The Eagle Soars
Sunflower Elementary - August 11, 2023
Upcoming Events
August 14: First Day of School for Preschool - Full Day for Grades K-4
August 15: Primary Family Information Night - Each grade level will present a program full of information about what your child's school year will look like.
- Kindergarten 6:00 pm
- 1st Grade 6:30 pm
- 2nd Grade 7:00 pm
August 17: Intermediate Family Information Night - Each grade level will present a program full of information about what your child's school year will look like.
- 3rd Grade 6:30 pm
- 4th Grade 7:00 pm
August 25: PTO Family Movie/Game Night @ 6:30 pm
August 29: Fall Picture Day
September 4: Labor Day NO SCHOOL
September 5: Site Council Meeting 6:00 pm @ Sunflower Library
PTO Meeting at 7:00 pm
September 22: PTO Color Run
- Dinner 6:00 pm
- Run 7:00-7:30 pm
Meet the Office Staff
Dr. Jason Jones, Principal
Janet McConville, Administrative Assistant
Terra DuPree, Building Secretary
Marlene Gabriel, School Counselor
Janice Haney, BSNRN
Carissa Erlacher, School Psychologist
SUNFLOWER FAMILY DIGITAL FLIPBOOK
Learning is Fun and G.A.M.E.S
Dr. Jones and the Sunflower staff introduced our theme for this year: Learning is Fun and G.A.M.E.S!
Counselor's Corner
In Case Of An Absence...
IF YOUR STUDENT...
...HAS AN EXCUSED ABSENCE due to illness, appointment, funeral or family emergency, please email the attendance line SEattendance@usd231.com as soon as possible. If we haven't heard from parents by 9:00 am, we will call to check on your child. You can also call in student absences to the absentee line at 913-856-3749.
...WILL BE LATE TO SCHOOL, please let our office know ahead of time (if possible). When your student arrives at school, they will need to stop by the office first, and the secretaries will give them a hall pass.
...WILL BE ABSENT BECAUSE YOU'RE GOING OUT OF TOWN, this is considered an UNEXCUSED absence, unless preapproved by Dr. Jones. Please do not just tell the teacher! Please request approval in writing by emailing Dr. Jones at jonesja@usd231.com.
...NEEDS TO LEAVE SCHOOL EARLY, you can call to let us know you are on your way, but students will not be called out of class UNTIL a parent is present to sign them out. Please plan ahead for appointments, as we would like to minimize missed class time. You will need to come into the office to sign your student out. You won't be able to park outside and call us to send your student out to you.
...HAS DIFFERENT DISMISSAL INSTRUCTIONS, please call the office as soon as possible. If change of dismissal instructions are received after 3:00 pm, we can do our best to relay the message to your student.
AND LAST, BUT NOT LEAST...
If you notify your student's teacher of an absence, please also let the office know. Everybody's lives are crazy and busy...everybody's human...everybody can forget to forward an email on to the appropriate person. So, if you send an email to your student's teacher about an absence, please "cc" Terra (dupreet@usd231.com) and Janet (mcconvillej@usd231.com). That way, at least one of us gets the email and gets it taken care of right away. Thank you!!
SCHOOL SAFETY & NEW VISITOR MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
Over the summer, USD 231 implemented another measure to ensure the safety of our students and employees. That action is the installation of the visitor management system, Raptor. Raptor will scan a valid government ID and immediately report if there is any reason for the individual not to be in the building. Once the background is checked, the printer attached to Raptor will print out a visitor badge with the picture from the ID.
Although this might be a minor inconvenience for visitors, the safety of our students and employees is paramount.
To learn more about the Raptor system, click HERE.
Thank you for your understanding and support.
If you need to drop off something for your student, for example, their lunch, there will be a table available for parents to drop it off each time as well. Just make sure to notify the front office who the item(s) are for.
Sunflower PTO
We invite everyone to join the Sunflower PTO Facebook page. By searching "Gardner Sunflower PTO" under Pages, you will be able to join the group and receive updated PTO information.
Follow Us on Social Media!
Districtwide At-Risk Preschool Offered
Great news! Due to funding from KSDE, USD 231 will again be able to provide At-Risk Preschool for 3 and 4 year olds (the program was slated to end but we received word last week our district would be able to qualify).
USD 231 will be providing At-Risk Preschool for 3 and 4 year olds during the 2023-24 school year. The program will be held at Moonlight, there will be an AM and PM section, and students will attend M, T, Th, F with transportation provided. We will be able to have 10 students in the morning and 10 students in the afternoon.
If families are interested, please contact Angie Plank at 856-2030.
Students need to meet one of the following criteria:
1. Poverty (Preschool-Aged At-Risk) Qualifies for free meals under the National School Lunch Program /KSDE Household Economic Survey on September 20, 2021.
2. Single parent families; Custodial parent is unmarried on the first day of school.
3. Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF) referral
4. Teen parents - one parent was a teenager when the child was born.
5. Either parent is lacking a high school diploma or GED
6. Limited English Proficiency
7. Lower than expected developmental progress in at least one of the following areas: cognitive development; physical development; communication/literacy; social emotional/behavior; adaptive behavior/self-help skills
8. Child qualifying for migrant status
9. Child experiencing homelessness