July 2025

A new school year is always exciting.

Seeing favorite teachers and friends, making the most of new classes and opportunities.

As we embrace that energy throughout Omaha Public Schools, we also know the value of one, continuous journey from one school year to the next.



Recognizing growth while maintaining our focus on improvement.

We spent a lot of time with that concept this summer.

From our Principals Leading and Learning Institute in June, to training on the Science of Reading and deep work focused on our Moonshot.

Embracing space to reflect, while maintaining momentum to keep doing better for every one of our 52,000 students.

This edition of Inside OPS shows that connection from May to August: Summer opportunities for students and ideas to strengthen connections from home to school.

In a few short weeks, our 9,000 staff will get to welcome students for the start of our 2025-26 school year.

I am incredibly excited by what we are accomplishing together.

Matthew Ray

Superintendent

Omaha Public Schools

Omaha Public Schools Shares Back-to-School Tools for Families

Soon, the sounds of pencils sharpening, papers rustling and students chattering will fill Omaha Public Schools classrooms. As the first day of school quickly approaches, it’s important that families and students feel prepared.

“I’m so excited to welcome all of the incoming students,” said JoAnna Hale, Beveridge Middle principal. “I want them to be proud of their school and glad to be going here.”

Omaha Public Schools offers many resources to welcome families. Our Student Enrollment Fair is a good starting point for those new to our district or anyone who moved to a new address during the summer break. Schools districtwide also host back-to-school events to connect with families and offer guidance before the first day each year.

“We need to meet families where they are to provide multiple opportunities for them to receive information,” said Kama Konda-Varilek, Ed.D., Omaha Public Schools family engagement coordinator. “We are going to do everything we can to make it a great 2025-26 school year.”

Returning families can now complete back-to-school paperwork online through Campus Parent. The portal helps families update contact information, including email and home addresses, phone numbers and emergency contacts.

“We want to make sure we’re staying in contact with families,” said Konda-Varilek. “I always encourage people to check our district website for the latest news and resources and to check their email regularly for district-related communications.”

As families begin to settle back into school routines, one important habit to prioritize from day one is attendance.

“Attendance is how we ensure our students are learning,” said Hale. “I think the greatest toolbox we have is the families, administration and the school working together.”

During the 2024–25 school year, Hale and her attendance team introduced several initiatives to boost student attendance and increase engagement at Beveridge Middle. These included incentives, special events and the “Pawsome Attendance Program,” which rewarded students with access to the school store.

“All of these were intended as attendance and behavior incentives and were huge successes,” said Hale. “For the students, it was fantastic-they all loved it.”

In June, our Board of Education approved a new attendance policy outlining ongoing communication through attendance calls, texts and emails. Omaha Public Schools encourages families to contact their school as soon as they know their child will be absent and to reach out for help with any attendance barriers.



Our school year begins with a staggered start on Aug. 13. See the full schedule, school hours, menus and more on our website at ops.org/backtoschool.

Mini Robots, Major Fun

North High Hosts Summer STEM Camp

After spending four days coding, programming and building her robot, Stephanie Adams was ready to put her creation to the test. She would be competing against her twin sister, Veronica, in a mini tournament held on the final day of North High’s STEM Camp.

“The game was really fun and very difficult,” said Stephanie, Dundee Elementary fifth grader. “Veronica named her robot ‘Croissant,’ and I didn’t want to copy hers exactly, so I named mine ‘Stephen Croissant.’”

North High hosted the free camp in June, offering students a hands-on opportunity to explore and learn about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM)—and, most importantly, robots.

“We’re on the robotics team at our school, and we thought it would be fun to come this year,” said Veronica. “This will help us for next year and give us a head start with our team.”

The two-week program is designed for students in grades four through eight, with middle schoolers participating during the first week and elementary students attending the second. North High has hosted the camp for more than a decade.

“It provides our students an opportunity not only to learn something new but also to apply some of the stuff they've done during the school year,” said Jeremy Weimer, North High robotics coordinator. “They’re getting to see these things in action.”

The camp also gives students like Ash Quest, North High junior, an opportunity to share his love of robotics and give younger students a glimpse of life on a high school team. He participated as a camp staffer and led the building sessions.

“I really like teaching people about robotics and teaching kids about teamwork skills when working with other people,” said Quest. “It’s important for Omaha Public Schools to host camps like this during the summer because it helps us connect with the community.”

Stephanie says her favorite part of robotics is being a team player.

“I like it because it teaches you to communicate and solve problems with other people,” she said.

Stephanie and Veronica left camp with new knowledge, a free T-shirt and new friends.

“All of our friends from last year were going to be here too, and we decided it would be fun to do robotics with them again,” said Stephanie.

This camp is one of many summer learning opportunities for Omaha Public Schools students. Visit our YouTube page to see all the summer fun around our district!

Important Information about 2025-26 School Meals

Earlier this summer, Omaha Public Schools shared that some schools in our District no longer qualify for the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). The CEP provided meals at no cost to families since 2022-23 school year.

Starting in the 2025-26 school year, the impacted schools will return to the traditional National School Lunch Program. That means families will be charged for school lunch unless they qualify for free or reduced meal status.

• To qualify for free or reduced-price meals, families must complete a Free and Reduced Meal Application and receive approval based on the federal guidelines.
• Paper copies of the application are now available in schools and at the Omaha Public Schools Teacher Administrative Center.
• This applies to lunch only. Omaha Public Schools will continue serving breakfast at no charge for all students.



Schools that requalified for CEP will continue to receive lunch at no charge, regardless of income. Families at the CEP-qualified schools may fill out an Educational Benefits Form, which allows eligible families to access additional benefits in our schools and community. The Educational Benefits Form can be filled out online or at your child's school.

Please visit our website for the list of impacted schools. Contact Nutrition Services at (531) 299-0230 with any questions. 

Additional Portables Removed from Omaha Public Schools Campuses

Thanks to the 2018 Bond Program, Omaha Public Schools continued removing portable classrooms from 14 campuses this summer.

The portables were used as classrooms in some locations and are no longer needed due to Bond Program renovations.

For a comprehensive overview of bond projects, visit our website.

Safe2Help Nebraska Hotline

Our district and community have resources to support students and staff, including the Safe2Help Nebraska Hotline.

Safe2Help Nebraska is a confidential and anonymous hotline for students, families, staff or community members to report concerns.

If you or someone you know needs support or would like to report a safety concern, Safe2Help Nebraska Hotline is available 24/7 at (531) 299-SAFE. The app is installed on every Omaha Public Schools iPad, providing easy and immediate access.

Superintendent Matthew Ray extends

congratulations to...

… to the Omaha Public Schools Class of 2025 summer graduates.

... to Meribeth Jackson, Ed.D., for being selected as the inaugural recipient of the Debora Basler Wisneski Inclusive Innovation in Education Award from the Education Rights Counsel.

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