Happy Staff Appreciation Week
It's Staff Appreciation Week. Here at La Ballona, we believe that each and every staff member contributes to making our school the best it can be. For this reason, we do not separate teacher appreciation week from the appreciation weeks for instructional aides, school office team, custodians, and on and on. Instead, we encourage all of us to send gestures of appreciation to any and all staff that has impacted your child (ren) in a positive way.
Reflecting on this school year, I'm filled with gratitude for the entire La Ballona staff. This has been a demanding year due to the fall-out from the pandemic. Each and every day, our team shows up and tries their best to help our school and children. I feel proud to be part of such a dedicated team.
Later this week, be on the lookout for our annual Parent Survey (in English and Spanish). We're eager to gain your valuable feedback.
In this newsletter:
- This Week at La Ballona
- How Can I Support My Child at School
- Around the School
- Upcoming Parent Education and Family Events
- Information for 5th Grade Families
- Community Support Needed
- Green Tip of the Week
- Important Dates
Stay PAWSitive!
Dr. Becky Godbey
Principal
Student Handbook Highlight: Lost and Found
This week we will highlight our Lost & Found Policy
LOST AND FOUND Please put your child’s initials on the label of all sweaters, jackets, lunch boxes, etc. so that they can easily be returned when found. We often have an excessive number of unclaimed articles. It is unfortunate that we have no way of returning unmarked clothing. Articles found are kept on the blacktop or in the lobby. You or your children are welcome to check this anytime. At the end of each Trimester (December, March, and June) all remaining items are donated.
FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT:
Thank you for complying with our extended mask mandate, and for patiently supporting one another for this entire school year through all of our COVID-19 protocols. It has been a long nine months since CCUSD instituted the indoor - outdoor masking mandate.
Beginning Monday, May 2, indoor masking will be optional. We are very mindful of the impact that COVID-19 is still having on our community. Therefore, we highly recommend that students and staff continue to wear masks to further protect themselves and others from COVID-19.
While we did have a slight surge in cases upon returning from spring break, the case rate within CCUSD is currently on the decline. But please remember that COVID-19 is still present, particularly the highly transmissible variants that have been circulating since mid-March (Omicron Subvariants, BA.2.12 & BA.2.12.1).
We continue to live by and operate on the principle that the safer our schools are, the safer our homes are. Despite a high vaccination rate in our schools and in Culver City, there are immunocompromised people in our community whose health is at high risk if they contract COVID-19. And there are still children in our schools, and at home, who have not received the vaccine or are not yet eligible to be vaccinated. Furthermore, there are people who have never contracted COVID-19 before who are becoming infected, and people who have been infected are getting re-infected. COVID-19 and the threat to our collective health and safety is still very present.
We will continue weekly testing. We will continue to urge all eligible students and staff to get vaccinated if they aren’t already and to get boosted (and boosted again) as eligible. And we will continue to diligently monitor the caseload in our schools, in our community and in the county. Should the situation warrant a different course of action, we will inform the community immediately.
Respectfully,
Quoc Tran
Superintendent
CCEF RUBY GALA
A limited number of tickets are still available for Culver City Education Foundation's Ruby Gala, their 40th-anniversary fundraising event on Saturday, May 14 from 6-10pm at Playa Studios. Please join us in supporting all of our Culver City schools with an evening featuring delicious food and beverages from our diverse restaurant scene including Chicas Tacos, Allegra California Café, Hatchet Hall, George Petrelli Steak House, Mayura Indian Restaurant, Lonzo’s Restaurant, Hotcakes Bakes, Harajuku Taproom, and Nankai Shochu. Additional gala highlights include student performances, a DJ and dancing. All event proceeds benefit the dynamic arts & STEM programs across the district. Visit the CCEF website to RSVP.
We need Your Help!
La Ballona Needs your help! We have a few opportunities to join short-term committees for upcoming events at La Ballona. We can't do these activities without the help of several parents, and we truly appreciate your support!
1. International Family Night: We need people to help plan and organize the International Dinner & Entertainment Extravaganza on Friday June 3rd this year. Please contact Laura (fewmets@gmail.com) if you are interested in wrangling kids on the day of, decorating, setup and tear down, or just being involved.
2. 5th grade committee: 5th grade parents! We need help for the 5th grade activities at the end of the year. Please contact Laura (fewmets@gmail.com) if you can help set up and tear down, get donations for treat bags, contribute to the picnic potluck, or anything else.
3. Kinder committee: Kinder parents! Please email Liz (lizhagen@hotmail.com) if you are willing to help set-up and teardown, contribute cookies, snacks, or juice, or just want to get involved.
4. Staff appreciation: May 2-6 is Teacher and staff appreciation week! We need parents who can make Teacher and Staff appreciation week amazing for our beloved La Ballona Staff. Please email Sonni (sonnipaisley@gmail.com) if interested.
5. Auction committee: If you're a parent who can volunteer from home, consider joining the Auction Committee! We need you! Our October auction raises around $28000 every year, and we need people to help solicit donations, take pictures, upload descriptions and send thank you's at the end. Email Michele (michelej75@gmail.com) to join!
6. Cone Crew: Love being outdoors? Cone Crew needs a couple more parents to keep our pick ups and drop offs more smooth and orderly. It's just 30 minutes of your time once a week (or more if you can)! Volunteers must go through the official volunteer process (fingerprinting) to participate. Contact Nichole (heavenpennies@gmail.com) for more info.
7. Field Day: The last day of school, June 10th is Field Day! We need parents to man stations (like bean bag toss and hula hoops) for an exciting, active last day of school! Please email Laura (fewmets@gmail.com) to be put on the list....
La Ballona Elementary School
Culver City, CA 90232
Email: erikaarredondo@ccusd.org
Website: www.laballona.ccusd.org
Location: La Ballona Elementary School, Washington Boulevard, Culver City, CA, USA
Phone: 3108424334
Facebook: facebook.com/laballonaelementary
Twitter: @LaBallona