Email: em-office@d64.org
Website: https://www.d64.org/ems
Location: 8101 North Cumberland Avenue, Niles, IL, USA

Dear Emerson Families,

Welcome Back, Families! We've had an wonderful three days, and are so glad to have our students back in the building. It was a lonely summer without them in our halls! I hope you all have a wonderful and relaxing weekend!

All the Best,

Tessa

Absences and late arrivals MUST be reported by 8:00 am DAILY. Our attendance line can be reached 24 hours a day at 847-318-8110 - Press 1 to leave an attendance message. Absences not reported to us will be marked as unexcused and a phone call will be placed to all parent/guardians. This slows down the attendance process which needs to be done as quickly as possible for building safety purposes.

If you are aware of an absence ahead of time (vacation, surgeries, doctors appointments, etc.), you can call the attendance line in advance and alert us of the dates your child will be absent. We can pre-mark attendance accordingly.

If you need to pick your student up early at any point in the day, please call the main office at 847-318-8110. We can try to make sure that the student is not in PE/Lunch/Recess which makes it harder to get the student quicky.

Absences reported to the homeroom teacher often do not make it to the main office, resulting in your student being marked unexcused.

Students will be MAP testing on Monday August 19th and Tuesday August 20th. Monday we will be taking the LA MAP test from 8:10 - 10:05 and Tuesday will be Math MAP testing from 8:10 - 10:05. Here are some friendly reminders for MAP Testing Week:

1. Arrive to school on time!

2. Charge your Chromebook overnight to ensure full batteries are full.

3. Make sure headphones are packed.

4. Eat a great breakfast and get a good night's sleep.

Please note, we will run on an adjusted schedule Monday and Tuesday to accommodate the testing time. Classes will be abbreviated and lunch times are altered.

Lunch Schedule:

6th Grade - 1:03 - 1:30

7th Grade - 12:03 - 12:30

8th Grade - 12:33 - 1:00

The first session for this school year begins Tuesday, Sept. 10th at 5:30 pm. This free program will meet weekly, for 1 hour, at the Park Ridge Community Church and provides a safe space for students in 1st - 8th grade to share their experiences associated with loss of a loved one and/or a changing family dynamic due to divorce, deployment, etc. Trained facilitators help encourage communication while identifying, navigating and discussing feelings amongst the group.

Please use the Google form link below to sign up your child and/or to be added to our email communications list. Any questions or interest in volunteering to become a facilitator, please contact rainbows64@att.net . For more info about Rainbows, please visit: https://rainbows.org/

Rainbows Student Peer Group Sign up

The Emerson website and calendar are valuable resources to keep you informed of important updates and events throughout the year. The calendar is kept up to date throughout the school year, and new information is posted regularly. We hope that these tools are helpful resources for keeping you and your student organized and informed as we progress through the year.

Emerson Website
D64 Website

Calendars for 2024-2025 can be viewed HERE

Emerson activity buses run at 4:00 p.m. each school day (except Wednesdays) to provide transportation for students involved in after-school activities and extracurriculars. These activities include sports, clubs, after-school tutorial programs, etc. Parents are expected to provide transportation if needed for any other reason. These buses will start running on Tuesday, September 5th.

NOTE: Often, these buses will not run the day prior to an extended break or school vacation.

IF YOU LOVE RUNNING - CROSS COUNTRY IS FOR YOU!

Cross Country is open to all 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade students.

There are no tryouts for Cross Country.

Visit our team website for instructions on how to sign up.

(https://sites.google.com/a/d64.org/emxc/home)

Our first team meeting will be from 3:00 - 3:45 on Tuesday, August 20th in the MPR (lunch room). You will need to arrange your own ride home...

SO YOU NEED TO SIGN UP SOON!

CONTACT COACH SCHAUER WITH ANY QUESTIONS!

(aschauer@d64.org)

8th Grade Girls Basketball Tryout Dates:

Tuesday, August 20th (3:00- 5:00)

Wednesday, August 21st (4:10-5:30)

7th Grade Girls Basketball Tryout Dates:

Thursday, August 22nd (3:00- 5:00)
Friday, August 23rd (3:00-4:30)

Steps to Complete Before 1st Tryout Day:

1. Complete/ Submit the Tryout Google Form

2. Complete and turn in Interscholastic Permission/Health forms.

(These forms must be submitted through PowerSchool. Please follow these instructions.)

*YOU WON'T BE ALLOWED TO TRYOUT UNLESS FORMS ARE SUBMITTED PRIOR TO DAY ONE OF TRYOUTS*

We have our 1st ever Safety Week at Emerson starting on 8/26-8/30. Each day, students will have an extended homeroom where they will learn and practice the 5 different drills. More information will be coming in the next week.

8/26- Hold

8/27-Secure

8/28- Lockdown

8/29-Evacuate

8/30- Shelter

If your student forget something at home or are being brought a lunch, items may be dropped off in the foyer of the Emerson Office. We instruct students to check in with the office during passing periods to pick up these items. We will not interrupt class to notify students of items/lunches delivered to the office, unless it is their chromebook. Emails will be sent to your student alerting them that the item has been dropped off.

The cafeteria will not be accepting cash to purchase lunch items. Students must use their MySchoolBucks account to purchase any food.

NOTE: If replenishing funds by check please make checks payable to Quest (not District 64).

Unlike elementary school, you do not need to pre-order meals or beverages. Students may select from daily offerings in the Emerson cafeteria. More information about our school lunch offerings and payment can be found here on the D64 Middle School Lunch webpage.

Though we have many food choices in our cafeteria, most Emerson students bring their lunch to school. We strongly encourage this during the first weeks of school while we get our cafeteria systems and procedures up and running.

We highly encourage waste-free lunches. To help reduce waste, please consider using reusable containers for your child’s food and drink, rather than disposable bags and bottles. Emerson is committed to green efforts in the lunchroom. The cafeteria also has a lunch waste sort station for students to empty their lunch waste into recycling, compost and trash. We encourage all students to do so every lunch period.

Student Picture Day is Friday, September 6th. Representatives/photographers from Color Portraits will be at Emerson and taking student portraits via your student’s regularly scheduled PE class. The flyer will be sent home with students the week before.

District 64 continues to utilize many different platforms to ensure you have important information delivered to you in the most convenient way. One of those ways is through our SMS Text Messaging Service.

Getting messages delivered to your mobile device is a helpful tool, and District 64 is reenergizing our efforts to bring this to you. Starting on Monday, October 31st, you might periodically receive text messages from either the District or your child’s school.

These alerts will be info about events, school closings, safety, and more. That said, our SMS Text Messaging Service will be used supplementally in our communication efforts and does not replace any school emails or calls you are receiving.

How to receive text messages:

• You must opt-in to receive text messages. To do so, you will need to text “Y” or “Yes” to 67587.

If you’d like to no longer receive District 64 text messages, you have to send “Stop” to 67587.

The school year is almost here, and we're excited to announce that the 2024-2025 PTO Membership Portal is now live! By joining the PTO, you provide vital financial support for our students and teachers. Your membership directly funds the events and activities that enrich our school community throughout the year. It's also a fantastic way to stay connected and informed about what's happening at school, and to build meaningful connections with other parents.

We offer three membership levels, so you can contribute at a level that's comfortable for you. This year, our Blue and Eagle levels come with an extra perk: entry into our special raffle. One family from each grade will win! The prizes include an in-school pizza party with friends for 6th and 7th graders, and for 8th graders, four reserved seats at graduation—a highly coveted prize!

Your membership helps support:

• 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade student socials, including gifts and t-shirts

• School-wide events and assemblies, such as movie nights, skating & swim parties, 6th grade Olympics, and more!

• Teacher/Staff Appreciation Meals and Classroom Funds

• School beautification and playground equipment

• The Student Directory

• Red Ribbon Week

• Soaring Eagle, SOARS raffle prizes, and the Judith Snow Scholarship

• And much more!

Sign Up for PTO Here!

P.S. While you're on the portal, don't forget to sign up for any volunteer activities you're interested in!