PTO Mixer – FRIDAY!!
We are hopeful of rivaling the turnout of the prior two years for this successful traditional event!! The PTO mixer is a wonderful opportunity to connect with other adult members of the school community across all boundaries and have a great time together in a social setting. This year, due to the generous donation of the Marriott Hotel, we will be in the wonderful Champions for our gathering this year!! Come join the Fun!
Friday, September 3, 7:00p to 12:00a
Student Handbooks
We’ve developed comprehensive handbooks this year for both our Elementary and Upper School Divisions. The first chapter of each handbook is common content that is the same for both divisions, followed by a chapter for the specific division. You can find these two documents on our website and via these links:
Please refer to these documents for important information regarding the implementation of policy through systems and procedures. It is an important first reference when any question or concern emerges.
General Data Protection
This week we continue to remind parents who have not yet completed their update of health information and stipulation to key provisions of data protection. You only need to login to PowerSchool and we would encourage ALL parents to regularly login to PowerSchool to check attendance, review health room information, and to update contact information to assure we can reach you in the event of an emergency. At the beginning of each year, we have a one time form that all parents must complete in order to grant us permission that is necessary to provide educational services to your child. If you have not completed this initial process yet, expect that we will call you in the near future to make sure we get this important information. We consider it a condition of enrollment that parents are able to access PowerSchool and that you check this portal regularly as part of our partnership.
Parent Survey Sharing
I’ll be looking for opportunities to share information from our Student/Parent Satisfaction survey that we completed in June. With over 836 responses for the full school section of the questionnaire, here are some important highlights of the agreement on the statements in the survey:
- “When I have questions or concerns, someone in the school responds in a prompt and helpful fashion.” 46% Strongly Agreed and 48% Agreed for a total agreement of 94%.
- “My child is engaged and interested in learning at school.” 53% Strongly Agreed and 43% Agreed for a total agreement of 96%.
- “My child’s classes have helped her/him learn to collect, organize, analyze, and communicate information.” 37% Strongly Agreed and 57% Agreed for a total agreement of 94%.
- “My child has access to various up-to-date technology-based tools and resources.” 40% Strongly Agreed and 56% Agreed for a total agreement of 96%.
- “My child is developing digital citizenship to use technology in a safe and responsible manner.” 33% Strongly Agreed and 60% Agreed for a total agreement of 93%.
- “School facilities meet my child’s needs.” 54% Strongly Agreed and 43% Agreed for a total agreement of 97%!
In terms of the full school portions of the survey, the lowest scores were still all above 80% agreement, but the lower results suggested that work in the following areas was warranted:
- Assuring sufficient challenge for students in all their classes. (83%)
- Refine our reporting of student progress (already planned this year). (86%)
- Improving our ability to give timely and effective feedback (part of our PYP/MYP implementation). (89%)
As we continue analysis of the data from this survey along with your comments and the divisional statements, we will look for more opportunities to turn your feedback into action plans and enhancements in many aspects of the school. We believe improvement is an ongoing, living process and your partnership in this regard is essential part of maintaining our cutting edge level of performance in service to your children and their educational goals and aspirations.