SCCS Home Bulletin
January 4, 2023
The mission of Sioux Center Christian School is to disciple God’s children by equipping them with a knowledge and understanding of Christ and His creation so that they can obediently serve God and others as they work and play.
Every Student TREASURED, Every Student TRAINED, Every Student TRANSFORMED
FROM DR. B.
Snow Days Q&A
I’m guessing there are questions out there regarding snow days, hours of school, etc., so I am hoping that this Q&A is helpful! If I missed anything, please feel free to connect with me, and I will do my best to help.
Q: What considerations are made when deciding whether to have school?
A: We want to do everything possible to provide a safe situation for students and adults. Typically, a 2-hour late decision is made by 6:00 AM, and a no-school decision is made by 8:00 AM. The decision depends on road conditions, weather timing, and whether plows can have roads cleared. The people who run the plows are fantastic! But, sometimes weather conditions do not allow for them to have roads ready for school.
Q: What is the plan for SCCS and make-up hours due to weather?
A: Our school calendar goes by hours. Each school year, we build extra time into the calendar. For years when we miss school, we have extra hours to “use up” before we need to add more. For years when we don’t miss school, we have “extra school” with the extra hours in the calendar (we don’t end the school year early). Some years, that has been 7+ “extra days” of school (like last year). Things balance from year to year.
Q: Do we have “extra hours” built into the calendar this year?
A: This year, we also started the school year with extra time built into the calendar so we could be proactive. Because we have extra hours built in, we will not need to make up time, as of now. Our last day will still be May 24.
Q: How many “extra hours” have we used so far this school year?
A: We’ve used 42 of our 61 built-in “extra hours” so far. This means we have roughly 3 days’ worth of hours we can miss without having to make up time.
Q: When would hours be added if we run out of “extra hours”?
A: Should we run out of the extra hours built in, we will likely add time to the end of the school year. We will not take away time from upcoming breaks. We want to respect the breaks built into the calendar because we know both our families and faculty/staff make plans based on them. That’s also what we believe is best for students and respects family time. If anything is adjusted to the end-of-the-year days, I will definitely communicate with you well in advance.
Q: Will 8th graders need to make up school time? What about graduation?
A: 8th graders will not need to make up school time, as allowed by Iowa law. This might be a good year to be an 8th grader! Graduation will stay May 24 no matter what might happen with potential adding of time to the end of the school year.
Q: Can e-learning or virtual learning count as school?
A: No, the State of Iowa does not allow this. The buses must run and all students must have access to in-person learning for hours to count.
Q: Can the school count hours if they just have school open for in-town students?
A: No, that is not allowed by the State of Iowa. The buses must run in order for hours to count as school hours.
Q: Could SCCS have school for in-town kids even though those hours wouldn’t “count” as school hours?
A: This sounds like a good idea until you dig further into the details. Since we share busing with the public school, there are high school drivers to think about regarding safety. Even though we do not have high school students at SCCS, we have many students who would not have transportation to the building should buses not run. Several parents are not able to accommodate transportation needs because of their work schedules, and we do not want to put out-of-town parents in a difficult situation of deciding whether or not to get on the road. Not having “bus students” in class means that teachers would have several students missing what is happening in the classroom. Teachers would then spend a large amount of time “catching up” those who missed. Also, several faculty and staff members live out of town, so having enough adults to safely open the building would be a challenge, and we do not want to put our out-of-town faculty and staff in unsafe driving situations.
Q: Could you have in-town students in the school building and out-of-town students join virtually?
A: Having out-of-town students join class virtually for a school day would not be age-appropriate, and we do not want to have students on devices while parents may not be able to be home to supervise. Also, teachers managing this situation would be very difficult and these hours would not “count” toward school hours (the buses need to run).
Q: Can we have activities happen even if school doesn’t happen?
A: If the decision has been made that it is not safe enough for buses to run or out-of-town faculty and staff to travel to have school, we would not want to have activities happening.
If you have any other questions, please do reach out to me.
What a winter! Thanks for choosing SCCS.
CONGRATULATIONS!
Congratulations to our twenty-three 6th - 8th grade students who were selected to be a part of the 2023 NW Iowa Middle School Honor Orchestra! This is a record number of SCCS students who have been chosen for this honor orchestra! On January 26, these students will join students from the area at Northwestern College in Orange City for an all-day event that culminates with a late-afternoon concert. We hope this honor will be an encouragement to these students to continue using their God-given gifts and talents to praise our Lord and Savior for their whole lives!
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
- Please check the online calendar for upcoming events (http://www.siouxcenterchristian.com/calendar.cfm)
- Since we did not have school on Jan. 4, our Storyline Chapel (Servant Worker) will be rescheduled to Wednesday, January 11 at 1:35. You are welcome to join us!
- Transportation information for Friday, Feb. 3 - Sioux Center Community Schools do not have school on February 3 but SCCS does. Only the two Sioux Center Christian School buses (2014 and 2020) will be running the morning and afternoon routes that day. All other students will need to have their own transportation.
NEWSIES JR.
You are invited to attend one of the 7th/8th grade performances of Disney’s Newsies JR. on Friday, January 27 and Saturday January 28 at 7pm in the TePaske Theater. Newsies JR. is a musical inspired by the rousing true story of newsboys in turn-of-the-century New York City. No tickets needed; a freewill offering will be received.
Note: 1st grade through 8th grade will attend a matinee performance at 1pm on Friday.
Thanks go out to Directors, Mrs. Eileen Buiter and Miss Kirsten Buiter and Choreographer, Mrs. Mel Knobloch for their talents and the time they put in to leading these students!
PARENT VISIT DAY
We value the partnership between our parents and school! We want to invite you into the school so you can experience what’s happening in the classroom. Each grade level will be hosting a Parent Visit Day again this year.
4th Grade visit day will be on Friday, Jan. 13. The morning will start with a welcome in the lunchroom at 10:45 followed by a classroom visit from 10:55-11:45 and lunch will be served at 11:45. We will be ordering pizza from Pizza Ranch for our guests. There will be a limit of 2 pieces of pizza per person. You are welcome to stay for recess as well! You will need to sign up here by noon on Tuesday, January 10 so we know how many to plan for. After filling in each section of the form, please remember to click submit! Looking forward to seeing you then!
Below are the dates and times for the other grade level Parent Visit Days this school year. More information will be sent out later.
- Feb. 3 - 10:55 - 5th grade
- Feb. 10 - 11:00 - 6th grade
- Feb. 24- 11:00 - 7th & 8th grade
STORYLINE CHAPEL
Storyline chapels are held on the first Wednesday of every month at 1:35pm in the gym. Please remind your child to wear their chapel t-shirt. Parents and guests are WELCOME to attend! You may also join our livestream (and recording) at https://www.siouxcenterchristian.com/students/chapel.cfm
Storyline Chapel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaU4iNoUawUq8yQH7NLx7eQFcBk06m529
OUTLET 75
Thank you to everyone who has chosen to help our students by working at Outlet 75!
You can now sign up for shifts a few months in advance!
January: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4AAAAD22ABFEC52-januaryoutlet75
February: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4AAAAD22ABFEC52-february
March: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4AAAAD22ABFEC52-march
Outlet 75 sells new clothing, shoes, home décor, kitchenware, bedding and more …and all profits go to Sioux Center Christian School and contribute to the Alternate Revenue discount that was on your tuition statement!
Open hours: Wednesdays 11am-8pm and Thursdays 11am – 3pm.
Location: About 1 mile south of Sioux Center on Hwy 75. Look for the red flag.
If you have any questions about helping at Outlet 75, please feel free to email info@shopoutlet75.com
FOOD SERVICE NEWS
- Thanks to everyone who signed up to help with dishwashing this year! If you would like to help out you can sign up here. If you have questions, contact Ashley Keith (akeith@siouxcenterchristian.com).
- You can find the lunch and dishwashing schedule here.
- If you would like to eat lunch with your child, please contact school 24 hours in advance.
WE ARE HIRING
SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS: We are in need of substitute teachers for this school year. Subs are needed for teachers and paras at all grade levels, kitchen crew and at times a nurse. Please fill out the form at the link below if you are interested in adding your name to the sub list. SCCS will provide all training, and you even get a free lunch when you sub! Qualifications for being a sub include a love of children, the ability to follow teacher lesson plans, flexibility, and a commitment to Christian education. We invite you to join us!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSchPyh3Fnjis7w7htYQfnSK137TfmJ339p5IfWqkRChIwhAqQ/viewform
PELLA STAFF MEMBER OF THE MONTH AWARD
REQUESTED ANNOUNCEMENTS
Currently there is information for:
- Sioux Center Recreation Winter Track Classic
- Dordt Youth Dance Camp
- 2023 Drivers Education Options
- Sioux Center Recreation Winter Esports Leagues
- Western Christian Cheer Camp
- NWI Knights AAU Volleyball Registration
- Western Christian Wolfpack AAU Volleyball
- Unity Christian Dance Team Kids Camp
SCCS
Email: sccsoffice@siouxcenterchristian.com
Website: siouxcenterchristian.com
Location: 630 1st Ave. SE, Sioux Center, IA
Phone: 712-722-0777
Facebook: facebook.com/siouxcenterchristian
Twitter: @sccstrailblazer