Dear Lions Park Families,

We hope you and your children have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving holiday. As I reflect at this time of the year, I am filled with gratitude to be an employee, community member and parent at Lions Park School. Our staff are hard working, talented and dedicated. They spend countless hours outside of the school day planning, collaborating with one another and communicating with families and then show up each day with smiles and love for their students. Our families are supportive, generous and engaged. We have a PTO that provides special opportunities for students, financial support for our school and treats for staff. At the center of all if this are are wonderful students who come to school each day and demonstrate eagerness to learn, caring for their classmates and enthusiasm. I am thankful for our entire school community.

We were fortunate to welcome Mayor Hoefert to Lions Park today. He did our morning announcements and met with each grade level in our multipurpose room. He shared information about the history of Mount Prospect and about how our city government works. Thanks to Mayor Hoefert and our PTO Civic Engagement Committee, chaired by Vicky Chung.

We are looking forward to our annual Toy Drive. There is a flyer below with details, but please consider sending your child to school with one of the requested items on Friday, December 3rd.

The winter weather has arrived, even if it is still broken up by milder days. Please help your child to dress for the weather. We have had several students complain of being cold at recess. We do continue to go outside unless the "feels like" temperature is 15 degrees or lower, so it is critical that students have warm clothes. While we don't go out if it is very wet, we do also go out if it is misting or snowing. The snowy days are actually some of students very favorites when they wear boots, snow pants, hats and gloves.

If you want your child to have a free lunch the week after break, please sign up by Wednesday at 12pm, using the instructions sent by the district.

As always, feel free to reach out with any questions or concerns.

Warmly,

Katie Kelly

Principal

Lions Park School

Monday, November 22-Sunday, November 28 - Thanksgiving Break, NO SCHOOL

Monday, November 29 - Classes Resume

Thursday, December 2 - Picture Retakes (AM), Prospect High School Madrigal performance at dismissal in courtyard behind school (near staff parking lot)

The District 57 Education Foundation is a non-profit organization comprised of Mount Prospect community members whose mission is to raise money to fund grants in the areas of curriculum, wellness, and technology. Grant requests may be written and submitted by district teachers, staff, students, and parents. The grants enrich the educational experiences of all students, helping them to achieve at their highest potential. Funded grants allow teachers to have access to the resources they need to support teaching and learning at Westbrook, Lions Park, Fairview, and Lincoln schools.

Over the years, the Foundation has funded computers, iPads, ELMO projectors, Smartboards, musical instruments, art supplies, fitness equipment, and supplemental reading material - all to enrich our children’s educational experiences. We are currently in a new Grant Request Cycle. A description of the grant request submission process and form is located within the Grants section of our website at https://www.57edfoundation.org

Grant requests are due by 12/17/2021 to the Ed Foundation at d57edfoundationgrants@gmail.com

Parent community members who are interested in submitting a grant request should contact the school principal to which the grant will benefit. The Ed Foundation will review all requests at our February meeting. Please contact the Ed Foundation Grant team at d57edfoundationgrants@gmail.com with any questions. Thank you for your continuous support of the D57 Education Foundation.