Greetings families,

It has been a great start to the school year! Our students are doing amazing work and are having an awesome start to their year. We just completed our first 3-week term and students are getting a good understanding of what their individual goals are to work towards graduation. Please ask them about this at home and have them show you what this looks like.

As we continue this partnership of ensuring student success, we look forward to meeting with you at our upcoming conference times. There is specific information below, however, if you are unable to come in during those times, please connect with your students' advisory teacher to schedule a time to connect.

If there is anything we can do to support you or your student, please don't hesitate to reach out to your student's teacher or myself.

Thank you,

Kari Varichak

Kari Varichak

Assistant Principal of Area Learning Center

Fridley Public Schools

6000 West Moore Lake Drive | Fridley, MN 55432 | 763-502-5036 | kvarichak@isd14.org

I wanted to take this opportunity to draw your attention to an important event occurring. Fridley Public Schools will hold a Community Referendum Meeting on Tuesday, October 1, 2024, at 6:30 p.m. in the Fridley Community Center (6085 7th St. NE). Hmong, Somali, and Spanish interpreters will be available at the in-person meeting.

If you have a question you’d like answered during the evening, please fill out this form and our team will have the information ready to present that evening.

Can’t make it in person? The meeting will be live-streamed in English, Hmong, Spanish, and Somali. Visit https://www.fridleyschoolsreferendum.org/community-meeting for the live stream links and more information.

For more information on the referendum, please visit our website: https://www.fridleyschoolsreferendum.org/.

As always, thank you for your support of the Fridley Public Schools and the students we serve!

Sincerely,

Brenda Lewis, Ph.D.

Superintendent

September 30th-October 4th Homecoming Week

October 3rd Class of 2025 Large Group Picture in the Gym 1:00 PM

October 4th Homecoming Football Game

September 15th-October 15th National Hispanic Heritage Month

October 15th ALC Conferences 4:00 PM-7:00 PM

October 16th ALC Conferences 7:15-11:15 AM

October 16th-18th MEA NO SCHOOL

October 16th UNITY DAY WEAR ORANGE

October 25th Picture Retake Day

At the Fridley Area Learning Center we calculate an individual unit earning goal for each student to reach their personal academic goals. Congratulations to these students for exceeding their individual unit goals in our first academic term!

Maya Armstrong

Taylor Hunnicutt

Theresa Nyanplu

Alan Pineda

Genesis Vergara Barrales

Aderiana Wells

Annual Notification

Minnesota Statute 121A.335 requires public school buildings serving pre-kindergarten through grade 12 to test for lead in water every 5 years. Fridley Public Schools has historically conducted and continues to conduct Lead in Drinking Water testing per the Minnesota Department of Health guidelines. If found, the District remediates lead levels following the Minnesota Department of Health guidelines and completes retesting prior to use.

For more information on Fridley Public School’s lead reduction program and testing results, is located on the District website here: https://www.fridleyschools.org/about-us/departments/buildings-grounds/quality-monitoring-management-plan

Dear Families,

Thank you for a great beginning of the 2024-25 school year! I’ve appreciated the opportunity to meet many of you and your students. Our dedicated team appreciates partnering with you to ensure your student’s success in and out of the classroom.

As we move into the fall, I wanted to ensure I provided some additional information regarding an upcoming referendum for our school district. As you may have heard this summer, the Fridley School Board approved a resolution calling for an election on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. On that date, community members will vote on two measures: an operating levy and a facility bond.

Operating Levy

Question #1 is a new operating levy that would enable the district to maintain stable funding and invest in programs and services for students. It would begin in 2025-26 and add approximately $1.165 million in new revenue, expiring at the end of the 2035-36 fiscal year.

This revenue would help stabilize the district’s finances and reduce the projected budget gap. It would also limit future budget reductions over the next several years.

An approved operating levy would have an estimated impact of $163 per year (or $14 per month) on a home with an estimated market value of $313,780, the average home value in Fridley.

Fridley school district residents can calculate their property tax impact using the tax calculator linked here.

Facility Bond

Question #2 is a $30 million facility bond referendum that would enable the district to move forward with a series of projects to address our most pressing facility and building needs. The projects would include:

• Renovations and improvements at all facilities

• Deferred maintenance improvements

• Safe and secure building renovations

Please click here to see a full breakdown of the project budget and costs.

If the bond is approved, the revenue currently taken from the general fund to cover facility renovations and repairs will be reduced by about $1 million per year. This will also help stabilize the district’s overall budget.

An approved bond referendum would have no tax impact on district residents due to other district bond levies ending. Additional information on this financial strategy is available on the facility bond page of our referendum website.

For more information, including answers to commonly asked questions, please visit www.fridleyschoolsreferendum.org.

As always, thank you for your support of the Fridley Public Schools and the students we serve!

Sincerely,

Brenda Lewis, Ph.D.

Superintendent

Student Data Privacy Info

Fridley Public Schools uses a variety of digital tools to support student learning. Fridley Public Schools is committed to providing an equitable and inclusive educational environment for students by ensuring that opportunities, access, and resources are aligned to support the growth and academic achievement of each student.

In accordance with Minnesota State Statutes Section 13.32 on student data privacy, school districts must notify families about the technology applications students use in schools that may collect or use students’ educational data. Fridley Public Schools will provide notice of the district-maintained list of approved tools annually, within 30 days of the start of the school year. You can click on the individual application within this list of approved tools to learn more about how it's used.

If you would like more information on any of these applications, please visit our website for

A Catalog of Curriculum Tools: Curriculum & Assessment

Student Online Support (SOS):Student SOS

Please visit our website

Parents and Guardians will meet with student's Advisory Teacher

October 4th Tobari West

October 6th Jorge Contrera

October 13th Shrmake Ahmed

October 15th West Yang

October 19th Ka'Mareyah Culpepper

October 26th Aaniyah Crawford

OCTOBER 16th-18th NO SCHOOL FOR STUDENT

Don't want to miss an announcement from us, or want to be alerted if your child is absent from class, as well as stay up to date on their coursework? Complete your Campus Parent Portal account. The Parent Portal is designed specifically for parents, providing school information at your fingertips with real-time access to announcements, attendance, assignments, Transportation, grades (if applicable), schedules and more. Parents can view all children they are assigned as guardian to and that are currently enrolled in Fridley Public Schools, grades PreK 12. Each parent/legal guardian should create their own account for their children.

Click to find out more information and for instructions on creating your account today!

Kari Varichak Assistant Principal 763-502-5036

Sharon McClernan Administrative Assistant 763-502-5103 or 763-502-5165