Safe return to school: Board approves plan 6-1, masks not required - September 9, 2021
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By ELI LUTGENS
Publisher/Editor
During its regular August meeting, the NRHEG school board approved the 2021-22 Safe Return to School plan, recommending, but not requiring face-coverings for students and staff.
The plan presented to the board was put together and agreed to during an August 4 meeting of the same committee which helped determine the approach last year.
Board approves plan 6-1
“This is a living document,” Chairman Rick Schultz emphasized. “I think some of the conversation at the committee meeting was valid in the point that we are very hopeful that the year will go as normal as possible. However, we all know that Covid is alive and well in our district, and if mandates come or if we feel uncomfortable about the safety of our students and staff, then there may be a need to adjust these. As I thought about this in preparation for tonight, my thought is that each one of us has a responsibility to do our part in trying to prevent the spread of Covid however we may see that to fit our own decision making. Our objective is as a district, and as a board, an administration, the entire team here, is to keep this as normal of a school year and move forward that way. I hope this is a group effort to make this plan successful and to keep the doors open and students in the classrooms.”
The board approved the decision by a vote of 6-1 with the lone ney vote coming from board member JoAnn Maloney.
Big shoes to fill: Elementary principal Nick Jurrens
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DETAILED - Fellow principal Dave Bunn says Nick Jurrens, pictured above at NRHEG Elementary in Ellendale, communicates well and demonstrates great attention to detail.
Star Eagle photo by Deb Bently
By DEB BENTLY
Staff Writer
“I’m just another member of the team,” says NRHEG Elementary Principal Nick Jurrens. “As far as I’m concerned, ‘boss’ is a four-letter word. I’m all about rich conversations and shared decision making; I can’t wait to see it in action.”
Jurrens joined the NRHEG staff in June, after having been selected to follow in the footsteps of retiring principal Doug Anderson. Jurrens began his career teaching fifth grade at Kasson-Mantorville while also coaching football, basketball and baseball. Some 12 years later, after completing the requirements to be a school administrator, he became principal at Lyle, and shortly thereafter at Triton, where his position fell victim to budget cuts. He had been the elementary principal at USC for the past two years before applying to join NRHEG.
Despite having come on board at the start of July, he says he has been very busy. “There’s a lot more to do in a school building during the summer than most people realize,” he observes. He explains that several complex reports must be submitted, details from the past year must be wrapped up, and preparations need to be made for the upcoming school year. Given that NRHEG hired 21 new staff members this summer, the administrative team spent a fair amount of time interviewing and selecting new employees.
Beckman inspires NRHEG: Currency in its most natural form of, oxytocin
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SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE? - Speaker and consultant Joe Beckman encourages NRHEG staff to embrace their personal strengths by holding a dance contest to the tune of “YMCA.” Despite a determined effort, Cindi Bartness and Miles Otstot were outranked by Cortney Klocek and Dave Bunn. Star Eagle photo by Deb Bently
By DEB BENTLY
Staff Writer
Joe Beckman asked NRHEG staff members a simple question: “How far could you drive in seven-and-a-half hours?” He also pointed out that typical American 8- to 10-year-olds spend about that much time each day on electronic devices. By the age of 7, a child has often spent the equivalent of a full year on a screen.
Beckman, a nationally known consultant and presenter who works out of the Twin Cities, was the keynote speaker at the opening day workshop held for school staff on August 30. His 2-hour presentation featured thought-provoking questions, sobering facts, and some zany interaction, all with the point of emphasizing the value of human connection.
“Suicide rates among 10- to 12-year-olds began rising in 2007, and are at record levels,” he said. “How could this be?” Beckman postulated that the increasing numbers coincide with the introduction and rapid acceptance of the “smart” phone—along with its many effects on society. Not that the phones themselves are harmful, he explained, but that, rather than being used as the “tools” they are meant to be, they are being treated as “companions,” and are reducing the amount of genuine person-to-person interaction people experience.
“So many of the kids we interact with come from circumstances that are ‘broken’ in some way,” he said. “Sometimes the most valuable thing you can give them is a few seconds of genuine, human connection. Because ‘connection’ is the oxygen our souls breathe. It’s what we need to keep going.”
Student relations important to Meihak: Meet the new NRHEG superintendent
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FIRST DAY - Superintendent Mike Meihak addresses NRHEG teachers and staff during their first staff day on August 30, 2021.
Star Eagle photo by Deb Bently
By DEB BENTLY
Staff Writer
At 6’5”, NRHEG’s new superintendent Mike Meihak could be an imposing fellow—if he weren’t so friendly and didn’t have such a welcoming smile.
A middle school principal for the Faribault school system for the past 7 years, Meihak began his position with NRHEG on July 1. He has been an educator for 27 years, beginning as a social studies teacher for seven years and then a principal for 12 in the nearby Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton (JWP) school district, where he and his wife, Sara, still reside with two of his four children. In 2011, with nearly 20 years in education accomplished, he and his family decided to try something new: He took a position as a “school renewal specialist” for the Hawaii Department of Education for a year. Upon returning to Minnesota he became a principal at Yellow Medicine East in the northern part of the state before taking the position in Faribault. In the meantime, he continued his own education, gradually acquiring the qualifications to be a superintendent.
NRHEG selected him this past spring after receiving the news that Dale Carlson, who had been superintendent for the district for the past 6 years, was retiring.
“I felt this way from the beginning and now even more since taking office,” says Meihak. “NRHEG is absolutely the right setting for me. A smaller district like this one is where I fit in and can make strong contributions.”
Little cafe big taste: Noris Cuisine opens in Geneva
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LOUDER THAN EXPECTED - Noris and Brant Hemingway, and daughter Aracelis Sepulveda proudly stand outside the new Geneva Cafe. The family has been overwhelmed with support since the family ‘quietly’ opened in July, 2021.
Star Eagle photo by Deb Bently
By MELANIE PILTINGSRUD AND DEB BENTLY, Staff Writers
The Hemingway family, namely Noris and her daughter Aracelis, are the faces behind Noris Cuisine, the new “Little Cafe,” in downtown Geneva.
After a quiet, ‘soft opening’ in July, the new franchise is already turning into a customer favorite. Noris, a Venezuelan native who moved to Minnesota 19 years ago, says their attempt at a soft opening was anything but quiet. It got busy right away.
“We’ve been very pleased with the amount of business,” says Aracelis Sepulveda, Noris’s daughter and a second-year college student. “We work very hard to give people a dining experience that they’ll enjoy.”
The atmosphere of Noris Cafe is charming. Wooden tables and chairs and even a comfortable sofa invite customers to stay a while, enjoy a meal, or sip their coffee or tea in colorful 12 and 16 oz. mugs. A lighted sign on the wall reminds everyone there are “Good Days Ahead” and large windows overlook an outdoor seating area, and the city park beyond.
With about 35 indoor seats and another 16 or so outside, it might be tempting to think of it as a small-scale operation, but that’s not how it feels as people come and go.
“It's pretty hard to stay out of here,” says Dewayne Jensen, owner of Jensen Plumbing & Heating, who insists with enthusiasm that everything on the menu is good; “You can't go wrong.”