From the Flight Deck
January 2019 Staff Newsletter
From Frank
Happy New Year Awesome Sycamore Staff:
I sincerely hope you have returned to work energized for the second half of our school year with students. As we move into the winter months and prime instructional days, I continue to applaud your efforts in ensuring each and every student has the opportunity to reach his/her full potential.
Providing you with important updates remains a high priority for me. Ensuring that we, as a district, do all we can to remove barriers to learning for our students leads me to update you on our work with Children’s Hospital to provide access to mental health supports within our buildings. Under the leadership of Liza Zelvy, Pupil Support Supervisor and building leaders, we continue to identify outstanding mental health therapists to serve students in our schools. New members of our team, Jayme Wiener and Lauren Greene, are supporting students at Symmes and Blue Ash Elementary schools respectively. Karen Celesti will soon begin to serve students at Montgomery and Maple Dale Elementary combined. Our process to name therapists at EHG and SHS is close to conclusion. We will then move quickly to identify the right candidate for the JH. This is a critical endeavor for us, and I am grateful for the work of many as we serve the unique needs of our students.
It is essential that we continue to affirm the work of those that are exemplary in their service to students and the district; especially those that do so quietly and without fanfare. As we all are experiencing the effects of winter weather (63 days until spring, I counted), our maintenance, custodial and transportation staff have especially difficult challenges this time of year. And, they simply do an amazing job preparing our campuses for students/staff and ensuring our students travel from one place to another. It is not uncommon for our maintenance and custodial staff to be here for long hours throughout the night and on weekends to ensure Sycamore is open for business. Trust me, I have frequently witnessed their efforts. Our bus drivers/monitors hold tightly their responsibility to transport students in a safe manner while our mechanics service the best fleet in the state of Ohio. On behalf of the entire Sycamore community...Thank you!! To the rest of the staff, please take a moment to express your appreciation to these special Sycamore Family members.
Enjoy the long weekend. Our family is #SycamoreStrong because of you. My deepest appreciation for all you do in your service to students.
Tuition Reimbursement
Master Facility Planning
January 17 Montgomery Elementary School 4:15 pm
February 4 E.H. Greene Intermediate School 3:15 pm
If you have any feedback following the sessions, please email us at mfp@sycamoreschools.org
We are also holding several public sessions for families and community members. Please share the information below with your neighbors and friends so that they can also take part.
Payroll Update - Tax Information
Two documents needed to complete 2018 tax returns will be arriving soon. The district will distribute W2's through interoffice mail on January 18. The district is also required to provide IRS form 1095-C. This document provides information on health insurance coverage offered to you by Sycamore. It will be distributed via US Mail in late January or early February.
Fitbit Challenge
It's not too late to join in for the next challenge! Contact Julie Ferron if you want to be added to the group. You do not have to have a Fitbit tracker to participate. Other types/brands may be used.
Looking for Something to Do?
Cultural Heritage Night
Friday, January 18
6 - 8 pm
Carnival
Friday, January 25
5:30 - 9:00 pm
Aves Theatre - Radium Girls
January 31 - February 2
7:30 p.m.
Tickets required