Mawinzo - S/He picks berries.

Boozhoo Oshki Ogimaag Community School Families and Community Partners!

The last weeks of summer are always jam-packed with activity; special events, visitors from near and far and a mad dash to have everything ready for a new school year when it feels like summer just began! Ms. James and Ms.Tina have been busy interviewing applicants for open positions and we look forward to starting the school year with all (or nearly all) positions filled! We are so excited for the beginning of a new school year!

This school year instead of an Open House, we will hold In-Take conferences on August 27, 28, and 29th starting at 3:30pm. We will be scheduling these conferences with families this week. Our enrollment packet has been been updated to meet MDE (Minnesota Department of Education) requirements. All families will receive an enrollment forms in the mail and the rest of the required paperwork will be provided to families at the in-take conference. Please reach out to Ms. Tina (email below) if you have any questions regarding paperwork.

We hope everyone enjoyed a wonderful Rendezvous Days Weekend!

We are excited to announce that Mr.Pratt has accepted a position as our 2nd grade Teacher! Mr. Pratt already has some familiarity with our students as he spent some time at Oshki Ogimaag last school year subbing and joining us for activities, like Sugar Bush. Mr. Pratt is a licensed elementary school teacher, with many years of experience. In addition to teaching elementary school, Mr. Pratt has experience as a special education teacher and school leader. Mr. Pratt has agreed to serve as our interim 2nd grade teacher and plans to return to retirement after we have filled this position permanently. Please see Mr. Pratt's bio below:

Tim Pratt was born in Duluth but grew up all across the country. He was a teacher in Texas for 25 years before retiring and moving back to the North Shore, where his family is from. He is most proud of his two daughters; Viki and Mo, who represent everything he stands for. His favorite place on the North Shore, is off the shore, on the lake, fishing, or just relaxing. Tim is a huge Vikings fan, and remains constantly on-call in the case he is ever needed to call the right play, give an inspirational speech, or lead them to Super Bowl victory 🙂. Tim also coached baseball and basketball. He greatly looks forward to being part of Oshki Ogimaag Community School, and to meeting and working with the people in the community.

Teachers have already begun working on their classrooms. Setting a physical environment that is aesthetically pleasing, comfortable, calming, clean and free of clutter is shown to reduce stress and anxiety and supports focus and emotional regulation. This is an area of expertise for Ms. Kelsey! Ms. Kelsey is an expert at setting up a welcoming environment that feels joyful and promotes learning! Pictured is Ms. Kelsey's K-1 classroom!

Looking at numbers for enrollment and how to best meet the individual needs of our students, for the 2024-2025 school year the classroom configurations will be as follows:

K-1 - Ms. Kelsey Knollmueller

2nd grade - Mr. Tim Pratt

3rd, 4th, and 5th grade - Ms .Jeana Van Dyne (Ms. Jeana will have some extra support, and even with three grades represented in this classroom, current enrollment numbers show this class to have the smallest total number of students).

In many ways this school year is a new beginning for Oshki Ogimaag Community School with new leadership, new curriculum, new faces of staff and students. Our new team is filled with enthusiasm, excitedly making plans, mapping curriculum and have a depth of gratitude for what we are able to offer our students and families, and are dedicated to supporting and serving with excellence.

On Wednesday, Community members gathered to celebrate the opening of the Grand Portage Community Center Playground! It was a wonderful event, and delightful to see the excitement of young people exploring this amazing outdoor space! Chi-miigwech to all individuals who played a part in the development of this space! It is incredible!

Oshki Ogimaag Community School will supply all necessary classroom school supplies for all students!

Students should the following, daily:

• a backpack
• shoes appropriate for outdoor play and hikes
• weather appropriate clothing for outdoor play and hikes

If you need assistance providing any of the above please reach out!

We are looking for at least one individual who is a parent/guardian of a currently enrolled student of Oshki Ogimaag Community School to join our Board of Directors! The Board meets 1 time per month, the 3rd Wednesday of each month, at OOCS at 4:30pm.

Participating on the Board is a great way to serve Oshki Ogimaag Community School and use your voice to play an instrumental role in supporting OOCS in meeting the goals of our mission!

Please reach out (email below) or reach out to a current Board member (see our website) if you are interested!

August

• 21 - OOCS Board Meeting, 4:30pm, OOCS Conference Area
• 27, 28 and 29 - Oshki Ogimaag Community School In-take Conferences starting at 3:30pm

September

• 03 - 1st Day of School!
• 18 - OOCS Board Meeting, 4:30pm, OOCS Conference Area