperial, Verdigre, and Wymore. A geographical site survey will be conducted in each of these communities to confirm that the fixed wireless technology is possible between the library and a school district building before finalizing the selection process. This survey will be completed shortly after the Library Commission has confirmation of grant funding in April, 2018.  Should any one of these communities not be geographically feasible for the use of fixed wireless technology, the Library Commission will consider another applicant (e.g. Bayard, Clarks)  to participate in the grant.

 

Congratulations to these five communities and thank you to all the communities that submitted an application. We are hopeful that this innovative concept of an internet partnership between schools and libraries will ignite discussions in communities across the State of Nebraska."

BR places 5th at State Speech

Anna Currier was the class D-1 State Champion in two events- Humorous and Serious Prose.
Teagan Steinmeyer earned a 5th place medal in Entertainment and the Interpretation of Drama team placed sixth- Teagan Steinmeyer, Miguel Madrid, Joe Lonewolf, Zoe Sjuts and Kariden Briggs.

Other students competing were Josh Wilson (extemporaneous), Maria Ras (informative), Alexzi Nottlemann (serious) and Zoe Sjuts (persuasive).

Questions and Answers about Dual Credit in Nebraska

A graduate student looking at researching dual credit programs in Nebraska asked me the following questions to help guide their research. We agreed that it is okay to share the questions and my responses.

Who makes decisions about dual credit?

The Superintendent, the guidance counselor, the teacher, and the dual credit coordinator at the college. In some cases, the college needs to get instructor approval from the department chair.

What would you change about the current dual credit program?

College tuition should be free for high school students if they earn a C or better in the class. The students should be placed in courses that are appropriate for their performance level and college/career goals as part of their high school program. If the appropriate coursework is in an early entry college, then why should they have to pay for that course?

Who are the leaders in the process?

The school administration and guidance counselors have the greatest role in determining the success and participation in dual credit programs.

Do parents play a role in the success of dual credit students?

The parent’s ability to pay the tuition does factor in the number of students that take dual credit courses.

What about mentors?

Teachers can make or break a dual credit class. Dual credit teachers with good class numbers advocate for their class and recruit or encourage students to sign up for dual credit.

Are there other leaders who should be involved in dual credit to make the process more successful for the student?

That depends on if the course is taught by a dual credit certified high school teacher in the school building or by a college instructor teaching on-line or through distance learning. If taught by high school staff, then the supports are the same as any other course. If taught by a college instructor, then there needs to be better communication between the instructor and the high school counselor.

The college?

Communication on grades can be a problem. College instructors are not willing to share grade information with the high school personnel.

How are the dual credit courses delivered- TV, web conferencing, online only, face-to-face?

Our students take dual credit courses in a number of ways- face to face, online, through 2-way interactive video (Zoom).

Where are these courses held, at the high school or at the college?

The face-to-face courses are usually at the high school, although we do have some students travel to the college and some travel to the Career Academy location currently in Beemer, NE.

How do you measure preparedness in high school students for dual credit courses?

For the Math and English courses, the college has a minimum ACT score and/or Accuplacer score. For the other courses, we use instructor recommendations

What steps do you use to ensure quality of your dual credit courses?

The college provides the course syllabus which the teacher follows. Teachers meet with college officials yearly to discuss course content. One college sends someone out to observe the classes once a semester.

What if the students/instructor find the students are not prepared part of the way through the course?

Students can withdraw from the college class just as any other college student can do.

What makes your dual credit courses more affordable?

Students can apply for an ACE scholarship through the State of Nebraska, which is based on financial need. The school district also provides academic scholarships for dual credit students.  

How is that cost absorbed?

If the course is taught by our high school teachers, the college will reimburse the high school for use of the teacher up to a certain dollar amount.

Should the state fund dual credit? Yes

 Who should the funding responsibility fall upon?

The state should increase the amount for ACE scholarships so that there is enough funding to provide scholarships to all students that choose to take dual credit courses. That amount has been reduced over the past five years.

What would you change about the current dual credit program?

I believe that more dual credit courses need to be offered in high schools. Eighty percent of high school students should graduate with some dual credit.

Why? The high cost of college means that many students take on a large amount of loan debt. The dual credit program can decrease the number of general education courses taken in college and shorten the time needed to complete a college degree. Dual credit is also a good way to transition students into college work.

Neihardt Young Poet Contest

Deadline June 30th.

State Speech Schedule

BR competes in Class D-1 The Parade of Finalists is new this year.