LOCAL SCHOOLS
District News
WE are excited to welcome our students back for the start of the 2025-2026 school year! Whether you are brand new to the Lakota family or returning for another year, take a moment to visit Lakota's Back-to-School Hub for all the information you need for a successful start to the new school year.
Lakota will provide each student in grades K-6 with a supply kit at the start of the 2025-2026 school year. Supply lists for grades K-8 are now available and indicate, by school and grade level, the specific supplies that each student will need to provide. Use TeacherLists, a free resource, to easily find your list and even shop online for the best prices on all your back-to-school supplies, if desired. High school students will continue to receive supply lists from their teachers when school starts.
To ease the transition to a new school year and honor families’ requests for alternative pick-up and drop-off locations for transportation, Lakota is asking that families submit transportation forms via FinalForms by July 31 to receive transportation on the first day of the 2025-2026 school year. All K-2 students, regardless of the need for busing, are asked to complete a form to communicate their student's transportation plans.
About 25 students were the start of something big and exciting at Lakota West High School this year. And after a year of planning and building, advisor Jennifer Parrett said the West Side Leaders are prime to “hit the ground running” next year in pursuit of their goal to continue building community and celebrating what exactly it means to be a Firebird.
Parents can now log into FinalForms via their OneLogin account to review and update their student information for the 2025-2026 school year. Back-to-school forms must be reviewed and updated before the start of the new school year.
Enrollment for all NEW Lakota students in grades K-12, including incoming kindergartners, is now open. Currently enrolled students do NOT need to enroll for the following school year. Stress less: Register by July 1 to take home a Lakota rally towel!
Five years ago, some curious students noticed Instructional Aide Karen Bates pulling a few weeds around the school’s playground. After asking what she was doing, and finding out that she loved gardening, they asked if they could help. From there, the Endeavor Garden Club has blossomed into a vibrant space for both plants and friendships.
Thursday, May 22 was the last day of school for all Lakota students. We hope that everyone has a safe and fun summer break with family and friends. Here are some important summer and back to school updates, including summer hours, Lakota's USDA summer food service program, work permits, back-to-school dates, transportation requests, FinalForms and school supply lists.
As the school year came to a close, Lakota’s Class of 2025 celebrated the time-honored traditions that define the Lakota experience. From the solemnity of the Military Commitment Ceremony to the spirited Parade of Graduates, and from academic recognitions to the joyful senior picnics, each event served as a meaningful milestone in our graduates’ journeys.
Students, staff and community members recently came together to dream big about the future of Lakota Schools—and the ideas were inspiring. From flexible learning spaces to outdoor classrooms and student-centered design, these visioning sessions are shaping what comes next in Lakota's continuing Master Facilities Planning process.
A unique business idea devised by Heritage ECS first graders transformed the school into a storefront one night this month. In the end, their business model served both birds and people and the real world learning experience was a culminating showcase of what they’d learned in all different subject areas this year.
Lakota Local Schools is proud to present its final group of "Lakota Gem Award" winners for the 2024-2025 school year - the teachers, administrators and support staff who bring a sparkle to our schools. Selected from a pool of over 400 nominations submitted since October, Lakota’s most precious gems for May include: Creekside ECS teacher Amanda Benjamin, Endeavor Elementary nurse Brianne Kopecky, Hopewell Junior teacher Robyn Parrish, Lakota East High School principal Matthew MacFarlane and Lakota Superintendent Ashley Whitely.
Read all about the facets that make these Lakota staff members shine. Plan to nominate someone whose brilliance makes a difference in our schools when the nomination form reopens at the start of the 2025-2026 school year.
“Pickleball is a great sport because it gets everyone active,” said Shawn Finton, health and physical education teacher at Liberty Junior School. “Even students who do not normally enjoy PE find an interest in pickleball.”
Stop by Savannah Hawley’s corner of Heritage Early Childhood School on any given day and your visit will double as a trip to the bakery, laundromat, an ice cream shop, the doctor’s office or the police station. Beneath the surface of the speech language pathologist’s regular rotation of themed play stations is a very intentional strategy to help each of her students achieve their own personal speech goals.
Lakota's 2025 Secondary Summer School dates and deadlines.
The Northern Cincinnati Foundation, in partnership with Lakota Local Schools and Phelan Insurance Agency, is proud to announce the recipients of the 2025 “Lakota Diamond Educator Awards": K-6 Teacher Winner Beth Bonin (Freedom Elementary); 7-12 Teacher Winner Stacey Lane (Lakota East High School); Support Staff Winner Jennifer Russell (Counselor, Creekside Early Childhood School); and Administrator Winner Traci Stubenrauch (Assistant Principal, Wyandot Early Childhood School).
Formerly known as the “Lakota Educator of Excellence Award,” the new name establishes a connection to the District’s new Lakota Gem Award, which celebrates outstanding staff all year long. Honorees of the top award exemplify all six facets, or categories, of the Lakota gems that the District awards on a monthly basis.
Each year, Lakota holds a special event at Lakota East and Lakota West to honor seniors who have committed to serving in a branch of the United States military and those attending a military academy.
Fifth graders at Endeavor Elementary are practically getting paid to go on their spring field trip. Besides the experience not costing the school a cent, every student will walk away with new entrepreneurial skills and $600 worth of products created by other elementary students around the region.
Open enrollment applications for Lakota staff and currently open-enrolled students must be submitted by May 30. Per Board Policy 5113 and its Administrative Guidelines, Lakota Local Schools will only be accepting open enrollment applications from Lakota staff and current open enrolled students for the 2025-26 school year.
Lakota's 2025 Financial Prospectus offers an in-depth look into Lakota’s finances, with the goal of helping taxpayers comprehend how “WE are Fiscally Responsible” - a key component of Lakota’s strategic plan. The prospectus is scheduled to arrive in mailboxes around mid-May.
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