Cougar Connect

Dear Kennedy Community,

I hope this message finds you well! As we move further into the school year, I want to take a moment to thank you for your continued support and partnership. Together, we are fostering a vibrant and dynamic learning environment for our students. Please take a look at the important updates and upcoming events below. I appreciate your ongoing commitment to our school community.

Here are updates for the week ahead:

A Message from Counselor Kathryn

We’ve, unfortunately, as a country, lived through another act of violence within a school setting. This should NOT be normalized. Please take care of yourself in a way that serves you best. Students and families are talking about it. Here are some ways you might approach the conversation.

Kennedy's Counseling Center is open to all students. Families and students can use this referral link.

Vote: School Site Council

We have two available seats for our School Site Council, and we have two parents who have nominated themselves for these positions. We are still required to hold an election. Please vote here. Voting will end this Friday, September 13.

Picture Day Tuesday, September 10

Picture Day will be on Tuesday, September 10. Students will take their photos during PE in the Kennedy Gymnasium. We use Jostens for our school photos. Jostens uses green screen technology, so students should not wear any green clothing or green accessories. Please see the flyer below for more details.

Chromebooks

Chromebooks were distributed to students last week. We are working to make sure any issues with the hardware are fixed. We will give students loaner Chromebooks while we await repairs.

Please remind your student to charge their Chromebook every night and bring their Chromebook to school every day. Please email it@rcsdk8.net for any computer issues.

Students are not responsible for damage done to the Chromebook prior to them receiving it. All issues have been noted. Students are responsible for any loss or damage to the Chromebooks from this point forward.

8th-Grade Updates

High School Information

All 8th-grade families were emailed information about high school on Sunday afternoon. High school shadowing dates open today for Woodside High School and September 15 for Menlo-Atherton and Sequoia. Please review the High School Shadow Programs & Informational Event Links 2024-2025 document for information.

Donations & Sweatshirts

The 8th-grade PTO team will email all 8th-grade families today with information about donations for students and information about 8th-grade sweatshirts. Our 8th-graders will be able to vote on their sweatshirts Thursday at lunch. They can find the table near room 535 at lunch to vote.

i-Ready Assessment

The i-Ready reading assessment begins this week. Students should bring fully charged laptops to school. They should take the assessment seriously and try their best. NOTE: Sequoia Union High School District will use the scores for the first 8th-grade reading diagnostic to determine students' English placement for 9th grade. We want students to always try their best, but we are strongly encouraging our 8th graders to take this initial assessment seriously.

Volleyball Practice

6th and 7th-grade girls volleyball practice: Monday and Wednesday, 3:30-5:00 in the Kennedy Gym

Thursday and Friday - coaches will notify students and families

8th-grade girls volleyball practice: Monday 5:00-7:00 p.m. in the Kennedy Gym

Tuesday and Friday - coaches will notify students and families

Share Feedback with the New School Meal Director: Sept 25 @ 8 p.m.

Come meet the new director of Child Nutrition Services, Richie Wilim, and hear about what changes he has already started and what’s to come. It is also a great place to share feedback with him about what your priorities are and what you've been hearing from your students. Do your students have strong opinions about the new pizza? Do you hope to see more scratch cooking? Have you noticed the online menu doesn't always match what's served at school? This is all great feedback for Richie. Meeting details are below, or you can add the meeting to your calendar by clicking this link: https://calendar.app.google/hSu5yUctHUgAtWAc7

This event is hosted by the Healthy School Meals Coalition. Sign up for our email list here.

Here is the meeting info:

Topic: Healthy School Meals Coalition Meeting
Time: Sep 25, 2024 08:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89134491032?pwd=TlgxMuxxgP6ROEApd1vO0aD4YfK8VA.1
Meeting ID: 891 3449 1032
Passcode: 519643

Missing Assignment Study Hall

Missing Assignment Study Hall will continue this Friday after school from 3:15 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. in the Kennedy Library. Students who are missing one or more assignments will need to stay after school to ensure the assignment is finished and submitted. We will run a Missing Assignment Report on Wednesday afternoon. Families will be notified by email and text message on Wednesday or Thursday afternoon. Please make sure your student has turned in all assignments.

PowerSchool & Student Passwords

Students were given PowerSchool Parent Portal information sheets last week. They were asked to give these forms to their parents or guardians. If you do not have access to PowerSchool, please use the information on the sheet to help you create an account. If you did not receive the sheet, please pick up a copy from our office.

If you already have an account and continue to get error messages, please follow the instructions on the handout linked below. One of the questions that will be displayed is whether the district is located in Canada. While RCSD is not in Canada, our PowerSchool server is located there. Please click yes.

Link to Instructions

If you continue to have issues accessing PowerSchool, please contact Maria Segundo in our Family Center. She can assist you: msegundo@rcsdk8.net 650-482-2409 ext. 3471

Please check student grades at least once per week.

If you have questions about a grade, you can email the teacher directly. Come to Back to School Night on Thursday, September 12, to get more information about each teacher's grading policies.

School Policy on Fast Food and Food Delivery

Food deliveries (DoorDash, UberEats, PostMates, etc.) are NOT allowed, as this is a major disruption to the office and could lead to safety issues. Families should refrain from dropping off fast food lunches for students, and we have reminded students not to use their phones to order food. Thank you for following this policy.

Principal's Coffee Slides

Thank you for joining me on Thursday for my first Principal's Coffee! Here is the information I shared: click here.

Back to School Night & High School Info Night

Mark your calendars: Back to School Night (BTSN) is this Thursday, September 12 at 5:30 p.m. We will begin in the gym at 5:30 p.m. Then, families will have the opportunity to visit classrooms. We will host an 8th-grade high school information session from 7:15 to 8:15 p.m. in the gym after Back to School Night.

The Kennedy office is open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Phone Contact: (650) 482-2409

Office Manager: Liz Avalos lmavalos@rcsdk8.net

Office Assistant (Attendance): Jessica Perez jpperez@rcsdk8.net

Office Assistant (Student Records, Student Health): Maritza Gutierrez mggutierrez@rcsdk8.net

Have a great week!

Chandra Leonardo

Principal