Dear CST Family,

We had a full week and plenty of activities to fill it with. The big event this week was our 8th grade students visiting their high school for next year. Chisholm Trail sent students to all 5 high schools for a day’s worth of activities to their new school. Students came back from each of the schools energized and excited with many already wearing a t-shirt they received. All the schools did a nice job of providing a balance of pep, information, and fun. The smiles upon return were represented among all the high school groups. For your information, here is the high school breakdown from CST:

• Olathe South: 147
• Olathe North: 29
• Olathe Northwest: 19
• Olathe West: 9
• Olathe East: 9
• Out of District: 5

This week we also ended the boys’ basketball season with the city tournament on Saturday. Our boys had a great season and represented CST well. Thank you to coaches Reed and Boyd for their work with the boys this season.

Our “go for the gold” food drive from KAYS club in support of Journey Bible Church was a huge success. CST donating 1,430 items for the food pantry with each class targeting a specific items. Our students and community continue to show their generosity for those in need. Thank you so much for your support!

Next week begins track season (parent meeting at 5:30 Monday) and is the last week before spring break. Students return to school for the start of the 4th quarter on Tuesday, March 22nd. The 4th quarter has less breaks and nice weather than the 3rd quarter, so here's to a smooth, predictable calendar to wrap up the school year!

Have a safe and relaxing spring break and a nice week ahead!

Rick

Dear Parents,

As we all process the event in our community today, I want to reach out to share how the day was at CST. My hope is this snapshot will help you when speaking with your child. Teachers did not engage in conversations with their classes, especially given the limited (or unverified) facts we had. We needed to be sensitive of our students who have connections (both known and unknown) to OEHS and also be in tune with the wide range of maturity levels and understanding we have in the middle school. We worked closely with students who had specific concerns as well as parents who reached out, but we also aimed to provide comfort in routine for our students. For our students, the day was mostly normal and positive, although there is certainly some chatter about the events from today. I encourage you to have a conversation with your child to see how they’re doing, what they know (or think they know), or what they’ve heard. Caution your child on information received from social media as this medium will be ripe with false information or speculation. Please know we are here to support your child, or you as parents, as much as we can. We have an amazing counseling department and teaching staff, and also district resources as needed. We are here to help.

I appreciate your support as we work through this as a community.

Thanks,

Rick

• 6pm, Tuesday, May 24th
• End of Year Night of Recognition for 8th Grade Students
• All 8th grade students are invited to attend
• More details to come!

8th Grade Parents: It's time to start thinking about the 8th grade end-of-year slideshow! In May, we will show a slideshow that includes a baby photo, fifth grade photo and a current photo of 8th graders. It has been a fun tradition for the 8th grade "promotion" celebrations for years.

Using the information below, please submit: 1. A baby photo (newborn-toddler) 2. A 5th grade photo 3. A current 8th grade photo

It's easy to send photos! Simply email your three photos to: Mrs. Samantha Collins-Payne at smcollinspayne@olatheschools.org

If you do not have digital versions of photos, then please use your phone or device to take a photo of the photo and email it to Mrs. Collins-Payne. The photo does not need to be high-resolution for this slideshow. When you email your photos, please...1. Include your student's name in the email to Mrs. Collins-Payne. 2. Make sure to upload only JPEG format. 3. Look out for a confirmation email from Mrs. Collins-Payne. If she doesn't send one, then that means she didn't receive your email.

Questions? Contact Samantha Collins-Payne at smcollinspayne@olatheschools.org

DUE Friday, April 1. If your student’s photo is not received on or before Friday, April 1, then your student’s yearbook photo will be used for the slideshow.

We’re excited to announce that applications are open for the 2022-2023 Olathe Teen Council!

Teens will be able to meet with the City Council, learn how their local government works, how to be involved and how to amplify their voice. They’ll also be able to identify specific issues they are interested in learning more about and find a way to have an impact. We have multiple volunteer opportunities throughout the year. We also hope to take some teens to the National League of Cities conferences in Kansas City in 2022 and Washington DC in 2023.

This opportunity is open to any student who will be a high schooler in 2022-2023 and lives in Olathe. We generally accept between 10 and 20 members.

Students are encouraged to apply! The application is available at OlatheKS.org/TeenCouncil. It does require a short essay as well as two letters of recommendation. Applications are due July 1.

Physicals must be on file to go out, but all are welcome! Join the school team and represent with CST colors over the next 6 weeks of track!

Parent meeting at 5:30pm on Monday, March 7th.

Contact Coach Kinzer or Coach Hankins with questions.

If your son or daughter is going out for track, there will be an informational parent meeting at 5:30pm in the gymnasium on Monday March 7th.

Olathe Public Schools families,

Due to changes in CDC guidelines, masks will now be optional for students and staff on any transportation vehicles provided by the district. This includes school buses, activity buses, mini-vans, transits, SUVs, or cars.

Thank you for working together as a community to support the mask choices of all and thank you for your continued support of the Olathe Public Schools.

Olathe Public Schools Administration

What is Go Guardian? (device monitoring software)

Go Guardian Parent was created to help provide additional educational support to administrators and teachers by allowing parents to see what sites and documents their children are browsing and providing parents with additional internet controls at home. The app gives parents and guardians a bird’s eye view of the apps and websites that their kids are on most often and control over school-issued devices during out-of-school hours. With this perspective, parents can be made aware of what types of browsing behavior schools are seeing from students so they can all work together to encourage more effective internet browsing habits at home and at school.

See the attached PDF for more information and directions on how to download the app.

The Counseling Department would like to take a moment to share a resource from Children’s Mercy Hospital with you. Please use this link https://www.childrensmercy.org/departments-and-clinics/developmental-and-behavioral-health/prepped-and-ready/ to access information about Prepped and Ready: Parenting into the Teen Years. This is set up as a short video series that you can watch as your schedule permits. There is no cost, and if you complete a short survey at the end, Children’s Mercy will send you a great safety kit.

Topics include eating disorder prevention, home safety (including storage of firearms, medications, etc.), screen time, self-care, substance use (including vaping), and suicide prevention.

This resource will only be available for a short time, so please don’t wait!

Contact your child's counselor with questions.

6th Grade Devices

• Surface Go devices will be checked out to 6th grade and new students on Monday, August 16th. Returning 7th and 8th grade students should still have their device checked out to them last school year.
  

Extra Curricular Activities

• Students are encouraged to join CST activities! There is a strong link between school involvement and academic success. Cross Country practice begins on Tuesday, August 17 and is available to all students, 6th, 7th, and 8th. Physicals required to participate.
  

Water Bottles

• All students will be provided a water bottle from CST. Students are encouraged to drink plenty of water during the day. Drinking fountains will also be available for those without a water bottle.

Backpacks

• Students will be allowed to carry their backpacks this year to limit necessary locker trips. Students are encouraged to travel light and utilize their locker to help lighten the load.

Lockers

• All students have been assigned a hall locker and are expected to keep jackets/coats/extra clothing in their locker.
  

Two topics often asked about are cell phones and attire. The screenshots below are from the student handbook found on our website. We aim to promote a distraction-free learning environment as much as possible and we remind students that "Chisholm Trail is a school, not the pool". We want to promote a positive academic learning environment in the way we dress, speak, and behave. Teachers and admin will review a variety of topics with students as part of our beginning of year talks.

https://www.olatheschools.org/Page/8153

Access to school calendars, hour listings for buildings

District Calendar Page

Year-at-a-glance, single pager/downloadable

District Calendar PDF