Highlights of the January 13 Lincoln Board of Education regular meeting

January 13, 2026

The Lincoln Board of Education held its regular meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 13, at 6:00 p.m. at the Lincoln Public Schools Steve Joel District Leadership Center, 5905 O Street. 

Special reports, presentations and celebrations of success

25-year celebration

During the meeting, the Board recognized those employees who have served 25 years at Lincoln Public Schools. Those in attendance introduced themselves, and received a special certificate and pin. The Board thanked them for their dedication, and joined the crowd in giving them a standing ovation.

You can watch a highlight of the 25-year celebration presentation here.

Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools Update

Foundation for Lincoln Public Schools President Natalia Wiita provided highlights of the organization’s activities so far this school year. Those highlights include:

• The Foundation has raised $1.4 million of the $3.2 million annual fundraising goal. 
• They have received more than 1,100 gifts so far.
• There has been approximately $312,000 distributed so far to students and educators through Fund a Need, classroom support and student emergency funds.
• Seven new educators were recognized with the Klein Family Helpen New Teacher Award.
• In addition, the Foundation supports Title I schools through the Funds for Excellence, Fund a Need campaigns, individual donors and grants, Stu Elliott student assistance fund and the student emergency funds.
• The student scholarship application is now open and will close at the end of January.
• The Foundation is busy preparing for a special event on February 26, to kick off the All in for LPS community giving day on Friday, February 27.

You can watch a highlight of the Foundation presentation here.

First reading

Education Quest College Access Grant - Lincoln North Star

EducationQuest Foundation awards College Access Grants through a competitive application process every other year. All Nebraska public and private high schools are eligible to apply if approved or accredited to issue a high school diploma. High schools are funded for four years and may use grant funds to develop and support college access activities. Previous College Access Grant recipients may reapply two years from the last year of funding.

This is a grant that all LPS high schools apply for and this grant application is for North Star High School. 

The Board will hold a second reading and vote on the grant application at the next meeting.

Second reading

Board Policy Updates: 4650 - Travel Reimbursement

The Board periodically reviews and revises policies to align with current practices or meet requirements set forth by local, state or federal laws and regulations.

The revision adds required federal language in reimbursement for federally funded travel. The update matches current practice at LPS.

The Board held a second reading and voted to approve the updates.

Evaluation of the superintendent

Nebraska Law requires that new superintendents be evaluated twice in their first year.  As such, a mid-year evaluation of LPS Superintendent  John Skretta has been completed. The Board voted to approve the evaluation and will place it in his personnel file.

Informational items and reports

Board President update

Board President Bob Rauner highlighted that the Board and staff attend various community organization meetings monthly to provide updates from Lincoln Public Schools. Talking points this month for community groups include:

• Standing Bear High School and Northwest High School will both move to Class A.
• LPS operations and facilities teams are currently reviewing all exterior facilities including playgrounds and athletic facilities to continue efforts to provide equitable opportunities for all LPS students.
• We expect that there will be bills and debate in the Nebraska Legislature regarding property taxes and school funding.
• LPS is required by federal law to provide special education services to children who are four and five years old. When LPS provides preschool for these students receiving services, we are also required to have 50% of the enrollment in the classes to be students not receiving special education services.
• Every school in LPS has  more than 94% of our students vaccinated against Measles and Pertussis. These illnesses affect school attendance, staff absenteeism and healthcare costs.

Board member Barbara Baier mentioned that any community group that would like a presentation about Lincoln Public Schools from Board members or staff can contact the district.

Superintendent update

Superintendent John Skretta kicked off his remarks by stating there was no dropoff in learning after break and staff and students have jumped right back into learning.

“This sort of supportive, structured and academically rigorous learning environment was in full effect during recent school visits, including this morning’s trip to Lakeview elementary,” added Skretta. “This year‘s building wide character emphasis around respect was evident in students' interactions with one another and staff. The school improvement effort around active participation was quite apparent with the use of individual whiteboards in mathematics classes and selective small grouping strategies to pair and share.”

Skretta also highlighted the Student Teacher Meet and Greet hosted by the Human Resources team. There are over 200 student teachers placed within LPS classrooms from secondary institutions like Concordia University, Doane University, Wesleyan University, Wayne State College and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Public comment

There were three individuals that addressed the Board during the public comment period. You can watch the public comment as part of the full board meeting video.

Glimpses of LPS

We open every Board meeting with a video that highlights LPS. Tuesday’s Glimpses featured East High School Computer Science Teacher Peter McGinley's class as they set out on a mission to use coding and drones to land on targets in the cafeteria. 

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