North Godwin News

Steve Minard, Principal

Kristi Bast, Secretary

Telephone (616) 252-2010 and Fax (616) 252-2011

Thank you to our Godwin Heights Public Schools Board of Education!

January is the national month of celebration for Board of Education members across the country. Our Godwin Heights Public Schools Board of Education works tirelessly behind the scenes to advocate for our students.

As you may know, these are VOLUNTEER positions. The primary function of the board of education is to oversee the education of students in the community. Educational programs conducted at the elementary, middle and high school levels are most familiar. Many local and intermediate school districts also operate preschool and adult education programs for large numbers of people.

Under Michigan law, a board of education has the ultimate responsibility for school district operations. Among other things, the Revised School Code gives each board of education general powers to:

• Educate students.
• Provide for the safety and welfare of students.
• Acquire and dispose of school property.
• Determine matters relating to school employees and contractors.
• Control the expenditure and receipt of school funds.
• Make joint agreements and cooperative arrangements.

Specific provisions in the Revised School Code also assign responsibilities to school boards in areas such as:

• Setting the curricula and courses taught in the schools.
• Employing a superintendent, other administrators, teachers and support personnel.
• Levying local taxes to run the schools and adopting a budget.
• Deciding whether or not to furnish transportation for pupils.
• Negotiating with employee unions regarding salaries and other conditions of employment.

Our Godwin Heights Public Schools Board of Education consists of the following current members:

Allen E. Johnston (President) -- elected in 2005, term expires 12/31/2026

Lee Ann Platschorre (Vice-President) -- appointed 2022, term expires 2024

Colleen Anderson (Secretary) -- appointed 2022, term expires 2024

Kenneth Hornecker (Treasurer) -- elected in 2010, term expires 12/31/2026

David Drake, (Trustee) -- elected 2013, term expires 12/31/2024

Kathryn Crow DeYoung (Trustee) -- elected 2022, term expires 2028

Adam Burley (Trustee) -- appointed December 2022, term expires 2024

Parents and Guardians,

There will be no school on Monday, January 15, 2023 in observance of Martin Luther King Day

and Staff Professional Development.

Mauro Arellano, Josue Beccerra-Quintana , and Samual Subba from Ms. Meyers' 5th grade classroom had a fun day at recess on Thursday, January 11, 2024!

Parents,

Morning drop off can be a period of stress for parents who are worried about impatient drivers and children trying to navigate chaotic and clogged school driveways, side streets, and the parking lot. Our school has a plan to manage traffic and minimize the need for students to walk in front of, or between cars. In the interest of safety for all students, we ask that our drop off protocols be followed by all families. When parents don’t follow these rules, it disrupts the traffic flow and may mean other parents have to drop off or pick up their child in the middle of the road. This situation may be even more dangerous if parents are distracted by phones or in a hurry. Children in elementary school are especially vulnerable to injury when navigating traffic due to their lack of judgment when crossing a street compared to older kids and adults.

ALL student drop-offs should happen in the car line, along the curb next to the building. We have staff in place during morning drop off to assist with this process. We understand that parents may be in a hurry, however, safety is most important. Do not double-park in order to drop off or pick up your child. Do not allow your child to exit through the door on the side of on-coming traffic. Do not perform U-turns in front of the school. Use cross walks to keep yourself and your child safe as you cross the street. Do not allow your student/s to walk in between buses or cars to reach the building.

Our earliest drop-off is 8:00 AM. Please ensure that your child/children remain with you in your car until 8:00 AM when our supervisory staff comes on duty.

It is important to be safe and courteous when driving or parking near the school and to obey all traffic and parking laws. Please be aware that our school's department of safety works closely with local law enforcement to ensure safety for our students during drop off and pick up each day. The Wyoming Police Department tickets frequently for moving and parking violations around the school.

Thank you for your cooperation!

Parents and Guardians-,

Please mark your calendars for the following early dismissals in January:

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

parent pick-up begins at 1:30 PM

buses depart when the final bell rings at 1:45 PM

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

parent pick-up begins at 1:30 PM

buses depart when the final bell rings at 1:45 PM

12 students from 3rd grade, 12 students from 4th grade, and 12 students from 5th grade were selected to participate this year in our ELL/MLL/ML after-school tutoring program. Our after-school ML tutoring program is designed for select ELL/MLL students who will benefit from the added support in learning in the English language. This program connects students who need to foster a greater focus on ELL studies with individuals like teachers, paraprofessionals, advanced students, or subject matter experts. Resident students receive bussing for this program.

Our ELL/MLL tutoring program starts on Tuesday, January 16, 2024 and will be held every Tuesday and Thursday thereafter from 3:15 PM - 4:15 PM. The last day of programming is on Thursday, March 21, 2024.

Parents and Guardians of 4th Grade Students,

Our annual 4th grade Ski Trips are coming up in February! These annual outings are the brain child of our phenomenal Physical Education teacher, Mr. Ed Wierenga. As a promoter of health and fitness, Mr. Wierenga loves giving students opportunities to participate in sports that are new and exciting for our inner-city youth. Skiing is an empowering sport that introduces students to outdoor recreation that extends beyond the schoolyard.

North Godwin Elementary has been fortunate to have the generosity of many supporters to make these ski trips possible and affordable. Ski passes, bus transportation, and winter weather gear can are costly. A special thank you to Cannonsburg Ski Area, Bill & Paul's Sporthaus, MiSnow for support of our trips this year. Also thank you to some anonymous "snow angels" that assist with winter weather gear for our participating students.

The cost for this trip is $15.00 per student. All students must turn in their ski trip permission slip, signed by a parent in order to attend. Please contact your child's teacher for submission deadlines.

Parents who wish to attend this trip must be on the Godwin Heights Public Schools approved volunteer list for the 2023-2024 school year, and they must also provide their own transportation. Parents who wish to ski must pay for a ski pass. Please see your child's 4th grade teacher if you plan to volunteer/attend. Trip dates are as follows:

Thursday, February 1, 2024

Miss DeVries, Mr. Jen, and Mrs. VanderMeulen

Thursday, February 15, 2024

Mrs. Anderson, Mrs. Richardson, and Mrs. Tidey

Parents and Guardians,

When your child is sick, it’s important to know when they should stay home from school. If they have a contagious virus or disease, keep them home. This will help them get better faster and keep their teachers and classmates from getting sick.

Talk to your child’s doctor or health care provider if you are unsure if they should stay home from school. As a general rule, your child should not go to school if they have:

• A fever over 100.4° Fahrenheit (F) or 38° Celsius (C) – Your child can return to school after they’ve been fever-free for 24 hours without antipyretics. Antipyretics are medicines that treat or prevent fever.
• Signs they are weak and tired. This is common with the flu.
• Diarrhea – Having loose poop (stool) more often that isn’t caused by a change in diet.
• Throwing up (vomiting) – More than 2 times in a 24-hour period.
• Coughing that disrupts normal activity.
• Wheezing or get short of breath.
• Pain from earache, headache, sore throat, or recent injury.
• Yellow or green drainage from the eye(s).
• A new rash – Not all rashes mean your child must stay home from school. Check with their doctor or health care provider.

If your child has a fever, they must stay home from school until they have been FEVER-FREE for 24 hours WITHOUT medication! Thank you!

Godwin Heights Public Schools has a proud partnership with Feeding America West Michigan. They provide mobile food truck pantries to our school district once a month.

One in every 9 people. At least 261,000 people in West Michigan and the Upper Peninsula are food insecure—meaning they don't have consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Food insecurity exists for a variety of reasons, and anyone can experience a bout of it. Feeding America West Michigan, believes hunger is unacceptable and that their community has the power to change lives—one meal at a time. That’s why they've assembled a network of partners that they work alongside on their mission to relieve hunger and increase food security in West Michigan and the Upper Peninsula.

Our Godwin Heights Feeding America truck distributions will now be every month on TUESDAYS! Same time, same place, 4:00 pm in front of the high school, just one day later each month. Here is the schedule for the rest of the year:

Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Wednesday, May 8, 2024

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

Wednesday, July 10, 2024

Wednesday, August 7, 2024

Wednesday, September 11, 2024

Wednesday, October 9, 2024

Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Wednesday, December 11, 2024

If you have your own bags, please bring them!

Parents and Guardians --

School community stakeholders (parents and community members) are welcomed to participate in the wellness policy process at Godwin Heights. The upcoming meetings are posted above. Please join us!

In an effort to provide quality education to English language learning students, the World-Class Instructional Design & Assessment (WIDA) consortium has developed 5 English Language Development (ELD) Standards to help students understand English in both a social and academic context. The annual WIDA test is designed to help measure the academic progress of English language learners. Students identified as English learners (ELs) are assessed annually to measure their English language proficiency and determine eligibility for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) services.

Testing at North Godwin begins on February 5, 2024 and will last for approximately 3-4 full weeks. Teachers will be notified regarding what days that their ELL/MLL students will be tested. It is important that our students get a good night's sleep the night before their tests so that they perform at their best level. Parents, thank you for supporting our students on this important test!

If you have further questions about WIDS testing, please call our school office at 616-252-2010, or email our ELL/MLL Teacher, Mrs. Mindy Lange at: lange@godwinschools.org

Parents and Guardians,

We have received some calls regarding Girls on the Run registration. The deadline for registration has passed. Registration is closed.

The first practice for girls who have registered is Tuesday, February 27, 2024 from 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM. Practices will be every Tuesday and Thursday from 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM, thereafter. There will be no practice during the weeks of March 25th (P/T Conferences) and April 1st (Spring Break). Our girls are training for their BIG 5K on Saturday, May 18, 2024!

Our Girls on the Run Head Coach, Miss Summers, will be in contact with the parents of our runners to share important information, as needed. If you have any questions, you may email Miss Summers at: lindsey.summers@godwinschools.org

https://4.files.edl.io/ba26/07/25/23/152431-cecb8d91-7012-4d74-91c7-33914a6243a4.pdf

January 8 -- FIRST DAY BACK TO SCHOOL AFTER CHRISTMAS BREAK

January 15 ~ No School

January 24 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

January 31 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

February 14 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

February 21 ~ 1/2 day of school -- Dismissal at 11:45 AM for MID-WINTER BREAK

February 22 ~ No School MID WINTER BREAK

February 23 ~ No School MID WINTER BREAK

March 6 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

March 20 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

March 27 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM -- P/T Conferences

March 28 ~ 1/2 day of school -- Dismissal at 11:45 AM -- P/T Conferences

March 29 ~ No School SPRING BREAK

April 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5 ~ No School SPRING BREAK

April 17 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

May 1 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

May 22 ~ Early Release @ 1:45 PM

May 24 ~ 1/2 day of school -- Dismissal at 11:45 AM MEMORIAL WEEKEND

May 27 ~ No School -- MEMORIAL DAY

May 31 ~ 1/2 DAY OF SCHOOL -- DISMISSAL AT 11:45 AM -- LAST DAY OF SCHOOL

https://ghathletics.com/

The data for students who are chronically absent is clear: Students who miss more than 10 percent of school time, just two days a month, are far less likely to be proficient than their peers who regularly attend school.

Across Kent ISD, approximately 13 percent of students are chronically absent. Like the national studies, the prevalence of chronic absenteeism varies widely from school building to building and district to district but, in virtually every instance, it is greater in buildings and communities serving the economically disadvantaged.

The effects of chronic absenteeism are profound. Kent ISD researcher Sunil Joy found these students are much less likely to become proficient in math or reading. Just one in four are likely to be proficient in math at eighth grade. Worse, low-income students who are chronically absent have just a 10 percent chance of being proficient. Even more startling is the effect on African-American students, with just 3 percent likely to be proficient if they are chronically absent.

While truancy is well known and understood, chronic absenteeism is less familiar, as most absences are excused by parents and, until recently, were rarely challenged by educators. That began to change approximately a decade ago through the work of education researcher Hedy Chang, who is now the executive director of Attendance Works, a national nonprofit seeking to help schools and communities combat chronic absenteeism.

Chang’s research led to the publication in 2008 of “Present, Engaged and Accounted For: The Critical Importance of Addressing Chronic Absence in the Early Grades.” This report revealed that one in 10 kindergarten and first-grade students nationwide miss nearly a month of school each year. In some cities, the rate is as high as one in four elementary students. Research across Kent ISD reveals just 40 percent of chronically absent children in kindergarten through second-grade are proficient on third-grade reading tests.

Our district is working hard to get at this problem. The value of the Strive for Less Than 5 campaign is its uniform message to all children, families and community partners. Attendance is important, and parents and their children should strive for fewer than five absences a year.

As a public school, we are held accountable to public school laws that govern attendance. The Kent Intermediate School District oversees all public schools in Kent County to be sure that all are operating under the laws and of the Michigan Department of Education.

The normal attendance expectations for any given child in the Kent County Intermediate School District are as follows:

> that a child miss not more than 10 days of Excused Absences for the entire school year,

> that a child have no Unexcused Absences for the entire school year

> that a child have not more than 5 Tardies combined with Leave Early check-outs per semester.

> that a child have no Suspensions for the entire school year.

Godwin Heights Public Schools are held by law to report tardies and absences in excess of the guidelines listed above to the Kent Intermediate School District Office of Truancy and School Attendance-State Law Enforcement Division.

The primary rationale for positive attendance is the strong relationship between student attendance and student achievement. Chronic student absences reduces even the best teacher's ability to provide learning opportunities. Students who attend school regularly have been shown to achieve at higher levels than students who do not have regular attendance. This relationship between attendance and achievement may appear early in a child's school career. A recent study looking at young children found that absenteeism in kindergarten was associated with negative first grade outcomes such as greater absenteeism in subsequent years and lower achievement in reading, math, and general knowledge.

Poor attendance has serious implications for later outcomes. High school dropouts have been found to exhibit a history of negative behaviors, including high levels of absenteeism throughout their childhood, at higher rates than high school graduates. These differences in absentee rates were observed as early as kindergarten, and students who eventually dropped out of high school missed significantly more days of school in elementary school than their peers who graduated from high school.

North Godwin Elementary is home to Godwin Heights Public Schools’ 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders!

Email: bast@godwinschools.org
Website: www.godwinschools.org
Location: 161 34th Street Southwest, Wyoming, MI, USA
Phone: 616-252-2010
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NorthGodwin/