Dear Families and Staff,

Spring has officially arrived and with it comes the excitement of a new sports season.

Let’s wish our softball, tennis and track athletes a winning season! It sounds like they have some outstanding spring practice weather to look forward to after a dose of winter this weekend.

A couple weeks ago, I shared news that the Helena Education Foundation (HEF) announced its 2025 Distinguished Students. These outstanding students were recognized in one of two categories:

• Distinguished Scholar Award for academic excellence, achievement and leadership.

• Distinguished Achiever Award for overcoming obstacles on the road to academic and personal success.

One of my favorite parts of these annual HEF awards is that students get a chance to pay it forward or, more accurately, to pay it back. Each of the 56 outstanding students selected this year were asked to nominate an educator or coach who made a positive impact on their life for HEF’s “Distinguished Educator” award.

Their nominations tell the remarkable stories of learning and growth happening in our schools every day. While each awardee will be celebrated at this spring’s Celebration of Excellence banquet, here are just a few excerpts that illustrate the power of these connections:

“Mrs. Casne-Fetz’s class showed me how much fun school could be through amazing projects like the craft fair and poetry slam. She fueled my desire to learn and pushed me to always put my best foot forward in everything I do.” – Nomination for Amy Casne-Fetz, Montessori Teacher at Central Elementary.

“Mrs. Hagengruber sparked my passion for medicine and helped me grow into a more confident reader and writer.” – Nomination for Leslie Hagengruber, Science Teacher at CR Anderson Middle School.

“Whether I walked in with a smile on my face or a heavy heart, Mr. Day always found a way to make my day better.” – Nomination for Brandon Day, AP Biology & Physics Teacher at Helena High

Today, I’m pleased to share the full list of those who will be recognized at HEF’s Celebration of Excellence banquet later this spring.

Congratulations to all! You represent the talent, skill and commitment that defines every one of our schools.

Looking ahead

And that brings us to district business. It is these positive learning environments – where students can thrive in rigorous academic courses like AP honors, train for careers in the trades and study art and music – that our district is working to support through operational changes.

Earlier this month, I presented a slate of budget and facilities recommendations to the Board of Trustees.

Each is grounded in my mission to maximize district resources so we can keep offering the educational experience that generations of Helenans have known and benefitted from.

I firmly believe that we can create a bright future for all of our students – one where kids arrive each morning at schools that are safe and comfortable; where they continue to be challenged by robust, well-rounded academics, athletics, arts and activities; and where they can train for a wide variety of careers, graduating work-and college-ready.

We can achieve this future, but to get there we must meet the challenges before us, including our ongoing quest for state school funding that is commensurate with the definition of a quality public education. We need a roadmap, and that is the goal of the recommendations I’ve provided to our Trustees.

I know that community members have many questions, and I truly appreciate your patience as we work through the established school board governance process.

One of the next steps in that process is a public hearing on the future of Hawthorne Elementary to be held Wednesday, April 9, at 5:30 p.m. in the Lincoln Center at 1325 Poplar St. A Board packet will be posted 48 hours in advance, which will give the public and Board members the opportunity to review information before the hearing. The links to the Board packet and to join the April 9 meeting online will be posted to our district homepage at www.helenaschools.org.

I want to again thank you for your engagement, ideas and feedback as we work together on behalf of our students of today and tomorrow.

Enjoy your weekend with your family.

Respectfully,

Rex M. Weltz, Superintendent
Helena Public Schools