Fremont Focus

Following nearly a year of planning, the District's Steering Committee recommended a 20-year Educational Long-Range Facility Plan to the Board of Education at its November 18 meeting. The Board will vote on the plan at its upcoming December 16 meeting.

The recommended plan accounts for each of the following items:

• Enrollment Growth
• 1,000 additional students over the next 20-25 years
• Educational Priorities
• STEM/Career Technical Education (CTE) & collaborative/social-emotional learning space
• Outdoor learning & athletic use
• Return preschool to campus
• Facility Assessment
• Maintenance & repair

Highlights of the plan include:

• A new school for grade 6-8 students
• Reconfigured parking and traffic flow improvements
• Enhanced secure vestibules at all schools
• Additions or renovations to enhance STEM/CTE spaces
• Building additions to accommodate the return of Pre-K students to campus

This plan will serve as a roadmap for our future planning and we plan to utilize a phased approach. The incorporation of municipal water and sewer lines also will be factored into the plan. We have no imminent plans for a referendum, as we intend to exhaust all other funding sources first, including developer impact fees/donations, grants, and partnerships.

We sincerely thank all the parents, staff, and community members who provided their input and feedback that helped shape this plan. It is important that it be representative of our community's priorities.

Please read the following newsletter for detailed information, but here is a summary of key dates for quick access:

• December 4 - Early Release Schedule (MS dismissed at 2:13 p.m.; ES/IS dismissed at 3:08 p.m.)
• December 5 - Multilingual Family Night (Virtual; see below for more information)
• December 9-10 - NWEA MAP Testing (Grades K-8)
• December 11 - Early Release Schedule (MS dismissed at 2:13 p.m.; ES/IS dismissed at 3:08 p.m.)
• December 13 - Post-Winter Break Wednesday Right at School Registration Due
• December 13 - Lincoln Preschool Screening Day (Students Not In Attendance - Lincoln only)
• December 16 - Board of Education meeting (live stream), 7:00 p.m. (Middle School Media Center)
• December 18 - Early Release Schedule (MS dismissed at 2:13 p.m.; ES/IS dismissed at 3:08 p.m.)
• December 18 - PTO Meeting, 6:00 p.m. (Middle School Media Center)
• December 20 - ES/IS Holiday Parties

In an effort to connect the FSD79 Board of Education and the community, the District offers a summary of monthly, regular Board meetings. To view a recap of the November 18 meeting, please click here. The meeting's Pledge of Allegiance was led by members of the Fremont Intermediate School PAWS Committee.

The next meeting of the Fremont School District 79 Board of Education will be held Monday, December 16 at 7:00 p.m. at the Fremont Middle School Media Center. The Board is scheduled to vote on a draft of the 2025-26 K-8 school calendar. The agenda will include the following recognition(s) and presentation(s):

• Recognitions: Board President Gabriela Whipple (10 years of service); Jill Merriman (Lincoln Early Learning Center)
  
• Presentations: Preliminary 2025-26 Staffing Plan

A live video stream of the meeting will be available via the District’s YouTube page. The stream will go live shortly before the start of the meeting. Recaps of previous Board meetings can be found here. The Board meeting agenda and materials can be accessed here. Board materials are available by noon on December 16.

Registration for Wednesday Right at School for Fremont K-5 students for January 8, 2025, through the end of the school year is open now through December 13.

PLEASE NOTE: Even if you registered your student(s) for the first half of the school year, you must re-register them for the session that begins January 8. Please review the following two-step registration process:

FOR CHILDCARE

To participate, families must register via the Right at School website by Friday, December 13.

FOR BUS TRANSPORTATION

If 4:08 p.m. bus transportation home is necessary, parents must complete this form for every child needing bus transportation by Friday, December 13. These bus routes are run similar to activity buses with neighborhood group stops. If you do not register your child(ren) for bus transportation, you are committing to picking your child(ren) up each week.

It is important to note that requests made after Friday, December 13 cannot be accommodated due to our need to devise a safe supervision and transportation plan.

As part of our Parent University programming, FSD79 and the Fremont PTO will be co-sponsoring a Parent Book Club event on New York Times #1 Bestseller, “The Anxious Generation” by Jonathan Haidt. We will be hosting a one-night discussion on the book on February 11, 2025 from 6:30-8:00 p.m. at Fremont Middle School.

Secure your physical or audio copy of the book now to prepare for the discussion.

FSD79 is hosting a virtual Multilingual Family Night event this Thursday starting at 6:00 p.m. Scan the QR code in the flyer below to register and receive the Zoom link. Join multilingual teachers for some winter-themed stories!

Dear Fremont Families,

As we approach the holiday season, it's important to remember that our students' social-emotional and mental health remain top priorities, especially during this time of year. Please take the time to review our new Family Resources document created by the Fremont Mental Health Team to help support our students and families.

Additionally, ReferralGPS is a service providing assistance to our community in finding local mental-

health and substance use-related treatment resources. The service compliments the District's existing support systems as a tool for student service teams and families to connect with treatment. Along with a searchable database of treatment options, ReferralGPS provides Care Navigation to assist families in triage and appointment setting.

School district staff and families may access ReferralGPS in two ways:

1. Contact Student Services (social workers, psychologists, counselors) to seek out treatment options
2. Visit this link to search for treatment resources or connect with a Care Navigator anonymously

The platform has the ability to filter by mental health concern, clinician gender/specialty, location, and insurance acceptance. The service is available for all types of private and public insurance options including PPO, HMO, Medicaid, and families that are uninsured or underinsured.

ReferralGPS is available for use by District students, staff, and families at no cost. All information entered on the ReferralGPS tool is completely confidential and securely stored.

Please note, this service is an optional resource available by choice and is not mandatory in any way. If you are interested in seeking counseling-related services at this time, please consider reaching out to the Student Services team or visit https://referralgps.com/find-help/FSD79.

Your involvement and understanding are vital as we navigate this holiday season together, ensuring a supportive environment for our children. Thank you for being an integral part of our school community.

Best regards,

Ms. Krista Winkelman
Executive Director of Student Services

K-8 students will be taking the NWEA Measurement of Academic Progress (MAP) in reading and math on the mornings of Monday, December 9 and Tuesday, December 10. Help your child do their best by making sure they get a good night's sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, and arrive on time with a fully charged device.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

The Fremont PTO would love to see you at our meetings this year! Meetings are on the third Wednesday of the month in the Middle School Den at 6:00 p.m. Our next meeting is on December 18. Childcare services for children ages 3+ will be provided at ALL of our upcoming PTO meetings. Please use the form below to let us know if you will be bringing a child to the meeting. It is not required to RSVP; however, we ask that you please do so if you plan to take advantage of childcare. Care will be provided by Fremont Middle School students for individuals ages 3 and up.

RSVP Form for childcare: https://forms.gle/ceerdTKn7Pa51mVt7

Here is the list of all meeting dates for the 2024-2025 school year.

To stay in the know of what Fremont PTO is up to, follow and tag us on social media:

Instagram: @fremontpto

Facebook: Fremont PTO

HAPPY LITTLE FLAME FUNDRAISER
Don't forget! If you placed your order for in-store pick up, they are ready for you to pick up at the shop location in Libertyville. All shipping orders have shipped, and if you chose free shipping they are now back at the shop if you did not grab them from the PTO meeting on November 20. Please email Elisabeth if you have any questions at FSDVPIS@gmail.com.

WINTER CLASS PARTIES
Party Hosts for the Winter Classroom Parties have been assigned and notified. Each class party is designated 3 Party Hosts. If more than 3 parents signed up for a classroom party, volunteers were chosen at random. Please note: All remaining parents who have not been notified, have not been assigned to host a party will not be invited to attend the party.

SHOP. SCAN. EARN.
Forget the scissors - Box Tops for Education has gone digital! Simply download the Box Tops for Education app (see www.boxtops4education.com for more info), select Fremont School District 79 (in Mundelein, IL) as your beneficiary, and you're all set! Enter the code H02P2R0D when you register for bonus points. Then simply scan your receipts after shopping, and watch the points (and $$) add up for our schools!

UPCOMING DINE-IN NIGHTS
We have a full year of dine-in nights ahead – check out the list here!

ORDER YOUR YEARBOOK NOW!
Don’t forget to order your student's 2024-2025 yearbook. Use the correct school code from our flyer when you order!

PTO MEMBERSHIP/ONLINE DIRECTORY FOR 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR

If you already have an account in Membership Toolkit, thank you for creating and/or updating your Membership Toolkit account last year.

If you don't have an account in Membership Toolkit, set it up now for free! Once you have created an account in Membership Toolkit your child will appear in the online directory immediately (that's if you choose to do so). To create an account, go to fsd79.membershiptoolkit.com and follow the directions in the attached form (Online Student Directory Set Up Instructions 2024-2025).

To gain access to the Online Student Directory your account must be active and you must pay the $15 PTO Membership Family Fee. If you paid your PTO Membership fee through your TeacherEase account before June 15th, your payment has been confirmed and you currently have access to the Online Student Directory. If you didn’t pay your PTO Membership Family Fee before June 15th, you can pay the $15 PTO Membership Family fee thru Venmo @Fremont-PTO; or by bringing or sending the attached form with your cash payment or check made payable to Fremont PTO to any school front office. The option to pay the PTO Membership Fee thru your TeacherEase account is no longer available. Once we receive confirmation of your payment, we will give you access to the online directory. Please note it may take up to one week to be granted access to the online directory.

Don't forget to download the FREE Membership Toolkit app to your smartphone-search "Membership Toolkit" in your app store.

BIRTHDAY BOARD

Celebrate your Fremont Student's special day! "Happy Birthday, Your Child's Name" can appear on the Fremont Electronic Message Board. Just complete the Birthday Board Request Google Form 2024-2025; or complete the birthday board form and send it back to any school front office with your $5 payment per birthday message. If you have any questions, please contact Christie Johnson at cjohnson@fsd79.org.

Please visit the PTO webpage for the most up-to-date information.

Lunch menus for the month of December are now available and can be found here.

FSD79 offers local groups and organizations the opportunity to advertise their upcoming events in the Virtual Backpack. To submit your group's event for consideration, please submit a PDF flyer to publicrelations@fsd79.org. Check back regularly for upcoming offerings.

• Gurnee Target Limited Sensory Shopping Event
• Mundelein HS Dance Team Kids Winter Party
• Girl Scouts Grades 2 & 3 Informational Meeting
• Grayslake Scout Troop 303
• Lake County Stallions Wrestling
• Libertyville Wildcats Youth Sports Girls Wrestling
• Ela Soccer Club
• Chicago Wolves Fall Reading Challenge
• CLC Latinx Series
• Stevenson HS Community Education (PREP) Programs
• Special Gifts Theatre

The next edition of the Fremont Focus will be distributed on Wednesday, December 18. This will be in addition to the weekly e-newsletters sent on Fridays from principals at the school level.

Address: 28855 North Fremont Center Road, Mundelein, IL

Phone: (847) 566-0169

Website: fsd79.org

Facebook: facebook.com/FremontSchoolDistrict79

Twitter: @FSD79

Instagram: @FSD79

YouTube: youtube.com/FSD79