As we gear up for the first day of school next week on Tuesday, September 1st, we want to welcome you again to another fantastic year at Hatch! Teachers have been busy planning and preparing for our virtual classrooms and daily instruction in our Remote Learning 2.0! We hope you will celebrate the start of school with us. Be sure your scholar gets a good night’s sleep and has a healthy breakfast so they are ready to join their classroom zoom link at 8am and don’t forget to take a first day of school picture! Here are a few other reminders to help prepare at home.
On the first day we will have a “Hatch Helpline” if you are experiencing difficulties. You can call for help at 708-665-3306. We will also have a zoom link open for troubleshooting. You can find the link here: https://op97-org.zoom.us/j/88977359092?pwd=dTdScGNsSCtxTW42dWJrajBEdWt5UT09
Password - Help97
One of our many fun traditions at Hatch is wearing school spiritwear on Fridays. This can be actual Hatch gear or anything orange or tiger themed. We hope you will join in the fun next week!
In order to keep you informed and connected to our amazing community, I will be sending a short message each week along with updates from our PTO. You can be on the lookout for this weekly newsletter each Friday.
Please join us for the Hatch Curriculum Night on Wednesday, September 9th : K-2 will be held from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and 3-5th will be held from 6:30-7:30. During our Curriculum Night, you will have the opportunity to hear about the various learning experiences we have planned this year. There will be two sessions per grade level so that families with more than one child can attend each classroom presentation. K-2 Session A will run from 6:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Session B will run from 6:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. 3-5th Session A will run from 6:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Session B will run from 7:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. If you do not need to attend two classroom sessions, I highly recommend you visit our Library, Music, Art, PE, and Spanish teachers. We have an amazing fine arts team that would love to share their curriculum and programming information with you!
Attention new Hatch families! The first issue of Hatch Happenings - the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) email newsletter - will go out Sunday. It's a big one with lots of updates about Hatch After Hours, Hatch Patch and meetings on the horizon. If you're new to Hatch this year please sign up here to receive it. Also “follow” us on Facebook @hatchschool. Mark your calendars for our first Hatch PTO meeting on September 15.
As is the case each year, I receive a multitude of emails and phone calls from parents during the first week. I am doing my best to prioritize the various needs and return each message as quickly as possible. Please know your message is important to me, and I will continue to work through the weekend to address concerns as quickly as possible. Thank you in advance for your patience. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our teachers, office staff, or support staff. We are looking forward to another amazing year at Hatch!
Sarah Mendez
Hatch School Principal
1000 N Ridgeland Ave
Oak Park, IL 60302
(708) 524-3095
Next D97 Meal Distribution: Monday, Aug. 31
Meals will be available to all District 97 students during Trimester 1. Families who pick up meals will be charged based on their lunch status, just as they would if students were onsite. Each bag of food will contain five breakfasts and five lunches. Click here for the September 2020 menus.
In order to help the D97 Food Service Department determine daily meal counts and reduce waste from excess ordering, we are asking families to complete this short survey by Sept. 1 to indicate whether they plan to pick up meals during the month of September.
Next D97 Meal Distribution: Monday, Aug. 31, from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Locations: Longfellow Elementary School (for Julian and feeder schools), 715 S. Highland Ave., and Brooks Middle School (for Brooks and feeder schools), 325 S. Kenilworth Ave.
Click here for more information about food service during Trimester 1. If you have any questions, please reach out to the district's food service coordinator, Carla Ellis, at [email protected].
D97 Back-to-School Fact Sheet
Check out this fact sheet (or click the image below) for important D97 Back-to-School information!
Share Your Back-to-School Photos!
District 97 families—we want to see your back-to-school photos! You can share your photos by tweeting us (@OakPark97, use the hashtags #MyD97 and #OakPark97) or emailing them to [email protected]. If you email us photos or videos, we will make sure they comply with the board policies and laws that govern issues such as privacy, appropriate use, etc. before they get posted.
Pandemic EBT Benefit Deadline Extended to August 31
The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) launched the Pandemic EBT to provide nutritional resources to families who have lost access to free or reduced-price school meals due to school closures. Families will receive money on a new or existing EBT card to help fill the school meals gap. If your child receives free or reduced-price school meals through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), or your child attends a school that offers free school meals to all students, then you are eligible to receive P-EBT benefits. Families who have lost their job or wages may now be eligible. The deadline to apply for this benefit has been extended to Aug. 31, 2020. For more information about eligibility and how to apply, please visit https://bit.ly/2DJDEAd.
Free/Reduced Lunch Application
We know that a common experience for many families during this health crisis is the loss of jobs and income. This change in income may qualify your children for free or reduced-price meals. We encourage all families who currently qualify to take a few minutes to complete the National School Lunch application as soon as possible. If you have any questions, please email the district's food service coordinator, Carla Ellis, at [email protected].