The Fairview Connection
AUGUST 19, 2022
MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL OPHUS
Dear Fairview Families,
It has been so great to see our students once again this week as we opened the 2022-2023 school year! I am so thankful for you as parents for all you have done to prepare your children for the start of the year. I am also proud of the Fairview staff for their dedication and commitment as they have been preparing for this school year for the past several weeks to ensure a smooth start to the year. Our first two days of school have been amazing! As a school community, we are grounded in the positive connections we share with one another, and the excitement of both the students and the staff as we started to build not only our school community but all of our individual classroom communities could be felt around the school as Mrs. Durkan and I visited each classroom on Thursday. Thank you to all families who came to Fairview on Tuesday for the Back-to-School Picnic. The weather was gorgeous and it was such a great way to reconnect with one another before starting up again yesterday. Special thanks to our PTO board members and other volunteers who helped organize and lead this event. It was a huge success!
Next week on Thursday, August 25th from 6:30-8:00 pm, we will host our annual Back-to-School Night. At this event, classroom teachers will each give a presentation for parents to share information about what their child can expect this school year. Support staff and special area teachers will also be available throughout the evening for a meet and greet so you have the opportunity to make connections with other teachers your child will be learning from. We will also have the chance to meet as a large group at the start of the evening so you can hear some remarks from me, the PTO, Board of Education and District 57 Education Foundation as well. Click on this link to access a more detailed schedule for this important event. Please note that Mrs. Mescino is hosting her Back-to-School on Wednesday, August 24th at 7:00 pm due to a prior commitment that has caused her to be unavailable on August 25th.
The Fairview PTO is excited to share that they are hosting their first annual Fairview PTO Parents’ Night Out! All parents are invited to Station 34 on Friday, August 26th from 7:00-9:00 pm to meet other Fairview parents and PTO board members, enjoy some time together, eat some free appetizers, have a chance to win raffle prizes, and more. Please click this link for more details and you can register to attend by signing up at this link. Families will also have a chance to purchase a special edition Fairview shirt if they attend. We hope you can make it!
Over the past couple of days, it has come to our attention that there was a discrepancy between our 5th grade supplies posted on the website and the supplies that came in the purchased supply kits. We apologize for the confusion this may have caused for you. In comparing the lists and talking to our 5th grade teachers, they have assured us that students will be good to go no matter which list they followed, so students will be fully prepared for 5th grade regardless of the supplies purchased. Speaking of 5th grade, we are excited to share that our 5th grade students will be taking a field trip early this school year on Monday, September 19th to Sunrise Lake Recreation Center (click here for more information about Sunrise Lake). We hope to make this an annual trip for our 5th graders assuming the trip is well received by our students and staff. The purpose of the trip is to provide our students with an outdoor education experience where they are also able to build community and connectedness as they head into their final year at Fairview. In order to make this happen, we will need parent volunteers to help lead stations and activities for our students while teachers participate with and manage their classes through each station. The time commitment to serve as a volunteer involves attending a training on September 12th at Sunrise Lake from 9:30 am-noon and then attending the trip on September 19th from 9:00 am-2:30 pm. Parents will supply their own transportation to the training and will take the bus for the actual trip. Please fill out this form by Wednesday, August 31st if you are interested in volunteering. If we have more volunteers that we need to hold the trip, we will hold a lottery to select parents to participate. Thank you for considering!
As we head into our first full week of school next week, I wanted to let you know that we are currently looking to hire an emergent bilingual instructional assistant to help assist students who speak multiple languages and who have a language other than English as their first language. We are also looking for an after school Kids Corner assistant to help supervise students who attend our after school program and allow students currently on our waitlist to attend Kids Corner. If you or someone you know are interested in either of these positions, please email me at dophus@d57.org and I can help you with next steps in applying, or you can apply directly at this link and notify our human resources staff that you are interested in working at Fairview.
Thank you for taking time to read through today’s newsletter. I hope you and your family have a nice weekend and we look forward to our first full week of school with our students starting on Monday!
Sincerely,
Dan Ophus
Fairview Principal
UPCOMING EVENTS
August 26 - PTO Parents Night Out at Station 34, 7:00pm-9:00pm
September 1 - 5th Grade Band & Orchestra sign up - Lincoln Middle School, 5:30pm-6:30pm
September 1 - Board of Ed meeting (tentative) - Fairview, 7:00pm-10:00pm
September 5 - LABOR DAY - NO SCHOOL
FAIRVIEW SCHOOL EVACUATION INFORMATION
PARENT EMERGENCY GUIDELINES
- If students are evacuated/relocated call: 847-394-7300
- For all other emergencies call: 847-394-7320
- Your designated Reunification Site is the Field House at Prospect High School located at 801 W. Kensington Road
- Bring a picture ID with you. Students will only be released to legal guardians and/or emergency contacts
STUDENT WATER BOTTLES
COMMUNICATION
Communication is very important to ensure the safety of all students at Fairview. Your child’s teacher and the school office must be aware of where your child is at all times during the school day.
Please send a note if your child is not eating lunch at school. The notes should include the date, student’s name, parent signature, and state that your child will be leaving the Fairview premises on that day for the lunch hour. You must come in to the office to sign the student out; the student can sign themselves back in when he/she returns to school.
If your child is a bus rider and will not be riding the bus home on a certain day, we ask that you always send a note with your student. This note should include your child’s name, date, and bus route number. Please state that your child will not ride the bus on that day, and add any other pertinent information regarding how your child will be going home on that day. For your convenience, here is a form that you can print out and use. If a bus student does not have a note, they will ride the bus home...no exceptions. Only students who are signed up for the bus may ride the bus to and from school. If your child (non bus rider) has a play date with a bus rider, other arrangements will have to be made for their transportation at the end of the school day.
If your child will be absent from school, please call the attendance line at 847-394-7320 before 8:50 a.m. the day of the absence. Our attendance line is available 24 hours a day/7 days a week for your convenience. During Fairview office hours,
8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, you may also contact the office at 847-394-7320.
Please notify the office if your child will be arriving to school late because of a morning doctor’s appointment, car trouble, etc. It is very important that we know where students are if they are not at school on school days.
Communication between home and school is key to a successful school year and we thank you for being part of our team.
Contact Us
Una Durkan, Assistant Principal
Office: 847-394-7320/Fax: 847-394-7328
Website: d57.org/fairviewelementaryschool_home
Location: 300 N. Fairview Ave., Mount Prospect, IL
Twitter: @fairview_d57
INFORMATION FROM FAIRVIEW'S NURSE BRUNNING
Welcome back Fairview families! I hope that everyone had a fun and safe summer!
Just a few reminders: For those families new to Fairview please make sure you contact the Health office regarding any medical concerns you may have regarding your child (if you have not already done so). For those families returning to Fairview, please make sure to contact the Health office if there have been any medical changes with your child over the summer. This will help to ensure a safe school year. Thanks for your help with this!
Kelly Brunning, RN, BSN, PEL-CSN
Fairview School Nurse
847-394-7320, ext 4102
BUS BULLETIN
Throughout the year buses may be delayed due to unforeseen circumstances (e.g., vehicular congestion; train traffic, weather, mechanical issues, etc.). The district has been using Bus Bulletin for several years now and is confident that this online notification system is the best way to inform parents should the need arise. Click on the bus for more information and to register.
STUDENT SAFETY
We have many students who ride their bikes to school. Bike riders should always observe bike safety rules. Bike riding is not allowed in the bus turnaround at any time during the school day.
It is the intent of the school, and District 57, to provide a safe and healthy environment for children.
We are asking that you please not bring your dog/pet on school property for the safety of all our children. We have students who are afraid of dogs or are allergic.