Highland Happenings

Good Afternoon,

I hope you had a positive week, were able to enjoy the beautiful weather and enjoyed celebrating Mother's Day last weekend. It was another great week here at Highland as four of our grade levels went on field trips, we held the final PTA meeting of the year, hosted our annual 1st and 2nd grade music performance, and cap off the week tonight with this year's 6th grade social. MAP testing also wrapped up this week for all of our Huskies. Next week is the final week of the school year and we hope you can all join us as we dedicate the Wallace Learning Grove on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. In addition there are lots, of the fun events scheduled for next week including field day, our annual awards ceremony, 6th Grade Promotion, and our clap out! We are very excited to continue to congratulate and celebrate Mrs. Pat Doll as she retires at the end of this school year after 25 years of service at Highland. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to the Highland main office at 630-719-5835. Take care and have a great weekend!

My Best,

Zac Craft

Principal, Highland School

• 05/18/25: PTA End of the Year Party
• 05/20/25: 6th Grade Luncheon
• 05/21/25: May All-School Meeting
• 05/21/25: Downers Grove North Senior Clap-Out
• 05/22/25: Field Day
• 05/23/25: Highland Awards Ceremony
• 05/23/25: 6th Grade Promotion
• 05/23/25: End of the Year Clap Out!

• 05/26/25: Memorial Day
• 05/26/25: Summer Officially Begins!

We hope that you can join us on Wednesday, May 21st at 3:30 at the dedication of Highland's new outdoor learning space in honor of our beloved Mrs. Wallace, The Wallace Learning Grove. Please gather in the drop-off circle in front of Highland at 3:30 p.m. that afternoon. All members of our Highland community are welcomed to attend.

llnesses such as flu, RSV and COVID-19 are spreading in the community. District 58's Health Services website has great resources on preventing these illnesses, and steps to take if you get sick.

In addition, winter break is a great time to clean your child's coats, winterwear, book bag, lunch box and anything else your child takes to school to help fight the spread of germs!

Message from the Treasurer

Get those receipts in by June 1st. Please and thank you!

Library FUNdraiser

Donate and be a part of the Highland Elementary School's Library forever! In the new library at Highland, there will be a portion of a wall dedicated to those who have helped make it happen. Each book will cost $150 and will vary in coloration, size, font, etc to mimic books. Visit givebacks if you'd like to purchase: https://highland58pta.givebacks.com/store/items/1174508

Here are some ideas for you:

• Family Name

• In Loving Memory of Someone

• Your 6th grader who will be graduating this year

• Your local business (we are unable to display logos however, business names are acceptable)

Below is the example of how the donor wall will look! If you or someone you may know would like to make a larger donation, reach out to us and we are more than happy to customize some ideas for you!

Order School Supplies Now!

Order your school supplies today for the 2025-2026 school year! Use this link: https://schooltoolbox.com/school-supplies/ then enter "Highland" in the search box and be sure to choose the grade your student will be entering in the fall.

Supplies will be shipped directly home! If you have any questions, please email Nikki O'Farrell at ofarrell.nikki@gmail.com.

Kane County Cougars Games

The Kane County Cougars Reading Club is now complete, and your PTA is happy to announce that all students have earned this award! Every student should have come home with a ticket order form and ordering instructions. Parents are now able to secure their student's free ticket and purchase additional tickets at kccougars.com. Tickets can also be purchased by mail or in-person.

Our school will have two special Highland Game Days, where a Section is reserved exclusively for our school, allowing our students to join in the fun with other classmates! Our Highland School games will be on Saturday, May 10 at 6:30 PM and Sunday, May 18 at 1:00 PM.

If there are any questions, please contact Paul Quillia at paulquillia@gmail.com. Paul previously worked for the Cougars, and can be very helpful with any ticket-related questions.

Congratulations to all of our students. Enjoy your Summer with this reusable reward!

End of the Year Party

It’s hard to believe it’s almost the end of the 2025 school year! We invite all families to come May 18 from 4 to 6 pm outside at Highland. Come enjoy face painting, balloon artists that can make your favorite balloon, snacks/ice cream, music, and outdoor activities for your family! Please sign up with the following link to help before, during, or after! Thank you!

Sign up to help here:

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090848A4A728A2F94-55974115-highland

Field Day

There will be pizza & popsicles on Field Day for the kids. If your child doesn't want pizza and/or popsicles please remember to send a lunch to school that day.

Sign up to help at Field Day here…

https://signup.com/go/nszMOGE

Sign up to help at Field Day here…

https://signup.com/go/nszMOGE

Donations

Do you have a drawer full of mismatched plasticware and takeout utensils at home? Great news! Highland will be accepting donations of any disposable utensils between now and the end of the year. These donations will be made available to students who need them for lunch, in the event utensils were not packed at home. We've all been there!

PTA Board for 2025-2026

Congrats to the new PTA Board for 2025-2026!

Co-President: Melissa Mitra

Co-President: Monica Zycinski

Vice President: Julia Maschek

VP of Finance: Cara Baran

Treasurer: Emma Paluchniak

Secretary: Jeannie Binz

And thank you to all who attended the PTA meeting on Tuesday night, both in person and virtually! We appreciate your time!

Friendly Reminder from Mr. Tony

As a favor and to help Mr. Tony, please do NOT bring confetti cannons to the Clap Out on Friday 5/23.

Item's that can be found in every edition of the Highland Happenings, such as the Highland Playbook and our student attendance form can be found below. We want to ensure that these resources are always available to our families while also making each week's Happenings as reader-friendly as possible!

The Highlanad Playbook is your place to find important information about Highland including a staff directory, arrival/dismissal procedures, informaion about social-emotional learning, and much more. Click the image to the right to access the 2024-2025 Highland Playbook.

It is amazing how far technology has come over the last decade and continues to advance. We recognize the value technology has not just in education, but our world. However, we hope that we can work together to remind students that during the school day, personal electronic devices should be turned off or silenced and out of sight. This includes wearable devices if they become distracting to the learning environment. Students should not be using phones, Apple Watches, or other devices to send or receive text messages or phone calls during the school day.

Email: zcraft@dg58.org
Website: DG58.org/HG
Location: 3935 Highland Avenue, Downers Grove, IL, USA
Phone: (630)-719-5835
Facebook: facebook.com/HGHuskies
Twitter: @HGHuskies