Category Archives: Academics

HAWKS SHINE AT CSC SCHOLASTIC DAY!

On Wednesday, October 21, 25 Hay Springs High School students traveled to Chadron State College to compete in the 2026 Scholastic Day Contest!

Our Hawks challenged themselves in a BIG way; completing 42 assessments across 27 different academic contest areas, including business, science, mathematics, agriculture, history, art, communication, finance, music, and more.

Students competed alongside high school students from across Nebraska and surrounding states, and when the results were posted, six Hay Springs performances finished in the TOP 25% of their respective contests! 🙌

🏆 Business Management Decision Making
🥈 Braydon Heiting, 11th Grade — 2nd Place
⭐ Easton Mintken, 11th Grade — 6th Place

⚖️ Business Law
🥉 Gage Didier, 10th Grade — 3rd Place

🧬 General Biology
⭐ Easton Mintken, 11th Grade — 9th Place

🔬 Physical Science
⭐ Gage Didier, 10th Grade — 9th Place

📐 Plane Geometry
🥉 Grant Wellnitz, 11th Grade — 3rd Place

That means four different Hawks earned top-25% recognition, with three performances finishing in the TOP THREE!

We are incredibly proud of ALL 25 students who stepped outside the classroom, challenged themselves academically, and represented Hay Springs High School at Chadron State College.

Academic competition gives our students another opportunity to discover their strengths, test their knowledge, and see how they measure up alongside students from schools throughout the region.

Congratulations to Braydon, Easton, Gage, and Grant on their outstanding finishes; and congratulations to all 25 of our Hawks for representing Hay Springs so well!
Way to SOAR, Hawks!

The middle school MathCounts Team participated in the Western Nebraska Chapter Competition on Wednesday, February 11th in Scottsbluff. The team, consisting of Merritt Albrecht, Willow Frink, Barrett Heiting, Hudson Persons, Elly Reimann, and Milo Smith, completed three different rounds of competition and ended the day with the Most Improved School award.

On Monday, January 26, two Hay Springs students, Jacob Dorshorst and Grant Wellnitz, traveled to the University of Nebraska at Kearney to participate in Digital Discovery Day, an immersive event focused on networking, cybersecurity, and computer science programming. Throughout the day, students engaged in hands-on activities that challenged their problem-solving skills and expanded their understanding of technology-driven careers.

The final event of the day was the Computer Science Exam, where participants competed for a $1,000 scholarship to UNK. Entry into this competition required students to qualify back in December during UNK’s Computer Science Challenge, a rigorous series of five problem-solving tests. Both of our students placed in the top 20 statewide, earning their spot in the on-campus competition.

We are proud to share that Jacob Dorshorst earned 1st place, securing the $1,000 UNK scholarship and representing Hay Springs with excellence!

Hay Springs 8th graders will represent thousands of others across the country on January 29, 2026. Known as The Nation’s Report Card, NAEP is the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of what students in the United States know and can do in a variety of subjects. Learn more at https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/.