1. 10/25 - WCS 7th & 8th Grade Dance, 6:30pm

2. 10/29 - WCS Picture Retakes, 10:30-11:30am

3. 10/30 - ABS Stone Soup Celebration, food contributions may be dropped off until 10/29

4. 11/01 - NO SCHOOL / Diwali

5. 11/02 - Williston Craft Show @WCS, 9am-4pm

Important Upcoming Dates to Note

10/28 - Multilingual Celebration

10/29 - WCS Picture Retakes, 10:30-11:30am

10/30 - ABS Stone Soup Celebration @All Lunchtimes

11/01 - Diwali / NO SCHOOL

11/02 - Williston Craft Show

11/12 - Intergen Book Group

11/14 - WFAP Monthly Meeting - CANCELLED for November

11/15 - ABS Picture Retakes, 10:00 - 11:30am

11/25 - NO SCHOOL / THANKSGIVING BREAK

by Lauren Goracy, Director of Special Services

Hello Williston Schools Community,

My name is Lauren Goracy, and I am the Director of Special Services at Williston Schools. Last Friday, I had the pleasure of participating in a parent-led council called SEPAC. As an administrator, my purpose in attending is to listen and learn from this group of caregivers who are part of the CVSD Community and have students with disabilities attending CVSD schools. Below is our mission statement, which explains the purpose of this parent-led group. We are looking for more parent volunteers to join this council and all CVSD caregivers are welcome to attend.

CVSD SEPAC Mission

The mission of the Champlain Valley Union School District Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) is to facilitate authentic and effective communication, understanding, and mutual respect that is meaningfully inclusive of all students, caregivers, educators, administrators, school board members, and the community at large to guide the school district in providing access to and delivery of high-quality equitable services and instruction for students who qualify for additional support.

A note from SEPAC:

Just last spring, the CVSD Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SEPAC) was formally

launched. Many thanks to the parent members who helped to form this collaborative group. CVSD’s SEPAC is currently made up of a dedicated group of parents and administrators and is open to all; please spread the word! For more information or to join, please contact Erin Bingham at bingham.erin@gmail.com.

Sincerely,

Lauren Goracy

Williston Schools Director of Special Services

Any time a student is going to be absent, or has a change to their dismissal/end of day plan,

please notify the following depending on your student's school:

ALLEN BROOK SCHOOL

1. The classroom teacher

2. Front Office: absfrontoffice@cvsdvt.org or this form

3. ABS Team Assistant Celeste Plouffe: cplouffe@cvsdvt.org

4. School Nurse (if due to illness): slove@cvsdvt.org

WILLISTON CENTRAL SCHOOL

1. The classroom teacher

2. Front Office: wcsattendance@cvsdvt.org or this form

3. Your student's Team Assistant(TA)

4. School Nurse (if due to illness): wcshealthoffice@cvsdvt.org

Reminder: If there is any change to your student's typical end of day plan, please be sure to contact the school BEFORE 1:00PM (or 12:00 pm on Wednesdays). Changes in your student(s) schedule will not be accepted after this time unless it is an emergency.

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

This October is Substance Use Prevention Month. It reminds us that everyone plays a vital role in prevention, whether in the home, at school or in the community. Students across the district are engaged in and beyond October in various prevention, education, harm reduction, and wellbeing learning opportunities. And, research shows that as caregivers, you have the strongest influence on your child's decisions about substance use, starting with meaningful connection and conversations.

To support these discussions, Connecting Youth shares these two important prevention resources:

1. Family Conversation Guide: A practical tool to help you navigate discussions about substance use with your child in an age-appropriate, trust-building way.

2. National Rx Drug Take Back Day, Saturday, October 26! Dispose of your unused medications—a simple yet powerful step in prevention. Find your nearest collection site here

Remember, our Student Assistant Professionals (SAPs) are here to partner with you, offering additional support and guidance as you build on these relationships with your kids.

Together in prevention,

Connecting Youth

October 24th, 2024

Dear Williston Families,

We wanted to reach out to let you know that we have many confirmed cases of pneumonia in both ABS and WCS and many students are out sick with fever and bad cough. If your child’s fever is lasting more than 3 days and/or their cough doesn't improve, consider checking in with a pediatrician regarding a treatment for pneumonia.

In an effort to reduce the spread of illness, we ask that you keep your sick child home until they are healthy (fever-free x 24 hours without medicine and symptoms improved), reinforce the importance of covering coughs and sneezes with an elbow or tissue, and encourage your child to wash hands often and well. At school, we are reinforcing good hand and cough hygiene and cleaning in work spaces.

Please, let the Health Office know (email WCSnurse@cvsdvt.org for WCS and slove@cvsdvt.org for ABS) if your child is sick with flu-like illness or if they have been diagnosed with Flu, pneumonia, or strep throat. If you have any questions, we encourage you to call your child's pediatrician or refer to the resources we've shared below.

Be well,

Nurse Maria, Nurse Samantha and Nurse Love

Pneumonia

Treatment of Flu:

Treating the Flu | Vermont Department of Health

University of Vermont Flu Resources:

Influenza: What You Need to Know This Year

Ingredients - Pumpkin puree, low fat evaporated milk, vanilla instant pudding mix, pumpkin pie spice

* If you have any allergy / dietary concerns for the recipe, please contact your classroom teacher.

Picture Retake at ABS on Friday, November 15

from 10:00 - 11:30am

Students MUST return their complete original package to receive a new retake picture package. For students who are taking their first picture, they only need to show up.

Families can contact Beltrami directly regarding all picture related questions.

email: bryan@beltramistudios.com

Phone: (802) 863-6223

Important Dates

10/31 - Deadline for signing up for Beginner Band AND completing rental contracts

11/11 - Instruments delivered and lessons start

Sign Up Form

Instrument Rental Contract

WCS Band webpage

Picture Retake at WCS on Tuesday, October 29 from 10:30-11:30am

Students MUST return their complete original package to receive a new retake picture package. For students who are taking their first picture, they only need to show up.

Families can contact Beltrami directly regarding all picture related questions.

email: bryan@beltramistudios.com

Dear WCS Parents and Caregivers,

As we navigate a culture in which cell phones and social media are all around us, it's important to remember that these technologies, while often helpful, can pose risks for our youth and teens. Unfortunately, we are seeing daily reminders of this in the world news, our local community, and regrettably, in our schools.

Excessive screen time and exposure to harmful content can affect students’ mental health, self-esteem, and social development. Cyberbullying, inappropriate content, and pressure to constantly stay connected are some of the challenges students may experience.

Please consider the following suggestions for promoting safe cell phone use:

1. Open Communication: Encourage your child to share their online experiences with you, and create a safe space for them to discuss any concerns.

2. Set Boundaries: Establish limits on screen time and monitor the apps and platforms they use.

3. See Something, Say Something: Remind your student to alert a trusted adult right away if they are sent or exposed to unexpected content that could cause harm.

4. Privacy Settings: Teach your student about the importance of keeping personal information private and using strong privacy settings.

5. Be a Role Model: Show healthy screen habits by balancing your own use of technology.

6. Stay Informed: Regularly update yourself on the latest apps and social media trends to understand what your student is engaging with.

Our interest and involvement as adults makes a difference in helping our students remain safe.

Caregivers may also find these resources helpful:

• American Psychological Association, What parent should know…

• Common Sense Media's Family Media Agreement,

• “Tech Talk Tuesdays” feature on the Screenagers Blog

Thank you

Communication with parents and caregivers is a key component in maintaining family engagement and support. Currently, every teacher/team and school communicates regularly in some way to families. Emails, blogs, newsletters, websites, and Facebook are a few of these methods. If you reach out to a person who works in the district, you can expect a response to your communication within two (2) school days (keeping in mind that weekends and the days school is not in session are not included). In the event that a response will take more time, district employees may acknowledge receipt of your email, call, or otherwise contact you with information about when they will be able to provide resolution to your request. Please remember that if you have a concern, please go to the person most directly involved first. You are also encouraged to use the CVSD Connect With Us page.

• First Call - 488-7777: phone support, crisis intervention, assessment and referrals
• In Crisis: 1-800-SUICIDE (1-800-784-2433) (National Hopeline Network: USA)
• National Suicide Prevention Life line- 1-800-273-TALK (8255), call or chat online
• Crisis Text Line - text HOME to 741741 (24 hours a day, seven days a week)
• Outright Vermont - support for LGBTQ+ community
• UVM Breathe In Breath Out - How to deal with stress due to COVID-19
• Vermont 211 -Vermont database of resources and services
• Vermont Support Line (833) 888-2557) - peer support warmline open 24/7 - 365 for call or text
• Teen Crisis Text Line - Crisis Text Line provides free emotional support and information to teens in any type of crisis, including feeling suicidal. You can text with a trained specialist 24 hours a day. Text “HOME” to 741741.
• Society for the Prevention of Teen Suicide - Website where you can find information to help yourself or a friend who may be having thoughts of suicide.
• Trevor Lifeline - 1-866- 488-7386 - provides suicide prevention and crisis intervention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) young people. It offers free, 24/7, confidential counseling. TrevorText—text START to 678-678; TrevorChat—instant messaging at TheTrevorProject.org/help. It also runs TrevorSpace, an affirming social networking site for LGBTQ youth at TrevorSpace.