Timberwolf Times

Tiffany Ridge Elementary School

School Hours: 9:10-4:10

School Phone: 816-359-4400

Principal: Sasha Kalis Assistant Principal: Laura Coughlin

Counselor: Alisha Brunk Social Worker: Gayle Laney

Office Staff: Robin Meyers and Andrea Berka

Nurse: Nicole Snodgrass

January's Top Timberwolves were selected by their classroom teachers as consistently awesome students at Tiffany Ridge! They will have a special lunch with Dr. Coughlin. We are so proud of our Top Timberwolves!

February

• February 10: 2nd Grade Music Program in Gym, Doors Open at 5:45pm
• February 11: Little Chompers Dentist Visits Tiffany Ridge
• February 11: Chick-fil-A Cares PTA Night, 4-8pm (see info below)
• February 14: PHHS Backetball Players Read to 3rd Graders
• February 17: No School - Presidents' Day
• February 18: DEIB Community Connection
• February 24: DEIB Community Connection
• February 27: 1st Grade Music Program in Gym, Doors Open at 5:45pm
• February 28: Author Mike Knudson Visits Tiffany Ridge
• February 28: Last Day to Order Yearbooks (see below)

Chick-fil-A Community Care Night is on Tuesday, February 11th! Mention "TR Cares" when visiting and a portion of sales will be donated to Tiffany Ridge.

Our 3rd-5th graders can sign up to help! There are 42 slots so sign up on a first come first serve basis.

Check out the linked Curriculum Connections below to see what our Timberwolves will be learning in February! Your child's teacher is always happy to provide more information.

• February 2025 ELA Curriculum Connections

• February 2025 Math Curriculum Connections

• February 2025 Social Studies/Science Curriculum Connections

Members of the Park Hill School District's Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Council will facilitate this community update and conversation in partnership with Sophic Solutions. Join us!

Park Hill School District parents/guardians, staff, and community members are welcome to join us for these conversations. In these upcoming online forums, we will start with a presentation to all participants, overviewing the work our DEIB Council and DEIB Action Teams have accomplished since our 2024 community forums. We'll also share how this aligns with the current 2023-2028 Comprehensive School Improvement Plan (CSIP). After our large group presentation, we will move into small groups where participants will have an opportunity to engage in dialogue about the work that is being done and provide input regarding how they would like to see this work carried out within the specific school(s) they are associated with.

We look forward to sharing the work of our council and action teams thus far. We also look forward to our next steps, in alignment with our DEIB drivers and narratives, and the individual council work at each building. Thank you for your connection to this critical work in Park Hill.

We are hosting two community forums: February 18, 2025, and February 24, 2025. Both nights we will begin at 6:00 PM and end at 7:30 PM. Please register for only one session. The forum Zoom link will be sent, via email, on the day of your event.

Registration link: 2025 PHSD DEIB Community Connection

It takes both great teachers and outstanding schools to provide the quality of education our Park Hill community expects. To continue the community's investment and Park Hill pride in our schools, the Park Hill Board of Education put two initiatives on the April 8 ballot, Proposition G and Proposition O.

If approved, we would maintain our quality with great teachers, up-to-date classrooms and facilities, and safe and accessible schools.

Proposition G ensures competitive pay and benefits, helping us recruit and retain excellent teachers and staff to support our high-quality school operations.

If passed, Park Hill School District would be in the Top 5 Beginning Salary strand for first-year teachers and would be in the Top 3 Average Salary strand for all teachers.

Proposition G asks for approval of a 10-cent increase in the operating tax rate to support teacher and staff salaries and benefits and other operating costs. For 22 years, our operating tax levy has stayed at the level voters approved in 2002, or even lower.

Proposition O allows us to maintain the community’s investment in our facilities and bring them up-to-date.

Proposition O asks for approval to increase the debt service levy 30 cents to issue general obligation bonds in the amount of $128 million for the Phase 1 replacement of Park Hill High School, stadium and field improvements at Park Hill South High School, additions to various elementary schools, safety upgrades and the purchase of land.

Learn more about Propositions G+O on our website.

Learn more about how this affects you in our Frequently Asked Questions.

Learn more about the April 8 ballot language.

The next webisode of the Family Webinar Series, entitled Social Media Safety, will be held on Tuesday, February 11, 6:00 PM.

Social media encompasses all aspects of one’s life, it seems. Today, the time and energy consumed using social media seems higher than ever. Parents, teenagers and tweens alike face confusion and pressure while navigating the online world. Parents, guardians and family members who attend this webinar will learn about how to handle the “what if’s” of the online space that occupies their child’s life.

Deputy Hannah Blacklock, School Resource Officer for the Park Hill School District and Deputy for the Platte County Sheriff’s Office, will give some online safety tips for parents to feel empowered with the knowledge and basic understanding of social media, and online safety. Deputy Blacklock will discuss mindset, responsibility, and confidence struggles that can easily be overcome by parents to be more present in their child’s online life. Please click here to register for this webinar on these important topics!

Links to the recordings of all prior webinars can be found on the Student and Family Support page (scroll down to Mental Health and Healthy Living Resources and expand the Family Webinar Series Section).

This year we are making two changes in our building related to Valentines Parties. The first change is that we are moving our spring parties away from February 14. This year, our spring parties will be on Friday, April 4. In keeping with this change, we will not be bringing or exchanging valentines (or treats) at Tiffany Ridge. We understand that holidays are very important to our entire community. We will continue our practice of recognizing holidays at school without celebrating holidays. There are many opportunities for students to participate in holiday celebrations with their families, community groups or friends outside of school. While we are at school, we will focus on creating opportunities that all students will be able to enjoy without the need for students to opt out of activities. We thank you in advance for your support and understanding.

From Mrs. Kalis

I’m writing to provide some clarification surrounding our spring parties and Valentines Day. As communicated in our newsletter, we are moving away from having a Valentine’s Party to ensure students are able to participate in our schoolwide celebrations. We have seen success in having all of our families participate in our fall and winter parties over the past few years since separating from holidays. Ultimately, I believe it is important that during the school day, Tiffany Ridge is an environment where all students are able to participate in all activities. By making this change, we are ensuring that all of our families are able to have fun during our school activities and celebrations.

Our teachers and PTA have done an INCREDIBLE job planning class celebrations where all students can participate and have fun. We will continue this with the Spring Party.

Thank you again for your support in helping to make sure all students feel they belong. We hope to see you at our party on April 4th!

Loop B Concerns

If you are a family who uses Loop B at dismissal, please be sure to follow our car rider procedures to ensure safety for all.

• Car Riders
• All car riders need to be picked up from the car rider line. Students are not permitted to walk to parked cars in the parking lot. This is dangerous and not fair to cars who are following the proper procedures.
• If parents need to have their child right away, they can park and come to the office to check their child(ren) out before dismissal begins.

• Walkers
• Walkers are defined as students who walk off school property. Walkers are not students who walk to a parked car, so the car rider line can be avoided.

NW 90th St./NW Beaman Ave. Concerns

We continue to have unsafe dismissal conditions from car rider parents. There are a large number of parents who park on both sides of NW 90th Street (Autumn Ridge) to pick up their child(ren) who are "walking" home. We are extremely worried about the safety aspect of this. When cars are parked on both sides of the street, it makes it incredibly difficult for cars to drive down the street, for cars to pull into Tiffany Ridge to pick up car riders, and for our students who are actually walking or biking home. We strongly encourage all parents to pull into Loop B to pick up their student(s) instead. Our Loop B is incredibly fast and a much safer option for all involved.

Thank you to the multiple parents who have reached out about this continued concern.

Breakfast: Students need to eat breakfast at home or order school breakfast. If students bring in outside (restaurants, coffee shops, gas stations) food or beverages, they will be sent to the cafeteria to finish it. If school has already started, students will finish it in the office before going to class. These items will not be allowed in classrooms.

Lunch: Please do not bring in restaurant/fast food for your child unless you plan to eat lunch with your child.

Classroom Treats: To protect the health and safety of our students, homemade treats will not be distributed to students in the Park Hill School District. Due to allergies and other food intolerances, only birthday favors listed below are allowed.

Birthday Favors: Students may bring a birthday treat or favor to school to share with their classmates, as long as they come from our list of treats that contain none of the eight (8) major allergens - milk, wheat, egg, soy, peanut, tree nut, fish and shellfish.

Thank you for understanding that all classroom treats must come from this list, because we do not have the staff capacity to check for allergens that could threaten the health of some students. Please bring birthday treats ahead of time (two hours after the start of school, at the latest).

• Stickers

• Erasers

• Pencils

• Crazy straws

• Blow Pops

• Juice boxes

• Popcorn

• Smarties

• Dum Dum lollipops

• Jelly Belly

• Nerds

• Ring Pops

• Skittles

• Sour Patch Kids

• Starburst

• Swedish Fish

• Life Saver Gummies

Would you like to volunteer with students at Tiffany Ridge? If so, you should be a Pack Parent. A Pack Parent is a screened volunteer who works with students. If you are interested, please sign up below.

Our employees are the real deal and the reason we are so successful. We would like to recognize them for all they do for our students. Each month, we recognize a pre-K or elementary teacher, a secondary teacher and a support staff member. Nominate an employee for this award by clicking the button below.

Tiffany Ridge has an amazing PTA that supports students, staff and TR families. We are asking for your support, with no volunteering/meetings required! Your membership fees will help fund school needs, assemblies, field trips, and fun school events so sign up today!

Next Meeting: March 11 at 6:00pm in the library

Join PTA HERE

2024-2025 PTA Board Members

• President: Kristin Kuhn
• Vice President of Membership: Kim Taylor
• Vice President of Fundraising: Amy Gallawa
• Secretary: Jennifer Duckworth
• Treasurer: Meghan Kudrna

Tiffany Ridge is implementing Restorative Practices this school year. We are excited to be a part of the cohort 1 schools in Park Hill. Restorative Practices help strengthen relationships between individuals and build community among students, staff, and families. This year, we will be focusing on proactive circles. More information can be found HERE.

Call Box at Front Entrance: All schools in Park Hill have a Call Box at the locked Front Entrance Doors. Front entrance doors will be locked when school is in session. Office staff will ask for your name and the reason for your visit before the door is unlocked. Each time a parent or a family member visits Tiffany Ridge, a photo ID is required to check out a student or enter Tiffany RIdge beyond the school office area.

Student Check Out Process: Please be prepared to show a photo ID when picking up your child early from Tiffany Ridge. Students will not be allowed to leave with siblings or other family members unless the sibling or family member is listed on the child’s authorized pick-up list or verbal permission is granted by the parent by phone. A picture ID is required when picking up students.

Visiting Tiffany Ridge: Please be prepared to show a photo ID when visiting Tiffany Ridge during the school day or attending events during the school day, including class parties.

More information can be found in the Park Hill Parent and Student Handbook

As you probably know, teachers like candy and snacks! We have created a Tiffany Ridge Amazon Wish List with goodies that we can have on hand at meetings. We'd appreaciate any donations!

We know our students are more than learners, so we've created a bulletin board to celebrate our students' superpowers. If you child(ren) has activities or celebrations outside of school, please email a photo and short explanation to your child's teacher. We will display these superpowers on a bulletin board near the recess doors.

Visitors: Visitors are welcome at Tiffany Ridge! Visits should be prearranged with the appropriate Tiffany Ridge Staff member at least one day in advance of the visit. All visitors must check in at the office, identify the purpose of the visit, and will receive an ID sticker to wear during the visit.

Lunch Visits: Parents are welcome to join their students for lunch at school. Lunch visitors must check in at the office. We have a designated area for students with lunch guests to accommodate space for visitors. Lunch visitors may only have lunch with their own children. Any visitors who are not listed as a contact for the student will require advanced permission from the student's parent or guardian. Please contact the office to schedule lunch visits with students.

Volunteers: We welcome all volunteers into our schools and classrooms, with prior arrangements made with Tiffany Ridge staff. All volunteers who work with our students or attend field trips need to complete background screening by Park Hill. Forms for the screening are available in the Tiffany Ridge office. Volunteers must check in at the office and wear an ID sticker.

Families who think they qualify for the Free/Reduced Lunch Program will need to apply after August 1, 2024. This is a program you must reapply for each school year. If your child is eligible for free or reduced meal benefits, you can also receive additional benefits at Park Hill High School such as fee waivers, activity passes, free screenings and more.

Click HERE for more information.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to our school social worker, Gayle Laney, 816-359-5747 or erikson-laneyg@parkhill.k12.mo.us.

If you need the application translated, please use this link. https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/translated-applications

The PTA of the Park Hill School District runs a clothing center that provides free, gently used clothing and new socks and underwear to district students.

The PTA Clothing Center serves all Park Hill School District students from Kindergarten through 12th grade, and the PTA asks you to bring some proof that you are enrolled in a Park Hill school. This could be a student ID, bus pass, dated letter from a principal or social worker, class schedule or enrollment form.

Donations are welcome at the Clothing Center. Please make sure your donations are clean, in good condition and bagged in kitchen-sized bags that the volunteers can lift.

2024-2025 Park Hill PTA Clothing Center Shopping Dates

• February 18, 10am-12pm and 5pm-7pm
• March 4 & 18, 10am-12pm and 5pm-7pm
• April 1 & 15, 10am-12pm and 5pm-7pm
• May 6, 4pm-6pm

Website: Tiffany Ridge Website

Facebook: Tiffany Ridge Facebook

Email: TiffanyRidgeAdministrativeAssistants@parkhill.k12.mo.us
Address: 5301 NW Tiffany Springs Road, KCMO, MO, United States
Phone: (816) 359-4400