GALATAS GAZETTE

Denae Wilker, Principal

Candace Mathis, Assistant Principal

Dawn Wright, Assistant Principal

Laura Heemann, Counselor

Through the collaborative efforts of all who pass through our door, we provide a safe learning community that develops lifelong learners and responsible citizens.

Website: http://galatas.conroeisd.net/
Location: 9001 Cochrans Crossing Drive, The Woodlands, TX, USA
Phone: 936-709-5000

Front Office Hours: 7:25 AM-3:45 PM
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GalatasCISD/
Twitter: @GalatasCISD

On Thursday, May 23, school will dismiss at 12:40 PM.

Our Fourth Grade Clap Out will take place on Thursday, May 23, at 10:00 AM. This year, we will have an outside "Family Viewing Area" so that all fourth grade families can have a great view of our awesome Top Dogs!

The clap out will begin at 10:00 AM. as the Top Dogs parade through the Galatas hallways (so that our students can celebrate), and then they will exit through the gym doors at the rear of the school, around the car loop, and then back into the school through the other set of gym doors. Families will be able to view the parade around the car loop at the back of the school. Please see the map below for specific details.

Please do not park or drive through the Good Shepherd parking lot.

It is time to order school supplies! Please visit the school supply link to order, and enter GAL005 as our "School ID".

Pre-ordering your school supplies can save money, as well as time spent searching for items at stores or online. In addition, your student will have their supplies delivered to the school, where they are placed in your child's classroom for the first day of school!

Please place your orders by June 16! All sales are final: no refunds.

For more information, see the flyer below or contact schoolsupplies@galataspto.com.

We are so proud of our Senior Greyhounds, the Class of 2024!

Dear Galatas Families,

We’ve been informed by our printing company, Balfour, that there will be a delay in delivery, and the yearbooks will not arrive until sometime in June. Once yearbooks ship, we will arrange a date for distribution and pickup.

We know the students look forward to celebrating the end of the year with these memories, so we are putting together a slideshow of the yearbook pages that the teachers can share with them in the classroom. Balfour is sending out autograph insert pages for the students to use during the scheduled yearbook signing date on campus. These inserts can be easily secured in the yearbooks, and all students will be receiving one even if they did not order a book.

If your family will be moving out of town during the first half of June, please send an email to yearbook@galataspto.com. We will work to make sure you still get the book(s) you purchased. If you are currently on the waitlist to purchase a book, we will be reaching out to you once the books ship.

Thank you for your patience and understanding!

Your Galatas PTO

We've got some news about the yearbooks, and while it's not exactly a thrill ride, we want to keep you in the loop.

While we wish we could snap our fingers and have the yearbooks in your hands yesterday, it looks like we'll need a bit more patience. Unfortunately, there will be a delay in delivery of your yearbook.

We at Balfour have taken full responsibility for the issue, and our team is working diligently to deliver your show-stopping yearbook as soon as possible. We know our customers are eager to see the final product!

So, while you may not have the yearbook before the final bell rings, we promise they'll be worth the wait. Your local Balfour Sales Rep is working hard to nail down a Yearbook delivery date, and we will keep your school posted every step of the way.

Thank you for your patience and understanding, folks. Hang tight – those memories are on their way!

Balfour Management Team

All medications signed into the clinic for the 2023-2024 school year must be signed out/picked up by parent or guardian by

Thursday, May 23rd at 12:10.

Parents/guardians may pick up medicine at the following times on any day leading up to May 23:

*8-9 AM

*1-2:30 PM

*If a different pick-up time is needed, please contact Melissa Ferrand at mferrand@conroeisd.net or 936-709-5013.

• No medication is stored in the clinic over the summer.
• Medications cannot be sent home with the student.
• Any medication not picked up by Thurs, May 23, 2024, will be discarded per CISD Health Services policy.

Science Camp: OCEANS!

Galatas students enjoyed many ocean themed activities at several hands-on stations. In addition, students were treated to an immersive experience throughout the school with informational bulletin boards and a transformed Activity Room that simulated the different depths of the ocean. Thank you to our amazing PTO and volunteers for all their hard work to make Science Camp so much fun for our Greyhounds!

Please check your child's lunch balance. This can be checked through Parent Access as well as My School Bucks app/website (Under the Heading, "CISD Child Nutrition Information" below, there is a link to register for My School Bucks). My School Bucks will be active until Friday, June 14, 2024 to make payments. Payments after that date will be accepted using only cash or check.

Please take care of outstanding lunch charges before the end of the school year.

Please check back regularly, as camps are added frequently!

Do you or someone you know in your neighborhood have a child that will be 5 on or before September 1, 2024? Help us spread the word: PreK, Kindergarten, & New Student Enrollment for 2024-2025 is open!

Please be sure to register as soon as possible; it is important for us to know how many new Greyhounds we are expecting so that we are ready to welcome them to Galatas in August!

Registration is online, and you can upload all of the needed documents right to the registration application. Please click below for a direct link to the CISD registration page. Then, click "Family Portal 2024-205" to begin registering.

If you have any questions please e-mail Robin Curtis, Galatas Registrar, at rcurtis@conroeisd.net.

**Please note: Parents of current and returning students will complete a CISD enrollment verification (Snap Code) to be sent out this summer.

If you currently have plans to move over the summer please contact our registrar, Robin Curtis, at rcurtis@conroeisd.net. There will be a Summer Mover Form sent to you via your child. We ask that you complete it and send it back to school. If some of the information is not known, we can update via email as needed. This will help in planning for the next year.

If you would like to display your Galatas Pride in your neighborhood, the PTO has yard signs for sale! Signs are $25, and you can order yours at the link below.

Applications for Conroe ISD’s School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) are now available through June 30! The SHAC advises the district in ensuring that local community values are reflected in the health and physical education programs as well as other responsibilities required by the State of Texas and the CISD Board of Trustees. Learn more and apply here:

Stay Informed:

The Monitoring the Future study found that high school seniors who spend 3 or more hours a day on social media are more likely to report high levels of depressive symptoms.

Visit http://tiny.conroeisd.net/CoBA2 for additional resources.

District Job Fairs and Opportunities

The Board of Trustees approved calendars for the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years at their meeting on Tuesday, January 16.

We thank you in advance for planning all vacations and travel outside of the school calendar. When students are absent, they miss valuable instruction that takes place daily. In addition to the loss of that instructional time, Texas schools are rated not only on academic performance, but also on student attendance. Daily attendance plays a large role in our accountability rating from the state.

You may view the approved calendars at the links below.

When your child is absent, please do one of the following before 9:00 AM:

• Call the front office (936-709-5000) with your student's absence information,
• Call the school attendance line (936-709-5014) and leave a message stating your child’s name, reason for the absence, person reporting the absence, and a phone number. or
  
• Email Robin Curtis (rcurtis@conroeisd.net) to explain the reason for their absence.

To ensure the accuracy of your child's attendance records, please call or email each day your child is absent, or if your child will be out for an extended period, please let us know by emailing Robin Curtis at the email above.

Attendance is recorded at 9:00 AM each day. If your child is absent at 9:00 AM due to a doctor’s appointment, he/she will be counted present if you bring your child back to school on the same day with a doctor's statement that verifies the appointment.

If your child is not in attendance at school for the entire day for any reason, the student is considered “absent”. There are basically two types of absences:

1. Excused Absence: an absence is considered "excused" when there is prior parental notification (phone call or email) explaining the absence, or a note from a parent or medical professional upon return to school. Absences can be excused if they are related to illness, medical appointment, a death in the family, or other health related reasons. An excused absence does not remove the absence from the student’s record, but it does document that a student is absent for an excusable reason.
2. Unexcused Absence: an absence is considered “unexcused” when there is no prior parental notification, no note or email sent upon return explaining the absence, for family travel/vacation, or other absences not recognized as "excused" by the district or state.

All visitors must be able to provide a government issued, photo I. D. at each visit. Photos of the I.D. will not be accepted. Visitors will check in at the front office and receive a Visitor Badge which must be worn at all times in the building. When leaving the building, visitors must check out with the front office and return the badge.

Please note that outside (from a delivery service) delivery of food to students is prohibited as noted in the CISD Student Handbook. This includes deliveries from Door Dash, GrubHub, etc... Forgotten lunches from home may be brought to the drop-off table by 10AM for delivery to students before lunch time.

If there are any questions, please call the office for assistance.

Lunch visitors are invited to enjoy our outdoor dining area (weather permitting). On rainy or other inclement weather days, we will have seating available in the Activity Room.

** Please consider limiting lunch visits to once or twice per month for each student, so that all parents have an opportunity to visit for lunch.

**Please limit the number of visitors to no more than four.

**Students may enjoy lunch with their parents/family only; please do not invite other students to eat lunch with your family.

**A driver's license or government issued photo i.d. is required for adults each time they visit Galatas. We are unable to accept a photo of an i.d. Please allow time (about 5 minutes) to complete the required check-in at the front office prior to your child's lunchtime.

**Please keep students and other children at the tables with you; do not allow them to run or play during lunch time.

**Please understand that if you arrive more than 5 minutes after your student's scheduled lunchtime, there is a possibility you will not be able to eat with your child, due to the limited amount of time allotted for lunch.

**We want to ensure the safety and security of everyone as they enjoy time together. If a grandparent or other family member of the student wants to visit your child during lunch, the parent must send in written permission to the front office. The note will only need to be sent in once, and at that time a notation will be made in the visitor system so that the school will have a record of the permission being granted. If a note is not sent, we will call a parent to grant permission before the visitor is allowed to join a student for lunch.

Lunchtime is limited to 25 minutes. A staff member will be monitoring the door, and will assist your child in returning to the cafeteria to join their class. Guests should then head back to the front office to return your visitor sticker.

Kindergarten 12:05 PM-12:30 PM

1st Grade 12:20 PM-12:45 PM

2nd Grade 11:50 AM-12:15 PM

3rd Grade 11:35 AM-12:00 PM

4th Grade 11:10 AM-11:35 AM

Please be mindful that the next grade level parents are also excited to visit their children for lunch. We ask parents to exit promptly at the designated time, to allow the next group to have lunch together. Thank you!

The Birthday Book Club is a great way to celebrate your child’s birthday or half birthday and help support the Galatas Elementary Library. We have partnered with Bound to Stay Bound, one of our library book vendors, so book selections can be made directly from the website.

Please visit the link below for more information and ordering instructions.

1. Medication: If your student requires daily or "as needed" emergency medication at school, please email the nurse at mferrand@conroeisd.net or call 936-709-5013, to set up an appointment to check in the necessary medication/medications and forms.
2. All medications must be checked in by a parent/guardian. Students may not bring medication to school. **Cough drops/cough lollipops ARE considered medication, and also must be checked in through the clinic for student use.
3. Change of Clothes: Please provide a daily change of clothes in your student's backpack. This is especially important for our kinder and first grade friends.
4. Illness at School: If a student is sent home sick, per CISD policy, the student must be symptom free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication before returning to campus or attending any school sponsored function.

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our Galatas family healthy! I wish everyone a happy and healthy school year.

All students should have a SMART Tag on their backpack. Each day these tags are scanned by our staff members as part of our dismissal procedure to ensure that each student goes home the correct way.

SMART Tags are also used by our CISD Transportation Department, as a way to ensure authorized riders board our buses and improve the safety and security of students who utilize our bus transportation services. For more information on the SMART Tag system, please click here.

If your child loses their SMART tag, please notify their teacher and we will replace the tag. There is a $2.00 fee to replace a lost tag; that fee will be assessed in our School Cash system and you will be notified of the charge.

The Conroe ISD Board adopted new guidelines regarding student cell phone use during the October Board meeting. While it is not a substantial guideline change at the elementary level, there are changes in which parents need to be aware. Our Foundations team is working to ensure that these procedures are being implemented on our campus and that we are helping students adapt to these changes.

• Cell phones and smartwatches may be used respectfully and responsibly before school and after school.

• Cell phones and smartwatches should not be used to capture video, audio, or images at school or on the bus.

• Cell phones and smartwatches should be set on silent mode and kept in backpacks, lockers, or other designated storage areas and should not be visible during school hours including instructional time, reward time, free time, lunch, and in the hallways.

• Use of cell phones and smartwatches may be permitted in extenuating circumstances with permission from a staff member. (ex. to notify parent/guardian of a late bus)

School Cash Online is an easy to use and safe way to pay for your children’s school fees.

• Conveniently make payments for student fees online

All you have to do is register, attach your students and in no time, you will be able to make payments online.

Please visit the link below for more information and a link to register.

Transportation change notepads were sent home with each student at the beginning of the school year. Please use these forms any time a student needs to go home in a different way from the permanent designated mode of transportation.

All transportation changes must be received in writing by 2:00 p.m. We are unable to accept a phone call. You may send a written note to your child’s teacher (place it in your student's PAWS folder), or fill out a form in the front office. Please include the date, your child’s full name, section number, bus number (if applicable), and your signature. If an emergency arises, you may send an email to galatastransportation@conroeisd.net . The e-mail must include all of the above information, including a parent signature, and must be received before 2:00 p.m. If you submit a transportation change by email, it must go to the email address referenced above; transportation changes should not be emailed directly to the teacher.

Please send a new note for each day the change occurs; we cannot accept notes for multiple days or with multiple changes. District policy states that a student may only ride the bus they are registered to ride; students may not have a transportation change to ride a different bus.

Conroe ISD Library Services is enabling daily email notifications so you are informed of the items checked out by your student. Daily emails will list the item(s) currently checked out. If the book(s) your student selected is not a good fit, please have your student return it to the campus library and choose a new title. If you have questions about the book(s), please contact the school librarian. Notifications for these daily messages can be managed in Parent Access Center (PAC). If you don’t have a PAC account, you will need to register for one to access the email settings. You can also view the item(s) your student checked out by logging in to Destiny Discover through your student's SSO account. You can further manage your student’s access to library materials by completing the Library Access Form found on the Library Services website along with viewing other helpful information.

Directions for opting in or out of these notifications can be found in the document below.

Please help your student be fully prepared for their day by ensuring that they have all needed materials (backpack, lunch, water bottle, etc...) before leaving for school in the morning.

To minimize interruptions to classrooms, please limit drop-offs to the following items:

• Water bottles and lunches may be placed on the Drop-off table before 10:00 a.m. at the front office. These items should be labeled with your child’s name and section number to ensure proper delivery. Items are taken at 10:00 a.m. to a drop-off table at the end of each hallway, so please email the teacher to let them know that you have dropped off the water bottle or lunch. You may email your child’s teacher to let them know to allow your child to check the drop-off desk after 10:00 a.m.

• If you need eye glasses delivered to your child, please do not put them on the drop-off table. Bring them to the office staff for immediate delivery to your child.

• Any class work or homework that is dropped off will be placed in the teacher’s mailbox to be picked up during the day.

Delivery of food, flowers, balloons, etc. to students at school are not permitted.

Children are encouraged to bring water bottles each day. Please clearly write your child's name on the bottle with permanent marker. Students may refill their bottles during the day at one of our new water bottle filling stations.

Do you want to recognize an AWESOME Galatas Staff member? If so, follow the steps below:

1. Log in to Parent Access.
2. Click on communication.
3. Choose Teacher/Staff Excellence from the drop down menu.
4. Select the employee to receive recognition from the drop down menu.
5. Click create TAE.
6. Click any of the pre-populated choices that apply.
7. Type any additional comments in the Additional Comment box.
8. Click the box labeled Create Teachers Achieving Excellence button.

When you visit Galatas, we have designated the 8 parking spaces at the entrance (closest to the school) as "visitor" spots. We welcome you to use these spots when you visit the campus. The lower parking lot has been designated as "staff" parking, (as well as a couple of spots that are reserved for our Springetti Parking winners).

If all the visitor spots are full, we ask that you please park at either Cattail Park, the row of spots closest to Galatas in the Community Baptist Church, or the closest end spots at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. These two churches have graciously offered these spots to us as our Galatas Family grows.

Thank you for your help with parking!

Sometimes it is necessary for a student to be checked out of school before dismissal.

If you know that you will need to check-out your child during the school day, please let their teacher know so that they can help your child gather their belongings and prepare for an early departure.

As a reminder, to ensure the safety of all students at dismissal, the latest a student can be checked out of school is 2:45 p.m.

The speed limit in the Galatas school zone is 20 mph. This is to ensure the safety of all of our community members during very busy times in the morning and afternoon. As families enter and exit the car line, please take care to drive slowly and carefully.

In addition, cell phone use in a school zone is prohibited. As you enter areas around schools, please end your calls and put your phone away.

The CISD Police and Montgomery County Sheriff's Department patrol our school zones to ensure everyone's safety, and will issue citations if necessary.

Thank you for your help in keeping our community safe!

With the exception of service animals, dogs and other pets are not allowed on school grounds, including at the top of the hill during arrival and dismissal.

This is for the health and safety of our students and staff.

Here are a few safety tips to keep in mind:

--Do not "cut through" the Good Shepherd parking lot to get into or out of the Galatas parking lot.

--Only cross at crosswalks! Our crossing guards and staff are here to keep everyone safe and ensure that families cross intersections in an efficient manner. Please do not cut through the school parking lot to get to the sidewalks.

--Please do not park behind staff cars in the school parking lot. Please park in a parking space, as blocking cars could cause a safety concern in case of an emergency.

--Please do not park up on the curbs or grass areas in the school parking lot.

--Please be considerate of our neighbors at Hayden's Run and Wyndspire South. Please keep the sight lines at the entrance clear for entering and exiting vehicles.

--Please be considerate of our neighbors at South Silvershire Circle. Please do not park on the grass or lawn of the homes. Take care not to block driveways and leave enough room for residents to easily drive in their neighborhood at all times.

The CISD Board of Trustees has approved the 2023-2024 calendar. For your planning purposes, please download the calendar here.

We thank you in advance for planning all vacations and travel outside of the school calendar. When students are absent, they miss valuable instruction that takes place daily. In addition to the loss of that instructional time, Texas schools are rated not only on academic performance, but also on student attendance. Daily attendance plays a large role in our accountability rating from the state.

We appreciate your support and look forward to a great school year!

May

21 Yearbook Signing

23 4th Grade Clap Out: 10:00 a.m.

23 Early Dismissal: 12:40 p.m. Last Day of School

August

Times for the following events will be announced later this summer:

12 Teddy Bear Tea (Kindergarten)

12 New student/parent orientation (grades 1-4)

12 Meet the teachers (grades 1-4)

14 First day of school