Superintendent's Corner - October 2026
Posted October 1, 2026
South Hardin October Preview
The first full month of school is in the books! Homecoming was a great week for our students, staff, families, and communities. The parade was great, and it was nice to see so many people come out and support our students. We are already looking at ways we can improve Homecoming for next year and include even more of Tiger Nation in the festivities.
October brings another busy month as many of our extracurricular programs wrap up their regular seasons and prepare for postseason competition. We also take the first of our two official enrollment counts, with the second coming in January. Our first semester will come to an end on October 16, and conferences will follow on October 20 and 22 with early dismissals both days. Conferences are a great opportunity to come in, visit with your child's teachers, and see how the school year is going.
Both districts continue to make improvements to our facilities while developing five-year facility plans. We have many needs and many things we would like to accomplish, so our job is to prioritize those projects and make sure we are using our available funds in the best ways possible.
We are also hoping for good enrollment numbers on October 1. School funding is directly tied to the number of students we serve. We are not a private business that can simply raise our rates when costs increase. We serve every child who comes through our doors, and we have been encouraged by the number of new students and families we have welcomed to Tiger Nation this fall.
Another positive for both districts has been our investment in renewable energy. These projects are producing real savings that help protect our General Fund. The General Fund pays for things such as teacher salaries and benefits, textbooks, transportation, electricity, water, and many of the everyday costs of educating our students, so keeping this fund healthy is extremely important.
E-NP has benefited greatly from getting our wind turbine operational again. In the first five months, it has saved the district approximately $50,000, and some of those months certainly weren't the windiest! The H-R district has also benefited from its solar arrays, which have produced approximately $35,000 in savings so far. If we do experience declining enrollment, these renewable energy savings will become even more important in helping us keep our General Fund healthy.
I am also continuing to look for other ways to strengthen our districts financially while providing more opportunities for students. One area I am beginning to explore is an online learning option for students who may need an alternative way to learn. Currently, we lose some resident students to online programs operated by other Iowa school districts and to charter schools. Rather than simply accepting that, I believe we need to look at whether we can provide an option that allows some of those students to remain part of South Hardin.
Online learning certainly isn't for everyone, and we want our students in our buildings whenever possible. At the same time, remote work and flexible learning are becoming more common in the world our students will enter after graduation. If we can provide another quality option for students who need it while keeping them connected to their teachers, activities, friends, and Tiger Nation, I believe it is worth exploring. I will be presenting some ideas to our two boards at their upcoming joint meeting and listening to their direction on where we go from there.
In conclusion, this is a great time to be part of Tiger Nation! We will continue looking for ways to improve our schools, strengthen our finances, invest in our facilities, and provide more opportunities for our students.
We wish everyone a great October, and remember to check the school website for all of our upcoming events!
Keep Moving Forward!
Chris Fenster Superintendent South Hardin Schools