Evergreen Express
August 2019 - Issue 28
Welcome to the 2019-2020 School Year!
Dear Evergreen Elementary Families,
I would like to be the first to welcome your family to Evergreen Elementary School! I hope everyone had a fantastic summer spending time with family and friends. We are looking forward to an outstanding year of learning and growth for your child!
I am thrilled to be back at Evergreen for my fourth year as Principal. Our community of teachers are innovative and student-centered, and working with them to support your children is an incredible experience.
We are so excited to welcome your child back to school on Tuesday, August 13th. Please note that dismissal will be at 12:00pm on the first day of school.
Warm regards,
Jen Hansen
Principal
2019-2020 Staffing
Administration
Mrs. Hansen ~ Principal
Ms. Juhola ~ Assistant Principal
Ms. Rochelle Gregori ~ Office Manager
Ms. Linda Pease ~ Office Assistant
Kindergarten
Mr. Cutler
Mrs. McCarthy
Mrs. Llerena (formerly Miss Lightfoot)
Kindergarten/First Grade Combo
Mrs. Hilliard
First Grade
Mrs. Heald
Mrs. Lindeman
Second Grade
Ms. Uwins
Mrs. Cobert
Second/Third Grade Combo
Ms. Kelsey
Third Grade
Mrs. Bretag
Ms. George
Fourth Grade
Mrs. Harp
Mrs. Stainer
Mrs. Scull
Fifth Grade
Mr. Bernal
Mrs. Easter
Mrs. Juarez/Ms. Stansberry (Juarez on M/W/Th/F, Stansberry on Tu)
Special Education
Ms. Havstad ~ K-2nd Special Day Class
Mrs. Harumi - 3rd-5th Special Day Class (formerly our Media Teacher)
Mr. Winner ~ 1st-3rd BEST (joining us from Monte Vista Elementary)
Ms. Pilar ~ 4th-5th BEST
Mr. Hoyt ~ School Psychologist
Ms. Guild ~ Learning Center
Mrs. Imhoff ~ Learning Center
Ms. Russell-Nava ~ Program Specialist
Ms. Gebb ~ Behaviorist
Ms. Stansberry ~ Physical Education
Mrs. Rojas ~ Media Teacher
Mrs. Epstein ~ School Counselor
Families will be notified about their child's class placement for the 2019-2020 school via email on Monday, August 12th. Due to student confidentiality, we do not post physical class lists at Evergreen.
Evergreen PTA Corner
Hello Team Evergreen,
Welcome to the 19-20 school year!
My name is Michael Ahern and I am honored to be your PTA President!
The first time my family and I came to a Family Fun night was the Back to School BBQ four years ago. I remember walking up and hearing the music playing and seeing the blacktop filled with tons of families playing with their friends. As I looked across to the school, I saw a group of adults smiling and talking to everyone while taking care of everything. I soon found out that this was the PTA and to my surprise, I also found out that a lot of these members were also teachers. And at that moment, we realized we made the right decision to attend Evergreen Elementary. If these teachers were so passionate about their school that they stayed after hours to help put on these events, it let me know that they really cared about their school and the kids in it. That was the moment I signed up to be a member of the PTA and have remained a member ever since.
I hope you get a chance to sign up for the PTA. Membership is just $10 and there are many benefits to being a PTA member with discounts and vouchers that you can receive. The best and most important part of joining the PTA is that you get to help the Evergreen PTA board make decisions on how we can help fund programs and make improvements for all students. You will receive envelopes in your student’s packets during the first few weeks of school and Extra envelopes can be found in the office.
Sincerely,
Michael Ahern
Evergreen Elementary School
PTA President
Drop Off/Pick Up/Parking Lot Procedures
We have made many positive improvements to our Drop Off and Pick Up procedures. As all students are arriving and departing at about the same time, traffic in front of school and in the parking lot can be very heavy. Please allow extra time for drop off and pick up, especially during the first weeks of school. We encourage you to park in the neighborhood and walk your child onto campus to ensure that you will have a place to park. Please be respectful to our E section neighbors by not parking in front of driveways or moving trash cans.
Our Drop Off and Pick Up area is the yellow “cone zone” in front of the school on Emily Avenue. We are lucky to have a long area that allows for multiple students to exit and enter their cars at the same time. Please be sure to pull forward as far as possible to speed up the drop off and pick up process.
Last year, we received complaints from neighbors and Rohnert Park Police from cars waiting on Emily Avenue to access the pick up line after school. This year, we will not permit cars waiting on Emily Avenue that are not directly in our yellow pickup "cone zone". Cars will need to circulate through the neighborhood until there is space in the pick up line if it is backed up. You may want to plan your pick up time until after 3:05pm to allow the line to clear a bit.
The parking lot is for daycare vans, busses, and parent parking in the lot only. Please do not drop off or pick up your child in the parking lot under any circumstances (even if they are in Kindergarten). Using the parking lot for this purpose is a safety issue for our students and there is plenty of room to drop off and pick up on Emily Avenue. The only exception to this rule is that parents of students in our Special Day Classes may drop off at the curb in the parking lot with a parking lot pass. The row closest to the school is reserved for staff parking only.
Please do not drop off your child in the back of the school on Evonne Avenue unless you are walking them onto campus. We do not have adult supervision in the back of the school and your child’s safety is our utmost concern.
We really appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding of our Evergreen community during pick up and drop off times.
First Day Packets
First Day Packets will be coming home in your student’s green folders on the first day of school. The information contained in these packets is critical for your child’s safety, and must be completed/returned to school by Friday, August 16th. We know that filling out this paperwork is a big job, especially if you have multiple children, so we appreciate your efforts!
School Schedule/Tardies
Office Hours
8:00am to 3:30pm - Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
8:00am to 3:00pm - Tuesday
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
8:10am Supervision and Morning Walk Begins
8:17am Warning Bell Rings
8:20am Class Begins for all students K-5
2:00pm Dismissal for Kindergarten
3:00pm Dismissal for Students in Grades 1-5
Tuesday
8:20am - 12:00pm All Grades (K-5)
Recess and Lunch Times
9:40am-10:00am 4th/5th Grade Recess
9:55am-10:25am Kindergarten Recess
10:05am-10:25am 1st/2nd/3rd Recess
11:45am-12:30pm Kindergarten Lunch and Recess
12:10pm-12:55pm 1st-5th Lunch and Recess
Adult supervision begins at 8:10 a.m. every day. There is no adult supervision on campus for your child prior to this time. At 8:10 a.m., all children and parents are invited to start their day in a healthy way with our school-wide morning walk around the blacktop.
Please send your child directly to class if they arrive between 8:20am-8:30am. Your child’s teacher will be able to mark them tardy in class during that time period. If your child arrives after 8:30am, they will need to check in at the office first. We understand that life happens, but please make every attempt to have your child here on time, every day. It is disruptive to the learning environment when students arrive late to class. We appreciate your support!
Children should go home promptly upon dismissal. Children cannot remain unsupervised on the playground for any reason after school. Children found on the playground will be brought to the office to wait for their ride. Thank you for working with us to ensure that your child is safely supervised.
Attendance
Having your child in school on time, every day is incredibly important to their learning and development. If your child will be absent, please call the school (588-5715) by 10:00 a.m. on the day of the absence. If you forget to call please send a note with your student, explaining the reason for the absence and signed by a parent or guardian. Parents can also email Mrs. Pease at linda_pease@crpusd.org to report an absence.
Communication
Communicating effectively with families is incredibly important to our school. We will utilize several methods to communicate with families: Parent Messaging through our student information system PowerSchool, Facebook, the Evergreen Elementary website, and our Evergreen Express newsletter. Here is how to access all of that information:
Powerschool: Our IT Department will send an email during the first week of school so parents can access their student's Powerschool Account.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CRPUSDEvergreen/ This is our public Facebook page where updates will be posted.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/evergreen.crpusd/ This is a closed Facebook group for Evergreen families and staff only. Please request to join this group if you have not done so already.
Website: https://evs.crpusd.org/
Evergreen Express Newsletter: The Evergreen Express will be sent on a monthly basis.
Restorative Practices
Piloting Restorative Practices during the 2017-2018 school year was transformative for our Evergreen students and staff. We are excited to continue our work with Restorative Practices in our third year of implementation.
As we continue to refine our restorative approaches, you may hear your child talking about classroom circles and using affective language. We are hopeful that these Restorative Practices will continue to increase quality communication and a sense of belonging, as well as building relationships with others in the school community based on trust, respect, and authenticity. We continue to offer parent nights throughout the year to provide more information about Restorative Practices, so stay tuned for those!
Last year, we included dedicated "Family Corner" section in the Evergreen Express. In this section, we will post a "Question/Topic of the Month" to inspire restorative conversations with your families. A great place to have restorative conversations is around the dinner table.
August Question of the Month: "What are the qualities that make you a good friend?"
Good luck!
Lunch Staff Members Needed!
We are in need of additional lunch duty staff members! The hours are 11:30am-1:00pm on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Duties include supervising students during eating lunch and playing at recess. This is a great way to be a part of our awesome Evergreen community, as well as get paid to spend some extra time with you child and their classmates. If you are interested in this position, please come to the Evergreen Office, or email Mrs. Hansen at jennifer_hansen@crpusd.org or Ms. Juhola at macy_juhola@crpusd.org.
Student Meal Accounts
Food Service is encouraging families to put money on student meal accounts using My School Bucks. My School Bucks is live and payments are reflected within 15 minutes of the payment being made.
Important Dates
Please mark your calendar for these important upcoming events:
August
Monday, August 12 @1-2pm - Kindergarten Meet and Greet in MU
Tuesday, August 13 - First day of the 2019-2020 School Year! PTA will provide coffee and donuts at the flagpole for parents. Dismissal is at 12:00pm.
Tuesday, August 13 @6:00-7:30pm - 5th Grade Back to School Night/Outdoor Education Meeting in MU
Tuesday, August 20 - Dine and Donate at Toppings
Thursday, August 29 - K-4th Back to School Night (3rd/4th Grades 5:30-6:30pm, School Wide Meet Up in MU 6:30-6:45pm, Kinder/1st/2nd 6:45-7:45pm)
September
Monday, September 2 - Labor Day, No School
Friday, September 6 @5:30-7:00pm - PTA Family Fun Night: Back to School BBQ (free for Evergreen families!)
Monday, September 17th - Wednesday, September 19th - Outdoor Education for Mrs. Juarez/Ms. Stansberry's class
Wednesday, September 19 - Friday, September 21 - Outdoor Education for Mr. Bernal and Mrs. Easter's classes
Friday, September 27 - School Picture Day
October
Monday, October 14 - Columbus Day, No School
Contact Information
Email: jennifer_hansen@crpusd.org
Website: https://evs.crpusd.org/
Location: 1125 Emily Avenue, Rohnert Park, CA, USA
Phone: (707) 588-5715
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CRPUSDEvergreen