Superintendent’s Update: Advancing Achievement and Success

Student Spotlight

Erie High Student Makes History
Congratulations to Blake Barnett, a senior at Erie High School, for breaking Colorado’s 11-man high school football career touchdown record on October 20. Click here to read more >>

Letter from the Superintendent

Dear St. Vrain Valley Community,

Thank you for your continued partnership and support as we advance excellence across our system to support the ongoing success and well-being of our students. It has been an outstanding semester in St. Vrain, with so much to celebrate throughout our system.

Recently, we announced that St. Vrain Valley Schools was selected as one of only four school districts to be part of the groundbreaking Elevate Quantum Hub in Colorado. This initiative, funneling an estimated $50-75 million investment into our local economy, represents a significant leap forward in advancing quantum computing and developing a future-ready technology workforce. Additionally, we continue to win large, competitive grants that serve to bolster and strengthen many initiatives across the district, including the prestigious Innovative School Systems Grant from the Center on Reinventing Public Education, which will invest $136,000 into our AGILE (Advanced Global Interactive Learning Environments) program which enables students to take courses at any high school online, taught synchronously by highly effective St. Vrain teachers. This brings our total grant dollars to approximately $64 million over the past several years that has been invested in programs, services, and opportunities that are giving our students a strong competitive advantage and best preparing them for future success.

We also continue to see significant academic achievement across our schools, including eight high schools receiving the prestigious College Board AP Honor Roll School designation for excellent student performance on college-level Advanced Placement exams. Additionally, as our seniors are preparing for college and their postsecondary plans, we have been celebrating our national merit semifinalists, student-athletes participating in signing day, news of prestigious university admissions, and so much more. St. Vrain also had the only two schools in Colorado – Longmont Estates Elementary and the Innovation Center – to receive an Apple Distinguished Schools recognition this year.

Over the past several months, we have also seen incredible performances across the district in music, performing arts, and athletics, including marching band performances at this weekend’s Veterans Day parade, our all-district Elementary Honor Choir, high school and middle school theater performances, and our student-athletes dominating at state and national tournaments, including the Niwot Cross Country team winning both the boys and girls state championships, the Erie High football headed to the state quarterfinals, and the Lyons High 8-man football team headed to the semifinals this weekend. Additionally, last weekend, we celebrated our district tournament for our Unified Bowling teams, and earlier this semester, CHSAA’s first Unified Gymnastics athlete competed for Niwot High School.

Community engagement remains a cornerstone of our success, and we continue to see high levels of engagement from our families, business community, elected officials, and so many others, including Leadership St. Vrain, our fall town hall meetings, Parent University, and many other school and community events, including the many school open houses as our families prepare for open enrollment. Last week, we also welcomed three new members of our Board of Education, Geno Lechuga, Jackie Weiss, and Jocelyn Gilligan, and recognized three outgoing members of our board, Joie Siegrist, Dr. Richard Martyr, and Chico Garcia. In addition to the strong commitment from our community, our Board of Education members are pivotal to the advancement of our district, and I want to thank all of them for their service and deep commitment to the success of our students, teachers, staff, and schools.

As we approach the season of gratitude, I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to each of you – parents, teachers, staff, and community members. Your commitment to excellence, as evidenced by the many news headlines and celebrations highlighted below, continues to ensure that St. Vrain students have the opportunity to receive the best educational experiences that will elevate their futures. As we look ahead to a strong finish to the semester, I wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving.

With gratitude,
Don Haddad, Ed.D.
Superintendent, St. Vrain Valley Schools
@SVVSDSupt

Featured Stories

Advancing the future

St. Vrain Valley Schools Part of Colorado’s Quantum Tech Hub in Federal Grant Initiative

St. Vrain Valley Schools is part of Colorado’s Quantum Tech Hub, a federal grant initiative, and one of the 31 designated Tech Hubs nationally by the United States government. Click here to read more.

Connecting the future

St. Vrain is Awarded Innovative School Systems Grant by the Center on Reinventing Public Education

St. Vrain Valley Schools has been selected as one of only eleven school systems nationwide to participate in the The Innovative School Systems Grant (ISSG) program, a new initiative by the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) to support public school systems that are proposing bold ideas to transform student learning. Click here to read more.

Accelerating the future

St. Vrain Valley Schools Empowers Educators with Exploration AI Program

St. Vrain has launched ‘Exploration AI,’ a year-long professional development program designed to equip educators with the knowledge and tools needed to integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology into their teaching practices and curricula. Click here to read more.

Your school, Your choice

Secondary School Options

Choosing a school for your student is an important personal step in charting their future path. Toward this end, St. Vrain offers a diverse and extensive selection of rigorous academic and co-curricular programs that provide you and your student choice in selecting a school that best aligns with their interests and educational goals.

High School Options
– Middle School Options
– Open Enrollment

In the News

Important Reminders, Events, and Opportunities

Get ready and get engaged with many upcoming opportunities in St. Vrain.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

We’re Hiring! Join the #StVrainStorm

Join a highly supportive and effective team of professionals who are having a significant impact on the lives of students and families in our community. Click here to browse our open positions.

Family Engagement

St. Vrain Parent University

St. Vrain’s Parent University program provides training, information, and resources to parents and caregivers in order to support the well-being and success of their children. Click here to read more.

Important Reminder

2024-2025 Fall Preschool Pre-Registration Begins December 1

To better serve our families and to support a more timely student placement, St. Vrain Valley Schools is offering families the opportunity to complete the district’s online pre-registration process prior to the state’s Universal Preschool (UPK) Application, which is currently expected to be available in February, 2024. Click here to learn more.

Educator Highlight: P-TEACH

Inspiring the Future Generation of Teachers
This year, St. Vrain Valley Schools welcomed back its first P-TEACH graduates as classroom teachers. P-TEACH, or Pathways to Teaching, introduces St.Vrain high school students and classified staff to a career as an educator by offering a variety of concurrent enrollment courses. Students can earn up to 31 college credits through the University of Colorado Denver. Click here to read more.
Niwot High School