Hello Cougar Families!!!

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. We had a busy week at Geneva Heights with Parent-Teacher Conferences all week and ending with a Coffee with the Principal on Friday morning. We hosted JL Long Principal Principal Amir and had a great turnout from our GH families. We received some wonderful feedback and will bring back some of or Long colleagues to share what is in store for our Cougars as they transition to middle school.

This week we host our IB Literacy Night on Tuesday beginning at 5:30. We hope to see everyone there as these have been wonderful events to showcase our IB culture at Geneva Heights. We have quite a few events planned for the Spring and the dates were just finalized with our wonderful PTA, so please be on the lookout for all the events and mark your calendars.

Our renovated campus is coming along and on track to be ready for us come August!! Have a wonderful Sunday!!

Your Proud Principal of Geneva Heights Elementary,

Israel Verver, Jr.

We had a great turn out from our families. Thank you all who made it out! News from our school:

• Our tentative move in date to the new building has been pushed back a month: July 2024
• We are still anticipating opening the school year August 2024-25, in the new building.
• Campus tours of the new building are still on schedule for late April - early May 2024

Some information provided by our guest, Principal Amir, from J. L. Long Middle School, was as follows:

• Their students have a block schedule 5x5 - 73 minute classes
• They receive double blocks of English/Literature & Math that they attend everyday
• IB program is for all students (wall to wall)
• Dual language program increased to 7 dual language teachers this year
• They have the 5th largest athletics program and are getting their own training field as part of a bond package.
• Girls participate in athletics and are very competitive
• The school has 3 athletic programs in the spring and 3 in the fall
• Next year, they have been approved an assistant athletic director
• They have a large arts program which includes art, theater, band, dance, and choir
• Other programs include: student council, zoo crew, and esports
• Tutoring with small groups is offered on campus after school
• Sports participation starts in 7th grade
• Theater and Arts are available to all students in the 6th grade
• There are productions and competitions available to all students

1/30 Tuesday: IB Literacy Night. 5:30 - 7:00PM @ 6606 Ridgecrest Rd. We could still use volunteers Please sign up on Voly https://dallasisd.voly.org/opportunity/view.html?id=90944. Our volunteers will be reading to students. Dinner will be provided. Wear your PJ's.

2/2 Friday: Spirit Shirt Day! Students can wear uniforms or GH spirit, Feeder pattern, or College shirts with uniform bottoms (Shorts/Skirt must be at least finger-tip length) *no donation required.*

Sign Up and become a DISD Volunteer @ https://dallasisd.voly.org

The Dallas ISD Voly System ensures all our volunteers know the safety guidelines of helping in our schools and includes background checks. All volunteers must complete this process yearly.

Lunchroom Volunteers NEEDED,

The first step is to complete the DISD volunteer process @ https://Dallasisd.voly.org. Second, please choose the lunchroom opportunity that works best for you. You may choose a 30-minute lunch period or choose to help with all the lunch periods. Finally, once you arrive at the school present your photo ID to Mrs. Rios and you’ll be off to help make the students’ lunch time efficient and enjoyable. Your support is always greatly appreciated.

1. If you need virtual calming options or calming activities for your student to do at home, try browsing DISD's Virtual Calming Corner. https://sites.google.com/dallasisd.org/virtualcalmingcorner/hom

GH fifth graders will visit J. L. Long Middle School for a tour and brief presentation. Students will be transported from Geneva Heights by bus.

The window for applications to DISD's specialty schools and programs is closing soon!

https://www.dallasisd.org/choosedallasisd

Thank you to the PTA for providing dinner to our teachers and staff on parent conference night. Your sandwich boxes and drinks put smiles on many faces! Thank you for taking such good care of us!

PTA is starting a monthly raffle for our volunteers. The names will be pulled from Voly. The more times you volunteer the better chances you have at winning. The prize....$100 gift card! The winner for December is Erica White. Congratulations and thank you again for helping support our school!

There is an overflowing pile of LOST & FOUND in our cafeteria. If your student has lost articles of clothing or water bottles, chances are they are there. A team of staff and teachers organized them. Please check this area on IB night. After this day, all items left will be discarded.

Update 12/4/2023:

Parents,

Dismissal is a crucial time for safety. We have had several incidents where parents have shown up during dismissal and removed their students from the bus. Once we safely get our Cougars onto the bus, we will no longer allow students to be pulled. We have a system in place that requires communication with homeroom teachers and the front office so we ensure the safety and well-being of our scholars. Students cannot and will not be removed without the proper vetting at the front office. If your child is on the bus, you will have to meet them at the Del Mar campus. We use all staff members during dismissal to ensure the campus is properly and safely cleared. Any disruption in this system can potentially lead to campus personnel being distracted and causing a gap in our protocols and safety measures. There is a 2:30 pm cutoff for notifying the campus of any changes in your Cougar's dismissal routine.

Also, please refrain from parking in driveway or on the street during dismissal. The driveway may be used AFTER the busses leave but entering the driveway limits the space our buses have to turn into the campus. The street parking reduces the flow of traffic and prevents the busses from leaving safely and on time.

We would like to ask parents, (who have signed up their students, to ride the bus, from Delmar to the school), to please start sending your children, on the bus, in the mornings so we can avoid having buses being removed from our route.

Thank you for your assistance with this matter.

https://www.instagram.com/wearewoodrow/

When: April 28, 2024

Gates open at 11:30, performances from noon - 3

Where: Samuell-Grand Amphitheater

What: Mark your calendars for an afternoon of performances from the Band, feeder pattern school performing arts groups, and professional musicians. Enjoy food, activities, a raffle, and fun for the whole family! More details coming Spring 2024.

Interested in being a sponsor or having your student group perform? Contact wwwbandboosters@gmail.com for more information!

Website: https://www.dallasisd.org/genevaheights
Location: 6606 Ridgecrest Road, Dallas, TX, USA
Phone: (972)749-7400
Twitter: @GenevaHeights