Class of 2019
graduates this Sunday!
Before we send them off into the world, we asked some kindergarteners if they had any advice for the graduates! #tigerpride
Cedar Falls Community Television will be broadcasting the 2019 CFHS Commencement live from the McLeod Center on Sunday, May 26, starting at 2 p.m. Please tune into CFU Channel 15 (415, 15-1, or 15 depending on your cable television subscription).
Ceremonies will also be live on the CF Schools YouTube page.
May is School Board Recognition Month, sponsored by the Iowa Association of School Boards to celebrate the contributions of board members to Iowa public education. Cedar Falls Schools celebrate our school board superheroes for their heroic work serving our students and our school. While our board members are elected to the position by the community, they serve unpaid. They’re volunteers who are true superheroes—they spend a significant amount of time at regular monthly meetings, reviewing board materials, communicating with citizens, taking advantage of board learning opportunities, and attending school functions and activities. The Cedar Falls School Board is charged with governing our school district. They set the direction for the district, oversee the budget, develop policies and make decisions that impact the entire community. And most importantly—they are committed to student achievement.  THANK YOU to our school board members: Jeff Orvis, Susie Hines, Sasha Wohlpart, Susan Lantz, Joyce Coil, Jenny Leeper and Jeff Hassman.
Earlier this school year Mr. Dan Conrad, Director of Secondary Education, announced his retirement effective June 30, 2019. Following a careful review of the District’s organizational structure, a new PK-12 Cabinet position was created, Executive Director of Enrichment and Special Programs . This position, along with the Associate Superintendent for Instruction and Learning, Ms. Pam Zeigler, and the Executive Director for Student Services, Ms. Jill White, will provide district level leadership for all PK-12 Programs effective July 1, 2019.

A thorough search process led to five candidates from outside and inside the district being selected for interviews. Following interviews with teams comprising of secondary and elementary teachers and administrators, district staff representing PK-12 programs and Cabinet, we are pleased to announce the selection of Ms. Tara Estep , Principal of Hansen Elementary, to fill this new leadership role.

Earlier in her career, Tara taught at Orchard Hill Elementary for six years, subsequently accepting her first administrative position as Principal at Wapsie Valley Elementary School. She rejoined the Cedar Falls District in 2010, to become Principal of Hansen Elementary. During her tenure, Hansen has received both state and national recognition. In 2016 the school received a National Blue Ribbon of Excellence and in 2017 the Iowa Department of Education selected the school for a Breaking Barriers Award. Tara was also recognized as a leader in the Cedar Valley, in 2017 she was selected as one of The Courier’s “20 Under 40” recipients.

During the 2019-20 school year, Ms. Savannah Swestka will serve as the Interim Principal of Hansen Elementary. She has served as Associate Principal in support of Hansen and Southdale during 2018-19 and previously in support of Hansen and Lincoln. Prior to joining the Cedar Falls District, Savannah held building level and district level administrative positions in the Iowa City Community School District.
Congratulations to the Women's Track and Field Team
on finishing as State Runner-up!
Get your t-shirt online through Iowa Sports Supply .
All orders due next Thursday, May 30.
Monica Winkowitsch is Celebrating her Retirement following 40 Years of Teaching in the district!
Please join us for an open house celebration on Sunday, June 9, 1-3:30 p.m., at Orchard Hill Elementary cafeteria.
Congratulations to our spring sports on their continuing success!

Women's Golf qualified for the state meet and will be competing May 28 and 29.

Women's Tennis qualified for singles with Malina Amjadi and Jamie Knox. They also qualified the doubles pairing of Mira Keeran and Krisha Keeran. As a team they qualified for State for the first time in school history! And, they won the conference championship for the first time!

Men's Tennis will compete this Saturday to qualify for state and finished 2nd in conference.

Women's Soccer plays their Regional game this Friday night. If they win, they will play next Tuesday night. In conference they finished 7th. 

Men's Soccer lost to Kennedy in District play last night. They finish tied for 3rd in the conference.
Watch this Parent University episode on the high school planning process; including research, analysis, comparisons and community survey results.
Sign up for FIRST Team!
Students interested in being part of a  FIRST  team can use the links below to sign up. Teams will be forming now through the end of August. Please contact Kenton Swartley ( kenton.swartley@cfschools.org ) with any questions.

FIRST  LEGO League Jr. (grades K-3): Teams consist of 4-6 students and meet for 12 weeks in the fall or spring. Students work as a group to learn about the theme for the year, robots and coding. The team shares their learning at an Expo at the end of the season.

FIRST  LEGO League (grades 4-8): Teams consist of 5-10 students and meet throughout the fall. Students work as a group to research a topic related to the theme for the year and program a robot they have built to complete missions. The team participates in an FLL Regional Qualifier at the end of the season.

FIRST  Tech Challenge (grades 7-12): Teams consist of 7-15 students and meet from September through January. Students work as a group to design, build and program a robot for competition. The team competes with other schools in several League Meets during the fall and a League Championship in January.

FIRST  Robotics Competition (grades 9-12): FRC Team 525 consist of 30+ students and meets weekly during the fall and daily during build and competition seasons from January through March. Students work in small groups to complete tasks associated with sustaining a successful FRC Team. Students can pursue multiple interests including such things as programming, design, finance, awards, website design, scouting app creation, parts fabrication and more.
Monica Boyer has joined the
Cedar Falls Schools Foundation as its Executive Director!

“Cedar Falls is a great community, and Cedar Falls community Schools certainly add to its vibrancy. We’re a fortunate community to have such an impressive school system focused on developing students to their greatest potential,” stated Monica. “This Foundation was started by an incredible group of individuals who care deeply about our youth and our educators. It’s been the work of countless volunteer hours that have brought the Foundation to where it is today. To be trusted to keep expanding those efforts is an honor.”

Founding Board Member and past Executive Director Susan Lantz has retired after 13 years. “We applaud Susan for her years of contributions to the Foundation and welcome Monica,” said Dave Deaver, CFSF Board President.

Originally from Lawler, Iowa, Monica earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Iowa State University in 2009. Prior to joining CFSF, Monica served as the Marketing Specialist at Waverly Health Center for eight years.
Attention Parents of 7 th -12 th grade for next school year!

Students must have a physical to practice sports. Sports physicals are good for one year. There is a one month grace period.

Fall 2019 sports physicals for grades 9 th-12 th are due by August 12. The High School Office is open all summer.

Fall 2019 sports physicals for 7 th and 8 th grade are due by the first day of practice.

7 th-12 th graders are REQUIRED to have a Heads up Code of Conduct signed EACH year. There is NO grace period for Code of Conduct. Students will NOT be able to practice without a signed Code of Conduct.
Board of Education Meeting May 13, 2019
Welcome to Tiger Pride Magazine, a new publication from the Cedar Falls School District! The purpose of Tiger Pride is to provide an avenue for the people of Cedar Falls to discover the amazing things that make our district great, as well as, an opportunity to get to know some of our students, teachers and staff. Tiger Pride will be published twice a year. We hope you enjoy!
Learn more about
Cedar Falls Schools
in just 60 seconds!


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