Mrs. Johansen, Sandburg Principal
Hello Wildcat families!
Welcome to the 2024-2025 school year! I'm excited to begin my 26th year in education. I started my career in District 15 as an elementary teacher at Sanborn Elementary School where I taught for 12 years. My first administrative role was serving as the Assistant Principal at Central Road. From there, I moved to Carl Sandburg where I was the Principal for two years. I transitioned to Sanborn Elementary to serve as Principal for five years and have recently returned to Carl Sandburg where I'm in my fourth year as Principal.
My husband, Chad, and I have two children. Payton is 18 and is off to college this year! She is majoring in Elementary Education. Michael is 16 and is a junior in high school. He is a golfer and we've enjoyed watching him compete in many tournaments this summer. I look forward to introducing them to you at various school events this year.
I am so proud of our school and the great work we do for our students. I am also very excited to welcome our school community to the first school year as Carl Sandburg Middle School! Many hours have gone into the plans for this coming school year and we look forward to watching them come to life!
Please make sure you read this newsletter and other future communication thoroughly so that you can be an informed parent throughout the school year.
Go Wildcats!
Erika Johansen
Mr. Hernandez, Sandburg Assistant Principal
Greetings Wildcats!
It is an honor to be a part of the Sandburg community as your Assistant Principal this year. Professionally, I've taught middle school for 16 years, high school for 6 years, and served as a high school administrator for 3 years. Personally, I am a father of three boys, two of which are currently in high school. I look forward to speaking with you and your child about their goals and how we can support and guide them in this phase of their life to make their middle school years positive and productive.
For those whose child/children are supported with 504's, I will be your primary contact for these matters this year and I am eager to partner with you in this undertaking. Be aware that some will receive an email invite from me soon so we can meet and continue this support process for your child. I want to thank you ahead of time for your patience in this endeavor as we try to find a time and date that works for all the participants involved.
I anxiously await the beginning of the school year and meeting all of you in various settings. I welcome all conversations with you and would be grateful for any insight that you can provide that will help me in getting to know your child and having a great year.
Go Wildcats!
Miguel Hernandez
Mr. DeFeo, Sandburg Student Services Coordinator
Hello Sandburg Families!
I’m very excited and honored to begin my second year as the Carl Sandburg Middle School Special Education Coordinator. This will be my 13th year as an administrator. I’ve always had a passion for supporting students with special needs regardless of my specific administrative role.
Please know our parents and families play an integral part in helping to create successful individualized education plans. All of the Annual Review meetings for the year have been scheduled. However, you always have the right to reach out to your child’s Case Manager to request a meeting to discuss any concerns you may have. You do not have to wait until the Annual Review.
Our families will receive a Notification of Conference that will serve as an invitation ten (10) days prior to your scheduled meeting. You will also receive IEP draft paperwork that may contain specific assessment data, grade information, and goal updates three (3) days prior to the meeting for your review. We would like every team member fully informed and ready to participate during the scheduled meeting.
I can’t wait for the 2024/2025 school year to begin and welcome all of our students back! Feel free to reach out to me if you would like more detailed information on our Special Education process. I look forward to working with you and creating a partnership to support your child’s success this school year.
Take care,
Anthony DeFeo
Thank you for the likes and follows on our social media platforms, Please follow us on Facebook and Instagram if you have not gotten a chance yet, this will be where the latest PTSA information will be communicated.
Remember the PTSA is completely funded through memberships, donations, and fundraising efforts. We greatly appreciate any support we receive. Please visit our membership page to see ways to support by clicking here. We hope your summer is filled with fun and sun!
Our school supply list can be located on our website. Each middle school student will be provided a planner and an accordion folder on their first day of school.
Please read the following important information from the School Nurse regarding Health requirements Mandated by the State of Illinois. The links to the necessary health forms to be completed are provided.
Please note that if your child wishes to tryout for one of our competitive sport teams they will need to have a current physicals on file with the school nurse. Physicals are valid for 13 months.
6th grade Health Requirements
1. PHYSICAL EXAMINATION - must have taken place within one year prior to the first day of school. The form is due NO LATER THAN OCTOBER 15, 2024.
REQUIRED IMMUNIZATIONS - PROOF of previously required immunizations and two new mandatory 6th grades immunizations:
∙Tdap
∙Meningococcal conjugate vaccination
Certificate of Child Health Examination-English
Certificado de Examen de Salud Infantil-Español
2. DENTAL EXAMINATION
Due by May 15, 2025. A dental exam dated from 11/15/23-5/15/25 is acceptable.
7th grade AND 8th grade - (NOT Mandatory)
1. SPORTS PHYSICAL - Required ONLY for those interested in interscholastic sports participation. Physical exam MUST be turned in before try-outs.
Students that are NEW to CCSD15 -
1. PHYSICAL EXAMINATION And All required IMMUNIZATIONS
2. DENTAL EXAMINATION
3. EYE EXAMINATION
Students with severe allergies, asthma, diabetes or seizure disorders MUST have the Action Plans and Medications turned in by the first day of school. Forms can be found on the District 15 website:
Health Services / Documents/Forms
Please feel free to contact me with any questions!
Trina Annerino BSN, RN - School Nurse
847-963-7802 Fax 847-963-7806
Nine days or less for school success!
Across the state, student absenteeism is getting a lot of attention right now, and for good reason. In Illinois, more than 1 out of every 4 students misses about 2 days a month, or 10% of the school year. Students missing this much of the school year are considered Chronically Absent. Missing two days a month may not seem like a lot, but it amounts to missing a whole month of school. In fact, if starting in kindergarten, a student who misses just 1.5 days each month will have missed 175 days by the end of their senior year. That’s a whole school year of lost instruction!
In District 15, about 1 in five students (21%) was Chronically Absent. The positive academic and social impact of regular attendance is so important that District 15 has committed to reducing the number of chronically absent students in half (from 21% to 10%) by 2027. To support this goal, District 15 is starting an “Every Day Counts: Attend Today, Achieve Tomorrow” initiative in the Fall of the upcoming school year.
This Fall, parents will see some new actions and communication from the District and Sandburg. These actions are designed to promote regular student attendance. In the Fall, families will begin to receive information about the importance of attendance, tips on how to help students attend as much school as possible, and regular updates to help families track how often their student is absent each month. Our schools are also organizing themselves to reach out early and support students and families experiencing attendance difficulties. If you are concerned about your child’s attendance, consider logging into Infinite Campus to check exactly how many absences they had this year.
Administrative and Office Team
Erika Johansen- Principal (johansee@ccsd15.net)
Miguel Hernandez- Assistant Principal (hernanm2@ccsd15.net)
Anthony DeFeo- Special Education Coordinator (defeoa@ccsd15.net)
Anne Carter- Secretary (cartera@ccsd15.net)
Dianne Barajas- Clerical Secretary (barajasd@ccsd15.net)
Trina Annerino- Nurse (annerink@ccsd15.net)
Erika Johansen
Email: johansee@ccsd15.net
Website: https://www.ccsd15.net/CS
Location: 2600 Martin Lane, Rolling Meadows, IL, USA
Phone: 847-963-7800
Facebook: facebook.com/csmswildcats
Instagram: @sandburgwildcats
Twitter: @csmswildcats