Cragin Community Update

Hello Cragin Families,

November was such a memorable month, and we are truly grateful to everyone who made it as special as it was!

To kick off the month, we enjoyed Student Council speeches, and the teamwork and sportsmanship displayed by all the candidates served as a wonderful example to the rest of our students on how we should treat one another—especially when competing for the same position, as we saw in this assembly.

We also had a week-long Scholastic Book Fair, hosted by our amazing PTO. A huge thank you to the PTO and all the volunteers who worked tirelessly to make this event a success. We truly appreciate all you do to support our school and students.

Lastly, I am deeply grateful for the Family Engagement Team we are building here at Cragin. This group of talented and dedicated parents is passionate about creating beautiful experiences for the children of Cragin. Their hard work and commitment are what make events like Literacy Night so successful.

A special thanks to all the parents, teachers, staff, and community members who participated, donated, and helped make Literacy Night incredible. We are also so thankful to the two local Pima County Librarians who made the effort to join us, set up a table, and read a book to our families. Your contributions truly made the event even more special.

Please stay tuned for more exciting events to come—we can't wait to share them with you!

Warmly,
Principal Rodriguez

alexander.rodriguez@tusd1.org

• Friday, November 1st
• Student Council Assembly and Speeches
• Monday, November 4th
• Cafecito/ Coffee Talk with the Principal @8:45am Room 5
• Monday, November 11st
• Veteran's Day - No School
• Tuesday, November 12th
• Picture Retake / New Student Pictures 8am - 1pm
• Tuesday, November 12th
• PTO Meeting @5:15pm Library
• Wednesday, November 13th
• Site Council Meeting @3:30pm
• Monday, November 18th - Friday, November 22nd
• PTO Scholastic Book Fair @11am- 2:45pm
• Friday, November 22nd
• Family Fall Literacy Night 5:30pm - 7:00 pm
• Thursday, November 28th- Friday November 29th
• Thanksgiving Break - No School

• Tuesday, December 2nd
• Cafecito/ Coffee Talk with the Principal @8:45am Room 5
• Family Engagement Meeting @9:45am Room 5
• Friday, December 6th
• PTO Movie Night - Abominable @5:30pm Cafeteria
• Tuesday, December 10th
• PTO Meeting @5:15pm Library
• Monday, December 16th - Thursday, December 19th
• Spirit Week - Stay Tuned for Spirit Week themes chosen by Student Council
• Wednesday, December 18th
• OMA Winter Dance Performance @9:30am Cafeteria
• Thursday, December 19th
• Recess Piñata Party @11-12:45pm
• Friday, December 20th
• Grading Day - No school
• Monday, December 23rd- Friday, January 3rd
• Winer Break - No School
• MORE EVENTS COMING UP

During the Student Council assembly, the candidates read their speeches and shared their ideas with the 5th, 4th, and 3rd graders. It was inspiring to hear their plans for making positive changes in our school community. The students also took a moment to wish their fellow candidates good luck, showing great sportsmanship and respect for one another. It was a wonderful display of teamwork and school spirit!

A big thank you to all the candidates for their hard work in creating posters, writing speeches, and presenting to the school. Their dedication and effort truly made the event special!

2024-2025 Student Council Winners are

President - Lorenzo
Vice President - Maddy
Secretary - Amarria
Treasurer - Ismail

Congratulations 🎉

Also, thank you to our amazing candidates!

Runners for Secretary
Oliver
Victoria

Runners for Treasurer
Rebeca
Sofia

Absent in photo
Saddie
Sebastian
Abdi

Children’s singing club performed “A Million Years” from The Greatest Showman which was chosen to inspire them to dream big and believe that what they read and imagine can come true.

At Literacy Night, students had the opportunity to write down reasons why they are thankful, and it was such a heartwarming moment reading their thoughts. Although our Counselor, Ms. Karen, has not been with us these past few weeks, her caring character, teachings, and spirit were present with us during this Literacy Night. Her kindness and support have made a lasting impact, and the students truly miss her. They will be so thankful when she returns.

Literacy Night was a wonderful event where families came together to enjoy an evening of reading, stories, arts & crafts, fun games, and delicious treats. We also gave away gently used books, served hot chocolate, and had a special choir performance from our unofficial singing club. Families received reading tips to take home, as well as helpful tips for English learners from babies to 3rd grade. Students also made bookmarks to take home and had fun writing on a tree about what they are thankful for.

Families also loved the free pumpkin patch-style photo booth, which was beautifully decorated and generously donated by two of our families. It was the perfect way to capture memories of this special night!

We are truly grateful for the Family Engagement Team we are building here at Cragin. This group of dedicated parents, along with our Principal Mr. Rodriguez, works hard to create special experiences for our children. Their commitment is what makes events like Literacy Night possible.

We were lucky to have two librarians from Woods and Himmel Library, who read the book “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” to all our families. We are so thankful for their participation in making the evening extra special. During the event, Mr. Rodriguez also took time to honor Mr. Butler, who sadly passed away earlier this year, for his lasting impact in creating the Northminster Tutoring Program at Cragin. Mr. Butler’s work with our children has truly made a difference, and his memory continues to inspire us.

After Mr. Rodriguez’s heartfelt words, the children’s singing club performed “A Million Years” from The Greatest Showman. The students practiced for two weeks and were so excited to perform, choosing this song to inspire them to dream big and believe that anything is possible.

Later, families enjoyed a few raffles, with prizes including a turkey donated by Tucson Marble and Stone, board games from United Hearts of Arizona, books from Cragin’s PTO, and a laptop generously donated by Mr. Butler’s family. The night ended with everyone dancing to the Cha Cha Slide and making lasting memories of joy and connection.

A huge thank you to the Family Engagement Team for making all of this happen!

Parent volunteers are welcome on Campus! If you are interested in volunteering, please contact our office manager (Ms. Lupita Rivera-Madrid) or our Community Liaison (Ms. Karina Acuña) to learn how you can volunteer throughout the year. We also highly encourage families to attend PTO Meetings and Cafecitos / Coffee Talks to learn ways how you can support our school. Please register as volunteers on the TUSD website (https://jobs.tusd1.org/volunteer) as the process takes a few weeks. For all non-parental volunteers, please contact the front office before registering as a volunteer so we can explain the process and coordinate.

Reminders

Please sign-in at the front office anytime you are on campus.

• President - Liz Niemeyer
• VP - Pat Schwichtenberg
• Secretary - Liz Niemeyer (Interim)
• Treasurer - Jonathan Niemeyer

We are excited to announce we had a very successful Scholastic Book Fair! This year, the PTO organized and ran the event. We had parent volunteers assisting during the fair, which took place from 10:30 AM to 3:00 PM, Monday through Friday.

Additionally, we strongly encouraged the use of **e-wallet** for purchases to ensure the safety of funds and prevent cash from being lost or stolen. For those who chose to use cash, there was a different procedure in place this year—details were shared in advance.

Families were welcome to browse the flyer earlier to preview the available books.

Reading is a powerful tool for the mind, and we were thrilled to see so many families participate in the Book Fair! Thank you!

- PTO

December 6th @5:30pm

All students are eligible!

Please come between 7:30am - 8:15am, Monday - Friday starting on September 9th -December 13th!

Students need to come through the front door from 7:30am-8:00am.

Please use Parent Drop-Off after 8:00am

If your child has allergies, needs to take medication at school, or has any other health concerns, please contact our Health Assistant as soon as possible. This will help us ensure your child's health and safety while at school.

Thank you for keeping us informed!

Riley Volpe BSN, RN

riley.volpe@tusd1.org

Jackie Freed Health Assistant

jacqueline.freed@tusd1.org

Health Office

520-232-6717

The regular school attendance of a child of school age is required by state law. Regular school attendance is essential for success in school; therefore, absences shall be excused only for necessary and important reasons. Such reasons include illness, bereavement, other family emergencies, and observance of major religious holidays of the family's faith.

In the event of a necessary absence known in advance, the parent is expected to inform the school; if the absence is caused by emergency, such as illness, the parent is expected to telephone the school office. When a student returns to school following any absence, a note of explanation from the parent is required.

When Absent from School

State law mandates that the school record reasons for all student absences. Therefore, when a student is absent, it will be necessary for the parent to call the school on or before the day of the absence in order to advise the school as to the reason for the absence. When it is impossible to call on the day of the absence, the school should be notified on the morning the student returns, in time for the student to obtain an admission slip prior to the student's first class. All absences not verified by parental or administrative authorization will remain unexcused.

If a parent does not have access to a phone, either at home or at work, a note will be accepted for verification purposes.

Regular participation in classroom activities fosters critical thinking, communication skills, and responsibility, all of which are essential skills for future employment. Good attendance in school is also part of the self-discipline that we try to instill in our students to enable them to act as responsible members of the community.

Definitions:

• Attendance: The presence of each student in scheduled instruction.
• Excessive Absence: 10% or more of the required attendance days (180 days).
• Tardy: Not in the classroom by the time the bell rings.
• Register of Attendance: Any written or electronic record maintained for the purpose of recording the attendance, absence, tardiness, or early departure of a student.
• Scheduled Instruction: Every period that a student is scheduled to attend actual instruction or their designated learning environment of study.
• Truancy: An unexcused absence of a child who is between six and sixteen years of age for at least one class period during the day from compulsory school.
• Truant Child: A child who is between six and sixteen years of age and who is not in attendance at a public or private school during the hours that school is in session, unless excused.
• Habitually Truant: Is a child who is truant for at least five school days within a school year.
• Excused Absence: Absences that the parents/guardians have documented/authorized with time and reason.
• Unexcused Absence: Absence without approval of parents/guardians is considered truancy and unexcused.

For guidance on setting up and using the ParentVUE app, please check the link below.

Parents, you can now easily report your child’s absence using ParentVue. This streamlines communication with our attendance office and allows you to directly input the reason for the absence. To self-report, just follow these steps:

1. Log into ParentVue on the app or your computer.
2. Click on the "Attendance" tab in the left column (or tap the blue "Report Absence" button with the bell icon in the app).
3. In the top right corner of the page, click the blue link labeled "Report Absence."
4. Select the dates using the calendar and choose the reason for the absence from the drop-down menu.
5. You can also add notes or upload a doctor's note, then click "Save."

If you prefer, you can still call Ms. Lori Munday at (520) 232-6702. Thank you for keeping us informed about all absences!

If you use the parent drop-off bay before school, please remember that the gate opens at 8:00am and learning time begins at 8:30a.m. The gate will close promptly at 8:35 a.m. If you arrive after 8:35 a.m., please walk your student to the front office for a late slip. In case you find yourself inside the building after 8:35 a.m., please use the front office exit to leave the campus. Breakfast is served from 8:00 to 8:30 a.m., so be sure to bring your students on time to ensure they don’t miss their morning meal and are ready for a successful day ahead!

Pick up time is at 2:45pm. If you use are parent pick-up bay after school, please remember to stay in your vehicle and we will bring your student to you. If you would like to get out and greet your child, please park in the parking lot, we have plenty of parking. Also, a good tip to avoid long waits in the pick-up bay is to arrive a few minutes after the rush. Thank you for your patience and cooperation as we get our cougars connected with you.

School Hours

8:00am - 2:45pm

Main Office Hours

8:00am - 4:00pm

Cafeteria Hours

(Breakfast)

8:00am - 8:30am

(Lunch)

11:00am - 12:50pm

Warning Bell

8:30am

Late Bell

8:35am

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday

2:45pm

Wednesday

1:45pm

Kindergarden 11:00am - 11:35am

1st Grade 11:15am - 11:50am

2nd Grade 11:30 - 12:05am

3rd Grade 11:45am - 12:20pm

4th Grade 12:00pm - 12:35pm

5th Grade 12:15pm - 12:50pm

Parent - Teacher Conference

11:45am

September 18th-20th, 2024

February 13th-14th, 2025

Kindergarden 10:00am - 10:10am

1st Grade 10:10am - 10:20am

2nd Grade 10:20am - 10:30am

3rd Grade 10:30am - 10:40am

4th Grade 10:40am - 10:50am

5th Grade 10:50am - 11:00am

2945 N. Tucson Blvd.

Tucson, AZ 85716

Office Hours: 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Monday – Friday

520-232-6700 – Attendance

520-232-6700 – Office

520-232-6701 – Fax

The mission of Cragin Elementary School, in partnership with parents and the Cragin community, is to assure each student receives an engaging, rigorous and comprehensive education.