09/29/2026
How pumped are you for our kids?!? How ābout our school? And after homecoming week, I hope youāre as PROUD to be part of it as I am.
There was a ton of energy felt, participation of all ages. We saw our students, staff, families, and community show up for AHS, didnāt we?
Well, hope Iām not asking too much of usā¦but, Iām ready for even more of that! And something tells me Iām not alone.
Before homecoming, 169 students answered our student pulse survey. About 8 out of 10 respondents said theyāre proud to be an AHS student.
Not bad. And totally worth celebrating.
Hereās another result I want every family to see: 92% said they have an adult at AHS who would help them with a problem.
As a principalāand as a parentāthat one REALLY makes me happy.
When your teenager needs help, you want them to know who they can turn to.
Students described teachers who are helpful, kind, understanding, and approachable. To our staff: those relationships take effort, patience, and time. Your students recognize it. So thank you!
82% said they feel like they belong. They wrote about connections through classes, athletics, music, FFA, and other activities. About finding something they enjoy and people they connect with.
About 9 out of 10 understand what they need to do to succeed. Some students also described better school energy and fewer disruptions.
We canāt deny. We have good things happening here. Our students deserve to hear us talk positively about them and our district.
They also deserve to know we read the difficult feedback.
77% agreed that most adults treat students respectfully. Others were unsure or disagreed. Students asked for more engaging, hands-on learning, consistent fairness, and more opportunities to participate.
Freshmen reported the strongest pride. Sophomores were most likely to speak positively about AHS. Juniors reported the lowest respect rating. Seniors felt strongly supported by individual adults, but reported less school pride.
Weāre responsible for understanding those differences and following through. This data helps us know what to learn more about and try to strengthen.
On speaking positively about AHS, 71% gave a rating of 7 or higher out of 10. Our Net Promoter Score was ā4: slightly more respondents selected 0ā6 than 9ā10. Thatās an advocacy measure, not a satisfaction percentage, and it gives us another baseline to improve.
I want our pride result to reach at least 85% by spring. Our goal is that WE will earn it.
Our Portrait of a Trojan calls us to Communicate Effectively, Think Critically, and Act with Integrity. Students gave us honest answers. We owe them an honest response and visible follow-through.
And you might have heard me say this quite a bitā¦we WILL become the best high school in southwest Iowa. Our students get these four years once. I wonāt be casual about what we do with them.
And this community has so much to contributeāand already does. Staff, families, coaches, sponsors, neighbors: take some credit for the support and connection our students described. You help make those experiences possible.
Who at AHS has given your family a reason to be proud? If youāre willing, feel free to post their name and that story in the comments. Share this so they get to see it.
After a week of celebrating our school, letās make sure the people behind it hear what they mean to us.
āDr. Brauer
