IB Community Fundraiser = Success
Yesterday’s IB Community Project Fundraising Event was a huge success! Ten groups of students put their projects into motion by participating in this school wide fundraising event. The 8th grade students advertised their projects to the student body by going to classes, putting up posters, and using social media. These groups of students raised a total of $776.75.
The organizations students fundraised for were:
- American Red Cross - Wildfire Relief Fund
- American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA)
- Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights
- The Day Nursery
- Greater Chicago Food Depository
- Heifer International
- Project Fierce Chicago
- Save a Fox
- Strides for Peace
- The Water Project
Rhea Richards, Amelia Strimaitis, and Laine Walker’s group raised the most money for their organization, Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights. This group tied with Ruhi Saldana and Taisei Pinc’s group, Project Fierce Chicago, for earning the most “thumbs up” tickets. “Thumbs up” tickets were given out by teachers and a select group of students for the groups knowledge about their cause and overall presentation set-up. Congratulations to all our students for their hard work and thank you to everyone that participated!
Adrienne Court - Profiled by D97
In the January edition of "We are D97," we profile Adrienne Court, who is a design teacher at Julian Middle School. In the video we created about her, Adrienne discusses her transition from teaching high school to teaching middle school, and the critical role that District 97's focus on technology played in her decision. She also talks about the implementation of Project Lead the Way at both middle schools, and how the hands-on program is contributing to the learning, growth and success of her students.
You can access the video about Adrienne by visiting https://youtu.be/mNmn8bmyjBw. You can also learn more about Adrienne and her role here in the district by visiting http://bit.ly/2G21WWl.
D97 Reporting Form: Bullying and Peer Conflict
We would like to announce that D97 has created an opportunity to report bullying or peer conflict online! This tool will support students and our efforts in creating a positive learning environment that is equitable, inclusive and focused on the whole child. We appreciate the feedback our Julian Town Hall Students provided during this process. Please click here for more information about the development of the Report Form. Here is a preview of the Report Form, that will be accessible on our D97 website. The form enables reporting of Bullying or Peer Conflict and that reporter can decide to do this anonymously as well as have a choice in how they would like the incident addressed. Completing the form will send notice to grade level assistant principals, the principal, and our school climate and culture coach. This notification will enable the school to respond swiftly and appropriately to the information shared within the Report Form.
Sporks on the Loose!
In an effort to reduce landfill waste from our lunch rooms, D97 has eliminated the spork combo packets (spork, straw, napkin in a plastic pouch) from the lunch program at all the schools. Plastic sporks are still being used, but now they are unbundled from the plastic pouch, which reduces plastic waste. In addition, D97 is no longer ordering plastic straws. There are still some straws available in inventory for special circumstances or as needed.
8th Grade Graduation Date – Saturday, June 1
In case you missed this communication, I am reaching out to let you know that this past summer, we submitted a request to Oak Park and River Forest High School (OPRFHS) to hold our eighth-grade graduation ceremonies at its building on Monday, June 3. The high school told us that the day we wanted was not available due to a scheduling conflict involving another organization. We then reached out to several other local venues to find out if they could host us on our preferred date. Unfortunately, none of them could accommodate the size of our group or meet the needs of our students and their families.
As a result, we have decided to hold this year’s graduation ceremony at OPRFHS on Saturday, June 1. The last day of school for 8th grade students will be Friday, May 31.
The ceremony for Brooks students will take place at 10 a.m., while the ceremony for Julian students will take place at 2 p.m. We will provide you with more detailed information about graduation toward the end of the school year. Until then, we want to apologize for any issues or inconvenience this may cause, and encourage you to contact us if you have any questions.
Illinois 5Essentials Survey - We Need Your Feedback!
We are administering the Illinois 5Essentials Survey again this year to certified staff and parents/guardians from all 10 of our schools, as well as students in grades four through eight. Please click here to learn how parents/guardians can participate in this important endeavor and click here to access the parent/guardian version of the survey. Please note that school-level reports will only be generated only if at least 20 percent of our parents/guardians complete the survey. Right now, we have a 14% completion rate. The survey can be accessed until Friday, Feb. 15, 2019.
Upcoming Events
Friday, February 15 – No School
Monday, February 18 – No School / President’s Day
Wednesday, February 27 – End of Trimester 2
Sincerely,
Dr. Todd Fitzgerald