BLA Weekly Newsletter
View the BLRA and BLPA Newsletters for this week.
View the BLRA and BLPA Newsletters for this week.
This courageous little girl’s greatest wish is to go to Harry Potter World — and Banning Lewis Preparatory Academy is “Banning Together” to make this happen for her!
“We’re doing Wish Week this week,” said Banning Lewis Prep junior Hector Gonzalez. “Basically, we just have a themed spirit week based on what Macklynn likes, our Wish Kid. She’s really sweet, so I feel like this whole week, it deserves to be all about her.”
“We are raising money for kids like Macklynn, kids in the community with critical illnesses, to help grant their wishes. And we do this by different spirit days, different events throughout the week, sponsorship by restaurants, giveback nights, things like that,” said senior Sarah Frabbiele.
Thanks to KKTV for featuring this story. Watch the clip on the kktv.com
The Banning Lewis Prep Academy defeated Bishop Machebeuf 69-38 on Thursday afternoon to advance to the Class 3A Final Four. The Stallions will play Vanguard in the Final Four on Friday.
By: Rob Namnoum
See the game highlights on krdo.com »
Thanks to FOX21 for highlighting Banning Lewis Academy as part of their coverage of this year’s Give! Campaign.
Rick Dahlman, our Director of Staff and Program Development, joined FOX21 Morning News Anchor Craig Coffey to discuss how we are looking to expand community engagement.
Watch the full segment and read the story on fox21news.com.
With football season underway, we thank Fox21 News for their coverage of our October 13 game against CSCS as their Game of the Week.
Thank you to Jessica Mendoza and Corey Rholdon from KKTV 11 News for their coverage of the Banning Lewis football team ahead of their game against Colorado Springs Christian on our new field.
Congratulations to Banning Lewis Academy for winning five Accely awards at the annual leadership summit held this July. The school was recognized for outstanding student attendance, teacher retention, and academic performance.
Recognizing the hard work and success of our schools and school leaders is an important tradition at ACCEL Schools. While schools across the country are still recovering from challenges related to the pandemic, we have seen a surge in success from schools serving historically underrecognized communities.
“We are mission driven to make quality education available to all children regardless of geographic location or life circumstances,” said ACCEL Schools CEO Ron Packard who presented the awards on July 17. “It is an honor to recognize the staff and leadership who are putting ACCEL’s ideals into action and creating positive change in the lives of the students and communities who need it most.”
Banning Lewis Academy received the following 2023 ACCELY awards:
Outstanding Student Attendance
Banning Lewis was one of 10 schools across the ACCEL network that achieved an Average Daily Attendance (ADA) of 92% or higher – no small feat in a year where schools nationwide reported high rates of pandemic-related absenteeism.
Outstanding Growth in Reading & Outstanding Growth in Math
Testing over 1,500 students, Banning Lewis received high marks for excellence in reading and math—making it one of the top scoring schools in Colorado and a shining star of academic achievement in the ACCEL Schools network.
Outstanding Teacher Retention
Despite an ongoing shortage of teachers nationwide, Banning was one of 12 schools recognized for creating a thriving workplace that retains talented and engaged teachers.
Gold School Award
The Gold School Award recognizes the highest achieving schools in the ACCEL network. This prestigious award went to 10 schools in 2023 that demonstrated strong academic outcomes as well as positive enrollment growth. Banning Lewis Academy’s strong test scores place it in the highest bracket of schools in the state of Colorado.
Congratulations to every member of our Banning Lewis community for contributing to our success in 2023. We are honored to accept these Accely awards on behalf of our entire team and look forward to another extraordinary school year.
On May 26, Banning Lewis Preparatory Academy (BLPA) celebrated its third graduating class during a 1:00pm commencement ceremony held at UC Health Stadium. Valedictorian Bransen Mihalko and Salutatorian Jaryn Even were honored during the ceremony. Superintendent Andy Franko and BLPA Board President Leigh Bolton offered their congratulations to the Class of 2023 who began their freshman year during the COVID pandemic.
Student speaker Adrianna Alesch and Student Body President Hayley Crist gave insights and encouragement to their fellow seniors as they look to college and career opportunities. The BLPA singers under the direction of David Webb performed “Viva la Vida” by Coldplay and the band and orchestra under Peter Jones’ direction set a celebratory tone with “Pomp and Circumstance”.
The future looks bright for BLPA’s 79 graduates, the majority of which have a long history at the school. Sixty-one seniors have been attending the school since at least 9th grade and 11 students started at Banning in kindergarten. Students accumulated over 150 hours of concurrent enrollment credits throughout their high school careers.
Principal Athena Rehorst offered her congratulations saying, “We’re very proud of our seniors for their hard work and dedication these past four years. We are confident that they have the academic ability, character, and life skills to be successful as they go on to college and career pursuits.”