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The Lion's Roar
January 2024
A Message from Mr. Mitchell
Welcome back! I hope everyone had an enjoyable winter break! As we move into the second half of the 2023-2024 school year, I want to ask our families to be mindful of re-establishing the necessary routines to ensure your child(ren) are in attendance and on-time each morning to get each school day off to a great start!
January 22nd through January 25th GPISD celebrates National School Choice Week. This week raises awareness about effective K-12 education options for children. We have several activities planned for the students as well as a dress-up spirit week.
Parents are invited to eat lunch with their student every Monday. All visitors must follow the clear bag policy. Also, all visitors will be required to check-in with proper identification in the front office and obtain a visitors badge. The lunch times can be found below.
Spring tutorials will begin Tuesday, January 16th. Permission slips will go home the first week in January. Keep in mind that we have intervention time built in the school day to accommodate all our scholars. Not all students will be invited to stay after school for tutorials. Please reach out to your child's teacher with any academic concerns you may have.
Be sure to read the newsletter in its entirety as we have some very important information to share with you.
With warm regards,
Mr. Lemond Mitchell
Principal, Shirley J. Williamson Elementary
๐ Bell Schedule ๐
PK- 5th Grade
7:35 AM -3:15 PM
Tardy Bell
7:35 AM
*Parents must walk the student in.
Dismissal
3:15 PM
Lost & Found
Just another reminder to check lost and found for all of those missing items. We have everything from coats, gloves, lunch kits, water bottles and hoodies. If you are missing an item, have your child check during their lunch time.
All items will be donated at the end of January.
๐ Help us Celebrate our Educators ๐
HAABSE Educator of the Year, Ms. Brown
ESL Teacher of the Year,
Ms. Doucet
Bilingual Teacher of the Year,
Mrs. Briones-Ramirez
๐ Campus Calendar ๐
โTesting Dates- Mark your Calendar โ
Parents & Guardians,
It is very important for students to be present for the following District/State Assessments. Please do not schedule doctor appointments and refrain from early checkout on the following dates:
Reporting an Absence
Parents are highly encouraged to email parents or doctor's note about your child's absence to AttendanceWILL@galenaparkisd.com
Be sure to include the following:
1. Student name
2. Date(s) of absences
3. Specific reason for the absence
4. Parent/guardian Signature
5. Parent/guardian phone number
6. Date note was written
Additionally, notes should be submitted no later than 3 school days after the student's absence. Only the first five parent notes will excuse the absence, according to the GPISD Student Handbook (p. 3). If you have any questions, please contact our Data Specialist, Ms. Sapp at 832-386-4004.
Transportation
Parents will not be allowed to walk up and pick up a student from the door at dismissal. Early pick up ends at 2:30 PM daily. We ask for patience as this is the first month of school and students will be learning new car tag numbers.
Bus Riders
Please check your bus route number on the Galena Park ISD transportation site. School personnel does not assign a student a bus route. Please communicate with the office by 2:30 pm if the students need a transportation change.
Walkers
Walking is reserved for students who reside in the subdivision surrounding the campus. Pre-K & Kinder students will only be released if with a sibling or if parent meets student. Thank you for helping us to keep students safe at dismissal.
Car Riders
Morning Drop Off-
- We ask that students be dropped off along the circle ramp to ensure the safety of all students.
Afternoon Pick Up-
- All car riders need a tag with a school assigned number for dismissal. An ID check is required if you do not have car tag at the time of pick up. Siblings will have the same car tag number if living in the same home. Practice car tag numbers with students. This will speed up the process.
Students should not be dropped off or picked up in the staff parking lot. This is for your safety. All parents must remain in their car and utilized the designated areas to safely drop- off and pick-up students. Thank you in advance for complying with our procedures. These procedures are in place to keep our students safe. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the office.
Theme Days
Fridays are Spirit Days or College Day at SJW and students are encouraged to wear a spirit shirt or a college/university shirt.
Stay tuned for other special days when students can dress up or celebrate!
Student Grades
Student Birthdays at SJW
We know celebrating a birthday is very special, and we want to welcome you to send store bought cupcakes or goodie bags with your child or drop them off to the front office staff before 2:00 pm. The teacher will pass out the treats after 2 pm to the students in the class. Please get with the teacher about the number of students in the class.