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Lincoln Public Schools families,
School safety and security has been on a lot of our minds with the recent reports of school shootings across the country over the last month. We have counselors at each school available to speak with any student who is feeling the stress of recent events. Here is information for you as a parent on how you can help your child.
Every child deserves to go to school in a safe, warm and loving environment that fosters learning. Every staff member deserves to go to work and not fear for their lives. Our safety protocols and practices need to keep our students and staff safe while balancing the need for a learning space that doesn’t feel scary or that punishes those within the school’s walls.
School safety is something that Lincoln Public Schools takes very seriously. Our budgets and bond referendums over the last 20 years support security upgrades in all of our schools across Lincoln. We’ve added more staff to the nationally renowned Lincoln Public Schools safety and threat assessment teams. Our LPS Security team has cultivated a collaborative relationship with local, state and national law enforcement to help keep our schools safe. They have also helped develop our school safety curriculum and training materials.
School safety and security is a three-pronged approach. In addition to security measures, we need to address mental health and also give students access to before and after school supports. We have prioritized increased access to social workers and counselors for all of our students. Through the Lincoln Community Learning Centers, we are also able to serve students and families outside of the school day.
The best tools we have to stop an incident is building a culture or reporting when something feels unsafe. Every report is taken seriously and investigated thoroughly with the help of law enforcement. Our schools are safe because of our community’s ongoing efforts to remain vigilant and share information when there is a concern. We encourage anyone who sees or hears something of concern to report it immediately so we can continue to ensure a safe learning environment for all. You can report a safety concern by calling Lincoln Police at (402)441-6000 or by using the green Safe to Say button on our website.
These are just some of the things we are doing to address school safety concerns. We continue to review the latest research and feedback. If you have a safety concern, please contact us through the green Safe to Say button on our website.
Below are important reminders and information for Lincoln Public Schools families. Here is an index to help you navigate the information:
The annual LPS Perception Survey was emailed to families on March 20, please check your email for this important survey.
Each year Lincoln Public Schools sends out a District Perception Survey to various stakeholders – staff, students and parents – to gather information about how they view their school. Results from this important anonymous survey provide feedback to school staff and administrators, and are used to improve teaching, learning and the school environment. In addition, portions of the results are used to inform the effectiveness of our programs to those who administer federal grants to Lincoln Public Schools.
Lincoln Public Schools serves students and families from a wide variety of backgrounds and demographics. Each student and family is unique. It is important that we clearly understand the experiences of our stakeholders so we can identify and address potential areas of improvement and continue with what is working for student success. Survey respondents have the option to skip questions or sections of the survey they wish not to participate in.
For more information about the annual LPS Perception Survey, go to our website: https://home.lps.org/assessment/surveys/perception/.
Do you have a child that will start kindergarten next year? Lincoln Public Schools is now accepting kindergarten registrations for the 2023-2024 school year. Parents of children turning five years of age on or before July 31, 2023 can register their child online now.
Go to lps.org and click on the red “Enroll Your Student” button. Here you will also find all the information necessary for registering, the required documents needed and answers to frequently asked questions.
When registering, you must provide:
Families who wish to have their child enroll at an LPS school outside of their attendance area should fill out a Special Attendance Permit which is available at any school or on our website. Questions about kindergarten registration should be directed to the school your child will attend.
PLEASE NOTE: Students who are currently enrolled in an LPS Early Childhood Program should already be signed up for kindergarten and need not register online. If you have any questions, please contact your child’s school.
Parents who do not have access to the online registration, or wish to register their child in person, should contact their attendance area elementary school as soon as possible.
Questions about kindergarten registration should also be directed to the child’s attendance area school.
For children who turn five between August 1 and October 15, parents may request an assessment for their child to receive a waiver to attend school early. More information about the early entrance assessment process can be found here.
Lincoln Public Schools provides a high-quality, half-day early childhood preschool program for children who reside within the Lincoln Public Schools attendance area. Our preschool program is located in many of the schools across the school district. Children who are at least 3 years of age on or before July 31, 2023 and who have not yet turned five as of July 31, 2023, are eligible to apply.
Visit our website for more information, or contact earlychildhood@lps.org.
Building Blocks: family activities to try at home
At Lincoln Public Schools, we know students with strong social and emotional skills thrive. They succeed academically, personally and relationally. We use the Social Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum Second Step to teach these life skills to students in grades Pre-K through seventh.
Our SEL lessons are a collaboration between students, their families and educators. You can help us reinforce and build upon the lessons we teach at school by participating in these activities at home with your child.
This semester, your student is learning about empathy, kindness and problem-solving.
Partner with us to help your child excel by trying these activities with your family:
Visit our SEL website at https://home.lps.org/sel/ and discover more family activities and grade-specific lessons.
Families, we are seeing an increase of school disruptions that begin with inappropriate conversations on social media outside of school. Digital Citizenship is something we teach at Lincoln Public Schools. We encourage you to also have a conversation with your child about responsible digital citizenship to help reinforce these lessons.
We would also like to remind you that most social media user agreements (Like Snapchat, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok) do not allow full use of their apps for anyone under the age of 13. This means elementary and most middle school students should NOT have access or be using social media according to these apps and their terms of service.
For more and tips about social media use, you can visit these resources:
We are currently taking applications for our summer maintenance crew positions. We have open positions on our distribution, grounds, electrical, HVAC, paint, and plumbing crews. Applicants must be at least 17 years old prior to the start date.
For more information visit bit.ly/LPSSummerCrew.
Deadline to apply is April 17!
Is your child looking for a job or other extended learning opportunity? Students can use their Chromebook or LPS Student Portal account to check out our electronic bulletin board by going to lps.org and typing in the keyword “JELO”. (Students must be logged in to their LPS Student Portal to view the board.)
Students in grades 6-12 will find information about a wide variety of opportunities available. This includes activities, camps, jobs and internships. We update the board every Wednesday afternoon.
If so, please enter the information about your program/opportunity here: www.bit.ly/stujobslps.
Once you submit the information on the form, we will review it to ensure that it fits with our Board policies and regulations before we post it to the electronic bulletin board. Once an opportunity is posted, students in all middle and high schools are easily able to access the information. Please note: anyone outside of the LPS network or without LPS Portal access will not be able to access the eBulletin board.
Each month LPS publishes Community News in an effort to help share family-friendly community events and activities from non-profit organizations. Check out the April edition preview of Community News online.
Are you part of a community non-profit organization that wants to share your information with LPS families? Reserve your ad space in our Community News! Learn more on our webpage: lps.org/communitynews.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among people age 10-24. Awareness is important so we can all work towards prevention. This can be a hard topic but these uncomfortable conversations are valuable. Talking about suicide does not increase the chances it will occur, in fact putting light on it helps a struggling individual feel supported.
It’s really important if you or your child are not feeling well in any way to reach out for help. Our Signs of Suicide curriculum teaches students to use the ACT process when they or someone they know is struggling. ACT stands for Acknowledge (listen to your friend, don’t ignore threats), Care (let your friend know your care), and Tell (tell a trusted adult that you are worried about your friend).
School counselors, social workers, and psychologists are available at school and there are resources below that can be accessed anytime of the day or night. We never want anyone to believe that suicide is the only option.
It is important for families to know that there are steps you can take to help reduce the risk of suicide. The Suicide Prevention Resource Center provides the following recommendations for families:
Reducing access to lethal means – in particular, medications or weapons – saves lives. Some of these are general household health and safety precautions should be used regardless of suicide risk. Examples include limiting access to medications (prescription and over the counter) and storing weapons safely when not in use (American Academy of Pediatrics – healthychildren.org).
If you are concerned about yourself or a family member, these resources are available to help anytime of the day or night, any day of the year.
IEP Transition Resources for families are now available on the LPS website. Use this link to locate transition resources from the Nebraska State Department of Education, Nebraska Council on Developmental Disabilities, and Lincoln Public Schools. Contact your building-level special education administrator if you have additional questions about the IEP Transition Process.
Every three years the Nebraska Department of Education asks Nebraska school districts to send out K-12 parent surveys to parents who have a child with a disability and are receiving special education services from LPS. The survey opens today, and takes approximately 5-10 minutes to complete. The survey window is open through April 28. 2023. (This date has changed.) Please copy and paste this link into your browser – https://nde.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_2mbpFNv0gqxo4NU?RID=CGC_zY6H2SOEYJi30cI&Q_CHL=email or click here.
The information you provide helps us make special education services better for students and families, both in LPS and statewide. We appreciate you taking the time to complete the survey. Questions contact the special education office at 402-436-1905,
Lincoln Public Schools is the second largest public school district in Nebraska, located in the heart of the plains, renowned for its long-standing legacy of educational excellence and tradition of rigorous academic achievement. The school district is growing and thriving, serving over 42,000 students in more than 60 schools and programs.
Lincoln Public Schools is committed to ensuring digital accessibility for all persons, including people with disabilities. Learn more
