GALATAS GAZETTE
September 3, 2021
Contact Information
Denae Wilker, Principal
Candace Mathis, Assistant Principal
Lyndsey Christopher, Counselor
Through the collaborative efforts of all who pass through our door, we provide a safe learning community that develops lifelong learners and responsible citizens.
Website: http://galatas.conroeisd.net/
Location: 9001 Cochrans Crossing Drive, The Woodlands, TX, USA
Phone: 936-709-5000
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GalatasCISD/
Twitter: @GalatasCISD
In observance of Labor Day, there will be
no school on Monday, September 6.
Classes will resume for all students on Tuesday, September 7.
A Note from Mrs. Wilker
Thank you for your continued assistance with keeping everyone safe and our school open. It is more important than ever for us to work together as a community to protect our in-person learning. During this time of increased spread of COVID-19 in our community, we strongly encourage our students and staff to wear a mask or face covering. Please continue to monitor your children's health and keep them home when they are ill or if an individual in your household is COVID-19 positive.
Next Friday, progress reports will be available to view electronically through the Parent Access Center (PAC) for all students in grades 2-4. Kindergarten and first grade students will not receive progress reports.
If you are looking for a fun outdoor activity, College Park High School will be hosting a pep rally and parade for Homecoming at Market Street on September 7. Additional details are included in this week's Gazette.
I hope you and your family enjoy a fun and relaxing holiday weekend!
Take care,
Denae Wilker
Destination Imagination - Fourth Grade Students
Destination Imagination (DI) is an educational program in which student teams solve open-ended challenges and present their solutions at a tournament. DI is designed to teach three essential skills: creativity, teamwork, and problem solving. A typical DI team spends weeks preparing and rehearsing for a regional tournament. This year’s regional competition is currently scheduled for Saturday, February 26.
If you would like to apply for a position on the Galatas Top Dog DI Team, please fill out the application and submit it to Mrs. Champlin or Mrs. Miller by Friday, September 10, 2021.
Creating a Map of the United States
Fourth Grade Top Dogs
Developing New Skills
Lunch and Campus Visitors
- 04:45 – Welcome
- 12:05 – Our Current District Stats
- 13:15 – Operations During COVID
- 15:55 – Kindness and Actions
- 18:05 – Coming Together Because School is Worth It
- 21:10 – Roadmap to Remaining Open Webpage
- 21:30 – COVID-19 Impact Dashboard Walkthrough
- 21:45 – Number and Percentage of Active Employee and Student Cases
- 22:20 – What positive cases are counted in Conroe ISD?
- 25:30 – Isolated by Day Chart
- 27:45 – Data by Campus
- 29:00 – Substitute Fill Rate
- 29:35 – Student Attendance Chart
- Any absence related to COVID-19 is an excused absence.
- 32:25 – COVID-19 Safety Alert Levels Chart OverviewPDF
- Conroe ISD will remain at Level 4 until we are no longer able to staff a building.
- What would a Level 5 closure involve?
- 34:00 – COVID-19 Testing
- Capacity doubled to approximately 240 tests per day.
- Free for employees and students
- 34:50 – NEW COVID-19 Positive Self-Report Online for Parents
- 37:15 – Advocating for Our District
- 38:55 – Legislation & TEA Updates
- 39:05 – Senate Bill 15 provides that learning can go virtual in the event of campus or District closures.
- 40:15 – Any CISD student in the same household with a positive individual is required to quarantine for 10 days after the date of last exposure with the positive individual.
- 41:50 – Masks: No mandate as long as the Governor’s Orders stand. If there are changes, it will be a School Board decision.
- 47:00 – Mitigation Strategies: e-misting, sanitation stations, COVID-19 testing capacity, air purification systems
- 51:10 – Questions:
- 51:25 – Can masks be required? No
- 51:40 – Are we cleaning at same level as last year? Yes
- 52:05 – Are we social distancing? Buildings have more students than last year, and campuses are doing what they are able to do.
- 52:40 – Why isn’t Conroe ISD following the same protocols from last year? The guidance from TEA and the State have changed.
- 53:45 – Can parents ask teachers to remind their child to wear a mask? Yes. Parents are welcome to communicate directly with the teachers. Teachers will remind and encourage the students as they are able.
- 54:40 – Absences and Notifications
- If a student is absent more than 90% of the time due to COVID-19, will they fail their course? No. Campuses will work with families. Any absence related to COVID-19 is an excused absence.
- Why is there such a large difference between the number of suspected cases and the number of students not in attendance? Students are absent for a variety of reasons. Some families may be keeping their students home to quarantine.
- 01:00:10 – Transportation and Bus Delays
- Buses may be delayed due to a variety of factors including the growth of our District and absences due to COVID-19.
- All routes are able to be covered by air-conditioned buses.
- 01:04:20 – Virtual Learning
- Once signed by the Governor, Senate Bill 15 will allow for a virtual school. Conroe ISD will look to add this for the 2022-2023 school year.
- Why can’t students access all curriculum virtually when they are out for COVID-19? Managing virtual and in-person instruction is too much to ask of our teachers and is not permissible by law. Teachers may choose to upload assignments if thatâs their instructional preference.
- Does Senate Bill 15 change our virtual program for this year? No
- 01:07:50 – Employees
- 01:09:05 – Three additional leave days provided to employees for a total of 10 for this year. The situation will continue to be monitored at the District level.
- 01:09:50 – Employees will receive a $500 retention stipend on their October 1 paycheck.
- 01:10:35 – Substitutes
- Pay rates were increased last year and continue at those levels for 2021-2022.
Current subs are encouraged to pick up jobs, especially on Mondays and Fridays where there is premium pay.
- Pay rates were increased last year and continue at those levels for 2021-2022.
- 01:12:10 – Vaccines
- All individuals are encouraged to talk to their health care provider about the COVID-19 vaccine and if it is the right choice for them.
- 01:13:30 – There is no COVID-19 vaccination mandate for teachers, employees, or students.
- 01:14:40 – Quarantine
- With the change in quarantine guidance from TEA, will students have to quarantine if a close contact at school? No. The TEA change applies only to household close contacts. Any CISD student in the same household with a positive individual is required to quarantine for 10 days after the date of last exposure with the positive individual.
Roadmap to Remaining Open
The content on the Roadmap to Remaining Open webpages are designed to provide information relevant for the 2021-2022 school year. The details on this page are subject to change as we receive guidance from the Texas Education Agency, Governor’s Office, and State and local officials. Please check back often for the most up-to-date information.
Currently, the District Safety Alert Level is Level 4. To see the full Safety Alert Levels chart, please click on the Roadmap to Remaining Open button below.
Can my child go to school today?
Reporting Student Absences and Requesting Make-up Work
To report an absence for your child, please do one of the following before 9:00 a.m.:
- Call our attendance line at 936-709-5014 and leave a message stating your child’s name, teacher’s name, reason for the absence, person reporting the absence, and a phone number,
- call the main number (936-709-5000) to report the absence, or
- email rcurtis@conroeisd.net with your student's absence information
If your child will be absent for an extended amount of time due to illness, you may request missed classwork from your child's teacher. The teacher will let you know when the work will be available to pick up from school or when the work is loaded onto an electronic learning platform (Canvas or See Saw). At this time, there is not an option for an absent student to learn virtually.
When your child returns to school, a note explaining the absence should be brought to their teacher, and/or families should follow the return to school guidelines provided by our school nurse.
"Excused" or "Unexcused" Absence...What is the difference?
If your child is not in attendance at school for the entire day for any reason, the student is considered "absent". There are basically two types of absences:
1. Excused Absence: an absence is considered "excused" when there is prior parental notification (phone call or email) explaining the absence, or a note from a parent or medical professional upon return to school. Absences can be excused if they are related to illness, medical appointment, a death in the family, or other health related reasons. There are some other extenuating circumstances that may also be excused; please email our Registrar if there are any questions. An excused absence does not remove the absence from the student's record, but it does document that a student is absent for an excusable reason.
2. Unexcused Absence: an absence is considered "unexcused" when there is no prior parental notification, no note or email sent upon return explaining the absence, for family travel/vacation, or other absences not recognized as "excused" by the district or state.
Families may refer to the CISD Student Handbook for clarification, or contact the Registrar, Robin Curtis at rcurtis@conroeisd.net.
A Message from the School Nurse
Please keep your child home if they are showing any signs of illness or reporting that they do not feel well.
For example, if your child comes to you in the morning and reports any of the following symptoms: cough, sore throat, stomachache, or headache, or tells you they had diarrhea or vomiting, DO NOT send them to school. Please keep your student home and monitor the symptom or symptoms until they resolve.
Keep students home if they are waiting for results of a COVID test (even if the student is asymptomatic). You may refer to the CISD Roadmap to Remaining Open at the link above for specific health information.
NEW Update - When a student has a positive COVID result, parents will now self-report through their student's SSO at sso.conroeisd.net
- Log-in to the student's SSO portal (same as scheduling a test) and click on the Self Report button.
- Parent acknowledges they are the parent/guardian of this student and enters their name.
- Parent completes the required information and clicks submit.
- Parent receives a popup with information about isolation, severe symptoms, attendance, and a return to school date.
- Parent receives an email with the information contained in the popup.
Free COVID-19 testing is available to all CISD employees and students Monday-Friday at the CISD Police Department located at 2900 N. Loop 336 E. Conroe, TX 77301. You must schedule a test through the CISD SSO in the COVID Central app prior to arrival.
Medication at school: If your child needs medication while at school, please email Mrs. Riggs, Galatas School Nurse at kriggs@conroeisd.net to set up an appointment to drop off the medication.
Join the PTO and Support our Greyhounds
Please support our school by joining our amazing PTO. The link below will take you to the Galatas PTO website, where you can join the PTO and explore ways to get involved at Galatas.
It is a great way to get connected with our Galatas community and other parents.
Join PTO!
Last Day to Order Spirit Wear: September 5!
Now's your chance to grab all of your spirit wear essentials! All sales are final, and the store closes on Sunday, September 5!
Visit the PTO link below to purchase.
Don't Be Tardy...
Students are considered tardy if they arrive to school after the 8:00 AM bell rings. At that time, they will need to stop by the front desk to get a Tardy Pass before going to class.
Counselor's Corner
Online Parent Training Series- Page 1
Online Parent Training Series-Page 2
Drop-off Procedures for Forgotten Items
Please help your student be fully prepared for their day by ensuring that they have all needed materials (backpack, lunch, water bottle, etc...) before leaving for school in the morning.
To minimize interruptions to classrooms, please limit drop-offs to the following items:
- Water bottles and lunches may be placed on the Drop-off table before 10:00 a.m. at the front office. These items should be labeled with your child’s name and section number to ensure proper delivery. Items are taken at 10:00 a.m. to a drop-off table at the end of each hallway, so please email the teacher to let them know that you have dropped off the water bottle or lunch.
- If you need eye glasses delivered to your child, please do not put them on the drop-off table. Bring them to the office staff for immediate delivery to your child.
- Any class work or homework that is dropped off will be placed in the teacher’s mailbox to be picked up during the day.
Delivery of flowers, balloons, etc. to students at school are not permitted.
Save the Date!
TWHS Highsteppers Fall Dance Clinic
TWHS Fall Cheerleading Clinic
TWCPHS Homecoming Parade
Parent Information Sheet
Transportation Changes
Transportation change notepads will be sent home with each student on the first day of school. Please use these forms any time a student needs to go home in a different way from the permanent designated mode of transportation.
All transportation changes must be received in writing by 2:00 p.m. We are unable to accept a phone call. You may send a written note to your child’s teacher (place it in your student's PAWS folder), or fill out a form in the front office. Please include the date, your child’s full name, section number, bus number (if applicable), and your signature. If an emergency arises, you may send an email to galatastransportation@conroeisd.net . The e-mail must include all of the above information, including a parent signature, and must be received before 2:00 p.m. If you submit a transportation change by email, it must go to the email address referenced above; transportation changes should not be emailed directly to the teacher.
Please send a new note for each day the change occurs; we cannot accept notes for multiple days or with multiple changes. District policy states that a student may only ride the bus they are registered to ride; students may not have a transportation change to ride a different bus.
Upcoming Events
September
6 No School: Labor Day Holiday
14 PTO Meeting – 10:00 a.m.
16 Individual Pictures
23 New Comer Coffee- 9:00 AM
October
5 Walk to School Day
8 No School: Student Holiday
11 No School: Holiday
12 PTO Meeting-10:00 a.m.
15 Kinder and 4th Grade Group Pictures 8:15 AM
18-22 Book Fair
19 Bedtime Story Night-6:00 and 7:00 p.m.
22 Storybook Parade-8:30 a.m.
25-29 Red Ribbon Week
28 3rd Grade Program 6:30 PM
29 Science Day
November
9 PTO Meeting- 10:00 AM
11 Individual Picture Retakes
12 Movie Night 6:30 PM
15-19 Generation Texas Week
18 Thanksgiving Festivities, Kinder and 1st Grade
19 Galatas Fun Run
22-26 No School: Thanksgiving Break
December
6-10 Hour of Code
10 4th Grade Choir Program 8:30 AM
13 Holiday Party: Kinder (1:30 PM)
14 PTO Board Meeting-9:00 a.m.
14 Holiday Parties- 2nd (10:30 a.m.) & 1st (2:00 p.m.)
15 Holiday Round Robin–3rd (10:00 a.m.)
15 Holiday Party/Service Project- 4th (8:15 a.m.) & Special Programs (1:45 p.m.)
17 Polar Express Day (Students wear p.j.’s)
17 Early Release Day, End of Nine Weeks– 12:10 p.m.
December 22-January 4 Winter Break
January
5 Classes Resume