2023-2024 School Year Has Lift-Off

Over two days on Aug. 16 and 17, Lakota welcomed 17,664 students back into our schools for the start of the 2023-2024 school year. The traditional staggered start gave staff and students the opportunity to spend extra time building relationships with one another and adjusting to their new routines in a smaller group setting. 

“Nothing excites me more than having students back in our schools and our classrooms after summer break,” said Interim Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Lolli, who visited all 23 schools  alongside other executive team members during the first two days of school. “It was extra special for me to have the chance to meet so many of our teachers and support staff for the first time. Their energy and enthusiasm was contagious and reinforced my decision to join this community.” 

This year’s student count is exactly 300 students higher than last year - and growing as additional students complete the enrollment process. Enrollment continues to exceed projections, and is up just over 1,000 students compared to five years ago. 

District-wide, Lakota also welcomed 83 new teachers to the staff this school year and announced updates to 10 administrator positions as a result of movement throughout the district and opportunities for administrators to advance their careers both within and outside of Lakota. In addition to welcoming Dr. Lolli as Lakota’s interim superintendent, Lakota announced Stacy Maney as Lakota’s newest assistant superintendent. Maney joins assistant superintendent Robb Vogelmann to provide more support to building leaders in the face of growing enrollment. 

Lakota also continued its tradition of a high-energy all-staff kick-off on Aug. 11. This year, Lakota recognized just over 325 staff reaching one of six milestone anniversaries with the district: five, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 35 years of service. Congratulations to our 35-year recipients: 

• Amy Alexander - Gifted intervention specialist (Cherokee & VanGorden)
• Carolyn Gilland - Child Nutrition cook (Union)
• Renee McGowan - Third grade teacher (Woodland)
• Doreen Robinson - Cafeteria manager (Hopewell ECS)
• Lisa Stiver - Second grade teacher (Hopewell ECS)

At the high school level, in partnership with Butler Tech, Lakota is excited to offer for the first time this year a new digital media pathway that covers content creation, digital editing and media production. The district has also added a college-preparatory (CP) statistics course, as well as weighted credit to Symphonic Winds, Jazz I, Lakota West Chorale and Lakota East Voices.

As a reminder, follow all things Lakota this school year by downloading Lakota’s mobile app and customizing your news feed and calendar preferences. Be sure to follow us on our district, school, and department social media accounts too. 

To get a closer look at the first few days of school, be sure to check out our photo albums on Facebook (first day A-L) and (first day M-Z).