Ridgeline eNews
March 14, 2024
RIDGELINE CALENDAR OF EVENTS:
Full calendar: http://www.ridgeline.org/calendar
Thursday 3/14 Board Meeting 6-8 pm
Monday 3/18 Site Council Meeting 5-6:30 pm
Monday 3/25 Spring Break starts
Monday 4/1 No School - Planning Day
Tuesday 4/2 Classes resume
Saturday 4/6 Outdoor Work Party at Ridgeline 10am-12 pm
Sunday 4/7 Outdoor Work Party at Ridgeline 12pm-2 pm
Be sure to check the full calendar at https://www.ridgeline.org as some dates may change. Please note that Ridgeline’s calendar differs slightly from 4J elementary and middle school calendars.
NEW NEWS
Ridgeline Equity Committee Event - March 21 from 5-7pm
The Ridgeline Equity Committee is putting on an event for students, families, and staff around Gender 101 with TransPonder on March 21st from 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM on Zoom. You can register for the event here and read more about what we will cover below. Students ten and older are welcome to join.
Gender 101: VarieTea Transgender Education Awareness Services
This training was designed to share foundational knowledge around gender and all that goes along. This VarieTEA pack of gender 101 will include the following;
- Terminology & definitions
- Do’s & Don'ts
- Inclusive language
- Gender Expression & Gender Identity
- Strategies for Creating a more inclusive environment
- Pronouns & the importance of respecting them
Success in Art and in Numbers!!!
WE DID IT! We raised $12,037 in 10 days because of the generosity of 62 families and community members. We also raised $2,500 at the Silent Auction, meeting our goal for that night. This was made possible because of the 33 amazing volunteers who helped put on the Art Show, and the 27 sold auction items! Thank you to everyone who attended, showing tremendous support to Ridgeline students. It was a joy to watch them proudly showcase their artwork at the event.
We also want to say a huge thank you to our generous matching donor who contributed an additional $10,000 to the total money raised. The sweet success of the Student Art Show, and the Direct Donation Drive, is a testament to the strength and unity of our community. Each donation, whether it be in the form of time, skills, or financial gifts, has been a vital ingredient in the thriving garden of our collective achievements. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your outstanding generosity and for standing with us in our vision.
Join us in celebrating our grand total: $24,537 in direct support of Ridgeline Montessori.
OBOB Teams Finish Strong
Have you heard the news?! Both Ridgeline teams, the 6-8 grade OBOB team, and 3-5 grade OBOB team, were semi-finalists in their regional tournaments this past weekend! OBOB Parent Coordinator, Amie Chaudoir said, "It was so exciting to watch these battles play out and to cheer on Ridgeline students. Everyone was incredibly positive and supportive of each other. I am very proud of how our students and families represented Ridgeline in our greater communities." Thank you again to all who coached, helped, and participated. We look forward to doing it again next year.
Student Marketplace returns to Ridgeline - April 27 at 10 am!
We are thrilled to announce the 2024 Student Marketplace will take place on Saturday, April 27, from 10 am - 12:30 pm this year! If you haven’t experienced this amazing community event before, you are in for a treat! Marketplace is a student-inspired fundraising arts and crafts fair. We encourage any and all Ridgeline students to participate. Now is the time for students to start planning their offerings!
Students create art and crafts (sorry no food can be sold by students) either individually or as a group, set their prices and donation amount (minimum 20% of profit donation to Ridgeline is required to participate, but students can choose to donate more, up to 100%).
This event started as a handful of students selling magic sand on the playground to add whatever they could to help purchase our school and has grown exponentially every year since. In 2023, we had 109 student vendors selling handmade crafts and raised over $2,200 in one day. We are hoping to have even more engagement with our community and our student vendors this year since we have moved this to a spring event. All donations go to the school wide fundraising effort.
This year, we are asking as many families as possible to bring/supply their own tables and chairs, making the overall set-up and tear down more efficient. Ridgeline does have 26 tables to loan and we encourage students who need to borrow a school table, to sign up and share this display space with a friend. Students and families can now submit proposals here. Please sign up to participate in the Student Marketplace by April 2. All proposals will be considered approved UNLESS you hear otherwise from me within 2 business days.
If you are interested in participating, but do not have the means to get supplies, please contact me and we will try to find a way to get supplies for your student. Families can also utilize community resources to get supplies, such as MECCA or Facebook buy nothing groups. This event is open to all grades K-8. More information to come soon, but if you have any questions you can email me, Heather Hickcox, parent volunteer/marketplace coordinator, at sweetladyh@gmail.com.
VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES
Volunteer Thank Yous
Thank you to the many volunteers who helped with Art Show preparations last week. We appreciate your time and assistance hanging the artwork displays, preparing refreshments, providing guidance for the wonderful student docents, and serving as cashiers at the event. We couldn’t have done it without you Ruth Tabak, Erin Wagner, Alison Cassin, Kunu Dittermer Bearchum, Shosanna Holman, Jenny Landaverde, Jessica Lynch, Aaron Dilla, Lee McElyea, Corey Hoover, and Jen Anonia.
Thank you also to these creative humans who generously donated their amazing artwork for the Silent Auction: Amanda Donofrio, Trask Bedortha, Lee McElyea, Tamara Clark, Kelsey Cluff, Robin Hostick, Cheryle Myers, Rae Kelley, Ryan McCluer, Mia Sims, Ryan Carwile, and David & Joan Brown. Thank you for sharing your talents with the Ridgeline community!
Volunteer Opportunities - Sign Ups Below!
Spring Outdoor Work Parties - sign up to help on April 6, 7, or on April 14
We hope to get 3 great work crews together for each of these dates and accomplish a lot. If you can only come for 1 hour, please still sign up!
Outdoor work parties will be held on April 6 & 7 to weed, prune, and clean up the Ridgeline property. Click on this link to sign up and help on Saturday, April 6 from 10 am - noon, or on Sunday, April 7 from noon - 2 pm.
You can also sign up to help at the Mulch To the Moon work party, on Sunday, April 14, from 10 am - 2 pm. We are going to have an absolute mountain of mulch delivered and hope to mulch all of the Amazon Drive-facing beds on the property so it looks beautiful for the Student Marketplace event. Ridgeline has four wheelbarrows, several shovels, many buckets, some rakes, and a few pairs of gloves. BYO gloves, shovels, and rakes if you have ones that you like and prefer to work with. Our hope is to have enough volunteer help to lay down new mulch throughout the school grounds. Sign up here to join one of the wheelbarrow teams, to help spread mulch, or to bring snacks for this epic work party!
Volunteering
Volunteers are an integral part of the Ridgeline Community. Families pledge to complete 40 hours of volunteer time per school year. There are a myriad of volunteer opportunities throughout the year. Volunteers serve on committees, make materials at home, do grounds work, act as crossing guards, help in classrooms, chaperone field trips and much more. To help us get to know you better and your areas of interest, please fill out the Volunteer Interest form here.
To fully participate in most volunteer opportunities, volunteers are background checked. In addition to the background check, volunteers need to complete the volunteer code of conduct. After that, they will be issued a green badge with their name on it and notified that they are ready to go! Visit our website for more information on volunteering.
Track it Forward
Ridgeline uses Track it Forward for volunteer sign-ups and to log your volunteer hours. If you are new to Ridgeline or have not yet created an account, please do so! Last year we had a lot of folks forget to log their hours. Volunteer hour reporting is important for us to show support for Ridgeline when applying for grants and for reporting to our sponsoring district.
If you are a first-time Track It Forward user and have not set up an account you will need to create an account first. If you already have an account, skip to step two.
1. Go to https://www.trackitforward.com/site/ridgeline-montessori
-Select sign in
-Create your account
2. Go to the app store on your device and search for Track It Forward
-Download the app
-Log In
You are all set!
CONTINUING NEWS
S-N-A-C-K-S
Be a Good Neighbor - Kindness Goes a Long Way!
The Ridgeline community aims to be good neighbors at all times. We acknowledge that mornings can be hurried and it may feel stressful when there are several cars in line on West Amazon Drive. Please be patient and kind, as there are many children on foot, getting in and out of cars, and safety is of utmost importance! If everyone does their part, the queue moves fairly quickly.
If you do have the time, please consider parking along the sidewalk and walking your student to the “hug and release” corner. This helps cut down on the number of cars waiting on West Amazon Drive.
If you need to drop something off at the front office, please circle back around to the front of the school after 8:30 am, or after 3:15pm. If your child is leaving for an appointment, please pick them up before 2:45 pm. We discourage pick-ups between 2:45 pm and 3:05 pm. This is a busy window, as all classes are getting ready for dismissal.
We also want to point out there is a fire hydrant in front of the school and it is unlawful to park in front of it. You may be ticketed, or return to a damaged car, if an emergency occurs and a fire truck is not able to access it. In addition, it is unlawful to block the bus stop, and driveways. We have had multiple complaints from neighbors who need to get out of their driveway during the morning drop-off window and in the afternoon. If someone needs to get out, practice kindness and let them! Smiles and friendly waves are well-received!
Thank you for being mindful of your surroundings, following the law, showing kindness and appreciation for our volunteer crossing guards. They are a gift to us, rain and shine!
Caring for the Learning Environment - Please Leave Toys at Home
Current Ridgeline Families - No Action Needed for Enrollment Next Year
Current Ridgeline families: we will assume you plan to return to Ridgeline next year, unless we hear otherwise. No action is needed at this time. If you are planning to make alternative plans for the 2024-2025 school year, please complete the Intent to Withdraw Form by March 22. If you have further questions, contact enrollment@ridgeline.org. We look forward to a great rest of the school year!
Equity Committee Announcement - March is Gender Equity & Women’s History Month
Let's support our wonderful teachers in getting resources and information to our students. We know that there are many amazing families that make up our community. If you have a voice to share, or resources, or time to assist with educational projects, contact Marty Wilder at martyfwilder@gmail.com.
RIDGELINE COMMITTEES & ORGANIZATIONS
Ridgeline Board Executive Session and Board Meeting - March 14
The Ridgeline Board will have an executive session from 5:15 to 6:00 pm, and a regular meeting, on Thursday, March 14th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm over Zoom and in person in the library. Action items on the agenda include: Contract Renewal Administration and Certified Staff. Information items on the agenda include: Formal Complaint Procedure and Process, Public Complaint Procedure, Discrimination or Bias Incident Complaint Procedure, 3-Year Projections, Evaluation for Executive Director, 4J Annual Review, Expectations for Student Behavior Student Code of Conduct. Discussion items on the agenda include: Board Budget Priorities 2024-25, Salary and Benefits Schedule 2023-24, Contract Renewal Administration and Certified Staff, Board Chair Update, Responsibilities of Traffic Control, Review Draft Recruitment Letter.
The agenda will be finalized and posted here by Tuesday March 12th; the Zoom link to join is https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88176985729?pwd=UDFvdGk0blZhZzVVbHR0RzlHWmFlUT09 Meeting ID: 881 7698 5729 Passcode: 766547. Board meetings are open to the public, except when an executive session is indicated on the agenda. All are welcome to attend. There is time at the beginning of our agenda to make a public comment.
You can always reach the board by email (board@ridgeline.org). Members of the public may also provide comments to the board in written form by emailing board@ridgeline.org prior to the meeting. The board will read (not aloud), review, and take into consideration all comments. In order to be fully considered at this meeting, comments must be received by noon on the day of the meeting. Please clearly label the email subject line as: "Public Comment."
Site Council Meeting - March 18, 5-6:30 pm
Site Council will meet on Monday, March 18, from 5-6:30 pm in the Ridgeline Library. Students, parents, classified staff, certified staff, board members, and administration make up the Site Council. No more than half the council may be teachers, and no more than half can be parents at the school. Each stakeholder group meets on a regular basis to identify areas of concern and suggest agenda items for the full Site Council's consideration. In this way, the Site Council ensures that everyone involved in the school has a voice in how the school grows, develops, and is governed. Meetings are open to the entire Ridgeline community, and we encourage your attendance and input. You can reach Site Council through the facilitator at sitecouncil@ridgeline.org. Please don’t hesitate to ask questions or give input!
COMMUNITY NEWS
Wordcrafters: Two Ridgeline Finalists - See Below!
Hello from Wordcrafters in Eugene!
We are excited to announce that two students from your school are finalists in the 2024 Fiction Fantastic Young Writers Contest: Roya Talebreza-May and Kai Suzumura will both have stories in our upcoming anthology, Realm of Forgotten Dreams.
K-2 Spotlight
“The Falcon's Egg” by Roya Talebreza-May, Ridgeline Montessori Public Charter School
Middle school category, grades 6-8
“The Green Ember” by Kai Suzumura, Ridgeline Montessori Public Charter School
Finalists and their families are invited to attend the celebratory awards ceremony on June 6, at the Downtown Eugene Public Library. Placement will be announced that evening and each author will have an opportunity to read an excerpt of their work.
Streaming will be available for those who want to watch from home on the Eugene Public Library YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/EugeneLRCS/. We’ll also be sharing the stream to the Wordcrafters in Eugene Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/wordcrafters
Congratulations Roya and Kai!
Ophelia's Place - New Seasonal Activities
Ophelia's Place invites the community to check out their exciting new seasonal calendar of activities. To view the detailed schedule, please check the attached PDFs. Additionally, you can explore their website for more information. Ophelia’s place believes in the power of coming together and learning.