Bee Cave Beehive

I hope this emails finds everyone healthy!

I hope everyone had the opportunity to see the video from the BCE staff on how we continue to stay inspired even though we miss the students!

Thank you for continuing to share your children with us and for staying connected to us! Thank you for your patience and understanding with this amazing process, during this difficult time.

Take care,

Principal Kellner

Rachel Hughes has a passion for getting students excited about learning. She is always determined to fill her classroom with enthusiasm, love, and kindness. She likes to bring energy into her classroom and often uses rapping as a tool to engage students in their learning. Her favorite part of being a teacher is watching the children learn, grow, and be the best version of themselves. Rachel earned her Bachelor and Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Texas State University, and has been teaching for 11 years. Rachel, her husband Matt, and her two children Hailey and Brayden have been part of the Lake Travis community for the past 8 years.

A HUGE shout out to our BCE Volunteers of the year, Patricia Germann and Dennis Germann and our BCE Mentor of the Year, Mike Pagi. Thank you so much for your gift of time and talent to our students, staff and parents. We couldn't do it without your dedication! We truly appreciate you!

Hello Bobcats!

I wanted to share with you that we still have things happening through the library:

• You can still visit the library by visiting the LTISD Library Online in the "Groups" tab on Schoology. I have a lot of videos of me reading picture books. I also have ebook links and other activities for you to do.
• We have a virtual book club in full swing. We read several chapters each week of a book voted on by the kids and then meet on Fridays in Google Meet to discuss the book. You can find the links for the books and my hangout in the Library Group.

BCE Book Club starts at 10:00 for K-2nd and 10:30 for 3-5th graders.

Here's the link: https://meet.google.com/iyr-qjfu-ezi

• This is super exciting! Penguin Book Publishing heard about our book club and would like to pay for an author to visit us during our Friday book club! They will let me know which author will be visiting soon. I would love to promote this and max-out the author visit with as many kids as possible.
• Schlitterbahn and Six Flag Reading Program tickets will still be disbursed. I will keep you posted about this.
• In regards to overdue books, we are working on a plan to collect overdue books and will let you know soon.

I think that's about it for now! Thank you for visiting me on Schoology! I am proud of all of you that are continuing to read!

Thanks,

Mrs. Cheeney

It is time for us to start working on next year! Part of our planning process is to seek input from parents. This process is designed to gain input from parents, however it is not a requirement for placement. Requests for specific teachers will not be considered. For your convenience, I have also linked the form for Lake Pointe Elementary for those of you who will be transferring. Parents only need to fill out the form for the campus their child will be attending next fall. The links go directly to the campus principal of each school. If you choose to provide input, please do so before the deadline which is May 11th, 2020.

BCE Parent Input Form

LPE Parent Input Form

For those of you that will be transferring to LPE next year, Principal Kelly Freed has asked me to send you the link to her current newsletter for more information.

Please know, that if you are one of our families leaving us to another campus next year, you will be missed!

Dear Lake Travis ISD Staff, Parents and Guardians,

As you may already know, Governor Greg Abbott earlier today announced the “opening of Texas” will begin to occur in various stages. However, he also indicated all public and private schools will remain closed through the remainder of the current school year. Please note, the current school year will not be extended into the summer.

While LTISD buildings and facilities will remain closed, we will continue to engage our students through our online learning platform. We will also continue to provide essential operations as needed including grab and go meals, cleaning and custodial services, and other critical functions. As we have done throughout the closure, all district employees will continue to be paid, and I fully expect our employees to continue to be paid next year as well.

Additionally, the governor’s order results in the cancellation of all LTISD events scheduled through Friday, May 22, our final day of instruction for the current school year. These cancelled events include our Lake Travis High School graduation ceremony originally scheduled to be held Friday, May 22 at Cavalier Stadium. Instead, LTHS staff will provide a virtual ceremony for our seniors and their families on Friday, May 22, and plans are in progress for an alternate graduation event to be held in person on Saturday, August 1 at the HEB Center at Cedar Park.

I know you have many questions regarding the return of school-issued items such as books, uniforms, technology devices and other materials, the pickup of personal belongings, and the status of summer school, camps and other such programs. I will be hosting another Facebook Live event late next week where I will attempt to answer these and other questions. Additional details for the event will be shared with you next week.

In the meantime, I ask for your continued patience, flexibility and support. Please know I will keep you updated with any developments. I wish you and your family much health during this time.

Sincerely,

Brad Lancaster, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools

Lake Travis ISD staff is providing free meals to children 0-18 years of age. Packaged breakfast and lunch will be available for pickup together between 8:30 and 10:30 a.m. at each of our three middle school campuses:

• Bee Cave Middle School - 5400 Vail Divide, Austin, 78738
• Hudson Bend Middle School -15600 Lariat Trail, Austin, 78734
• Lake Travis Middle School - 4932 Bee Creek Road, Spicewood, 78669

Meals are provided in drive-through fashion at the bus drop-off location at each middle school campus. Parents will not need to exit their vehicle, but, according to federal guidelines, all children must be present in the vehicle to receive a meal. Please note, hot meals are not being provided. Instead, meals consist of packaged cereals, sandwiches, fruit, vegetables, fruit juice, milk and/or water.

While some of you may be eager to volunteer your time and services during our meal pickup, we must keep in mind and adhere to local and state restrictions limiting public gatherings. Our outstanding food service department has this under control. We sincerely appreciate your concern and willingness to help.

For more information, visit the Coronavirus section on the Lake Travis ISD website, or email foodservice@ltisdschools.org.

Resources For Students:

• First Aid for Feelings: A Workbook to Help Kids Cope During the Coronavirus Pandemic

Resources for Parents:

• 24/7 Helpline 512-472- (HELP) - Integral Care’s 24/7 Helpline provides around the clock crisis support as well as access to all of our programs and services for adults and children, including appointments and billing. Our team is here to help. We’ll listen to you and care about you, support you without judgement and provide immediate support in a mental health crisis.

• Limiting screen time is healthy. View the following links to help you manage your child’s technology use.

• Screenagers

• Check out Tech Talk Tuesdays

• Netsmartz

• Common Sense Education

School Counselors are still available to support our students and families during this time of remote learning. Please reach out as needed. Please feel free to contact our school counselor Courtney Trimmer at trimmerc@ltisdschools.org

BCE's 2018-2019 Federal Report Card, State School Report Card and Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) are now posted on the district website at https://www.ltisdschools.org/accountability or under Families > Accountability. These reports are provided by the Texas Education Agency as part of federal and state accountability requirements.

BCE PTO offers enrichment programs, hosts community events, appreciates teachers, and funds tens of thousands of dollars of recurring annual expenses towards continued support of our BCE students!

Please join me in welcoming our 2019-2020 PTO Board:

President: Tiffany Greenberg

Vice President: Miko Tachibana

Treasurer: Jo Youngblood & Allison Fisher

VPs of Fundraising: Sarah Savage

VP Membership: Stefanie Boicelli

Secretary: Meagan Gafford

On behalf of the 2019-2020 PTO Board, THANK YOU to all parents for supporting our school with your time and resources. We truly have the best community here at Bee Cave Elementary!

Volunteering at BCE is the best way to get involved, meet new people, and directly impact your child's school experience. Check out all of our volunteer opportunities and sign up for the areas that interest you. Thanks in advance for your support of BCE! It’s going to be another amazing year!

Website: https://www.ltisdschools.org/Domain/12
Location: 14300 Hamilton Pool Road, Austin, TX, USA
Phone: 512-533-6250
Twitter: @BCEBobcats