It is amazing that it is already December and 2019 is quickly coming to a close. It has been a busy but exciting semester. As has been my tradition, I will dedicate this month’s article to highlighting the great things that have happened in Moffat County School District since August. The examples detailed below show how the district is living two of the Belief Statements contained in the MCSD Strategic Plan: “We believe all students deserve opportunities to participate in programs and activities,” and “We believe in providing multiple paths for students to demonstrate success.”

Craig Middle School (CMS) FIRST Lego League (FLL) Results: Last month, CMS sent teams to the FLL Mountain Competition in Aspen. In a field of 23 teams from across the Western Slope, CMS teams placed 1st in Robotic Design, and 1st and 2nd place for the Innovation Project. Based on these results, CMS had one team qualify for the state competition which will held in Denver on Saturday, December 7th.

MCHS DECA District Competition: Earlier this week, MCHS hosted the district DECA competition. DECA is a “nationwide program that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management.” The following students qualified for the state DECA competition in Colorado Springs in February: Rylie Anderson- Business Services, Evan Allen and Cody Eckhoff -Hospitality Services, Josh Gumber- Human Resources Management, Lauren Hilley- Marketing Communications, Marlyn Arellano- Retail Services, Makala Herndon and Tauren Farquharson- Advertising Promotion (Written,) Sabastian Hershiser, Jacob Jeffocat, and Joey Gates- Business Plan (Written.)

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Bulldog Football Qualifies for State Playoffs for First Time in 5 Years: The 2019 football team saw marked improvement this season. The 4-0 start was the best since 2005. The team returned to the playoffs after being absent since 2015. The team also had six players earn post-season awards: 2A Western Slope League (WSL) Honorable Mention- Dagan White, Logan Hafey, Taran Teeter. 2A WSL 1st Team- Joe Campagna, Corey Scranton, and Daniel Cruz.

CMS Teacher and Students Recognized by Colorado Association of School Boards (CASB): A representative group of students from CMS and CMS teacher, Ms. Cristina Vanzo earned the CASB Student Achievement Program Award for 2019. The award recognizes “exceptional high school and middle school district programs that are innovative in nature or offer opportunities for each and every student to reach success.” Six students and Ms. Vanzo will showcase their projects on Friday, December 6th at the CASB Annual Convention in Colorado Springs. The group will also attend the Friday luncheon and receive their award.

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MCHS Bulldog Cross Country: The girls and boys cross country teams had another successful season. By earning 3rd place at the 3A region meeting, both teams qualified for the state meet. At the state meet, the girls placed 11th among 3A teams while the boys places 13th. With his 20th place finish, Wyatt Mortenson earned All-State Honorable mention.

Two Boys Golfers Qualify for State Competition: While the team was small, two of the Bulldog golfers, Dave Andujo and Tanner Etzler, qualified for the 3A State Championship at the Air Force Academy. This is the first time in many years for the Bulldogs to have representation at the state golf competition.

Our students continue to represent our schools and community at the highest levels across our state. I am so proud of each and every one of them and I am glad they Choose Moffat County School District!

Holiday Events
I invite all members of the community to attend the many holiday events still remaining on the December calendar:

• The CMS production of “Last Stop Til Christmas” is the 13th at 7pm in the CMS Auditorium.
• Ridgeview Elementary holiday concerts are Thursday, the 19th at 4:15P and 6:00P.
• Sandrock Elementary music programs include the 2nd grade concert next Tuesday evening the 10th and the Sandrockers Choir will have their “Down Home” Christmas Concert on December 14th at 2:30P. at the Alice Pleasant Park.
• The Sunset Elementary Music Club concert is Tuesday the 17th at 6:00P.
• The 2nd Annual FIRST Robotics breakfast fundraiser will be held on Saturday, January 4th at the Fairground Pavilion. We will start at 8:00A. A hot breakfast will be $5.00 with all proceeds going to the team. Come and help MOCO ROBO kick-off the 2020 build season.

I hope the entire Moffat County community has a wonderful holiday season!

David Ulrich is the superintendent of Moffat County School District.