By Dustin Shipman BSSD Superintendent

“The Ram’s Horn” is a regular column by Big Sky School District Superintendent Dustin Shipman, offering news and insight from the district.

Lone Peak High School celebrated homecoming week earlier this month. I was reminded of what this special week means for a young high school program as I witnessed traditions reinforced and created.

Homecoming is a time for alumni to return home to support sports, academics and community. Our first LPHS alumni are just exiting postsecondary education, so our customs are still in their fledgling stages; however, we have many traditions that should be highlighted.

Our homecoming week was a huge success, and gets bigger and more involved every year. Participants from the school, Big Sky businesses, community groups and our students participated in our parade – students and teachers worked hard all week to plan, build and present floats to the community. We held a dance attended by nearly all of our high school students, spirit days all week, and victories by our volleyball and football teams.

The Big Sky School District is also establishing a tradition of academic excellence. While many districts in Montana are struggling to graduate all their students from high school, we’re working hard to ensure that each of our kids is not only graduating, but also going on to live a life of full of choices.

The next time you come to the school, visit the display case near the gymnasium where a new placard recognizes the colleges and universities our graduates have attended – it’s quite an impressive list considering our 48 LPHS graduates.

Traditions come with time, energy, commitment, and most importantly support. As a first-year participant in the community, it’s evident to me that Big Sky has a commitment to the blossoming heritage of the school district. We are ripe to build on that momentum while continuing to create, refine, experiment and engage in building something special through pride and excellence.