Helena Public Schools > Friday Update from Superintendent Weltz | March 28, 2025
Friday Update from Superintendent Weltz | March 28, 2025

Note: This newsletter has been corrected to reflect that an Informational Item on draft proposed adjustments to school boundaries will appear on the Board of Trustees’ May 13 agenda.

In today’s newsletter:

  • Board briefed on school boundary draft 
  • Helena High Mock Trial: 6-time state champs!
  • Incoming kindergarten families: “Week of the Young Child” events start April 7
  • 2025 “Harrison Writing Award” winners
  • New “Going-to-the-Sun” award recognizes visual artists

Good Afternoon Families and Staff,

We are just a few short hours away from a well-deserved Spring Break, and I want to take a moment to thank our families, students, and staff for their continued efforts in making this a remarkable seven months of the school year. I’ve witnessed incredible partnerships among our schools, students, and families, and I’m grateful for all your hard work.

This month, I recommended to the Board of Trustees that we address several areas within our district. Some of these recommendations are long overdue, while others are strategic and timely.

The six recommendations I presented are interconnected. Adjusting enrollment numbers at our elementary, middle and high schools has been needed for years. These adjustments are critical in moving forward with the recommendation to build a new Helena High School and update Capital High School. Balancing enrollment numbers at our high schools will give us a clearer picture of the size and scope needed for the new Helena High School. This is just one example of how the recommendations work together.

I fully understand that this work is necessary, but also difficult for those involved. As I lead this district, I will not shy away from making these tough decisions for recommendations to the Board. My focus will always remain on what is best for all our students across this amazing district.

It’s been approximately 40 years since Helena last made district-wide adjustments to school boundaries.

Over these decades, much has changed—neighborhoods have aged, and new ones have been developed. The biggest shift occurred in 2019 with the opening of East Helena High, resulting in a loss of 458 students and creating an imbalance in our high school enrollment. As of the fall enrollment count, Capital High had 1,307 students, and Helena High had 986 students. At the middle school level, Helena Middle School had 705 students, while CR Anderson had 968.

This work around school boundaries is still in the early stages of a four-year process. I announced these recommendations to the Board of Trustees and the public in March and shared them with the Parent Advisory Committee last week. Mr. McKay also presented our early draft work during the March Trustee work session.

What is Being Proposed?

School boundary adjustments can understandably spark concern, questions and fear in any community. So, I want to start by sharing a few key facts:

  • Boundary adjustments will be gradual. The plan we’re drafting is aimed to be implemented during the 2026-2027 school year (not this coming fall).

  • Current students will remain at their schools. Families will have the option to keep siblings together at the same school, if desired. (The future of Hawthorne Elementary and arrangements for Hawthorne students are still under consideration.)

  • The in-district boundary exception process will remain. If a family wants their children to attend a school outside their assigned attendance area, they can apply for an exception, as long as space is available.

  • Transportation will be affected in 2026-27. Students who wish to remain at their current out-of-boundary school will need to use existing courtesy routes, if available.

Addressing Misinformation

Before diving into more details on why we’re adjusting boundaries, I want to address some misinformation circulating in our community. There have been suggestions that the district is withholding information about the draft boundary recommendation. This is simply not the case.

On Tuesday of this week, the Board of Trustees held its regular work session. A standard agenda item is the Superintendent’s Report, where I update the Trustees on district work. I asked Assistant Superintendent Josh McKay to brief the Board on his work drafting the school boundary adjustments.

Mr. McKay’s presentation was properly noticed and included on the agenda under the Superintendent’s Report on page 6. Here’s a link to Mr. McKay’s presentation. 

Please note that these are drafts—a starting point. The Board’s work is done in public, by practice and statute, and this was the first opportunity for Trustees to view these suggestions. We anticipate refining these drafts as the discussion continues.

What’s Next?

On Tuesday, May 13, a refined version of the draft boundary changes will be presented to the Board as an “Informational Item.” This means it will be presented for information and discussion, but no vote will be taken. There will be an opportunity for public comment at this meeting or by writing or emailing the full Board of Trustees at any time.

Additional changes may be made to the draft boundary plan based on feedback from both the Board and the public at the May meetings. A final vote on the boundary adjustment plan is expected at the Board’s regular meeting on June 11. Again, the implementation would not go into effect until the 2026-27 school year.

The boundary changes will be implemented gradually over four years, with balanced enrollment expected by that time. We will also continue to offer flexibility for families who wish to pursue alternative school sites.

We truly appreciate your input and patience as we move through this process. It’s important to us that all decisions are made transparently and that feedback is gathered from all stakeholders.

Why Are We Adjusting Boundaries?

So, why are we making these adjustments?

Our goal is to balance enrollment across our schools to maximize teaching staff, use our facilities more efficiently, and, most importantly, provide equal opportunities to all students, no matter where they live.

For instance, Helena High students currently have fewer advanced placement (AP) and other advanced course offerings compared to their peers at Capital High due to low student enrollment. If teaching staff have to travel between schools, we lose valuable instructional time. This is not something we can afford, especially given our recent reductions in teaching staff.

Demographic trends show a continued flattening or decline in birthrates in Lewis & Clark County and in the number of school-age children. New housing developments are not bringing significant numbers of school-age children to the area. This means we can’t rely on population growth to solve these enrollment imbalances.

As state and federal funding for education continues to fall behind inflation, it’s essential that we adjust our resources to continue providing the educational experience that our community expects—challenging academics, robust arts and music programs, and a wide variety of student activities and athletics.

Thank you for taking the time to read through this. While the changes we need to make are difficult, they are designed to ensure the best possible educational experience for Helena’s students.

Please enjoy your Spring Break, and I look forward to seeing you back on April 7 for the exciting year-end classroom projects, outdoor sports, performances, carnivals and all the fun that makes spring such a great time of year.

Happy Spring Break!

Respectfully,

Rex M. Weltz, Superintendent
Helena Public Schools

District News & Events

https://helenaschools.org/departments/montessori/

Lottery now open for First Grade Montessori spots!  

If you have a current kindergartner enrolled in Helena Public Schools, now is the time to join the lottery for a first-grade Montessori slot!

It’s simple to apply:

  1. Print and complete the Montessori Lottery application form.
  2. Submit your completed form by 3 pm, April 7, at any Helena Public Schools elementary. You may also email a completed application to Holly Vauter at hvauter@helenaschools.org
  3. Make sure you get a “received” receipt when you turn in your application!

Names will be drawn April 8, 2025. Selected applicants will be called that evening. All others will receive an email the next day.

Please note: Vacancies in 1st, 2nd and 3rd Montessori grades are filled from the waiting list for their lottery year. Placements may be made in the 4th or 5th grade, upon administrative approval.

Learn more about the district’s Montessori Charter School at https://helenaschools.org/departments/montessori/

 

Week of the Young Child events for incoming kindergarteners

Attention incoming kindergarten families. You are invited to your neighborhood school for fun activities celebrating the “Week of the Young Child” coming up April 7-11.

This is a great opportunity for you and your child to get to know your school! Find your neighborhood school. 

Student & Educator Recognitions

One of the biggest benefits of a public education is the opportunity to participate in  trainings, conferences and competitions – often out of state – that give students a leg up on college and career.

Two cases in point are Mock Trial and BPA (Business Professionals of America), where students participate in real-world practice scenarios and training.
Our Helena High Mock Trial Team and our Capital High BPA Chapter both crushed their state-level competitions this month and are headed to their respective national events in Phoenix, Arizona, and Orlando, Florida, respectively.
These opportunities to see the world and meet and compete with peers from across the nation can be life changing. Teachers like Mock Trial Advisor Kacey Askin and BPA Chapter Advisors Jamie Toivonen (CHS) and Samantha Humphrey (HHS) truly help students develop their full potential and discover rewarding career paths.

Equally important are opportunities to study, practice, perform and showcase art in district programs such as music and fine arts. Enhancing these opportunities are collaborations with organizations such as The Myrna Loy, The Helena Symphony, the Archie Bray, Cohesion Dance Project and others that give students the opportunity to paint, dance, sculpt and create alongside professional artists.

We’re excited to announce a new award and scholarship recognizing the incredible range of artistic talent and instruction in our schools. The Helena Education Foundation’s new “Going-to-the-Sun” award provides up to four $350 awards to be given annually to high school visual artists. The award is funded by a local family that wishes to remain anonymous.

The first-ever recipients of this exciting award are as follows:

  • Faith Howard (HHS) for a series of pen and ink drawings
  • Lauren Bechdol (CHS) “Portrait”
  • Maika Arensmeyer (CHS) for “The View in a Box”
  • Mason Karlin (HHS) for “Through the Looking Glass”

Their work will be published in “Pen & Ink” magazine, a glossy magazine that showcases the prose and poetry of student writers. Published once a year, “Pen & Ink” is an opportunity for students to be published in a professional, high-print quality magazine that is entirely student-produced. Students curate, write, edit and design the publication, which features the work of more than 60 students.

The authors include up to four students who are selected by a panel of professional writers for the annual “Harrison Writing Award” in the categories of expository or creative writing. Dr. Lee Harrison endowed the awards, which come with a $350 scholarship, in memory of her mother Ethel Harison.

The talents of each of these remarkable students will be recognized at the “Pen & Ink” launch party at the Holter Museum of Art on May 8 at 5:30 p.m.

Congratulations to our “Pen & Ink” award recipients:

Zaraj Carrucini (CHS) for “Library Guardian” and “Tiger in a Birch Tree Forest”

Fiona Kuntz( CHS) for “Ms. Shallot” and “The Woods”

Dane Moser (HHS) for “A Winter’s Thought”


Left to Right: Addie Murray, Gabbi LaVoie, Maverick Franklin, Presiding Judge Chris Abbott (front) Mia Taylor, Grey Gildroy, Kenzie Criswell and Layla Riggs.

HHS Mock Trial: Six-time STATE CHAMPS headed to Nationals!

Helena High’s Mock Trial teams have done it again—securing their sixth consecutive state championship!

Hosted by the Montana Bar Association, the competition took place March 21-22 at the Lewis and Clark County Courthouse. Each team competed in 4 rounds playing either the prosecution or the defense. Each attorney and witness was scored on their performances. The two teams with the most wins and points met in the championship round – and both of those teams were from Helena High. The Copper Team from HHS met up with the Silver Team from HHS in the championship round where the Copper team edged out the Silver team in a split decision.

The Copper team will now move on to Nationals to represent Montana at the National High School Mock Trial Championship in Phoenix, Arizona, May 8-10th.

Congratulations to our talented HHS Mock Trial competitors and to their dedicated advisor and HHS Business Education Teacher, Kacey Askin!


Kayle Andriolo took home five state championships and will compete in Python and Java programming at BPA Nationals.

Bruin BPA competitors rock state competition, head to nationals!

The Capital High School Business Professionals of America (BPA) team returned from the Montana State Leadership Conference in Billings with an impressive collection of awards. Every Bruin BPA member qualified for the National BPA Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida, in May, and the team earned a Silver Star Award for Chapter Development!

In addition to testing their skills against their peers’ at nationals, the students will take “CertiPort” exams to earn certifications in professional business applications such as Adobe, Meta, Cisco, and Intuit. The certification program is designed to build a skilled workforce to meet the needs of local employers and government technology initiatives.

The following students will represent Capital High and Helena High at the National Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida, this May:

Kathleen Cook: 1st Advanced Interview Skills, 4th Java Programming

Kayle Andriolo: 1st Computer Programming Concepts, 1st Digital Marketing Concepts, 1st Financial Math and Analysis, 1st Information Technology Concepts, 1st Java Programming, 2nd Python Programming

Emiley Ereth – 1st Economic Research Project

Mckenzy Heppner – 1st Health Research Presentation

Brooklynn Haab, Joey Casey, Kathleen Cook, Mckenzy Heppner – 1st Presentation Team

Ryan Fuller – 2nd Server Administration Using Microsoft, 5th Device Configuration & Troubleshooting

Sam Flynn – 2nd Java Programming, 3rd Python Programming, 4th IT Concepts

Brooklynn Haab, Emiley Ereth, Hollis Elliott – 3rd Visual Design Team

Nolan Holzer – 5th Python Programming

Helena High
Helena High’s Lorenzo Phoenix qualified for Nationals with a 3rd Place in Java Programming.


“Wheels of Harmony” Teaching Artist Tenor Bo Shimmin

Opera Montana Brings “Wheels of Harmony” Workshop to Helena Schools

Music and Indian Education students from Capital High and Helena High were treated to operatic performances and exploration last week during the “Wheels of Harmony” workshop brought to Helena by Opera Montana based in Bozeman.

The workshop is designed to expose students to Indigenous music and culture, including opera, to engage students in meaningful discussion about Montana and the Unites States’ Tribal Nations and to encourage students to consider music performance as a lifetime art, including the possibility of a career.

Here is a clip of Tenor Bo Shimmin, Opera Montana teaching artist.

Highlights from the Headlines

Community Events

Sign up is now open for this great class! Join us in making a gift to honor your graduate. All supplies are included and there is no cost for the class.
Skills Class
April 3rd, 5:30-8:30pm
Quilting Class
April 6th, 12-3pm
April 13th, 12-3pm
April 19th, 12-3pm
April 27th, TBD
May 4th, 12-3pm
Sign up at https://hia.tools/quilt