As We Wrap Up Another Year

As we wrap up another school year, I want to take a moment to thank our students, staff, and families for their hard work, dedication, and support. This year has been filled with growth, achievement, and countless moments that reflect the strength of our school community. From academic success to extracurricular accomplishments, our students continue to make us proud. I also want to recognize our staff for their unwavering commitment to providing a high-quality education and supportive environment for every student.

A few updates on this summer's ventilation construction project;

Our Community Education office will remain in its normal location all summer.
Our District Office will remain in its normal location until June 15 at which time it may need to be relocated to Prairie Woods Elementary.
Our Technology Department will be located in the Performing Arts Center back stage for the summer.

For more information regarding the final stage of this project please visit of our webpage: nls.k12.mn.us/facilities/facilityplanning

Lastly, we want to wish all our graduates the best in their next chapter!

Jamie Boelter, NLS Superintendent

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

Friday, May 22 - End of Semester Two & End of 4th Quarter
Friday, May 22 - Last Day of School

[ Friday, May 22 at 5PM - HS Building Closed Until Further Notice ]

Monday, May 25 - All Buildings Closed: Memorial Day
Tuesday, May 26 - Teacher Workshop Day
Friday, June 19 - All Buildings Closed: Juneteenth
Friday, July 3 - All Buildings Closed: 4th of July Holiday
Saturday, August 1 - Online Annual Verification through Parent Portal Opens and Back to School Communications Begin!

High School

Another group of New London-Spicer graduates has left with a special achievement to celebrate!

These seniors recently put their hard work and language skills to the test by taking the AAPPL proficiency exam in Spanish. After demonstrating intermediate-level proficiency in reading, listening, writing, and speaking, all nine students earned the Minnesota World Language Certificate!

This accomplishment can translate into college credit and/or workforce certification, making it an incredible achievement with benefits beyond high school. We are so proud of their dedication and success!

As a district, one of our Strategic Plan goals is to maximize academic achievement in a personalized learning environment resulting in all students graduating career, college, and life ready, which is why the district developed our community’s Portrait of a Graduate. This achievement highlights two important Portrait of a Graduate qualities: Global Citizenship and Communicator.

¡Felicidades, muchachos! 👏

Pictured left to right: Jaclyn Renstrom, Addison Montpetit, Carson Smith, Lorenzo Larson, Bria Marxhausen, Emmett Tennant, Roxanne Klein, Burke Maxwell, & Jowell Gamez

NLS Participates in Minnesota’s Direct Admissions Program

New London-Spicer High School is proud to partner with the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) in the Direct Admissions program, helping make the path to college more accessible for students and families.

The program is designed to help students recognize that they are college ready and to encourage them to explore postsecondary opportunities with confidence.

Direct Admissions helps simplify the college process by:

Expanding access to higher education opportunities
Reducing barriers in the admissions process
Encouraging students to plan for their future after high school
Connecting students with colleges that are a personalized match

Families and students can learn more about the program by watching this informational video:

“You Are College Ready”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sNb7vIxzAI

We are excited to provide our students with additional opportunities to explore their future and take the next step toward college and career success!

$115,000 in Scholarships Awarded to the Class of 2026

Each spring, our seniors have the opportunity to apply for local scholarships that are sponsored by more than 80 local businesses or families in our community. These scholarships are exclusive to NLS students. This year, our local community sponsored over 150 scholarships, totaling $115,000 given to the senior class of 2026.

We appreciate the generous investment our community has on each graduating class at NLS– supporting them beyond their educational pursuits in our buildings.

Wildcat Activities

The New London-Spicer Track & Field teams delivered an outstanding performance at the WCC West Championship Meet hosted Tuesday, May 12 at NLS High School. Wildcat athletes earned multiple conference titles, top finishes, and two new meet records in front of a home crowd!

Leading the way was the girls’ 4x800 relay team of Kyla Vick, Hazel Vetsch, Piper Westby, and Taylor Munsch, who captured first place and broke the previous meet record with a time of 9:49.68. The previous record of 10:01.99 had stood since 2023.

Freshman standout Kyla Vick also set a new meet record in the girls’ 3200-meter run, winning the event in 11:31.17 and surpassing the previous record of 12:02.16 that she set herself in 2025.

Additional conference champions for the Wildcats included:

Girls’ 800 Meter Run - Taylor Munsch
Girls’ High Jump - Danica Pederson
Girls’ 4x400 Relay Team - Piper Westby, Kyla Vick, Taylor Munsch, Danica Pederson
Boys’ 4x100 Relay Team - Griffin Mayhew, Ayden Friehl, Logan Hagedorn, Weston Steel
Boys' 4x400 Relay Team - Griffin Mayhew, Ayden Friehl, Zachary Lageson, Logan Hagedorn

The Wildcats also earned numerous top-three finishes and PRs throughout the meet, showcasing the depth and talent of the program across running, jumping, and throwing events.

Congratulations to all NLS Track & Field athletes and coaches on an impressive championship performance!

Congrats to all our award winners presented at the Athletic Awards Program on May 13 in the PAC.

🏆🏆🏆
Congratulations to our boys golf, girls golf, and baseball teams on winning their Wright County Conference West championships! Additionally, our boys tennis team had a great season, wrapping up with a second place finish in the Section Tournament!

Good luck to all of our spring teams and individuals as they continue to compete for a chance to participate in the state tournament.

Middle School

As we close out the school year, we want to extend a heartfelt farewell to our middle school students, staff, and families after a wonderful whirlwind of fun and learning. This May has included memorable experiences such as hiking the Glacial Lakes State Trail, enjoying picnics in the Nature Area, engaging in presentations on invasive species, and learning more about our government. We are incredibly proud of all the accomplishments, growth, and effort shown by our students throughout the year. As we head into the warm summer days, we hope you find time to relax, recharge, and enjoy the season.

Please note: Grades and Teacher Assignments will be viewable in Parent Portal on Tuesday, May 26.

American Legion Visit and Fagen Fighters Museum Experience

On April 27, 7th grade students welcomed guests from the Spicer American Legion, including Captain Lonnie Hagan, Keith Seidler, and Kelly Mark Michels, who shared insights on the Legion’s four pillars—Veterans Affairs, National Security, Americanism, and Children and Youth—along with personal stories from their military service, sparking thoughtful student questions ahead of their field trip and made possible in part by a generous $1,300 donation to support admission and transportation. On May 1, students visited the Fagen Fighters World War II Museum, where they explored aircraft and artifacts through guided tours, watched a Mustang fighter plane take flight, and engaged with powerful historical exhibits including D-Day and Holocaust displays, making for a meaningful hands-on learning experience that brought history to life.

Prairie Woods

I would like to start by thanking all students, parents, and staff for a great school year. It always amazes me that the older I get, the faster the years seem to go by. I am so proud of everyone.

This summer, the Middle/High School will have construction throughout sections of the building to complete the HVAC/Dehumidification project. Therefore, Prairie Woods Elementary will potentially house the District Office staff starting June 15 for a month. They hope to be able to return to the district office at the end of July.

Other important notes:

Students who ordered yearbooks received them on Thursday, May 14. If your child didn’t order a yearbook, we have 35 extra yearbooks available for purchase at $18 each. They will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis, so be sure to purchase yours soon—once they’re gone, they’re gone!
The PW office sent directions on how families can view their child’s report card online through Parent Portal on Thursday, May 21. In addition, you received directions on how you can view your child’s classroom placement for next year.
Your child’s FASTBridge spring test results were sent home in the May 21 Thursday folder.
Next year's school supply list is available online at www.nls.k12.mn.us/schoolsupplies

Thank you for another wonderful school year and have a fantastic summer!

Randy Juhl, PW Principal

Ayla Hess, Oakley Holden, Piper Fossen, Taytum Dickerson, Aila Miller, and Casen Williamson

Keeva Rice, Marin Deisting, Coy Reck, MaKenna Phorbes, Reid Finstrom

Molly Marcus, Rowan Bowers, Oliver Nieland, Heather Kidrowski, Elin Baker

🐾R = Respect, O = Ownership, A = Attitude, R = Responsibility🐾

Congratulations to our Prairie Woods Elementary ROAR Students for the Month of April! These students are being recognized for consistently displaying ROAR behaviors.

Daxtyn Sandven, Collins Kershner, Raegan Orth, Gavin Rosendahl, Brooks Harberts

Logan Jensen, Sophia Korsmo, Charlotte Ray, Ariel Koosman, Grady Bendickson, Lenora Nelson

Community Education

PALS and Lil’ PALS registration is now officially closed for Summer 2026. Thank you to all of the families who registered with us — we are looking forward to a fantastic summer! As a reminder, if your child attends PALS or Lil’ PALS and you add additional Summer Recreation activities after the registration deadline, transportation will not be provided for those added activities. We are currently finalizing transportation schedules, staffing, and activity groupings for the summer season. Please remember to complete your PALS/Lil’ PALS attendance calendars before next week. Summer PALS officially begins on Wednesday, and having calendars completed helps our staff prepare appropriately for programming, transportation, and staffing needs.

Summer Recreation still has openings in select courses, so be sure to check out what is still available!

Please also note that Fall Football registration closes firmly each season - before the start of school. We are unable to accept late registrations once registration closes, as we have only a 48-hour window to finalize and order jerseys.

We cannot wait to kick off another great summer with our NLS families!

2026-27 CatPAC Series Lineup!

Join us for another incredible season of entertainment at the NLS Performing Arts Center — all shows begin at 7:00 PM!

✨ Upcoming Season’s Performances✨

• October 3, 2026 – Key of G, LIVE! Tribute to Garth Brooks

• November 7, 2026 – Top Duets – Phil Thompson

• December 18, 2026 – Rock & Roll Christmas Special

• March 6, 2027 – Funny Mind Reader Kristoffer Olson

• April 3, 2027 – Chicago Transit – A Tribute to Chicago

🎟️ Season Tickets on Sale: June 4, 2026 with Individual Tickets going on sale: August 15, 2026

Purchase tickets at: www.nls.k12.mn.us/ticketsales

We can’t wait to see you for an unforgettable season!

Prairie Meadows

Cub Kids Preschoolers celebrated the end of another wonderful year with our Trike-a-thon and End-of-Year Celebration! The evening was filled with excitement, including bike races, root beer floats, a bounce house, face painting, emergency vehicles, and so much fun with friends and families. One of the biggest highlights of the night was watching the Life Link helicopter land!

A special THANK YOU to everyone who helped make this event such a success: the Willmar Stingers for providing the bounce house, the NLS Ambassadors for serving root beer floats, and the NHS members for helping keep our kids safe throughout the evening. We also want to thank Deputy Britni Bilky and Maverick, State Trooper Chris Fredrickson, Adam Braegelman and Trent Adkins from the Spicer Fire Department, Nate Field, the Contreras family with Spicer BMX, and Life Link for making this celebration so memorable. We are so grateful for the amazing community support that helped create such a fun and special night for our Cub Kids families!

Our Cub Kids Preschoolers have been enjoying lots of time outside on the playground while soaking up the beautiful spring weather! The children have loved running, climbing, playing games with friends, and exploring all the fun that spring brings.

Miss Holly's class earned a Root Beer Float Party! The students worked hard to fill their marble jar by showing kindness, listening skills, teamwork, and making great choices throughout the day.