SBLSD News
December 16, 2021
By Superintendent Laurie Dent, Ph.D.
I want to address the confusion and the conversation happening in the community about the future of the City of Bonney Lake Parks and Recreation Program. Last week, I received a letter from the City of Bonney Lake notifying the Sumner-Bonney Lake School District that the City of Bonney Lake wanted to terminate our agreement that involves the Parks and Recreation Program effective August 2022. The notification intended to end the agreement, but not necessarily the Parks and Recreation Program.
After attending the Bonney Lake City Council meeting Tuesday night, I heard compassionate testimony and heartfelt stories of how the Parks and Recreation Program is a benefit to our community. The City Council listened attentively and announced their plans to have further discussion at the next City Council workshop on Jan. 18, 2022.
As a school district, we know families depend on many aspects of the Parks and Recreation Program, especially before and after school childcare. Right now, life is already bringing multiple levels of uncertainty. When it comes to the Parks and Recreation Program, I want you to feel confident knowing that:
1. The Sumner-Bonney Lake School District believes strongly in the Parks and Recreation Program and the many benefits it provides our students — academically, physically and emotionally. SBLSD has a great interest in seeing this program continue.
2. We will continue discussions with the City of Bonney Lake, taking into consideration the feedback provided to the City Council and the needs of our community.
3. We understand that before and after school childcare is important to our community and we will be discussing this vital service further with the City of Bonney Lake and exploring options and opportunities to continue before and after school childcare for the community.
As with anything, this process will take time. Please allow the City of Bonney Lake time to work through their process and know that we are there partnering with them to explore ways for the Parks and Recreation Program to continue being a successful and viable option for students, families and our community.
Are you interested in learning more about your elementary student’s core curriculum? SBLSD is hosting a first-ever event for families to view Language Arts, Math and Social Emotional Learning elementary curriculum at one of three events held in each region of the District.
Elementary Curriculum Showcase:
- Jan. 20: 5:30-7 p.m., Crestwood Elementary, 3914 W. Tapps Dr E (Bonney Lake)
- Jan. 27: 5:30-7 p.m., Daffodil Valley Elementary, 1509 Valley Ave (Sumner)
- Feb. 3: 5:30-7 p.m., Donald Eismann Elementary, 13802 Canyon View Blvd E (Tehaleh)
What to expect at each event:
- View elementary core curriculum in Language Arts, Math, and Social Emotional Learning for each grade level.
- View 4th and 5th grade Human Growth and Development/Puberty videos, and 5th grade HIV AIDS video. Opt-out forms will be available after viewing the videos.
- Talk with some teachers at the host school and others in the region.
- Receive information about 2022-23 kindergarten registration and readiness programs.
- Visit resource tables hosted by elementary specialists in PE, Music, and STEM
We’re offering the same event three times, providing flexibility with dates and locations in hopes that more families can attend. You do not need to attend the event within your school’s region. Light refreshments will be available. There will be no activities for children or childcare.
In week two of SBLSD Whole Child Month, we’re going into a bit more detail about the whole child approach. The whole child approach in education prepares students for career and college, and to become positive, contributing members of our community. It also aims to ensure each child, in each school and in each community, is healthy, safe, engaged, supported and challenged.
Ways staff support and promote the whole child at school:
- Support the health and wellbeing of each child.
- Promote a physically- and emotionally-safe environment for students and adults.
- Use best practices to actively engage students in learning.
- Provide support for students’ academic, social and emotional learning.
- Challenge students academically to prepare for their success beyond high school.
Ways parents/guardians can embrace the whole child approach:
Complete the activity for each day listed below or use this monthlong calendar. All activities can be adapted to meet the age of your child and be completed in any order. Here are activities from week two:
- Day 8: Talk as a family about purpose. What do you value and what do you want to be known for? What do you want to contribute to the world?
- Day 9: Practice using I feel … statements. “I feel … because/when …”
- Day 10: Start taking turns with positive self-talk statements. Example: “I can do it” or “No problem is so large that it can not be solved with little help from others.”
- Day 11: Limit screen time during meals or movies.
- Day 12: Make a commitment to do something for another person, then share what was done in the evening.
- Day 13: Make a family bucket list for things people want to do together.
- Day 14: Play feeling charades. Take turns guessing the emotions the other person is demonstrating.
By Sophia Agtarap, Equity and Language Services Director
All schools and District offices will be closed on Monday, Jan. 17 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Beyond revisiting the quotes, speeches, writings, and footage of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., in what ways are we living the legacy of this iconic leader who was formed by the people of the movement for civil rights?
One way is to begin with learning about the community who surrounded him: Ella Baker, Fannie Lou Hamer, Julian Bond, Diane Nash, Bayard Rusin, John Lewis, and the many other women and young people who remain unnamed, and whose work we continue. Though many may view the Rev. Dr. King as the leader of the civil rights movement, he didn’t do it alone, and nor do we.
The poet Audre Lorde once said, "There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle, because we do not lead single-issue lives." There is strength in our diversity and in our intersecting identities. We know that a single day to honor a culture, identity, or Dr. King’s legacy is not enough. In our District, we invite each one of us to look beyond the actions of a day or month so that in everything we do and say, we are leading with equity to create a District where each person can experience inclusion and belonging; where we can show up as our whole selves and do away with the notion of single-issue struggles.
The march toward justice does not end after the shares on social media stop, after a special assembly, or after a re-reading of his famous “I Have a Dream” speech delivered on August 28, 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. So on this day, we recognize the equity champions within our Sumner-Bonney Lake community who foster brave and inclusive spaces where each student and staff can feel safe, seen, heard, and valued.
To learn more about the ways you can get involved in the equity and inclusion work of the district, please reach out to equity@sumnersd.org.
Sumner High School
Sumner High School’s Modernization and Expansion Phase 1 construction project is on schedule, anticipated to be completed in early 2023. Here’s the latest on the project, which will feature a new commons, library, kitchen/cafeteria, additional classroom and associated student services (technology, security, restrooms).
- Eco Rain Tank: Fabricated on site, the Eco-Rain Tank is now complete and being buried. The large underground stormwater control structure has a 393,475 gallon capacity. Related storm structures and electrical will follow once the bury is complete.
- Right-of-Way: Right-of-way work to install street lighting on Mason Street is scheduled to begin on Jan. 24. This work affects only the school side of the street.
- Foundation Slabs: Concrete foundation slabs in Area 2 are complete. The slab in Area 1 has just begun. The slabs will become the sub-flooring in the kitchen area, where flooring material will be placed on top of it. The library and offices on the main floor will also receive floor covering. The rest of the space will have the top of the slab polished and will be the finished floor.
- Masonry: The week of Jan. 17, concrete masonry work on exterior walls will begin in Area 2, which is the back-of-house side of the building where the kitchen, electrical and mechanical rooms and related areas are located.
Mountain View Middle School
The Mountain View Middle School Expansion project is taking shape with ongoing framing of the addition and roof trusses in place above four new classrooms. And just today, construction crews poured concrete for the retaining wall.
Here are other activities on tap for the next couple of weeks:
- Continue framing the addition
- Lay out electrical and plumbing lines
- Modify auxiliary gym door
- Demolish stucco
- Install fence on top of retaining wall
There are multiple parts to this expansion project — the classroom and commons expansion, interior remodeling, parking lot and queueing reconfiguration, and exterior finish updates. The classroom and commons expansion will be substantially complete in June, the remainder of the project will be complete for fall 2023.
We appreciate our local law enforcement officers! They are pivotal partners in keeping our students and staff safe. We’re grateful for the support of the Sumner and Bonney Lake police departments and Pierce County Sheriff’s Department that have resources and programs dedicated to school safety.
While there are multiple aspects to our partnership with law enforcement agencies, a key component is the District’s two School Resource Officers who serve all of our schools within the city limits. Officer Watson (Sumner) and Officer Wolschleger (Bonney Lake) have been specifically trained in school-based law enforcement, crisis response and community-oriented policing concepts. While they spend the majority of their time at Sumner High School and Bonney Lake High School, they make regular visits to the middle schools and are available to our elementary schools on a moment’s notice.
One of the many valuable supports Officers Watson and Wolschleger provide is fostering positive relationships, while serving as a resource to students, teachers and administrators to help solve problems. The safety and security our law enforcement partners provide is immeasurable, with benefits going well beyond school walls.
We not only appreciate police department officers and staff on Law Enforcement Appreciation Day (Jan. 9), but every day! Learn about National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, and more about our safety and security staff in schools.
Washington state offers financial aid for those who aren’t eligible for federal aid, including undocumented students. Financial aid is money that can help you pay for more education after high school. Complete the Washington Application for State Financial Aid (WASFA) to see if you are eligible.
Exciting changes have been happening for the WASFA and its users:
- New website: The WASFA has moved! Learn more and apply online.
- Spanish on application: Instructions and form fields on the WASFA application are now written in both English and Spanish.
- Easier residency: Recent changes in state residency laws have made it easier to get resident tuition and state financial aid, making college or job training cost less. Many people who didn’t qualify before now do.
The WASFA is an application for state financial aid only. The WASFA is for people who are undocumented or who do not qualify for federal aid because of their immigration status, and can be used in limited circumstances by others who cannot or choose not to file a federal FAFSA. You must meet state residency and program requirements to qualify. Not sure whether you should use the FAFSA or the WASFA? Complete the WASFA questionnaire.
There are affordable college and training options for everyone, including students who are immigrants, are undocumented, or have DACA. The first, best step is to apply for financial aid. Concerned about privacy? Read the WASFA privacy statement.
