Kirkwood Elementary Newsletter
November 17, 2024
Kirkwood Elementary School
Email: person.renee@iowacityschools.org
Website: https://kirkwood.iowacityschools.org/
Location: 1401 9th Street, Coralville, IA, USA
Phone: 319-688-1120
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kirkwoodelementary
Note from the Principal's Desk
Dear Kirkwood Families,
It was wonderful to see so many of you during our first night of Fall Conferences last week! We look forward to continuing our conversations with even more families this Wednesday and Friday. It’s been a great first trimester, and we’re excited to celebrate the amazing things our students have accomplished so far.
Additionally, Winter Club Sign-Up will be available during conference times next week. Please see the information below for more details and how to register.
Thank you for your continued support!
Warmly,
Ms. Person
Kirkwood Calendar
- Wednesday, November 20: Fall Conferences @ 3:30-7:00pm
- Thursday, November 21: End of 1st Trimester
- Friday, November 22: Fall Conferences @ 8:00am-3:30pm
- Tuesday, November 26: Fall Picture Retake Day
- Wednesday, November 27: No School
- Thursday, November 28: No School
- Friday, November 28: No School
- Friday, December 20: Early Release @ 12:55pm
- Monday, December 23-Friday, January 3: No School
- Monday, January 6: School Resumes
- Monday, January 20: No School
- Wednesday, January 15: Winter Clubs @ 3:00-4:00pm
- Wednesday, January 22: Winter Clubs @ 3:00-4:00pm
- Wednesday, January 29: No School
Reminder: Thursday Dismissal time is 1:55pm!
New Information
Winter Club Sign-Up
Winter Clubs are coming following Winter Break! The sign-up will continue on the following dates and times:
- Wednesday, November 20 from 3:30-7:00pm
- Friday, November 22 from 8:00am-4:00pm
Following conferences, the sign-up will be open until Clubs are filled! Please reach out to Ms. Tesdall with any questions at tesdall.michelle@iowacityschools.org.
Clothing Donation
Our Health Office is in need of spare clothing for students who may require a change during the school day. If you have any gently used pants or shirts that you'd be willing to donate, we would greatly appreciate it!
Donations can be dropped off in the Health Office. Thank you for your generosity and support!
Kirkwood Story Project
Dear Families and Staff,
We invite you to share a piece of your culture, whether it's a story, a recipe, or a tradition, in a 2-minute video or pictures for our community storytelling! Teachers will share these contributions with students to celebrate and learn more about the vibrant cultures within our school community.
To learn more or to submit your story, please reach out to Analaura Acord at acord.analaura@iowacityschools.org.
We look forward to learning from you!
Square1Art Fundraiser
We’re excited to announce a new fundraiser from the Kirkwood PTO this year!
Each Kirkwood student has created a unique art masterpiece that has been sent to Square1Art. Your child will bring home a custom catalog featuring their artwork on a variety of products you can purchase. As a special bonus, they’ll also receive a free set of stickers featuring their art!
Proceeds from any purchases will benefit our Kirkwood PTO, and these items make perfect gifts for the upcoming holiday season.
Thank you for supporting our students and our school community!
Iowa City Music Auxiliary Winter Poinsettia Fundraiser
The Iowa City Music Auxiliary has teamed up with Hy-Vee to sell poinsettias for the winter holiday season. This is a great way to brighten your home or business while supporting band, orchestra, and choir students in grades 5–12 in the Iowa City Community School District. Proceeds from the sale will be used to purchase sheet music, equipment, entry fees, busing fees, student awards, and more.
Career Cafe
This year, 4th and 5th grade students will be invited to Career Cafés to learn more about careers in our community and beyond. Through our AVID career focus, our older students will identify career areas that align with their skills and interests. Volunteers will then join students to help them learn more about their careers in a fun, one hour introduction and question-and-answer session. Kirkwood is looking for volunteers like you to talk to our students! If you or someone you know is willing to help with our program, you can sign up for a time using this Calendly link. For any questions about the program or how you can help, please email our school counselor Allison Otting at otting.allison@iowacityschools.org.
Conference Meals
Please consider donating money or food to our PTO to support our staff during Fall Conferences! Thanks in advance!
- Kirkwood PTO
Kirkwood Information
Kirkwood Parent & Teacher Organization (PTO)
Positive Behavior Interventions & Support (PBIS)
We have a Schoolwide Motto, which gives our Kirkwood community a clear, concise way of thinking about our expectations. The motto is shared daily in announcements and is also posted visually in common spaces and classrooms. The motto is reinforced through specific feedback.
We also have Schoolwide Expectations, which provide clear, explicit, teachable expectations for schoolwide procedures. Teachers utilize schoolwide expectations posters to explicitly teach and reference schoolwide procedures.
Free & Reduced Lunch Application
This form needs to be filled out each year. If you feel like you would qualify, please follow the link below or call Nutrition Services at 319-688-1021. Please note that registering for school does not mean you have filled out this application!
ICCSD Information
Iowa City Community School District Shine Award Nominations
Nominations can be submitted by students, parents, District employees, businesses, or community members by completing the following nomination form. District employees will be selected and honored throughout the school year to receive this prestigious honor.
The Shine Award program is graciously sponsored by the Foundation for the Iowa City Community School District.
Securly
We're committed to creating a safe online environment for all our students! Our student's Chromebooks are filtered whether the device is on the school’s network or not. When devices are on-campus, they are subject to the same content filtering policies as all of our internet-connected devices. For off-campus devices, we filter using the Securly service, which allows us to block content that is explicit or dangerous, as defined in federal law.
With Securly, you can view your child’s internet activity and set up additional controls for off-campus use. Parents receive weekly email notifications with internet activity reports. If you’re not receiving these emails, please contact your student’s school office to verify that the correct email address is listed in Infinite Campus.
Access this Parent Guide for step-by-step guidance on using Securly.
Parents can utilize the Securly Home app to adjust the settings for their child’s online activity. The app can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store and offers several features, including:
Pause the Internet: Control internet access with the tap of a finger.
Offline Schedules: Set device-free family time.
Live Activity Feed: Get real-time updates.
Push Notifications: Receive alerts for flagged activities.
Internet Rules: Easily set internet rules for your home.
If you have questions about accessing your Securly parent account, please contact your child's school for assistance. Thank you for partnering with us in our commitment to keep our students safe online!
Student Attendance & Absences
State Attendance Requirements:
The Iowa Department of Education has implemented strict guidance that requires schools to address absenteeism. As part of this, schools will notify guardians when a student has missed 5%, 10%, and 15% of days each grading period. Based on State Law, schools must also notify the county attorney when a student is absent 10% of the days in a grading period. For more details, please visit the updated Attendance Page on our District website.
Reporting Absences:
If your child will be absent, please notify your school’s attendance office before the start of the school day. You can do this by creating an Absence Request in the Infinite Campus Parent Portal or by calling the school attendance office at 319-688-1120. If we do not hear from you, the school will reach out to confirm your student’s safety and ensure you are aware of their absence.
Important note: In the Attendance section of the Infinite Campus Parent Portal, you will see your child's total number of excused and unexcused absences. Following state requirements, ‘excused’ indicates absences that are exempt from state reporting requirements, and ‘unexcused’ indicates absences that the state requires us to categorize as non-exempt.
Absence:
A student is considered absent if they are not physically on school grounds, or are not participating in a required school-directed activity under the direction, supervision, or instructional guidance of educational staff at an approved off-grounds location (ie. a class field trip).
It is understood that students will be absent for a variety of reasons, including illness, family activities, vacations, dentist/medical appointments, funerals, etc. Parents should notify schools of the reason for the absence.
Some absences are exempt from these new guidelines, so it’s important to provide specific details when reporting your child’s absence. The following absence types will not count towards student absenteeism and will be coded as excused in Infinite Campus:
- Absences related to illness or medical appointment
- After a student reaches the equivalent of eight (8) days of absence related to illness or medical appointments, parents will be required to provide documentation for the medical absence(s) to continue to be considered excused. Absences may be taken in hourly segments.
- Families are encouraged to provide documentation to the school for ongoing health concerns so we can proactively work with your family to best serve your student.
- Absences related to a family medical emergency.
- Absences while attending religious services or receiving religious instruction.
- Absences excused for sufficient reason by any court of record or judge.
- Absences related to an Individualized Education Program (IEP) that affects attendance.
- Absences related to a Section 504 plan under the Federal Rehabilitation Act that affects attendance.
Due to the new State guidance, any absence that does not fall into one of the above categories will appear as unexcused in Infinite Campus and will count toward student absenteeism. As a reminder, our primary goal is for students to be in school daily and to confirm their safety with a parent or guardian if they are absent.
Process for Addressing Absenteeism
- Schools will send notifications to guardians when a student has reached the 5%, 10%, and 15% absenteeism threshold for the grading period (See chart below).Notifications are sent when a student has accumulated the number of absences that will result in the percentage of absenteeism at the end of the grading period. For example, if an elementary student has missed 6 days of school in a term, the student will be at 10% absenteeism at the end of the grading period, so the 10% notification is sent after the 6th day is missed.
- State law requires a certified letter be sent when a student has reached 10% absenteeism in a grading period. In addition the school is required by law to notify the county attorney.
- When a student reaches 15% absenteeism in a grading period, a School Engagement meeting is required by Iowa law. An Absenteeism Prevention Plan will be created at the School Engagement meeting. The goal of this plan is to work together to resolve absenteeism, address attendance barriers, and assist the student in attending school.
- If the student and/or the student’s guardian fails to attend a School Engagement Meeting, fails to enter into an Absenteeism Prevention Plan, or does not meet the terms of the Absenteeism Prevention Plan, Iowa law provides that the county attorney may initiate a legal proceeding.
ICCSD RayGun Store
We are excited to announce the new ICCSD RayGun store is now open! The items offered in this online store are available to anyone for purchase. A portion of the proceeds of each sale will go to the Foundation for the ICCSD.
A special thank you to RayGun for partnering with us on this project!
Commitment to Student Health & Safety
The Iowa City Community School District is committed to student and staff health and safety and we are dedicated to helping control the spread of COVID-19 in our community.
Educating students is our District’s priority and ensuring their health and safety is also of prominent importance. In an effort to prevent the spread of illness, we encourage all students and staff to stay home when ill. If you do test positive for COVID-19, please follow the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which can be found on the CDC's COVID-19 website.
It is important to us that you are aware of the school-based support services that are available, as well as the local community resources that can provide support outside of the school setting. School Counselors, Student & Family Advocates, and District staff are available for students in each school.
Each and every person in our school district family matters. Please remember that we are here for you and it is okay to ask for help.
Care Solace is 24/7/365 Mental Health Care Coordination Service for Iowa City Community School District Students, Staff, and their Families
ICCSD Ombuds Office
Visit www.IowaCitySchools.org/Ombuds to learn more!
Non-Discrimination Statement
If you have questions or a grievance related to this policy, please contact:
Laura Gray, Director of Diversity and Cultural Responsiveness (programming), gray.laura@iowacityschools.org, 1725 N. Dodge Street, Iowa City, Iowa 52245, (319) 688-1000
Eric Howard, Director of Equity and Employee Relations (employment), howard.eric@iowacityschools.org, 1725 N. Dodge Street, Iowa City, Iowa 52245, (319) 688-1000;
or
If you are unsure how to proceed or would like assistance in discussing your options, you may also contact Janet Abejo-Parker, Ombuds, ombuds@iowacityschools.org or (319) 688-1312.