Emerald Hills News

Laker Families,

Our halls have been filled with laughs, learning, and making new friends. October is shaping up to be a great month at our school, and we’re excited to share some updates with you. As part of our Dia de los Muertos celebration, we invite students to bring in pictures of family members or friends who have passed to be displayed on our ofrenda. This is a wonderful way for us to come together and honor those we’ve lost while learning about this rich tradition.

We also want to remind you of the upcoming bond measure in November. Please be sure to look below for important information about the upcoming measure and how it impacts our school community. As the year progresses, we are working on celebrating attendance! Regular attendance is so important to your child’s success, and we appreciate your continued efforts in ensuring they are here and ready to learn each day. If you are experiencing any barriers to getting your child to school, please don’t hesitate to reach out—we’re here to help.

A quick reminder: there will be no school for students on the 18th, as this is an in-service day for staff. Our team will be engaging in professional learning focused on strengthening our instructional practices and building even stronger supports for our students. Thank you for your support, and we look forward to all the exciting things still ahead!

Mr. Gould & Mrs. Schneider

Bond measure FAQs

Over the past few months, the district has been sharing facts and information about Proposition 1: K-12 Expanded Student Capacity, School Improvements & Safety Upgrades.

As we continue to provide information about the bond, we naturally receive questions. Please see answers to some frequently-asked questions. Here are a few to highlight:

Why does the district need to run a bond?

The District needs to add classrooms by expanding facilities, and replace aging and outdated school facilities to improve and increase educational opportunities, programs and spaces, and enhance safety and security.

Sumner-Bonney Lake is one of the fastest growing school districts in Pierce County, with more families moving here to join our community and our schools. We are currently overcrowded and need more classrooms. Nine out of 14 schools are currently over 100% capacity. Projected enrollment is expected to increase by 16% in the next decade, 2024-2033.

A delay in running a bond would further add to the costs in the long run. If we were to run the 2020 bond (that didn’t pass) today, there would be a 147% cost increase due to inflation and rising costs:

Bond cost in 2020 = $175 million
Costs for the same bond today = $433 million

What projects are on the bond?

Every school in the district will benefit from the bond. See our projects list and map. Here are details about the eight projects receiving the bulk of expansion/upgrades/improvements:

• Bonney Lake High School Expansion

• Sumner High School Master Plan

• New middle school in Tehaleh

• Crestwood Elementary Improvements

• Liberty Ridge Elementary Improvements

• Donald Eismann Elementary Improvements

• Tehaleh Heights Elementary Improvements

• Daffodil Valley Elementary Improvements

How and who determines the order and timeline of the projects?

Project teams, led by the architect in coordination with District Capital Facilities staff, base project order and timeline on a variety of factors, such as the need for space and financing. While the planning phase for some projects might start at the same time, the actual construction and completion varies due to project scope or other unforeseen issues.

Some of our high-priority projects that include a major expansion and additional student capacity include: Bonney Lake High School, Sumner High School, new middle school in Tehaleh and Tehaleh Heights Elementary.

In general, it takes about four years to complete a project: 18 months of design, 8 months for permitting and 18 months to build. This is for more extensive projects. Specific completion timelines vary by project.

As we prepare for our upcoming Veterans Day assembly, we are looking for students who are part of a program or club that participates in the posting of colors to help present the flags during the ceremony. If your child is involved in such a program, please complete the survey below.

On October 17th from 5:30-6:30 we will be having our annual Watch D.O.G.S Pizza Night at our school. You will meet in our school multi-purpose room at 5:30pm for FREE pizza and drinks. At 6:00pm we will have a presentation about our WATCH D.O.G.S.® (Dads Of Great Students) Program.

WATCH D.O.G.S.® is an innovative program being used by schools across America which helps them to be positively impacted by the committed involvement of fathers and father-figures in their student’s life. Our goal is to have you in our school as a positive male role model and to provide an extra set of eyes and ears.

Please fill out the form by clicking below if you are interested in being a Watch D.O.G this year!

Join us for the EHE Community Work Party on Saturday, October 19th, from 12-3pm as we work together to "put the land to bed" for the season! We’ll be spreading mulch, pruning trees, and removing invasive weeds. This is a great opportunity to come together and care for our school grounds.

Please bring water, work gloves, and any gardening tools you have to share. It’s a wonderful way to give back and get to know other members of our community while enjoying some time outdoors! For any questions, feel free to contact Laura Young at laura_young@sumnersd.org. We hope to see you there!

On October 22nd, we are conducting our annual vision and hearing screenings for all students in K-3rd and 5th grade. Students in 4th grade are not screened annually. The vision screenings take place in the classroom and the hearing screenings take place in the library. The screenings will be performed by our wonderful District Nurses. The results are not a formal diagnosis, but a tool to help identify possible concerns.

If you receive a referral paper stating your child failed the vision or hearing screening, please schedule an appointment with their pediatrician and take the screening results referral form to this office visit. Once the doctor has filled out the examination report, please return the referral form back to the Health Room.

*Students who already wear glasses: Parents please make sure your student brings their glasses to the screening to ensure we are getting the most accurate results possible.

Parents/guardians may decline any mandated health screening for their child by contacting the school before this date.

Thank you,

Health Services

Calling all artists! The time has come for our annual STEM Fair and Art Show poster contest. Students of all grades are invited to submit an original piece of artwork to be considered for this year's promotional materials. The winning artwork will be featured on posters and flyers for the event, and the artist will be recognized on district social media and at the STEM Fair itself.

Check out last year’s winning art here: Click here

This year’s STEM Fair and Art Show will be held at Sumner Middle School on Saturday, February 22nd, 2025.

• 10/16: Unicycle Club Begins
  
• 10/17: Watch DOGS Pizza Night
• 10/18: NO SCHOOL
• 10/19: Community Work Party
• 10/22: Vision and Hearing Screening
• 10/23, 10/24, 10/28: Ready for Kindergarten
• 10/24: PTA Fall Family Event
• 10/25: Picture Retakes

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