Worthington Hills Families,
What a wonderful time of year! First, I hope everyone had a fantastic time at the PTA Skate Party—it’s always such a joy to see our school community coming together for fun and connection!
This week and next, we’re diving into MAP testing in our building. I’m so proud of our students for their hard work and focus during this important time. Please encourage them to do their best—it’s a great opportunity to celebrate their growth! With winter break just around the corner, excitement is definitely in the air! As we prepare for the season, I want to remind you of a few important items:
1️⃣ Label Outerwear: Please make sure coats, hats, and gloves are labeled with your child's name. It’s amazing how quickly items can wander!
2️⃣ Check Lost and Found: If your family is missing anything, stop by our lost and found (or check the digital link below) before winter break. All unclaimed items will be donated after the break.
3️⃣ Dress for the Weather: We go outside for recess even when it’s cold, so please ensure your child is bundled up appropriately. Fresh air and movement are so important for our students!
Thank you, families, for all you do to support our school and your amazing kids. We’re so grateful for you! Wishing you a warm and wonderful winter season ahead.
Warmly,
Tiena Miller
Principal
Character ambassadors have been working hard all year organizing and advertising our spirit days at school. For December, they have planned Winter Wonderland Day on Friday, December 13th. Students can dress in their most festive winter/holiday outfits- wear your favorite holiday sweaters or pajamas - anything to spread some joy this holiday season! We will be collecting donations for The Bristol Senior Living Community. They have requested that our students make cards for them to hand out to the residents throughout the year. We are hoping that we can get a card from each student! We have assigned grade levels different holidays. Please note the holiday your child's grade is assigned:
- K-2nd - Happy Holidays
- 3rd-4th - Get Well Soon
- 5th - Happy Birthday
We look forward to seeing all the winter festive wear on December 13th while spreading some smiles to the residents at The Bristol!
We are thrilled to announce that kindergarten registration for the 2025-26 school year will open on January 6th, 2025. Visit our kindergarten Welcome Center website for information about the registration process and requirements. We are excited to announce that starting in the 2025-26 school year, Worthington Schools will be offering universal, no-cost all-day kindergarten for all students. This program will provide a strong foundation for learning and allow us to better meet the needs of every child in our community. For more details about Worthington's All-Day Kindergarten, you can read Superintendent Dr. Bowers blog or watch a presentation about kindergarten from a recent board meeting. We can’t wait to welcome our newest learners to our schools!
Our goal is to create a school environment where every student feels seen, heard, and valued. We’re happy to share our Fall 2024 DEI Newsletter.
Starting Dec 2, 2024, the email address you receive email communications from Infinite Campus will change. Emails will be delivered from wrthschl@worthingtonoh.mg.infinitecampus.org. For more information on how to ensure safe delivery, please see our Parent Guide: Email Safe Sender information.
As we strive to maintain a positive and effective learning environment, I want to remind everyone of the importance of punctuality in our daily routine.
Our tardy bell rings promptly at 8:10 AM, signaling the start of the school day. Arriving on time is crucial to ensure that students can seamlessly transition into their morning routine, engage with their classmates, and make the most of their learning experience.
Being present and ready at the beginning of the day sets a positive tone for the entire day's learning activities. It also helps to minimize disruptions in the classroom, allowing teachers to focus on providing valuable instruction without interruptions.
We appreciate your attention to this matter and your efforts to support a smooth and productive learning environment for all students. Your cooperation in ensuring that students arrive on time is instrumental in fostering a culture of responsibility and respect.
As technology continues to become more present in our student’s lives, Worthington Schools has been seeking to better understand the impacts of technology in our classrooms. All schools in Ohio are required to adopt a policy regarding cell phone use by July 2025. Superintendent Dr. Bowers recently presented student, community, and staff feedback regarding cell phone use in our schools and Worthington’s progress toward defining a cell phone policy which you can view here.
Based on this feedback, we are adjusting our technology practices at the elementary level. Students at our elementary schools have always been asked to silence cell phones and are required to keep them in their bookbags during the school day. Now, this practice will also apply to smartwatches and other wearable technology.
This change supports a more focused and distraction-free classroom environment while still allowing students to access technology for communication to and from school. We understand that many families find value in features like location tracking, and this adjustment allows for these needs to be met without interrupting the school day. Thank you for your continued support as we work together to create the best learning experience for all our students!
Should you have questions, please do not hesitate to reach out.
The Worthington Alliance of Black Families & Educators (WABFE) fall newsletter is now available. You will find it below.
Important Reminder Regarding Food Allergies
This serves as a reminder that there may be some students in your child’s school who have peanut and/or tree nut allergies. As the safety of our children is paramount to all, we need your support to make our cafeteria “nut free”. A child with a nut allergy can suffer a serious reaction merely by touching a food containing a peanut or tree nut. Therefore, we ask that you adhere to the following safety guidelines:
Please do not send in any peanuts, peanut butter or foods containing peanuts or peanut butter to be eaten during lunch.
Read ingredient labels carefully to ensure that the snacks sent in with your child are peanut and tree nut-free.
Please do not hesitate to contact our Health Office Assistant, Liz Martin, RN @ lmartin@wscloud.org or our School Nurse, Beth Laflumboise RN @ elaflumboise@wscloud.org with any questions or concerns about food allergies. They can also be reached at 614-450-4015.
If your child has a change in dismissal - we need to know! Please use the form below or email your child's teacher and our office staff so we can ensure they are where they need to be at dismissal.
Erin Neville - eneville@wscloud.org
Linda Watts - lwatts@wscloud.org
Lori Kallas - lkallas@wscloud.org
Here are some guidelines for when to keep your child home from school:
The protocol for management of communicable disease in Worthington City Schools is based upon the Ohio Department of Health’s guidelines and recommendations. Your child is too ill to go to school if any of the following symptoms are present:
● Temperature of 100 F or above by mouth (Student must stay home until fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication. In most cases this means the student will miss the following school day. Please understand fevers can reoccur within a 24 hour time period and this policy is in the best interest of all students.)
● Vomiting or diarrhea within the past 24 hours (Student must stay home for 24 hours to ensure these symptoms are gone before returning to school.)
● Shortness of breath or increased wheezing during normal activity
● Has a cough that interrupts normal activity
● Pain from an earache, headache, sore throat or recent injury
● Has yellow or green drainage from nose or eye(s)
● Rash over body or localized to one area of the body (A student who shows signs of a communicable disease exhibiting as a rash may return to school once the rash is gone or a doctor’s note is presented stating the student may return to school.)
● Fatigue that requires bed rest (common with flu-like symptoms)
● Signs of conjunctivitis such as red, crusty or swollen eyes (Student may return once symptoms have been treated and are gone or a doctor’s note is presented stating the student may return to school .)
If your child is ill, please do not send them to school to be checked by the school nurse. Such exposure may be harmful to the child as well as to the children with whom they come in contact. Please report all contagious diseases to the school office in order that the proper steps may be taken within the school to prevent the spread of disease. If your child becomes ill, or is injured at school, you will be called and expected to come to school to pick-up the child. We will be guided by information on the “Health Services” portion of your student’s Online Registration Summary. You are asked to supply that information on or before the start of school. If there are ever any changes to this information during the school year, please notify the school office immediately and make those changes online.
Please click here to learn about lice protocols. Please note that Worthington Hills appropriately handles lice cases as outlined in the link above. For more information on head lice visit:
There will be no PTA meeting/happy hour in December. See you in January!
Want information about PTA meetings and other PTA sponsored events?
- Sign up at Givebacks, the hub for all PTA things. There is no fee to sign up to receive information on events, meetings, and volunteer opportunities. The link to sign up is https://wohills.givebacks.com/join/fc83d8
- Join our Facebook Group. You can find it by searching for Worthington Hills PTA or click on the link below. Please make sure to answer the questions for approval. https://www.facebook.com/groups/141468395941390
- Check out our PTA page on the school district page, or click on the link below. There you will find meeting minutes, who your board members are, and how to get in touch with us. https://hills.worthington.k12.oh.us/studentsparents/departments
Looking for ways to support the PTA?
- Become a voting member of the PTA. Your donation of $10 allows you to have a vote at the PTA meeting as well as give to the PTA fund for school programming, school events, and curriculum needs. Click on the link below to become a voting member: https://wohills.givebacks.com/store
- Attend the monthly PTA meetings. Your input is crucial to the success of our school community. See ways to access the calendar above.
- Volunteer at PTA events. Volunteers are what make our PTA such a success. See links above for upcoming volunteer opportunities.
- Join one of our many committees to help plan PTA events for students and staff.
- Email Janet Glazier (jglazier928@gmail.com) for a list of committees.
How do I contact the PTA committee chairs or the board?
Please send an email to worthingtonhillspta@gmail.com, or jglazier928@gmail.com.
