Cowern PAWPRINTS

Greetings, Cowern Families!

Welcome to March! Saying that means we are leaving February behind and what a February it was! I want to congratulate everyone for their incredible efforts in supporting our Parent Teacher Group with the "Reading is our Superpower" Read-athon fundraiser! An amazing result. We blew away the goal of $10,000 by raising just over $18,000! Our teacher teams are actively working to plan those extra learning experiences for our students thanks to the efforts of our amazing families.

Next week is our Spring Conference Week. You should have received a link to sign up for your student's conference. If not, here it is. We hope this sign up tool makes it easier to schedule your time with your student's teacher.

Scholastic Book Fair will be available in the gym on Thursday and Friday next week for you to visit.

Due to the crazy weather last week, we were forced to reschedule our Pre-K and Kindergarten Information Night. It is now being held on March 20 from 6:30-7:30PM. If you have an incoming Pre-K or Kindergarten student and want more information about these programs, please plan to attend.

As always, we are so grateful for the partnerships that exist between Cowern and the families of our students. Thank you!

March 3rd - NO SCHOOL - Staff Development

March 4th and 5th - Giants in the Sky performance

March 7th - Culver's Night

March 7th - 10th - Scholastic Book Fair and Conferences

March 10th - NO SCHOOL - Staff Development

March 13th through 17th - NO SCHOOL - Spring Break

March 20th - Pre-K and Kindergarten Info Night - 6:30-7:30pm

In-Person Pre-K and Kindergarten Information Night at your child’s future school is March 20 at 6:30 p.m. Use our searchable boundary map to determine which school your child will attend based on your home address.

If you have questions regarding Pre-K or Kindergarten information nights or registration, you can call the District Enrollment Center at 651-748-7550 or you can call the Cowern Office at 651-748-6800.

Adventure Connection is now accepting registrations for the Summer. Adventure Connection is the district program for providing full day care for students going into grades K-5 during the Summer. Students going into sixth grade can sign up for our EPIC Connection program that serves middle school students. Each week of summer is built around a different theme and packed with choice-based enriching, recreational, educational, and engaging experiences for your kids to grow their passions and discover new ones! Pick your days or weeks or join us for the whole summer. Morning and afternoon snacks provided. Space is limited, so register right away!

To register, or for more information for Adventure Connection, go to isd622.org/ac and for information about EPIC Connection go to isd622.org/epic

Traditionally, on conference day, Cowern parents provide a catered dinner for our teaching staff. It is greatly appreciated by our busy staff! There’s no set amount—whatever works within your budget. Every little bit helps! Please send in your cash or check donation (payable to Cowern) in an envelope to Nichole Alvarez by Monday, March 6.

Thank you!

Nichole Alvarez

Cowern Volunteer Coordinator

nalvarez@isd622.org

The Scholastic Book Fair will be in the Cowern Gym on March 7th - 10th, 2023. If you have some time to help us plan or conduct our Book Fair, please go to Sign Up Genius to sign up online. Please volunteer! Any questions? Contact Nichole Alvarez at nalvarez@isd622.org.

On behalf of the cast of Giants In The Sky, you are officially invited to come and see our young actors shine bright on the stage this month!

Performances are Saturday, March 4th at 1:00 p.m. and Sunday, March 5th at 4:00 p.m. at the Maplewood Community Center, 2100 White Bear Avenue, Maplewood, MN 55109. Our Cowern Cubs have been working so hard to get this show together and they would love to have your support and see you in the audience! To purchase tickets, click on Act! Giants in the Sky - Cowern Cast.

Just a reminder to pick up any missing sweatshirts, jackets, etc. They are hanging on the coat hooks in the hallway across from the BIS Office. Many items have been there for a while. Please be sure to check if your child is missing anything.

Our lost and found will be cleared out after conferences!

Please be sure to call in your child’s absence OR if they are going to be late for any reason call our attendance line at: 651-748-6824 (please call by 8:45 a.m.).

Is my child well enough to go to school? Click the link to learn more.

Attention: When calling in your child’s absence, please do not leave a message saying “they are sick” or “not feeling well.” Be more specific about the absence. Let us know the type of illness your child has (i.e., flu, vomiting, stomach ache, etc.). The Health Office needs to know this information to help keep our school safe and healthy.

If a phone call is not received, the absence remains unexcused. If a child has 3 unexcused absences or 10 out-of-building tardies, the school will send written notification to the family and report the situation to the appropriate county agency. The county agency will exercise progressive steps, if the unexcused absences and/or tardies continue.

Who: EVERYONE!

What: Cowern Elementary Fundraising Event

Where: Culver's Location: 3202 White Bear Avenue White Bear Lake, MN 55110

When: Tuesday, March 7th, 2023 from 4-7pm

How: Grab Dinner or dessert at Culver's from 4-7pm and 10% of drive-thru, dine-in and to-go orders will go towards Cowern Elementary! If you order online, 20% of the order will be donated! It is that simple! No flyer, code, or information needs to be given in order for Cowern to receive proceeds.

Thank you for supporting our Cowern Community!

Below are some resources that will be helpful during this school year:

1. Weekly Food Bags through the EveryMeal - After September 23rd! Bags that are provided with foods structured around USDA MyPlate with options that also cater to different dietary needs and restrictions. Bags will be placed in student backpacks every Friday. There is no eligibility requirements! ANY student can participate. Please sign up here.

2. “Food In-A-Box Pop-Up Market at Cowern” - This is a project that will be done in collaboration with Good in the Hood, a program dedicated to “changing lives through simple acts of kindness.” Their goal is to provide fresh produce, meat, and dairy products to communities once a month to the surrounding communities. We will be setting up a drive-thru mobile market where families can pick up these items in a socially distanced manner. This opportunity is open to ANY and ALL FAMILIES and will happen every third Wednesday from 4:00-6:00 p.m. Click here to get to Food Shelf-In-A-Box link. If you would like to participate, please complete the form by clicking on one of the following links: Form in English, Form in Spanish or Form in Somali and send a copy to KThompson@isd622.org. I am also looking for volunteers to help at distribution. Time slots are open from 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Volunteers can come and go as they please. If you are interested in volunteering on November 23rd, contact Kyliah Thompson via email at KThompson@isd622.org or at 314-312-1097.

3. Minnesota COVID Hotlines for Immigrants and Refugees - There is now a MN COVID hotline specifically dedicated to our families that are immigrants or refugees to get help with COVID questions and one-on-one navigation support (i.e., getting appointments scheduled, finding testing sites and vaccination sites for those eligible, dealing with employers, accessing COVID rental assistance, etc.). It is available to undocumented immigrants, too. The number to call is 651-318-0989, Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

4. COVID-19 Resources - The Suburban Ramsey Family Collaborative put together a massive list of resources related to housing, employment, financial support, unemployment, mental and physical health resources, and so many more for people living in Ramsey County. This is just a list to have at your disposal, but if you need help connecting to resources, please do not hesitate to reach out! Here’s the link: .

5. COVID-19 Vaccine Connector - ISD 622 put together a webpage to find out when and where vaccination sites are in the community. Please visit isd622.org/covidvaccine if you are interested in resources regarding COVID-19 vaccination availability.

6. Housing Resources - Please call Kyliah Thompson, School Social Worker, at 314-312-1097 or email KThompson@isd622.org if you need any assistance. Click Here .

7. Rent Help MN - This is a program for eligible renter s to get caught up on overdue rent and utilities or if you may not be able to pay for next month’s rent due to a COVID-19 related hardship. Here is the link.

Cowern Elementary's mission is to create a safe, engaging, and welcoming community for all learners to grow academically, emotionally, and socially.

The school day is from 8:50-3:20.

Adventure Connection: 651-748-6898

Attendance Line: 651-748-6800

Cowern Health Office: 651-748-6815

Website: isd622.org/cowern
Location: 2131 Margaret Street North, Saint Paul, MN, USA
Phone: 651-748-6800