A Message from Mrs. Leonardo
Thank you for supporting our very first student-led goal-setting conferences. We are proud of our students! Since this was our first time conducting conferences in this manner, we know there will be room for improvement. I look forward to discussing any feedback you may have at my Principal's Coffee this Thursday evening.
We know that you may want to speak to your student's other teachers. Please be sure to email the teachers or call our school office and let our office staff know you'd like the teacher to connect with you.
The end of trimester 1 is November 9. Grades will be finalized on November 14th. Then, report cards will be printed and mailed home. However, do not wait until you receive your student's report card to check their grades. Please log on to PowerSchool and check your student's grades today. If you still do not have access to PowerSchool, please come to the Kennedy Family Center from 8 am to 4 p.m. for support. Maria Segundo can help you with your PowerSchool needs.
❓Frequently Asked Questions or Concerns
- My student says they do not have homework or they finished it at school. Make them prove it. Ask them to see the work they finished for the day. Ask your student to review their assignments with you.
- How can I check my student's grades? You can log on to PowerSchool. This information was sent home in September. If you do not have access, visit the Kennedy Family Center OR make your student log on to PowerSchool using their own login information.
- My student struggles with math or reading. What support do you have? We offer math homework support after school on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays in room 534 from 3:15 to 4:30. We are working to get homework support for other subjects after school. However, in the meantime, students should reach out to their teachers to find out when they are available to support them.
- I think my student needs a tutor. Who do I talk to? Connect with Michelle Fryer Phan. She is our MTSS TOSA. She can determine what supports might be best for your child. mfyerphan@rcsdk8.net. You can also find Michelle in our Kennedy Family Center.
👻Halloween October 31
- Costumes are allowed at Kennedy on Halloween. However, we ask students to leave candy at home.
- I have listed our requirements and dress code rules for Halloween costumes at the bottom of our newsletter. Please make sure your student follows our guidelines.
🎃Halloween Dance
- Our first dance of the year was a success. We had over 275 6th through 8th graders attend our dance!
- We are so thankful for our parent volunteers who set up, passed out food, chaperoned, made sure students made it to their families and cleaned up after everyone was gone. Thank you, Marcela Lagarda and Moises Salazar, for organizing the parent volunteers. You both did an AMAZING job!
🏫No School November 1, 2023
Please add this date to your calendars. There will be no instruction Wednesday, November 1 due to RCSD teacher professional development.
☕Change to Principal's Coffee November 2, 2023
My November Principal's Coffee will be an evening event. Parents and guardians who work in the mornings are interested in attending these events, but they cannot attend due to their work schedules.
This evening event will focus on i-Ready data and i-Ready for student growth and how to access and use PowerSchool to keep track of your student's academic progress.
The evening Principal's Coffee will be held from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. in the Kennedy Library.
Here is our updated 2023-24 Kennedy Family, School, & Student Compact: click here. Please review this compact with your student(s) this week.
Once you have reviewed our compact, please agree or disagree with this compact by October 31, 2023. You can agree or disagree with our compact by clicking here.
🏫SUHSD Open Enrollment
8th-grade families, please begin the online registration and enrollment process for your soon-to-be high school freshman. Visit this link for more information: bit.ly/SUHSD-OLR. For assistance please contact:
Online Registration:
Juan Ramirez, Ext. 22395 or jramirez@seq.org
Merced Ruiz, Ext. 22209 or meruiz@seq.org
Open Enrollment: Cynthia Guerra, Ext. 22211 or cguerra@seq.org
📚Kennedy Book Fair
The Kennedy Scholastic Book Fair is coming November 13-17th! Click here to explore Kennedy's Book Fair website. Click here to learn more about e-wallet.
Please sign up to volunteer at the Book Fair. We need parent support! Sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090948AFAE2EAA8-45098932-scholastic#/
Student Clubs Meeting This Week
- Sign up for Intramural Flag Football by this Friday. Games to start November 6th. Sign-up link for Kennedy students.
- Cursive Writing Club Monday at 7th/8th grade lunch in room 316
- Math Homework Support after school on Mondays, Wednesdays, & Fridays in room 535
- Book Club after school on Tuesday in the library
- 6th-Grade Student Council Reps Tuesday at lunch in room 103
- Italian Club Tuesday after school in room 318
- Makerspace and Robotics Club during 6th-grade lunch in room 104
- Wellness Club Tuesday during 7th/8th grade lunch in room 636
- K-Pop Club Wednesdays during 7th/8th grade lunch in room 208
- 7th-Grade Executive Council Thursday at lunch in room 314
- Rock Band Club after school on Wednesday in room 314
- Art Club Thursdays during 7th/8th grade lunch in room 527
- Jazz Club Thursday morning before school in room 312
- Photography Club Thursday during 6th-grade lunch in room 425
- GSA Kennedy Skittles Thursday during 7th/8th grade lunch in room 315
- GSA Kennedy Skittles Thursday during 6th-grade lunch in room 102
- Chess Club Thursday during both lunches in the library
- K-Pop Club Thursday at 6th-grade lunch in room B-9
- 6th-Grade Lunch Bunch Friday during 6th-grade lunch in room B-6
- Environmental Club Friday during 7th/8th grade lunch in room 535
That's all for now!
See you soon!
Mrs. Leonardo
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Community Invited to Board Study Session for Update on Workforce Housing
It is well documented that California’s affordable housing crisis is affecting the ability of school districts to recruit and retain a top-tier workforce. As some districts begin building workforce housing projects, they will realize a competitive advantage over districts in high-cost areas that do not offer a housing benefit.
In June 2019, the Redwood City School District (RCSD) Board of Trustees unanimously approved a feasibility study. That decision set in motion a four-year process to determine if RCSD should commit to a new housing project, and under what circumstances. A housing needs survey of RCSD staff was conducted in Nov. 2020. Of the 360 employees who responded, 220 indicated that they were not homeowners and 165 expressed their interest in district-sponsored housing. Recently, the Board of Trustees determined that developing the current district office property in downtown Redwood City is a viable way for RCSD to address its affordable housing crisis.
Please join us at Hoover Community School Gymnasium on Thursday, Nov. 2 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM to learn more about this initiative and hear what a local high school district has learned by building and operating its own apartment complex.
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California Healthy Kids Survey
The California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) is an anonymous, confidential survey of school climate and safety, student wellness, and youth resiliency. It enables schools and communities to collect and analyze data regarding local youth health risks and behaviors, school connectedness, school climate, protective factors, and school violence. This survey will help our district determine services to address the needs of our students.
The CHKS survey will be administered to all 7th and 8th grade students in the Redwood City School District between the week of November 6th and 8th. All students will participate in the survey unless you opt for your child not to participate. If you do not want your child to participate, please complete the form at this link and submit it to our Site Coordinator or scan the form and email it in.
Kennedy's Site Coordinator is our mental health counselor, Kathryn Lige: klige@rcsdk8.net
Should you have any questions, please contact Patrinia Redd (Director of Health and Wellness & District Coordinator) at predd@rcsdk8.net.
8th-Graders @ Yosemite
I will send out updates to families as I receive them.
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Halloween Expectations
Students can wear Halloween costumes on Tuesday, October 31. Costumes need to be school-appropriate. Here are some guidelines/rules, many of which are our normal dress code:
Costume masks are prohibited. COVID-19 masks are allowed.
Fake blood, props, and accessories are prohibited (Examples: guns, wands, knives, etc.).
Costumes should not have obscene language, hate speech, or themes/references to drugs, alcohol, the occult, death/suicide, or violence.
Gang-related costumes, clothing, and/or props are prohibited.
Hair coloring must be applied at home.
Candy should remain at home. Teachers and administrators have the right to confiscate candy if it is disruptive to the learning environment.
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PTO Corner
Hello, Kennedy Community!
Thank you to all those who attended this month’s PTO meeting on Tuesday evening. It’s wonderful to connect and share our ideas about making KMS the best it can be for our students.
Some key topics covered were reviews of the PTO budget and bylaws, updates from committee leads, and gratitude for PTO-sponsored lunches for teachers during conference week. We also loved hearing from our Student Council representative, Brody. KMS students are engaged and enthusiastic about their school community!
I would like to highlight the need for field trip chaperones for two upcoming STEAM field trips. They will be on November 15 at the Pulgas Water Temple and on December 6th at a water quality processing plant. Chaperones must be cleared through the district. Bus transportation is provided and the trips will last all day, 8:30-3:15. If you are available to help out please contact info@kennedycougarspto.org to express your interest.
A HUGE thank you goes out to Marcela S. for organizing parent volunteers for the Halloween Dance!
Finally, our Direct Drive fundraising efforts are ongoing and support academics, student activities, staff appreciation events, and our elective programs. We are asking $200 per family, but please consider donating any amount that fits your personal financial situation. Whether it's $25, $50, $100, or $1,000, every dollar helps us reach our fundraising goal and our students are worth our investment.
To support KMS, DONATE at the link below:
https://kennedycougarspto.org/donate
Represent Kennedy With Style
KMS Spirit Wear is on sale now. Order online at the link below.
https://kennedyrwc.itemorder.com/shop/home/
Follow the KMS PTO on Instagram and Facebook, @KennedyCougarsPTO.
Check out www.kennedycougarspto.org for more info.
Kind regards,
Jess Bryski
PTO President
2023-2024
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Donate to Kennedy We need your support! | Join WhatsApp Spanish-speaking families can join WhatsApp for Kennedy updates! | PTO Social Media |
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Updates from Boys and Girls Club
Hello BGCP Families,
We want to remind everyone about our Attendance Policy: students are expected to attend a full day of the program every day. Our program runs until 5:50 p.m. each day. We provide a diverse set of options for students such as academic support, enrichments, chill time, and high school exposure. For them to experience these components, students need to attend the program.
We recognize that students also participate in other activities outside of our program. If your student is unable to attend, we ask that you communicate this information via email or text. You can also fill out our Accommodation Request Form if there is any specific day your child cannot attend. We do ask that if an accommodation is made, students attend three full days of the program. Here is the link for you to fill out and our contact information:
BGCP Office Number: (650)804-9045
BGCP Email: kennedy@bgcp.org
We are excited about all the fun and engaging activities we have in store this year! We look forward to staying in communication and serving our students. Thank you, BGCP families.
Arnulfo Prado
Kennedy BGCP Site Director
Redwood City Parks & Rec Sports This Week
Flag Football
No Games
Volleyball
8th-Grade
No Games
7th-Grade
Monday, 10/30
4:00 - Kennedy White at McKinley
6:15 - Kennedy Green at McKinley
6th-Grade
Monday, 10/30
4:45 - Kennedy White at McKinley
6:15 - Kennedy Green at McKinley
What's Happening in the Kennedy Library?
Book Club has started! We meet on Tuesdays after school. If you are interested in joining, come by the library to sign up or sign up here.
Get more details from Ms. Cooper and the awesome Kennedy Library by visiting the Kennedy Library Website.
Kennedy's Amazon Wishlist
We are incredibly grateful for your support! Thank you!
Our wishlist contains items requested by teachers at Kennedy. It now contains items we need for our STEAM and art electives.
Thank you, Emilie Gawronksi, for purchasing pencils for teachers.
An anonymous donor purchased Kleenex for teachers. Thank you!
Kennedy Middle School