Skip to main content

GCSS February 2026 Newsletter

Posted Date: 02/02/26 (02:49 PM)


eagle eye news

February 2026

A Message from the Principal

Happy February Gilpin Eagles,

Our second semester is off to a great start with positive momentum in student learning. We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with parents and students in their education here at GCSS.

2026-27 School Year Calendar
The Board of Education is working on finalizing the school year calendar for next year, 2026-27. It will be released soon.

Chromebooks
Students should bring their Chromebooks to school charged and ready to go every day.
  • If your student needs a new charger, you can purchase one on Amazon or at Walmart.

Choice Enrollment
Our PowerSchool parent portal is now accepting Choice Enrollment applications for the upcoming 2026-27 school year.

PowerSchool Reminder

PowerSchool is the best way to check your student’s grades, attendance, see teacher contact info and more. You can also set your communication preferences within PowerSchool, so if you want to receive a notification when your student is marked absent or a grade is put in the gradebook, you may do so. 

If you need assistance logging in to PowerSchool or setting up your preferences, please reach out to Catrina or Katura in the Secondary Office. The best way to use PowerSchool is to use a web browser to login. Some people have experienced tech issues with the PowerSchool app. It is recommended to delete the app and reinstall it if you are having issues or if the info in the app is not refreshing/updating. You also may need to toggle to the correct semester when looking at grades. It is always best to view grades by semester. and not the quarter. This will give you the most accurate information.

Please do not hesitate to reach out with questions, concerns, and/or feedback.
Warm regards,
Sara Reich

Upcoming Important Dates

February 6 - District MathCounts Competition
February 11 - Late Start, classes begin at 9am
February 13 - Friday School, 8-11am
February 25 - Late Start, classes begin at 9am
February 27 - Friday School, 8-11am
March 6 - Friday School, 8-11am
March 11 - Late Start, classes begin at 9am
March 11 - Secondary Music Concert 6:30pm
March 12 - End of 3rd Quarter
March 16-20 - Spring Break - No School


Reminder - GCSD will have school on Presidents' Day, February 16, 2026.
A table displays the GCSD Breakfast and Lunch Menus for February 2026, with daily meal options listed by week.

Teaching & Learning

Ms. Newman's Chemistry Students

Chemistry students use stoichiometry and good lab techniques to make exactly 2.00 grams of a compound.
Three students wearing safety goggles work together at a lab bench with scientific equipment.
Two students wearing safety goggles work at a science lab bench with beakers and equipment.
Students in a science lab wear safety goggles while conducting an experiment at a lab bench.
 
Click here to read this month's edition of the Blue Sky BOCES Gifted Newsletter.

Interact Club

Over Christmas break members of the Interact Club, along with parent volunteer Jennifer Ferrante, delivered all of the ornaments made by students as well as the supplies collected from the supply drive. In order to really serve this season, the team also volunteered their time at the Denver Rescue Mission in hopes of making someone's day just a little brighter! Interact members, including Gretchen Osteboe, JJ Church, Makaela Johnson, and Keira Ferrante, would like to encourage you to donate to the Denver Rescue Mission! The Interact Club is led by Heather Fuller.
Four young people wearing beanies stand in front of the Denver Rescue Mission Ministry Outreach Center.
Three people are sorting and packing boxes in a warehouse setting.
A group of five people stand together in a warehouse filled with shelves of boxed goods.

Students of the Month

A blue and gold 'Student of the Month' award featuring an eagle and graduation cap.

Congratulations to our January Students of the Month!

The January focus for the Student of the Month was JUSTICE. These students have both gone above and beyond to show this trait here at Gilpin County Secondary School. Great job, Eagles!

In February, our focus will be EMPATHY.
A smiling young person holds a "Student of the Month" certificate, standing in front of a wall mural of an eagle flying over mountains.

MS Student of the Month: Canyon Carlson

Canyon cares about students and how they are treated. Canyon is not afraid to speak up when he sees someone being bullied or treated poorly. He also works to make sure that students are treated fairly. Canyon is a "Circle Keeper." His training as a cCircle Keeper appears to have brought out a stronger commitment to Justice. 
A smiling young woman holds a "Student of the Month" certificate, awarded to Keira Ferrante.

HS Student of the Month: Keira Ferrante

In Mr. Schuessler's English class students have been reading a book that deals heavily with the concepts of justice, revenge, and power. Keira has been a consistent leader in class conversations about what "justice" actually means, and her written work during this unit has also been top notch. Even when Keira has to miss class for sports, she has responsibly communicated about it and has completed her missed assignments for those days in a timely fashion.
January Student of the Month Focus on the definition and quotes of 'justice' by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Athletics

A blue and gold emblem for 'Student Athlete of the Month' featuring sports equipment and an eagle.

Congratulations to our January Student Athletes of the Month

Student Athletes are an important part of our school community. They lead our school both on and off the field/court.
A young girl smiles while holding a certificate for "January 2026 Athlete of the Month" awarded to Remi Scott.

MS Student Athlete of the Month: Remi Scott - Basketball

Remi is new to our program this year and has shown incredible dedication to the team and team culture. After sitting out of practice for weeks due to injury, Remi has worked extremely hard in practice to close any gaps between her and her teammates. Remi is a very versatile player, and is able to play any position for us in any given game. A big focus for our team this month has been tag up defense and finishing each defensive possession with a box out. All of this is brand new to Remi this year, but she is able to play great on ball defense by moving her feet and keeping her hands active. When her player goes to shoot, she goes straight up and keeps her wrists back. Remi is a student of the game. Although she doesn't make the box out every time, it is obvious that she is thinking about the process, and putting a lot of effort into implementing it into her game.
A smiling young woman holds a certificate for "January 2026 Athlete of the Month" awarded to Amelia Bushey.

HS Student Athlete of the Month: Amelia Bushey - Basketball

Our practice focuses for the month of January are Intensity, Execution, and Conditioning. Amelia came to every optional open gym over break and has not missed a single practice for the season. She shows up to practice with intensity and a lot of questions that make her and her teammates better. Amelia has stayed mentally tough, kept herself out of foul trouble, and stayed in a green light. Amelia has worked hard to get herself in shape to play almost every minute of every game in January with a full court press for the majority of the game. She has stepped up for us on numerous occasions. Since coming back from break in January, Amelia has been our most consistent scorer. She has averaged 13.2 points per game. In our home opener vs Union Colony, Amelia showed her ability to execute offensively and defensively. That game she had her first double double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. She also had 5 steals, 7 deflections, and 3 assists. Three games later she scored her career high of 17 points vs St. Mary's with 12 of those points coming in the first half.
 

Booster Club

booster club
The Booster Club is always looking for volunteers. Learn more by visiting their website here.

Community Partners

Poster for a bouldering event presented by Eagles Teen Program, featuring a climber on a colorful wall.
Poster for Eagles Teen Program Field Trip to Meow Wolf on Saturday, February 14, 10 AM - 4 PM.
February 2026 calendar for Gilpin County Eagles with various activities listed by day.
 
Flyer for 'Better Together' event for middle and high schoolers at Go Paint!, featuring colorful paint splatters.
 

Free Winter Clothing

If you are in need of winter gear for kiddos from sized infant to teen - jackets, gloves, hats, snow pants, regular pants, and/or long sleeve shirts, please reach out to Codi Ramsey in the Elementary Office at cramsey@gilpin.k12.co.us
 

Thank you to the IS Starbucks!

Thank you to the Idaho Springs Starbucks for providing coffee for teachers this week during our staff professional development. We are so grateful they consistently donate coffee to our school for special events and for teachers/staff.

Secondary Office Info

call / email
Secondary Office Phone Number: (303) 582-3444, ext. 5054

Catrina Amaya - AM Administrative Assistant, 8a-12p, camaya@gilpin.k12.co.us 
Katura Atherton - PM Administrative Assistant and Athletic Trainer, 12p-4p, katherton@gilpin.k12.co.us 

Attendance
For attendance reporting (excusing an absence, late arrival or leaving school early) please reach out to Catrina and/or Katura in the Secondary Office.

Absences should be excused as soon as possible, but no later than 24 hours from the day of the absence.

Leaving Early / Arriving Late
Parents/Guardians must call to excuse a student who is leaving during the school day for an excused appointment or illness. Students must sign in/out in the Secondary Office whenever leaving early or arriving late.