Ways to Support Your Alma Mater at the Start of the New School Year

August has arrived, and we are inching ever closer to the beginning of a new school year. Where does the time go?

Here in Ripon and everywhere across the country, children and teachers are getting ready for a brand new year of learning, growth and challenges. Community and alumni support can help teachers and students alike weather all of those challenges and have a successful school year, especially when first getting started.

Here are a few ways alumni can support their alma mater this year, especially at the start of a new year.

• Go to events:  September 30th is Homecoming! Having an alumni presence at events is a powerful thing, especially early in the school year. It shows the lasting impact of the high school experience and helps to build school spirit in current students and staff. It also helps to find new recruits for the alumni association.

• Volunteer: If you live in the area, find time to volunteer. Consider what you’re interested in and good at, and where those strengths intersect with the district’s needs. Schools are always looking for more parent and community involvement, so be proactive about inquiring about volunteer opportunities. Even just occasional volunteering sessions can make a big difference.

• Donate: Put your money toward school initiatives you care about. Consider supporting Ripon students through the Ripon Education Foundation. School districts only get so much funding, so outside donations and sponsorships make a massive difference.

Best of luck to all students and teachers in the Ripon Area School District getting ready for the new year!

Highlights from the Summer

One of the highlights from this summer is the tremendous success from the Ripon High School FBLA students. Two RHS students landed in the top 10 for broadcast journalism at the Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) 2022 National Leadership Conference. Nine other students competed at the national conference as well.

One of the highlights of the summer school program is the RHS STEM Camp. This year, the camp offered two components:  electricity and the science behind electronics, and aquatic ecology.  Students learned how to solder and built a number of electronic devices including hand-held FM radios during those sessions. 

They explored the Ripon locations of Sandmar Pond, the Millpond, and Silver Creek.  Students also attended the Green Lake Association's Watershed Academy, an all-day, learning experience about stream monitoring and lake ecology. The camp concluded with a field trip to Williams Lake in Marquette County to meet with Onterra, a lake management company,  learn how to identify aquatic plants and how professional plant surveys are conducted on lakes. As you can imagine, the hands-on experiences were, by and large, their favorites. Check out our Facebook page to see photos of their excursions.

This year's camp was made possible by a number of outside sources and organizations.  The Ripon Education Foundation provided grants to purchase materials the students used to assemble the electronic devices and the equipment to conduct a number of water tests on samples collected throughout camp.  The Wisconsin Society of Science Teachers provided microscopes to study freshwater plankton.  And the UW-Madison Chemistry Department donated glassware and spectrophotometers used during the same water sample analyses.  And special thanks to the Green Lake Association and Onterra, their employees and volunteers.