Bobcat Bulletin

El Sierra School provides all students with a challenging and differentiated education in a safe, nurturing, respectful, diverse, and collaborative school environment.

El Sierra Families,

Thank you all for an amazing year this year! El Sierra continues to be a special place because of the efforts of everyone on staff and our amazing families. This final week was filled with positivity from all of our parent volunteers, even on a muddy and rainy Field Day! That makes such a difference for our students. When the adults lead with care and positivity, the students follow that lead. I appreciate how involved our community continues to be at El Sierra. In the 11 years that I have been principal at El Sierra, I continue to be impressed with what our school can accomplish when we all work together. Thank you so much!

We are going to miss our 6th graders! This was an amazing group of students who achieved so much during their time at El Sierra. They even beat the staff in the staff vs. 6th grade volleyball game! That has not happened for over a decade... maybe even longer! We wish each and every 6th grader the best as they prepare for middle school!

As we look ahead to next school year, I do want to remind everyone that due to the construction projects at several of the schools, our start date for school will be on Tuesday, September 2nd. I hope that everyone has as safe, relaxing, and amazing summer!

Thank you!

Jason Lynde, El Sierra Principal

District 58 is nearing the end of the registration process. Thank you to the families that have completed the process. Having accurate registration numbers is essential for determining the number of sections at our school. At this time, our tentative sections and teachers for next year are as follows:

K- Miss Smith & Mrs. Wyatt

K Dual - Ms. Perez

1- Mrs. Meyers & Mrs. Sima (Sinnes)

1 Dual - Ms. Lopez

2- Ms. Mazian

2 Dual - Mrs. DeLeon

3- Mr. Bennett & Ms. Scanlon

3 Dual - Mrs. Blanco

4- Mrs. Iaquinto & Mrs. Volkening

4/5 Dual - Mrs. Guihan

5- Mrs. Incrocci & Mrs. Rohlfing

6- Ms. Echevarria & TBD

6 Dual - Mrs. Cordova

Please note that sections for next year are still ultimately tentative. The reason for this is that things can change over the summer if students move out, move in, or if the State of Illinois or the Federal Government changes the amount of revenue our District will receive. Final sections are always shared by the principal in August. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

5/28 - MAP & AIMSweb Report Emailed Home

6/6 - El Sierra's Office Closes For The Summer

8/7 - El Sierra's Office Opens

9/2 - First Day of School!

If your child is going into 4th grade or exiting 4th grade, your entire family is eligible for a free National Park Pass! Please use this link to access your free pass! Don't forget that Indiana Dunes is also a National Park!

Dear El Sierra Community,

As we close on another school year at El Sierra, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on our successful year as a PTA.

The PTA continues to bring fun to school with activities like field day, assemblies, art appreciation, fun lunch and so much more! We continue to build a strong El Sierra community hosting multiple family events throughout the year. We provided meaningful experiences for our students by partially, or fully funding many class field trips. And we continue to support the El Sierra Teachers & Staff by providing classroom funds, launching our Bobcat Teacher & Staff Grant Program, and providing treats for Staff Appreciation Week.

Our first year of the Bobcat Teacher & Staff Grant Program was a great success! We provided over $4,000 in grant money to buy classroom supplies, books, learning tools, flexible classroom seating, safety patrol supplies, and more!

None of this would be possible without the support of our families and communities. Thank you for donating your time and resources. Our Treasure Trot, Comedy Night, Restaurant Nights, & other fundraising events were such a huge success that we will be carrying over excess funds for more special projects next year & beyond.

Finally, we want to thank Katie Thomas, who stepped down as our El Sierra PTA Co-President in March. Katie made a huge impact in our El Sierra community by being an exceptional leader over the past two years and spearheading many important projects. We thank Katie for her time and dedication to the students at El Sierra and wish her well in her new role as a DG58 Board Member.

We wish your families a wonderful summer!

Your El Sierra PTA Board:

President, Brienne Harris

VP Family Programs, Alicia Holmes and Elena DiVenti

VP Fundraising, Leticia Porter

VP Membership, Sharyn Mihalik

Secretary, Jen Abraham

Treasurer, Alison Cagle

Please see the 2025-26 School Year Calendar below:

Dear 6th Grade Parents,

Does your student plan to participate in a fall sport in middle school? A completed sports physical is required for all middle school athletes—even for practice before tryouts.

Since fall sports practices begin before the school year starts, we strongly encourage you to schedule your child’s sports physical as soon as possible to ensure they are eligible to participate. Sports physicals are valid for 13 months from the exam date, so be sure your child’s physical is up to date. Our health offices are currently accepting physicals dated after September 2nd, 2024.

Please submit completed sports physicals to Susan Donahue at sdonahue@dg58.org. before the first practice. If you have any questions about requirements, feel free to reach out.

Thank you for your attention to this important step in preparing for a great season!

We’re excited to announce a new system for submitting medical records and health reports for all students at El Sierra. This system is focused on making the process easier for families, particularly for those submitting medical records related to physicals, or other health requirements.

If you have medical records you'd like to submit, we encourage you to use this new system by emailing your documents to ESMedicalRecords@dg58.org. Please note that this email address is for form submissions only and is not monitored for inquiries.

For any health-related questions or if you need assistance, feel free to reach out to our school nurse, Mrs. Donahue, at sdonahue@dg58.org.

Thank you for your cooperation in helping us keep student health records up to date!

Do you know a District 58 employee who goes above and beyond? Please consider nominating that individual for a Distinguished Service Award! The Education Foundation of Downers Grove District 58 annually hosts the free Distinguished Service Awards program to recognize the remarkable contributions of District 58 employees. Nominations are due Friday, March 21. The DSA ceremony will be Tuesday, May 6 at 4 p.m. at O’Neill Middle School.

English

• View DSA Frequently Asked Questions

• View the 2025 DSA Nomination Form

Spanish

• Premios al Servicio Distinguido Preguntas Frecuentes

• Premios al Servicio Distinguido Formulario de nominación

Please visit www.dg58.org/dsa for more information.

Email: jlynde@dg58.org
Website: www.dg58.org/es
Location: 6835 Fairmount Avenue, Downers Grove, IL, USA
Phone: (630) 719-5825
Twitter: @PrincipalLynde