Greetings Hoover families,

I hope you enjoyed a wonderful summer! I am so excited to welcome you and your student(s) to the 2024-025 school year and am delighted that you are part of our amazing learning community! Our skilled and devoted staff is already planning and preparing for your child(ren). Our enthusiastic office team is registering new families, ordering needed materials, and updating student files. Our hard-working and conscientious custodians have spent the entire summer thoroughly cleaning the facility. And our much-appreciated PTO is gearing up to welcome families, provide volunteer opportunities, and offer other exciting events and programs.

Our theme this year is "Be the I in Kind." Kindness includes being selfless, caring, compassionate, and unconditionally kind. It takes practice to understand and feel kindness. I hope that students continue to give and receive kindness in the form of acts, smiles, and unexpected deeds. These all have the potential to make our school community and our world a better place to live in.

We welcome AJ Schultz as our new Assistant Principal! He has worked at Kids Unlimited as the Culture Director, and most recently spent two years at Kennedy Elementary as their Assistant Principal. He brings a wealth of knowledge, experience, and a love for students. We are excited to have AJ as part of the Hoover community.

I eagerly look forward to greeting students and families again. It remains an honor and privilege to serve as your principal. Please stop by and say hello! Together, I know we will make this school year one of growth and achievement for all children.

Sincerely,

Sandy Holman, Principal

I am honored to serve as your Assistant Principal, and am excited to be joining such an inclusive, collaborative, and welcoming community of families, students, and staff at Hoover Elementary. I have spent the last twenty years in education in a variety of positions, spending the first ten years mainly teaching elementary in the Portland area, as well as abroad.

For the past ten years, I have served as a Title 1 Specialist, Director of Culture, and Assistant Principal in the Medford School District. I enjoy the challenge of meeting all learners’ needs, maintaining high academic expectations, and fostering a culture where students feel safe, supported, engaged and accepted.

During my time away from school, I enjoy spending time with my family and our dog Harry. I have quite a few hobbies, including golf, biking, skiing, traveling, jujitsu, cooking, and reading. Along with connecting with you all this coming school year, I look forward to serving this community as we collectively nurture and grow our students at Hoover to their full potential, not only academically, but socially and emotionally, as well.

Thank you,

AJ Schultz, Assistant Principal

22 Meet and Greet Open House 5-7

26 First Day of School for Grades 1-5 (7:50 AM - 2:35 PM)

26/27 Kinder Soft Start / Family Meetings (per appointment time)

29 Kindergarten Half day soft start AM or PM

30 Schools Closed

2 No School/Labor Day Holiday

3 School Resumes / Full Day Kindergarten Begins

6 Birthday Cupcake Celebration (August & September)

10 PTO Meeting 3:00 PM

18 Student Photo Day

18 Pastries with the Principals, 8 AM, Media Center

25 Back to School Night 5-6:30 PM

27 No Students / Mid-Quarter

We will be holding an Meet and Greet Ice Cream Social on Thursday, August 22nd, from 5:00-7:00 PM. At that time, you will be able to meet your student's teacher and see the classroom. Please keep in mind that our teachers will just be returning to their classrooms, so their rooms might still be "under construction".

Our first Pastries with the Principals will be held on September 18th, 8:00 - 9:00 AM. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about our school, ask questions, and get involved in our amazing community of families!

Please add our Back to School night to your calendar! It will take place on Wednesday, September 25th from 5:00-6:30 PM. Stay tuned for more information!

A great deal of time, effort, and thought has gone into the process of student placement for the 2024-2025 school year.

Teachers have worked diligently to place students in next year's classes. Classrooms have been balanced academically and socially, taking into consideration student learning styles. Our class lists are structured to provide equitable class sizes at each grade level. Moving students is difficult without causing imbalances and inequities.

Thank you so much for being positive with your child and helping them understand that it is impossible to place all students with a preferred best friend or teacher. ALL of our staff works hard to make school a positive experience for ALL students. Hoover is eagerly looking forward to enriching your child’s life. Thank you for understanding that it can take a few weeks for a child to acclimate to a new grade, peer group, and teacher.

We are still finalizing class lists. Your child's class placement (teacher) will be available to you through Synergy on Tuesday afternoon. Your child's new teacher will reach out to welcome your child next week prior to our Meet and Greet Ice Cream Social event on Thursday, August 22nd.

There is a process in place for a parent request for change of student placement. Please understand that your request will be considered but is not a guarantee due to other considerations, such as the school's need to make classes:

• Of manageable size.
• That separate children who cannot get along.
• That assures balance, heterogeneous groupings of students.
• Which evenly distribute students who are new to our school.

Due to the above factors, if any changes are made, they won't happen until after the third week of school. Please stop by the office to pick up the Change of Placement paperwork to complete if you want to request a change.

This summer has been busy with construction and installations on our campus!

• Safety and security are core beliefs in the Medford School District. As an extra layer of protection for visitor check-ins, the District is in the process of installing a safety vestibule. After entering the front of the building, you will check in with the office staff, who may then buzz you into the campus.
• Lights are being added to the west parking lot to provide safety to those accessing their vehicles in the dark.
• A outdoor covered eating area has been constructed in the corner of the field! This space will provide extra room for those wanting to eat outside and shade for students engaging in activities during PE, recess, or class time.

The safety of your child(ren) is of utmost importance to Hoover. Arrival and dismissal are the most hectic times of the day, so I wanted to make you aware of some systems that are in place at our school.

Morning Choice

• Students may get breakfast in cafeteria, walk the track, or wait on their line-up line on the blacktop prior to 7:50 AM

Bus—Hoover is served by 4 buses

• Curbside pullout directly in front of the school on Siskiyou Blvd.-- this is a BUS ONLY area from 7:00 - 8:00 AM and again from 1:45 - 2:45 PM (12:15- 1:15 on Wednesdays).

• Please see Parent Vue on our Hoover website to see which bus your student rides.

Car—Two main drop-off/pick-up areas

• West side parking lot near the gym—this will be open to car traffic for drop off from 7:20 AM – 7:55 AM. Pick-up is open after 2:20 PM (12:45 PM on Wednesdays), and is dedicated to students Grades K-3 and their siblings.

• Along S. Modoc Avenue—Trails are cut along the back fence line of our school for student travel and a safety monitor is assigned to that area. For pick-up, this car line is dedicated to students Grades 3-5 and their siblings.

Walking—Crossing guards locations

• Across Siskiyou Blvd., S. Modoc Ave., and at Dellwood and Black Oak (PM)

Parent Walk Up—Front Entrance of School

• If you are picking up your student out in front of the school, let our safety monitor know your student’s name and teacher, and your student will be directed to meet you outside. Kinder parents can pick-up from their teacher in front of the school.

***If you change a meeting spot for your child, please let the teacher and front office know so we can make sure your child gets to the correct place!

Parking on and around our campus is limited. This is especially the case during special events. In addition to our parking lots, there is parking available along the side streets and in the Community of Christ parking lot across the street. Please be respectful and do not block the neighborhood driveways. Parking in bike lanes is strictly prohibited. This is a city ordinance and not within the control of Hoover or the Medford School District.

Hoover is providing school supplies for all students! You may want to provide a backpack and water bottle for your child. Although we also supply headphones for student Chromebooks, if you would prefer something different, your student can bring their own. Please make sure you label each item with your student’s name.

Both breakfast and lunch are offered at no charge to students for the upcoming school year. You are welcome to send your student with a lunch as well.

Lunch and Breakfast Menus

Email: hoover@medford.k12.or.us
Website: https://www.medford.k12.or.us/domain/265
Location: 2323 Siskiyou Boulevard, Medford, OR, USA
Phone: 541-842-3750
Facebook: facebook.com/HooverElementaryMedford