The Dakota Valley School Board moved through a full agenda March 9, taking action on personnel changes, curriculum purchases and 2026–27 contracts while hearing updates on school safety, community events and the upcoming school board election deadline.

This year’s prom at Dakota Valley will be on Saturday, March 28, 2026 for Panther seniors and juniors, plus their dates. This year’s theme is “Masquerade Mystery”. The grand march is set to happen at 8 pm in the high school gym. It is a great opportunity for the general public to attend and take photos in addition to seeing attendees in their formalwear.

The Horizon Health Foundation is hosting an event April 18 to raise money to support pa‑tients living with chronic diseases like diabe‑tes, heart and dental disease. This is the finale of the Drive It Home ’26 Campaign Raffle.

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The Elk Point‑Jef‑ferson Board of Educa‑tion covered technology updates, staffing needs, building projects and student achievements during its March 9 regu‑lar meeting, while also approving resignations, volunteer coaching ap‑plications and Board of Equalization appoint‑ments.

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South Dakota’s state wrestling tournament is always a memorable experience. And this year was something special for Dan Swatek of Elk Point. In addition to watching his son, Luke, win 5th place in the 150 pound weight class, Swatek was inducted into the South Dakota Wrestling Hall of Fame on February 28, 2026.

School parking lots, at Dakota Valley, were full as many attended the Panther’s annual “Donuts with Grown-Ups” event for the elementary and upper elementary students. Preschool through 3rd grade had a morning of frosted baked goods on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. Students in 4th and 5th grade were able to invite their grown-ups to breakfast on Thursday, March 5.

Dakota Valley High School has hired longtime college coach Shane LaDage as its next head football coach, bringing more than 15 years of experience across multiple collegiate programs to the Panthers. LaDage spent the past four seasons as head coach at Briar Cliff University, where he focused on building a strong team culture and developing players on and off the field.

The North Sioux City Commission approved several development actions Monday, including multiple final plats in the Union Crossing project and a $3.7 million contract for reconstruction of Northshore Drive.