Lincoln Weekly News

Lincoln Early Learning Center houses the preschool programs for three school districts: Fremont District 79, Hawthorn District 73, and Mundelein District 75.

⬅️ Check out the Table of Contents on the left for the latest news from your district.

Please note: If you are unable to view this message in its entirety (viewing all 3 district sections below), please open the message in a new browser so you are able to view important time-sensitive information for your respective district.

Dear Lincoln Early Learning Center Families,

We are so proud to ROAR together as our preschool community continues to learn and grow each day. Your partnership plays a vital role in creating a positive and supportive environment for our students.

Thank you to our Fremont families who attended Parent-Teacher Conferences. We truly value the time spent connecting with you to celebrate your child's progress and discuss their growth.

It's hard to believe that spring break is just two weeks away! As we approach this well-deserved break, our students continue to engage in learning and play each day.

Please remember there will be no school next Friday, March 14, as we will be holding a preschool screening. We appreciate your understanding and support.

As always, thank you for your partnership in your child's education.

Warm regards,

Katie O’Brien
Principal, Lincoln Early Learning Center

kobrien@fsd79.org

Kim Stergios
Building Assistant Supervisor, Lincoln Early Learning Center

stergiosk@hawthorn73.org

LCHD Respiratory Illness Guidance for Families

As respiratory virus season continues, the Lake County Health Department (LCHD) has shared important information on preventing and managing respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, flu, RSV, strep throat, and pertussis. The letter attached below outlines key symptoms, when to keep your child home, and steps to reduce the spread of illness.

Thank you for helping keep our school community healthy!

Absences

If your child will be absent from school because of illness, doctors’ appointments or vacation, please contact us at Lincoln at 847-949-2720. Please notify the school office by 9:30 a.m. the day of the absence to leave a recorded message regarding your child's absence. Keeping track of all the students on a daily basis is a huge task and we greatly appreciate your prompt attention.

Medical Forms

Annual Physical Examinations are required within the first 30 days of entering preschool. All forms can be emailed, faxed, or brought in with your student. If we do not receive your child’s physical, your child will be excluded from school and cannot return to school until submitted. Per IL State Law we must have a child’s physical by October 15 or within 30 days of starting preschool.

Illness and Injuries

Please remember that any child with a fever should stay home until they have been fever free without the use of fever-reducing medication, for at least 24 hours. Students should also remain home if they are experiencing vomiting or diarrhea. Students may NOT return to school for at least 24 hours after the last episode.

**We are seeing an increase in nurse office visits with sick students. It is imperative that the health office has current telephone numbers for parents and designated emergency contact persons. You are responsible for someone picking your child up within 30 minutes of the call.**

Medications

All medications, feeding, and treatment supplies are to be supplied by the parent per school policy.

Doctor’s orders for medications, feedings, and treatments are required at the beginning of each school year. The school nurse will not accept or administer any medications (including over the counter medications) or perform nursing services or treatments without a doctor’s order. Please do not send medication to school in your child's backpack. All medication must be brought to school by a parent or guardian.

Any questions related to the above health office guidelines should be directed to the health office staff.

Liz Mulé

847.949.2720 ext.1503

emule@d75.org or mulee@hawthorn73.org

efax: 847.388.4842

Parent/Guardian Pick Up and Drop off is at Door 2 on the east side of the building. Parents/Guardians who pick up their children on set scheduled days will have a laminated sign with their child's first and last name on it in their district’s color. Please make this sign visible so supervisors can easily identify you. If you need extras, please let the office know.

Parent/Guardian Drop Off

● Pull along the curb. The first car to arrive should stop at the first cone along the curb. There are 4 cones total. The line will continue along the curb and onto Ridgeland Ave if needed.

● Once at a cone, please wait in your car for a staff member. When a staff member is present, please exit your child curbside. Do not walk your child to the door.

● Do not exit your car until you have been able to pull up to a spot marked with a cone along the curb.

● Please keep in mind your speed when arriving and leaving as students, parents, and staff

members are arriving at school. Do not pull forward to an empty cone unless a staff member directs you to do so.

*If you are a family that walks to school from your own, please walk your child directly to the student line on the basketball court.

Parent/Guardian Pick Up

● Pull along the curb. The first car to arrive should stop at the first cone along the curb. There are 4 cones total. If the curb is full, please wait in the line to pull to a cone along the curb.

● Once at cone, please wait inside of your car until a staff member brings your child

to you. Please do not walk to the door to get your child.

*If you are a family that walks to school from your home, please wait by the basketball court with your sign.

Please refer to our Pick Up and Drop Off Procedures for our specific guidelines.

Change in Dismissal

Please contact América Lanuza (lanuzaa@hawthorn73.org) or Danielle Garcia (dgarcia@d75.org) at the Lincoln Front Office(847-949-2720) if there are any end of day changes throughout the school year. Teachers may not always be able to pick up their phone or check email throughout the day, so it would be best to call the front office with any changes. América and Danielle will relay any changes to the classroom teacher after you contact them. Please contact the main office by 10:00 a.m for the morning session and 2:00 pm for the afternoon session for any changes in regards to a child's dismissal procedures.

Gross motor activities are scheduled daily and take place outdoors whenever the weather permits. At Lincoln, all districts will line up outside and play outside when there is a “real feel” temperature between 30 and 90 degrees. Classes will stay inside if there is active precipitation, wet equipment and/or ice/snow on the ground.

As a reminder, if your student is in our Tri-District classroom, they will follow the arrival and dismissal times below:

• AM: 8:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
• PM: 12:15 p.m. - 2:45 p.m

Please see below or review the Hawthorn School District 73 section for information about important dates.

March 14 - No School - Tri-District Preschool Screening

March 24 - 28 - No School - Spring Break

Please review your home district section for any other information, including PTO, spirit wear, and other fun things happening in your home district!

Ivanhoe Village Update

Fremont School District 79 continues to advocate for our current taxpayers in relation to the forthcoming Ivanhoe Village development. The District is hoping to reach a fair and reasonable impact fee agreement with the developers. Another negotiation session is scheduled for the week of March 10. Help us urge the Village of Mundelein to slow down the process for approving a development plan. There is no need to rush to an arbitrary deadline to approve a plan for such a monumental project. Our community deserves transparency to understand the full impact of this development for our schools, our taxpayers, traffic, environmental concerns, and more. The next meeting of the Village of Mundelein Board of Trustees is Monday, March 10 at 7:00 p.m. at Village Hall. To learn more, please see our Frequently Asked Questions document.

Take the 5Essentials Parent Survey!

Fremont School District 79 greatly values your feedback as it relates to your student’s educational experience. Once again, the State of Illinois has partnered with 5Essentials to create a forum by which you can provide your input. To date, we have the following parent participation rates:

Elementary School: 10%

Intermediate School: 9%

Middle School: 8%

We need at least a 20% participation rate for each of the schools to receive a report. Please help us reach this threshold! If you have not already done so, we would greatly appreciate it if you would take the brief survey by visiting: http://survey.5-essentials.org/illinois/survey/parent/

Your responses are vital for continuous improvement and long-range planning for your child's school. Parents are welcome to answer the survey for each of their children’s schools. The deadline to complete the survey is March 28, 2025.

Parent U. Virtual Presentation - Artificial Intelligence at School and Home

March 11, 2025 • 6:30-7:30 p.m.

Virtual Presentation (Zoom link)

Join us on March 11 as District administrators and teachers share how artificial intelligence is impacting education and being integrated into our school district. Learn practical ways to use AI tools at home to support your child's learning. Gain insights into how our teachers and students utilize AI, and leave equipped with the knowledge to enhance your child's educational experience with AI at home.

2025-2026 School Year Registration Now Open

Registration for the 2025-2026 school year at Fremont School District 79 is now open. More information regarding registration can be found by visiting our Registration webpage.

March 14 - No School - Tri-District Preschool Screening

March 24 - 28 - No School - Spring Break

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

The Fremont PTO would love to see you at our meetings this year! Meetings are on the third Wednesday of the month in the Middle School Den at 6:00 pm. Our next meeting is on March 19th.

Childcare services for children ages 3+ will be provided at ALL of our upcoming PTO meetings. Please use the form below to let us know if you will be bringing a child to the meeting. It is not required to RSVP; however, we ask that you please do so if you plan to take advantage of childcare. Care will be provided by Fremont Middle School students for individuals ages 3 and up.

RSVP Form for childcare: https://forms.gle/ceerdTKn7Pa51mVt7

Here is the list of all meeting dates for the 2024-2025 school year.

To stay in the know of what Fremont PTO is up to, follow and tag us on social media:

Instagram: @fremontpto

Facebook: Fremont PTO

PARENT U. - ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AT SCHOOL AND HOME - MARCH 11

The topic of artificial intelligence is front of mind for many individuals, including parents and guardians. Join us for a virtual presentation on March 11 at 6:30 p.m. as FSD79 District administrators and teachers share how artificial intelligence is impacting education and being integrated into our school district. Learn practical ways to use AI tools at home to support your child's learning. Gain insights into how our teachers and students utilize AI, and leave equipped with knowledge to enhance your child's educational experience with AI at home. (Zoom link)

PTO ELECTION INFORMATION - HELP WANTED!

The Fremont PTO School Board is looking for passionate and dedicated parents to join our team for the 2025-26 school year! Open positions include President, Vice President of Elementary School, Vice President of Intermediate School, Treasurer, and Secretary.

If you want to help build experiences, support fundraising efforts, and be a voice for our Fremont community, this is your chance to make a difference! Our mission is to strengthen the connection between school and home, encourage parent involvement, and foster a close relationship between parents, teachers, and students.

More information on each position will be available soon. In the meantime, if you're interested, here’s the link for self-nomination, and our flyer with more information.

MARCH MADNESS

Saturday, March 15th - Come support your favorite Fremont teachers at Mundelein High School as they play against one another in basketball. All proceeds raised will go to The Fremont PTO to help fund inflatables for Field Day! See the flyer for more info!

SHOP. SCAN. EARN.

Forget the scissors - Box Tops for Education has gone digital! Simply download the Box Tops for Education app (see www.boxtops4education.com for more info), select Fremont School District 79 (in Mundelein, IL) as your beneficiary, and you're all set! Enter the code H02P2R0D when you register for bonus points. Then simply scan your receipts after shopping, and watch the points (and $$) add up for our schools!

UPCOMING DINE-IN NIGHTS

JOIN THE PTO FOR A DINE-IN NIGHT FUNDRAISER! Enjoy a great meal while supporting a great cause! March 11 All day from 10am to 9pm

Lukes of Mundelein 551 N. Lake St, Mundelein. A portion of the night’s proceeds will go toward Fremont PTO. Just mention our fundraiser when you order! Bring your family, friends, and appetite—let’s make a difference together!

We have many more dine-in nights ahead – check out the list here!

ORDER YOUR YEARBOOK NOW!

Don’t forget to order your student's 2024-2025 yearbook. Use the correct school code from our flyer when you order!

PTO MEMBERSHIP/ONLINE DIRECTORY FOR 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR

If you already have an account in Membership Toolkit, thank you for creating and/or updating your Membership Toolkit account last year.

If you don't have an account in Membership Toolkit, set it up now for free! Once you have created an account in Membership Toolkit your child will appear in the online directory immediately (that's if you choose to do so). To create an account, go to fsd79.membershiptoolkit.com and follow the directions in the attached form (Online Student Directory Set Up Instructions 2024-2025).

To gain access to the Online Student Directory your account must be active and you must pay the $15 PTO Membership Family Fee. If you paid your PTO Membership fee through your TeacherEase account before June 15th, your payment has been confirmed and you currently have access to the Online Student Directory. If you didn’t pay your PTO Membership Family Fee before June 15th, you can pay the $15 PTO Membership Family fee thru Venmo @Fremont-PTO; or by bringing or sending the attached form with your cash payment or check made payable to Fremont PTO to any school front office. The option to pay the PTO Membership Fee thru your TeacherEase account is no longer available. Once we receive confirmation of your payment, we will give you access to the online directory. Please note it may take up to one week to be granted access to the online directory.

Don't forget to download the FREE Membership Toolkit app to your smartphone-search "Membership Toolkit" in your app store.

BIRTHDAY BOARD

Celebrate your Fremont Student's special day! "Happy Birthday, Your Child's Name" can appear on the Fremont Electronic Message Board. Just complete the Birthday Board Request Google Form 2024-2025; or complete the birthday board form and send it back to any school front office with your $5 payment per birthday message. If you have any questions, please contact Christie Johnson at cjohnson@fsd79.org.

5Essentials Parent Survey

Time is running out! We are facing a critical deadline for the 5Essentials Survey, and your voice is desperately needed to ensure your child's school is the best it can be.

The 5Essentials Survey, developed by the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research, is not just another survey. It's a vital tool that directly impacts the decisions we make about your child's education and school environment. We need to understand your perspective on our school's climate and culture NOW.

Why is this urgent?

• The survey closes March 28, 2024. We are in the final push and need every parent's input to get a clear picture of our schools.

• Your feedback directly shapes our action plans. We use this data to identify areas for immediate improvement and to create targeted strategies to enhance your child's learning experience.

Don't let your voice go unheard!

Please take just a few minutes TODAY to complete the parent survey at: https://survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois/

Select the appropriate survey for your child's school and make your voice count.

Need more information?

• Learn more about the Illinois 5Essentials Survey and past results: https://www.5-essentials.org/illinois

• Questions? Contact 5Essentials Client Services immediately at 1-866-440-1874 or impact-surveys@uchicago.edu.

Your prompt participation is essential. We are counting on you to help us create a better learning environment for all our students.

Act now. Time is of the essence!

March 14 - No School - Tri-District Preschool Screening

March 24 - 28 - No School - Spring Break

5Essentials Parent Survey

District 75 parents and guardians,

School District 75 is participating with the Illinois State Board of Education in the 2025 statewide survey of school climate and learning conditions. This is your chance to provide input concerning your child’s education. We value your opinions about the operations of District 75 schools.

The Illinois 5Essentials Survey provides a unique opportunity for students, teachers and parents to have a voice in their schools. The surveys are available from Monday, Feb. 24 through Friday, March 28. Please use the following link to complete the survey: 5Essentials Survey

Students in grades four through eight will be given the survey at their school.

We will take all of your input seriously and use it to continually review and update our current educational practices. Results will never be connected to your child. No individual will be identified in the school reports and teachers and administrators will not see individual responses.

The survey is administered online by UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago and provides a comprehensive picture of a school’s organizational culture in an individualized report measuring the five essentials critical for school success:

Effective leaders

Collaborative teachers

Involved families

Supportive education

Ambitious instruction

The survey results will be sent to District 75 and will be included in the Illinois State School Report Card next fall.

Thanks, in advance, for taking part in this important survey.

BRIGHT ARROW

• Our BrightArrow notification system enables you to stay in touch in the event of emergencies, delays/cancellations, and other important events throughout the school year. In order for you to be able to receive these notifications, it is vital that you keep your contact information accurate and up to date with your child’s school.
• You can confirm and/or request to update your contact information by contacting your student's school. We encourage you to take a minute to make sure your contact information is up-to-date so you don't miss out on important notifications.

To Receive Text Alerts

1. You must have your mobile phone number on file with your child’s school to receive text messages. (If you’re not certain whether you’ve done this, please contact your child’s school.)
2. To opt in to text messages send the word Yes to the shortcode 79041. Once you opt-in, BrightArrow will send you a confirmation that your phone number is subscribed.
3. After opting in, you should be receiving text messages along with email notifications. If you still are not receiving text messages (only email) please contact your child’s school to update your telephone number.

March 14 - No School - Tri-District Preschool Screening

March 24 - 28 - No School - Spring Break