Kelly Newsletter

We truly hope that everyone had a safe and relaxing holiday break. We are excited for the coming of the new year and the sense of excitement and renewal brought with it. We continue to be so grateful for all the students, parents, and staff that make Kelly Elementary School a wonderful place. Our students and staff are eager to reconnect and will be revisiting routines and expectations as we move into the new year.

January will be a busy month at Kelly School. Our teachers will be reassessing all students

throughout the month. We use this assessment data to guide future instruction and provide

appropriate interventions as needed. We use our early dismissal time on Wednesdays to discuss what our students need to learn, how they are progressing, what interventions need to be put in place for those that need support, and what material can be used to enrich the curriculum for those students that have mastered grade level standards. Also in January, our third graders will be leading our monthly PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports) assembly which will be focused on the topic of respect. They plan to reteach our lunchroom expectations and routines. We can always use some reminders of the importance of using good manners & eating together respectfully while enjoying a meal. Our cooks and lunchroom monitors work incredibly hard and we truly appreciate them!

Thank You: We had over 100 families participate in our High Reliability Schools survey. When analyzing our results we came across areas of strength and growth. Our first priority at Kelly School is to ensure the safety of our students and it was reassuring to see that over 91% of our families view our school as safe and orderly. We will continue to focus on school safety on a daily basis. We had a team from Kelly attend a school safety and crisis preparedness workshop this fall and are currently implementing some new procedures. We also noted in the results that our families need to be provided with more information regarding the daily operations of our school. The questions that pertained to decision making, teacher collaboration time, and instructional practices had a large number of uncertain responses. We will use this monthly newsletter as a platform to share this information with you. Our administrative team and teachers work closely together to make informed, research-based decisions that directly impact the instruction of your child. We look forward to snapshots of our collaborative work in the future. I have included a sampling of the survey data we gathered below. Again, thank you for your participation.

Stay warm and enjoy the holidays!

Sincerely,

Kelli Tannahill

Thursday, January 2nd-School Resumes

Tuesday, January 14th-Winter Chorus Concert at 6pm-Use Door 6

Wednesday, January 15th-1:30 Dismissal

Monday, January 20th-No School

Tuesday, January 21st-Popolino's Pizza Fundraiser

Wednesday, January 22nd-Parent RED Event at 2:30-KB

Wednesday, January 29th-1:30 Dismissal

I wanted to give a huge THANK YOU for making our Kelly Angel Tree a success! With your help, we were able to deliver 135 gifts plus a gift card for every family. Thank you again for your generosity.

Sincerely,

Christina Ibrahim

Kelly Social Worker

Kelly School will have open gym on select Sundays for you and your grade school age children. Open gym is from 1:00pm-4:00pm. This is a great time to do something active with your child(ren). Participants must provide their own equipment and they must wear gym shoes. Parents are asked to stay with their child(ren) during this time. Please enter through Door 6.

If you have updated contact information since the start of the school year, please let the office know. This includes phone numbers, emails, place of employment and emergency contacts. With the inclement weather season upon is, it is important that we have this information for possible school closings or late starts.

Families of 5th-grade students,

The Grand Forks School District has established school boundary lines for the purpose of creating geographically accessible schools with class sizes that fall within school board guidelines. Each of our schools offers equitable learning opportunities and programs, committed staff, and pride-filled environments.

Families may request a different school for their child other than their neighborhood school by completing a Transfer Request Form. Approvals are contingent on “space available” for both regular and special education programs. Student academic, attendance, and behavior records are also reviewed. The majority of our schools are at enrollment capacity, and therefore, very few requests are approved.

Families contemplating a transfer request must be able to provide daily transportation. Students must be dropped off close to the start of the school day and be picked up at the end of the school day (or end of an activity) to ensure student safety.

If you are considering a transfer request for next year, the completed form is due to the requested middle school office by January 10, 2025. Forms are available at any middle school office. You will be notified by mail in February - March whether your request is approved or denied.

Thank you for understanding our goals of maintaining appropriate class sizes and positive environments in our schools.

Sincerely,

Catherine Gillach Associate Superintendent of Secondary Education

Please send your child with outerwear that will keep them comfortable outside. Unless the temperature dips below 0 degrees, students wait outside until 8:20am, go outside for recess, and often go outside for PE. All students' outerwear should be labeled with their name. Please make sure your child has a coat, snowpants, boots, a hat, and mittens.

• School postponement and cancellation alternatives will be as follows:
  • Hold school as normal.
  • Open school but delay sending buses.
  • Delay the start time in all schools by two (2) hours based on each school’s start time
    • Elementary School: Start time is 8:25, so school starts at 10:25. Doors will open at 10:15 a.m.
    • Middle School: Start time is 8:40, so school starts at 10:40. Doors will open at 10:30 a.m. No Zero Hour Classes.
    • High School: Start time is 8:00, so school starts at 10:00. Doors will open at 9:50 a.m.
    • Head Start: Start time is 8:00, so school starts at 10:00. Doors will open at 9:50 a.m.
    • When school starts late, there will be no morning Early Childhood Special Education classes. Afternoon Early Childhood Special Education classes will be held.
    • Breakfast will not be served at any sites.
    • No before-school activities/athletics.
    • Students will not be marked tardy due to a late start.
  • No school in Grand Forks Public Schools (GFPS) all-day
  • No school for the Grand Forks Air Force Base School District students all-day
    • Decisions about the weather-related delayed opening or closing of air base schools may not always be consistent with those made for in-town schools. On those days when severe weather makes travel conditions so hazardous as to threaten the safety of staff members, opening delays or the closing of base schools will be given special consideration.
  • Hold remote learning.
  • Once school is in session, it will not be terminated until the regular closing time except in very severe situations. However, school buses may leave early.

The decision to close or delay school will be made as early as possible. Announcements will be made on the GFPS webpage (www.gfschools.org), and GFPS social media (www.facebook.com/GrandForksPublicSchools; www.twitter.com/GFSchools). Announcements will also be made on local radio and TV stations.

GFPS will be using our automated calling system to call staff and families if school is delayed or canceled due to severe weather conditions. Typically, this automated call will occur to staff between 5:30 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., and families between 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.

Parents/Guardians may always exercise their right to keep students home or pick them up early during stormy conditions.

GFPS has two days (approx. 12 hours of instruction) built into the school calendar for storm-related delays/cancellations. If a full-day cancellation leads to a third storm day during this school year, GFPS will transition to remote learning. More information will be provided by GFPS and your student's school at that time.

If an emergency should develop during the time school is in session, students will be cared for in school until the storm has subsided.

• If buses are sent home early, all buses will be sent.
• We will communicate the departure time.
• The lead time needed for the procedure is approximately one (1) hour.
• If conditions are dangerous, bus drivers must use common sense in discharging students that must walk a considerable distance. If possible, use the radio and contact the base station. Have parents/guardians meet the bus or be on the lookout for their students. If the driver cannot contact parents/guardians and conditions are dangerous, do not let students off the bus but return to school and notify the principal. Schools that have bus students must have a written procedure for caring for students in the event they must be kept overnight at school.