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Greetings Peirce Community,

Please join me and the Local School Council on Thursday, November 18th at 6pm as we enter our second session with Dr. Fisher.

Racial Healing & Reconciliation Session 2: Envisioning the Possibilities which focuses on what it means to center Equity + decenter oppression along with consciousness-raising, and a community brainstorm on pathways to create an equity-centered LSC-Community experience.

Our children spend seven (or more) hours a day at school - a place where friendships are formed, community cultivated and learning happens. Schools are communities that each of us is an essential member of and at Peirce, we have a shared responsibility towards creating a Racially Just School Community for our children and the friends of our children. As we work to center equity and decenter oppression, I ask our community to pause, reflect and take action.

• What would it take to create a Racially Just School at Peirce? How can you contribute to moving us forward?

• Have you benefited from the current design of schools? Have your children benefited from the current design of schools? Why?
• What impact has the color of our skin, our gender, our race had on our ability to advance academically, economically and socially in society?
• Who pays for the privileges you enjoy? Others enjoy? How?

Our work with Racial Equity must continue, each of us is important in our pathway forward and I ask that you join me in our work with reconciliation and healing as we work to create a Racially Just school at Peirce. Please see my May 28th newsletter where I called on the Peirce Community to seek understanding while working to build personal connections with each other.

In Solidarity,

Lori Zaimi

Principal

The next Local School Council Meeting will take place on Thursday, November 18th at 6:00pm.

Agenda: A copy of the agenda will be available 48 hours before the meeting

Meeting Link

As a part of our ongoing work to foster a diverse, inclusive, and equitable school community at Peirce, we've partnered with Developing Capacity Coaching, LLC (DCC) to focus on improving our relationships with families, staff and the community. These sessions are designed to combine healing from past inequitable experiences, reconciliation, and equity training in an effort to repair harm and rebuild bridges. We welcome all families, staff and community members to come to join us in this work but especially hope those who've felt marginalized within our Peirce community will feel and be welcomed to attend. Our work with DCC will take place from October-December 2021.

Thursdays meeting will be the second racial healing and reconciliation session with the goal to create a plan to move forward. One idea that has been talked about, but not finalized, is the creation of an Equity Task Force which could become a sub-committee of the LSC and include family, community and staff members to participate in. If developed and agreed upon, the equity task force will go through their own training and development with DCC to support them to set a vision through an equity purpose-to-practice process. For more details on the sessions, see below:

• Racial Healing & Reconciliation Session 1: Honoring our Collective Humanity which focuses on setting community norms, open space for community members to speak their truth about their experiences with inequity in the Peirce community and an introduction to healing and reconciliation. Thursday, October 21st at 6:30pm, Virtually through the LSC Meeting Link.
• Racial Healing & Reconciliation Session 2: Envisioning the Possibilities which focuses on what it means to center Equity + decenter oppression along with consciousness-raising, and a community brainstorm on pathways to create an equity-centered LSC-Community experience. Thursday, November 18th at 6:00pm.
• Living Equity from Purpose-to-Practice: Self, Us, Stakeholders LSC-School Coherence: New Equity Task Force training.

We hope that you will join us in this experience. We encourage you to RSVP here. Please know if you decided to attend at the last minute, that is okay too---we know that you have full schedules.

Better late than never right? Take a look at some of the pictures and video of our Halloween Parade - due to the rain, the parade was held indoors.

Report Card Day is Wednesday, November 17th

11:00am - 3:00pm and 4:00pm - 6:00pm

Families will have the option to attend in person or virtual and teachers have sent out how to sign up for your conference time.

Those who are attending in person must show proof of vaccination or a negative covid test taken within 72 hours of arriving at the main entrance.

Shannon Jiamachello, Resident Principal will hold two information sessions on the new assessment screener, STAR 360 for 3rd-8th grade families at 11:00am and 4:00pm. Both sessions will be held virtually and can be accessed here: https://meet.google.com/wzd-tjoz-ewr?authuser=0.

As children become fully vaccinated, please submit proof of vaccination here. Proof of vaccination will be updated in Aspen and be used when we are tasked with quarantining classrooms. Please note that children are not considered fully vaccinated until they are two weeks post the 2nd dose of the vaccine. If you have not yet scheduled an appointment for vaccination, you can check this site for vaccine availability.

Save the date! Join Principal Zaimi on December 9th at 6:00pm for the State of the School Presentation. This meeting will provide the school community with an update on student achievement data along with progress made towards the school improvement plan. The meeting will be held virtually and a meeting link will be shared at a later time.

Northwestern is partnering with Peirce to lead community conversations surrounding the topic race and society. Families can participate in a research study about race and society with other Peirce School parents. This research study consists of participating in a focus group with other parents. In order to participate, go to this link: https://northwestern.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/S V_e4pBbAy3k0qbCzI

The link contains a consent form and a preliminary survey. The purpose of the study is to learn about how you raise your children to think about race and your relationship with the school. Parent Participants will receive $40 for their participation in this study.

Please join us on 11.15.2021 from 5 pm - 6 pm for a session that will inform parents and caregivers on the District's updated Sexual Health Policy. At the end of this presentation you will:

• Understand the new policy requirements and what it means for Sexual Health Education in schools.

• Know who to contact for sexual healthrelated questions.

To participate RSVP HERE: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdG5Mp0g51o6CUx335IqTNKP2dWd04IvfNch4tYqvcUoYpXmg/viewform

Friday November 19, @ 8:05, after dropbox (Peirce Field, weather permitting)

JOIN US: COFFEE + COMMUNITY: "Sometimes the bravest and most important thing you can do is show up." - Brene Brown. Please join us for an informal chance to build community over coffee, next Friday 19 November, after drop-off. Set up will be by the field house, and folx are welcome to grab a cup and go or hang around to chat. Representatives from each of the Peirce parent organizations will be on hand to answer any questions you have about getting involved through them. We hope you'll stop by to stay hi!

What an amazing day we had for The First Annual FOP & PSO Fall Fest. This collaborative event provided a much needed outlet for the Peirce community to come together. In addition to the beautiful weather, kids enjoyed playing games, decorating pumpkins, snacking on popcorn and taffy apples. There was a pumpkin patch, photo booth, henna tattoo artist, a circus wheel and a stunning GUS Giordano dance performance to Thriller.

FOP was able to raise $3,765, which will go towards the purchase of athletic shirts for student athletes. We want to thank our In-Kind supporters that helped make the Fall Fest possible; Metropolis Coffee, Dollop Diner and Stans for the donuts, Jewel and Fresh Farms for the mini pumpkins, Affy Tapple, Gus Giordano Dance School, CirquesExperience, and Platts Farm for the Pumpkin Patch. We also want to send out a BIG THANK YOU to all the families who volunteered and contributed to make this fundraisers a success!

Take a look at the amazing shopping opportunities to help ease your way this holiday season. These are just 3 of the opportunities, more to come in the upcoming weeks.

Minted for your holiday cards! 20% Back to Peirce!

Honey Baked Ham for your main dish needs!

Edge of Sweetness for your Sweets! 10% Back to Peirce!

PEIRCE GEAR NOW ON SALE!
Friends of Peirce (FOP) has partnered with Tee-Mart, a Rogers Park family-owned business, to offer apparel and more. Many styles and colors are available and items can be picked up or mailed to you. A portion of each sale will go to Friends of Peirce. (Learn more about FOP and their mission of supporting our students HERE). Contact Kevin@friendsofpeirce.org if you have questions or suggestions on what gear YOU would like to have.

SHOP THE PEIRCE STORE

CPS made the following update to the Sick Student Protocol:

1. Under new ISBE guidance, if the sick individual is tested within 24 hours of symptom onset, siblings/household members do not need to be sent home unless there is high suspicion the sick person has COVID-19.

1. Examples where ”high suspicion” exists = sick individual is a known close contact or loss of taste or smell.

2. Siblings/household members can remain in school and must wear masks both indoors and outdoors.

3. If the sick individual tests positive, unvaccinated siblings/household members should be sent home immediately.

If testing doesn’t occur within 24 hours of symptom onset, unvaccinated siblings/household members must be sent home until the sick individual has test results.

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If your child is sick with any COVID-19 Symptoms please do the following:

Call your child's healthcare provider and get the child tested for COVID-19. Your child should stay home while waiting for results. If you are unable to get your child tested, your child must stay home until they are symptom-free without medication for 24 hours.

• If the child is negative student should stay home until...
  
• Illness is over
• Symptoms have steadily improved
• Fever-free for 24hrs without medication
  
• No uncontrollable cough
• No vomiting or diarrhea for 24hrs
  
• If a child is positive
• COVID-19 case must isolate for 10 days from the start of illness; non fully vaccinated household members must Quarantine 14 days (from date of last contact or end of case’s isolation)
• ** CPS Cases should SELF-REPORT to cps.edu/covidresults. Parents or guardians report on behalf of their own children.

Please be reminded that all students, staff and visitors to the school campus should wear masks while on school grounds. Students and staff wear masks at all times when they are indoors, unless eating. Students are able to remove their masks during breakfast and lunchtime.

Students can also remove their masks outdoors when they are able to maintain at least 3 feet of social distancing and are within their same cohort. Please know that there are few instances when this is applicable, therefore, many students will keep their mask on the duration of the day.

November

17th Report Card Day - No School for Students

18th Local School Council Meeting, 6:00pm

19th Parent Group Coffee & Community, 8:00am

24th-26th Thanksgiving Break, No School

30th Picture Re-Takes

December

1st Open House & School Tour for Prospective Families at 9am

7th Make Up HS Admissions Test for 8th Grade

9th State of the School Presentation, 6:00pm

10th Peirce Service Organization Meeting, 8:15am

13th Virtual Coffee with the Principal at 9:00am

14th Friends of Peirce Meeting, 6:30pm

15th GO CPS Enrollment Applications close at 5:00pm

17th Progress Reports Distributed

Winter Break from December 20th - 31st

Classes resume on Monday, January 3rd

• PSO Contact Forms

  Español (link: https://bit.ly/InformacióndecontactodePeirce)

English (link: https://bit.ly/PeirceUpdateContactInfo)

• Pay Student Fee (through your parent Aspen account)
• School Schedules
• Parent, Educator and External Guide for Reopening
  
• Self-Reporting of COVID19 Positive Cases
• Family Handbook
  
• School Year 2021-2022 Calendar
  
• Safety Best Practices

Email: lzaimi@cps.edu
Website: peirce.cps.edu
Location: 1423 W Bryn Mawr Chicago, IL
Phone: 773-534-2440
Facebook: facebook.com/peircecps