Ridgeline eNews

Full calendar: http://www.ridgeline.org/calendar

Friday 8/30 Back to School forms due

Monday 9/2 Labor Day - office closed

Tuesday 9/3 Staff Work Day

Wednesday 9/4 First day of school & 1:05 pm early release

Wed - Fri 9/4 - 9/6 Half Kindergarten class in morning; half in afternoon

Friday 9/6 $90 supply fee due

Tuesday 9/10 Back to School Picnic 5:30-7:00 pm

Thursday 9/12 Board Meeting 6:00-8:00 pm

Thursday 9/19 Ridgeline 101 6:00-7:30 pm

From the left: Julie, Heather, Kyndle, Jes, Debbie, Amy, Ryan, and Kacie! Click on the photo below to read more and preview staff bios.

Ridgeline students in grades 4, 5, and 6: Ring in the new school year with friends and families by coming to our 2nd annual Back to School Ice Cream Social and Parent Info Night!

• Come and meet your new/returning teachers, assistants, and classmates at 5:30 pm and gobble down some delicious ice cream served by your Upper El staff.

• At 6pm parents will follow the teachers into their classroom for a Q&A session. Siblings are welcome to join.

• Ice cream and goodies will be provided. Bowls and spoons included, but in good environmental consciousness, if you can bring your own bowl and spoon we would appreciate it! (and so would the earth!)

See you there!

Great News!

Ridgeline is excited to announce our school has been approved to participate in the free meal program through 4J starting September 4! All Ridgeline students, regardless of family income, can take morning snack and lunch if they want to.

How You Can Help

We ask that participating families review the weekly meal choices each week. Having conversations with your student about which meals they want to participate in will help reduce overages and food waste.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Families can preview the weekly menus and allergens through LINQ Connect.

How to Access the Ridgeline Menus

1. Filter to Spencer Butte Middle school
2. Click on the gray arrow > to change the month from August to September
3. Change the drop down Calendar Mode to 'Weekly' or 'Monthly'
4. Change the drop down Menu Plan to '2024 Fall - Ridgeline Lunch' (note: this field will change any time you adjust the arrows, so be sure to double check you are viewing the Ridgeline menu)
5. On the left side, toggle between Breakfast (i.e. morning snack) and Lunch menus
6. Hover over any item to see nutrition information or use filters for allergens and dietary restrictions.

7. You may print menus by using the icon in the right corner of the menu page.

*See the image below with highlights and red circles!

Don't Miss This Form!

We've observed that many families with students in grades 4-8 have not yet completed the Wayfinder Permission form in the Back to School Packet. This form is crucial, so please take a moment to fill it out. You can find it in your student's Back to School Packet or simply click on this link: Wayfinder Permission.

• Top image: the Ridgeline Library bulletin board
• Bottom image: the Building B hallway bulletin board.

Facilities - Volunteer Help Needed

We need volunteer help with a few specific jobs before the start of school: hauling wood and refinishing our free Little Library.

To learn more about these volunteer jobs and to sign up, check out Track It Forward. If you have job related questions, please reach out to Jesse Cloninger at jesse.cloninger@ridgeline.org.

1. Volunteers are an integral part of the Ridgeline Community and there are many different ways to get involved. Volunteers serve on committees, prepare materials at home, assist with grounds work, act as crossing guards, help in classrooms, chaperone field trips and much more.

2. Families pledge to complete 40 hours of volunteer time per school year. To fully participate in most volunteer opportunities, volunteers must first complete a background check and volunteer code of conduct.

3. The School Community Coordinator will notify you via email when these 2 steps are complete and you are green badge approved!

4. We would love to get you connected in the ways that best fit your time and talents. Please visit our website for more information on volunteering. You can also reach out to Bethany Dilla, Ridgeline's School Community Coordinator at bethany.dilla@ridgeline.org for more information.

What You Need to Know

• We strongly encourage families to prioritize helping their children arrive at school at 8:15 am.
• Classroom group activities begin promptly at 8:30 am.
  
• Students not in class at 8:30 am must report to the front office to collect a tardy slip.
• Early release days are Wednesdays at 1:05 pm.

Classrooms Open..……………………………………………….........................8:15 am

Tardy: must check in at the front of school…….............…….................8:30 am and after

Dismissal on Monday……………………………………………………….....................3:05 pm

Dismissal on Tuesday………………………...……………………………....................3:05 pm

Dismissal on Wednesday—EARLY RELEASE…………………………........1:05 pm

Dismissal on Thursday………………………...………………………….....................3:05 pm

Dismissal on Friday………………………...……………………………….....................3:05 pm

At Ridgeline, we collect an annual supply fee to cover the cost of essential Montessori classroom materials and school supplies for all of our students. This year, the fee is $90 per student, which has increased slightly by $5 from last year.

The Benefits:

• No Shopping Hassle: Instead of providing you with a long list of specific supplies (and brands) to purchase, we take care of everything for you. This means no more running around to different stores searching for the right items.

• Bulk Purchasing Savings: By purchasing supplies in bulk, we're able to take advantage of lower prices, which helps us stretch every dollar further and ensure that your child has the materials they need.

• Unique Montessori Materials: The fee also covers specialized Montessori materials that are essential to our program but aren’t easily found in big box stores.

We believe this approach not only saves you time and effort but also ensures that all students have access to the same high-quality materials.

Please click on this link to pay the annual $90 supply fee per student by Friday, September 6. If you need assistance with the school supply fee, please fill out the Financial Assistance Form (you must first fill out the Benefit Program Eligibility Survey, formerly Family Income Survey, that is on the website and in the Back to School Packet).

We need your help to fill our substitute pool! If you or anyone you know has time and enthusiasm to spend a day in a Montessori classroom, we’d love to have you as part of our community. NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED - WE TRAIN! Subbing at Ridgeline is a fantastic way to gain experience, help manage classrooms, assist students with their work, and get a taste of Montessori education across all grade levels, and RIDGELINE NEEDS YOU!

Many of our current staff members began their journey as substitutes here—it’s a wonderful stepping stone into a rewarding educational career!

If you’re interested, or if you know someone who might be, please encourage them to apply. Submit a resume and three references to careers@ridgeline.org by Friday, September 8th.

We’ll be hosting a substitute training the week of September 18th. For any questions, reach out to Principal Michelle Texley.

Let’s keep our classrooms thriving—thank you for your support!

More information will be coming soon about:

-The Ridgeline Board

-The Ridgeline Equity Committee

-Site Council

-Event Committees (formerly RCO)

• Summer EBT is a new federal grocery benefits program to help families buy groceries for their school-aged children during the summer.

• Families with eligible children will receive a one-time payment of $120 in food benefits.

• The last day for families to apply for Summer EBT is Sept. 2, 2024. Families can apply online at sebt.oregon.gov.

• Even if a family applies on that day, they might still get the $120 for each eligible child.

• Any unused benefits will expire after 122 days.

• If families have questions about eligibility, they should call the Summer EBT Call Center at 1-833-673-7328.

What's This?

Girls on the Run is an after-school program for third through fifth grade girls that combines social-emotional learning with running and physical activity. Volunteer coaches facilitate lessons that blend life skill development with movement to enable participants to adapt to whatever comes their way. At the end of the season, the team completes a 5K (3.1 mile) run together, the EWEB Run to Stay Warm, which provides a tangible sense of accomplishment and sets a confident mindset into motion.

What You Need to Know

• Practices start September 24 and meet twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:15–4:45 p.m. for eight weeks.

• Practices will be held at Edgewood Community Elementary School and are open to all girls at any school.

• We welcome the participation of youth who identify as girls, gender expansive, or gender non-conforming.

• We also are currently seeking one additional volunteer adult coach—training is provided. Find out more about coaching and how to sign up your future runner at https://www.gotroregon.org/. Questions: Contact Head Coach Karen at 541-246-4664.

The Eugene Springfield Youth Orchestras (ESYO) wants to bring String Academy to Ridgeline. They need a minimum of 12 families in the 3rd-6th grade age range in order to offer it.

• Click here to learn more
• Fill out the String Academy 1 Interest Form
• SA2 info is available and registration is open: https://www.esyorchestras.org/programs/string-academy-ii/