Whitford Newsletter

January 2020

Dear Whitford families,

Welcome back! I hope the holidays and your New Year were filled with love, family time, and a bit of rest. My hope is that batteries have been recharged and students were ready to return to school. January is a busy month. We finish the first semester on January 24th. I encourage you to continue to stress the importance of both the academic and behavior marks for your student(s). These are both crucial in learning the material as well as how to be a student. We have the word rigor in our Whitford vision statement and want it to be enforced at home as well.

On Friday, January 31st, Whitford will be hosting our 2nd annual Career Day. Assistant Principal, Robyn Giacchi, is in charge of this event. We are still needing a few speakers. If you or someone you know would like to talk about, your job, and how you got there, I encourage you to reach out to Ms. Giacchi at robyn_giacchi@beaverton.k12.or.us.

I would like to stress the need to be informed about possible changes to middle school boundaries. The next boundary meeting will be Thursday, January 9th at Mt. View Middle School. It starts at 6:30. Some of our feeder schools are being mentioned as moving boundaries. Conversations have also mentioned the elimination of split feeders into middle school. This could include McKay, Greenway, and Raleigh Park elementary schools. Any changes could have a major impact on where many of our future students attend middle school. I encourage you to either attend or watch the live stream on the Beaverton website. As the principal, I’m required to attend all meetings, but I encourage your active participation. The past two meetings have had over 300 people in attendance with a majority from the north end of the district. The middle school boundary meetings and eventual decisions will impact the entire district. I just don’t want our feeder schools to be forgotten. https://www.beaverton.k12.or.us/departments/long-range-planning/boundary-adjustments/middle-boundary-adjustments/2019-2020-middle-school-boundary-committee-meeting-calendar

As I reflect back on 2019, I always enjoy the last day in December prior to Winter Break. We had our annual Sock Toss for Doernbecher Children's Hospital and collected over 1500 pairs of colorful socks for kids in the hospital. It warms my heart that we have so many generous families in our Whitford community. Student Council did an excellent job organizing the sock toss and end of the day party. Students had a blast throwing the socks, and the entire gym went crazy knowing we broke last year’s record. Whitford is a special place that I’m proud to call home.

Sincerely,

Brian Peerenboom – Principal

Students collected new sock to be donated to Doernbecher Children's Hospital. Whitford collected over 1500 pairs of socks. A new record for Whitford.

January 31st, 8:40am-11am!

We are looking for people who are willing to speak about their career, job, and experiences. Any and all types of professions are welcome. We are looking for variety and bilingualism is a plus! It doesn’t matter what path you took to get there. We would love to have you come! If you are interested in being a speaker, please contact Robyn Giacchi, robyn_giacchi@beaverton.k12.or.us or 503-356-2700.

Each Presenter will have approximately 10 minutes to present to two different classrooms.

Below are some ideas of what to present.

• What is/was your career?
• Share your Pathway to your career, be specific:
• Explain How and Why you chose this profession
• What schooling or training was necessary for your job?
• Does your job require on-going training/classes?
• What personal and academic skills are used in this profession?

• Public speaking/Leadership/Organization/Responsibility
• Communication/Reading/Writing
• Technology/Computer Skills
• Math/Science

When the weather outside gets inclement, school schedules could be affected. The District generally makes inclement weather decisions by 5:15 a.m., posting them by 5:30 a.m. on the District website and on social media. All Portland Metro area media outlets are also notified and announce the information on TV newscasts and online. Parents and guardians that have opted in for SchoolMessenger will receive timely notifications.

The District makes decisions based on the ability to operate school buses safely; the ability of parents and students to drive safely; and the ability of students to walk safely. The decision that is made will be for the entire District. (As always, parents may choose to make different decisions based on their particular location.)

For the latest inclement weather information:
• Log onto the District's website: http://www.beaverton.k12.or.us and a page pop will be posted on the main page if there is a change in school operations.
• Beaverton School District Public Safety webpage has information about inclement weather
procedures and snow routes. http://www.beaverton.k12.or.us/departments/public-safety/ then click on Inclement Weather Information.
• Follow us on
o Twitter @BeavertonSD
o Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/BeavertonSchoolDistrict/
• Follow media outlets. The Districts posts information via Flash Alert. Parents can also sign up
to receive weather alerts: www.flashalert.net

Whitford is competing in the Trex Plastic Film Recycling Challenge. Please recycle your plastic film (shopping bags, bread bags, cereal bags, plastic wrapping around toilet paper / paper towels, etc.). See the recycling symbol on plastic film marked #4 and #2. Or do the "stretch test" - if the plastic stretches a bit when you tug at a small part of it, you can recycle it. If it doesn't, it is not recyclable. See this video for specific types of plastic that are recyclable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hf60y0wRhII

Thank you very much for participating in our plastic film recycling program!

A huge thanks to our partner - Target! Please let Target in Tigard on Hall Blvd know that you appreciate their partnership with Whitford in recycling plastic film!

Whitford Green Club

Six Whitford 8th graders will perform with the Beaverton Honor Band on Saturday, Jan. 11. The performance will be held at Aloha HS auditorium at 3 p.m. The concert will feature both the middle school and high school honor bands. All are welcome to attend the performance!

The ongoing Winter Dreambox Challenge with Five Oaks and Meadow Park continues to be successful, but more Whitford students need to complete 5 or more lessons each week. We have dropped in the rankings and our 2nd week average was below the competition goal of 5 lessons. Make sure you are completing Dreambox lessons and help Whitford earn the coveted trophy!

The Beaverton City Libray will be showing Screenagers NEXT CHAPTER, followed by a moderated discussion at the Beaverton City Libary Meeting Room AB on February 4, 2020 from 6-8 PM.

Two years ago Sexton Mountain joined efforts with the Beaverton City Library (BCL) in bringing the movie Sreenagers to our community. This movie addressed challenges of parenting in our increasingly screen-infused society.

Now, two years later, filmmaker and physician Delaney Ruston created a new documentary, Screenagers Next Chapter. We follow Delaney as she finds herself at a loss on how to help her own teens as they struggle with their emotional well being. She sets out to understand these challenges in our current screen-filled society, and how we, as parents and educators, can empower teens to overcome mental health challenges and build emotional agility, communication savvy, and stress resilience.

This movie will be shown at Whitford during Parent Teacher Conferences, February 26 and 27th.

For more information, watch the trailer: https://www.screenagersmovie.com/nc-trailer

Oliver Luebkert wowed the students with his free throw skills at our last Assembly. Way to go Oliver!!!

1/9/2020 Stamp Testing for 8th Gr DL students 9:15AM

1/9/2020 MS Boundary Meeting 6:30PM Mountainview MS

1/10/2020 Stamp Testing for 8th Gr DL students 9:15AM

1/10/2020 Lights out for Conservation -- all day

1/10/2020 Yearbook Meeting 8AM

1/11/2020 Honor Band concert at Aloha HS 3pm

1/14/2020 Soccer Tournament 7 & 8 Grades only (at Cedar Park) 5-7PM

1/14/2020 Breaking Barriers Parent Meeting 6PM

1/14/2020 PTO meeting 6:30PM

1/16/2020 Geography Bee 4:15PM Library

1/17/2020 Yearbook Meeting 8AM

1/20/2020 Martin Luther King Day – no school for students

1/22/2020 Choir Concert 6:30PM Library

1/24/2020 Yearbook Meeting 8AM

1/24/2020 Last day of the semester

1/27/2020 Grading Day – No School for Students

1/28/2020 First Day of 2nd Semester

1/30/2020 MS Boundary Meeting 6:30PM Meadow Park

1/31/2020 Yearbook Meeting 8AM

1/31/2020 Career Day

2/4/2020 Dental Sealants

2/4/2020 AVID Family Night 6PM

2/6/2020 Spelling Bee – Library 4:15PM