EAST CLIFF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENT— PARENT BULLETIN

August 24, 2015

School Hours 1st Bell 7:40 Tardy Bell 7:50 Dismissal for K-5 3:20

The school assumes responsibility of the supervision of students at 7:20 AM.

Dear Students and Parents,

I would like to take this

opportunity to welcome you and

your child to East Cliff

Elementary. I hope you had a

great summer and that you are looking forward

to the opening of school with the same

enthusiasm as the teachers and staff. We will

provide each child with various opportunities to

excel. We believe East Cliff Elementary school

has all the ingredients needed to enable all

children to be successful. I am proud of our

students, faculty and school, and of our

achievements. We view parents and guardians

as our partners in the educational process and

encourage you to become involved in many of

the school activities. To keep you informed of

events and activities, I will produce a monthly

newsletter for parents. This newsletter is

sent home the first day of each month and can

be accessed on the school website.

Working together, we can find ways to

help your child achieve academically during the

2015-2016 school year.

Sincerely,

Alma Muñoz

IMPORTANT!! East Cliff Elementary will be

implementing new “Drop Off” and

“Pick Up” Procedures. Please see

attached memo dated

August 20, 2015.

School Holiday

September 7, 2015

Monday, September 7, 2015, will be a school holiday in observance of La-bor Day. School will resume at the regular time on Tuesday, September 8, 2015.

New Staff

A special welcome to our new faculty members:

Julie Wiatrek 4th Grade Teacher Whitney Foley 4th Grade Teacher Rachel Coleman 5th Grade Teacher Nicole Shafer 5th Grade Teacher Stephanie Duran 5th Grade Teacher Elizabeth Jackson 5th Grade Teacher Adriana Amendarez Special Ed Teacher Amy Crane Sp. Ed. Instructional Aide Keri Summers P. E. Aide Pamela Jones Computer Lab Manager Ginger Beck Computer Lab Manager

Attention!!!

All visitors, parents, guests,

and volunteers must come by the

office to sign in and get a badge

when visiting the school. If you

plan to volunteer at school or chaperone

an activity, please stop by the office to

pick up a criminal history check applica-

tion. This application needs to be submit-

ted annually.

To: Parents and Students

From Alma Muñoz

Date: August 20, 2015

Welcome back to the new school year! As we begin the 2015-2016 school year, East Cliff welcomes new staff including four 5th grade

teachers to serve our fifth grade students. With the increased student body and staff, some of the school operational procedures have been

modified. Everyone’s cooperation is needed for the safety of our children.

At all times, we will utilize the front main entrance by the third grade wing and office to access the building. (As part of the school’s safety

plan, all emergency exits have panic bars as per fire code.) The gated entrance will open daily at 7:20 a.m., close/lock at 8:00 a.m. after

“Safety Patrol” safeguards hallways/breezeways of non-staff, re-open at 3:20 p.m. by our Staff/Student Safety Patrol. After 8:00

a.m., the following procedures must be followed:

-Push button beside the entrance gate door.

-Identify yourself on the PA system and camera.

-The office will “buzz” you into the premises.

-Report directly to the office to sign in and receive your visitor’s badge.

-I.D. is required for a student to be checked out. Students are released from the building only through the office.

New rules for drop off and pick up have been established (and will remain the same at the current and new campus). The following

rules MUST be observed by all to ensure safety for our students. Cell phone usage in a school zone is prohibited. We will utilize our stu-

dent/staff safety patrol this school year.

In the morning and afternoon no parking will be permitted along Broadway on the “blacktop” side traveling west. This part of the road clos-

est to the curb will be used to form the carpool/drive through lane. No left turn will be allowed onto the school while traveling East on

Broadway.

In the morning, lane 1 (this lane is closest to building) will be blocked and is used only for Safety Patrol Stations. Children will load/unload

vehicles on the right side. Lane 3 is closed /no parking allowed. (All parents must remain in their vehicles at all times.)

In the afternoon, lane 2 will be for carpool/drive through traffic only. Lane 1 is for Safety Patrol Stations and Lane 3 is closed.

Dismissal procedures and requirements:

Car riders-Car riders will be held in the cafeteria until their car tag number is called. Students will begin loading by 3:20 pm. We ask

that the adult driving remain in the car, proceed forward through the entire drive through lane and stop at a designated cone. Safety

Patrol will walk the students to the cars as they arrive at the loading zone. Please do not park your car in the driveway or in the parking

lot and come to get your child. Students will only be released to those in vehicles and with visible car tags. In addition, parents will not

be permitted to obtain their children via the front office in order to avoid our car tag procedures. Should this occur, you will be asked to

return to your vehicle and follow dismissal procedures set in place for the campus.

Bus /daycare riders (Legacy, First Baptist) students will be picked up at the side of the building nearest the 4th grade wing (drive through

outlet curb). Dismissal begins for bus/daycare at 3:20 p.m. Kidz Klub will report to the cafeteria with their class.

Any changes in dismissal procedures for a student must come via a phone call or note from the parent. It is best to send a note to the child’s

teacher and make a phone call to the front office. Calls for changing dismissal must come in to the front office by 2:30 p.m. to ensure

that we can call into your child’s classroom before they begin dismissing into the hallways. As a safety precaution, school personnel

will NOT take a child’s word for dismissal changes. Without notification from you, your child will go home via their “normal” mode.

No early student check outs allowed after 2:45 p.m. If you need to check your child out early for an appointment etc, please complete

the process before 2:45 p.m. This will ensure your child’s safety and proper security during dismissal.

No Parent/Visitor Parking will be available/allowed in the Carpool/Drive through area at any time.

Parent/Visitor parking is available in the front yards of East Cliff along Fulton/Broadway streets.

We ask for your support regarding our school’s operational procedures to ensure our students’ security and safety at all times. Thank you for

your cooperation.

2015 -2016 LUNCH SCHEDULE

KINDERGARTEN 10:32-11:02 OCHOA 10:35-11:05 MCVAY 10:38-11:08 RUSSELL

SECOND GRADE

10:50-11:20 SERRANO 10:53-11:23 REITMANN 10:56-11:26 GARCIA 10:59-11:29 WARD

FIRST GRADE 11:10-11:40 DENDY

11:13-11:43 CLANCY 11:16-11:46 SEAY 11:19-11:49 KRUMNOW

THIRD GRADE

11:30-12:00 PYLES 11:33-12:03 MCKINNY 11:36-12:06 GARZA 11:39-12:09 SMITH

FOURTH GRADE 12:02-12:32 FOLEY 12:05-12:35 WIATREK

12:08-12:38 RAMIREZ 12:11-12:41 ZIPPRIAN

FIFTH GRADE

12:25-12:55 SHAFER 12:28-12:58 COLEMAN 12:31 - 1:01 DURAN 12:34 - 1:04 JACKSON

For current lunch prices and breakfast prices, please visit the www.wildcatcafe.org. The cafeteria will continue using an automated com-puter system for meal accounting during the 2015-2016 school year.

SCHOOL DRESS CODE

can be found as an insert at the back of the Student-

Parent Handbook or online at www.g-pisd.org.

REMINDER:

All textbooks MUST be covered at all times.

Nursing Station

from

Sonia Marquez RN

I hope you had a fun, healthy and safe summer!

The beginning of the school year is a busy time for

parents and staff alike, so I thank you for return-

ing your child’s Emergency Medical Information

sheet so promptly...it is my main source of infor-

mation for your child. Without it, I can’t reach you

in a timely manner if there is an injury, emer-

gency, or illness that requires your attention.

Please remember to contact the office or clinic to

make changes in your phone number/ alternate

contacts/ address or your child’s health informa-

tion if anything changes during the year. If you

haven’t returned your child’s Medical Information

sheet, please do so AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. If it

has been lost, I’ll be happy to provide a blank form

for you. Please feel free to call (or come by) if you

have any questions.

5% BACK TO SCHOOL PRO-

GRAM

Office Depot is taking care of

education in 2015-16 by giving

back to our school each time you

purchase school supplies. At

checkout time, please tell Office

Depot representative to credit

East Cliff Elementary. Our

unique school ID is 70100252.

Please share this number with

your friends, colleagues, and

relatives.

Thank you for your support!

During 2015-16, GPISD will continue

implement four 9-week grading periods

with progress reports every three

weeks.

ATTENDANCE

During the 2014-2015 school year, our campus attendance was 96.28%. Our campus has high expectations for attendance just like our expectations for academics. Our goal for this year is 97%. There are several reasons why regular attendance at school is im-portant for every student. First, it is difficult for young students to learn if they are not in class. The teaching-learning process builds upon itself—each lesson presented to students is based upon or related to the lessons that were taught earlier. Just as we can never regain a moment of time wasted, the child who misses a day of school also misses a day of education that cannot be retrieved. Indeed, all research shows that those children who attend school regularly are more likely to be successful during their school years. Success after graduation is a second reason for regular attendance. If young people do not develop the habits of good attendance and prompt completion of assignments while they are in school, when will they learn these things? Their success as adults in their chosen occupation is dependent upon these habits. From experience, most educators know that students’ success in their school years is directly related to the importance that parents attach to education. When parents believe that consistent attendance is important and communicate that belief to their children, unnecessary absences from school will be drastically reduced. Students should attend school every day, unless an illness or emergency prevents them from doing so. Therefore, we ask that family fun trips be scheduled on school holidays. Please see the attached school calendar. In order to increase our attendance, several incentives will occur during the school year. Students must be present each day and have NO tardies to be eligible for these “perfect atten-dance” incentives. Students with perfect attendance and one tardy will be given a certificate for “outstanding attendance”.

COUNSELOR’S CORNER Sharon Musich

East Cliff Elementary Counselor

This year East Cliff Elementary staff and students will focus on Six Pillars of Character. The Six Pillars are the core values necessary for making sound, ethical choices and decisions. The pillars are Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship. We will continue practicing the Cool Kids behavior skills. Through the Cool Kids program the students are learning social skills and social responsibility. We will also continue with the character initiative called Project Wisdom.. The program teaches concepts such as integrity, respect, confidence, courage, honesty, and diligence. During morning announcements students will hear a short message containing a quotation from a historic figure, celebrity, modern hero, or other notable voice that reinforces the selected topic. In addition to these programs, students will continue receiving guidance lessons twice a month with their class. Individual counseling is provided upon request.

It is a joy and privilege to work with your children! Feel free to contact me at any time if you have questions or concerns.