Renner Report

Back to School Family Newsletter: 2023-2024

Renner Elementary School

School Hours: 8:15-3:15

School Phone: 816-359-4350

Principal: Dr. Denisha Johnson Assistant Principal: Dominic Martinez

Counselor: Dr. Kevin Bland Social Worker: Tara Davis

Office Staff: Melissa Wiehe and Brittany Kleinmeyer

Nurse: Leigh Benton

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Welcome Back To School

Our Renner family is excited to welcome everyone back for a brand new school year! We hope you enjoyed your summer and had an opportunity to relax, rejuvenate and reinvigorate!


This school year, you can expect an email from the me at the beginning of each week called the “Renner Report.” This newsletter will be filled with important reminders and information about events at Renner. Please take a few minutes each week to read the email for important announcements and information.


Our school also has the following sites to provide information to our families!


Prior to the first day, we invite all families to our “Back to School Night” on Thursday, August 17th from 5:30-7:00pm.


As a reminder, every family must complete online verification and residency before your child will receive a classroom teacher assignment. This process is quick and necessary to verify your student’s information, as well as make any updates to emergency contacts. Class placements will be sent out on Monday August 14th after 4:30 pm.


If you have not provided proof of residency, your child’s K-5th grade classroom placement will not be able to be emailed to you at that time. Please contact the Renner office at 816-359-4350 as soon as possible if you need assistance.


School begins Monday, August 21st! Arrival time is between 7:55 and 8:15, with dismissal at 3:15. Again, we are so excited to welcome everyone back.


We ARE Renner!

Dr. Denisha Johnson, Principal

Dominic Martinez, Assistant Principal

Important Dates!

August 10th: PTA Sponsored Kindergarten Popsicles on the Playground 5:30-6:30pm

August 17: Back to School Night, 5:30-7:00pm

August 21: First Day of School, 8:15-3:15 pm

August 24: PTA Meeting 6:00 pm (in person & virtual)

September 4: NO SCHOOL, Labor Day

September 7: Family Orientation, 4:30-6:00pm (see info below)

September 13: Early Release, 1:05pm

September 14: PTA Skate Night (6-8) River Roll

September 21: PTA Papa John's Night 4:00-4:30

September 21: PTA Meeting (in person & Virtual) 6pm

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Back to School Night

Our Back to School Night is on Thursday, August 17th! The goal of Back to School Night is to visit the building and classrooms, so the first day of school can be smooth.


  • Students: Come and meet your child’s teacher and drop off school supplies!
  • Visit PTA, and other organizations
  • Learn about our title 1 program.
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Renner Arrival & Dismissal Information

ARRIVAL:

  • Adventure Club: Drop-off begins at 6:30am and parents must check in their child in the cafeteria with AC staff. Students must be enrolled in Adventure Club to participate.
  • Walkers: Students may enter the building at 7:55 through the car rider doors.
  • Bus Riders: Students will be released from the buses as soon as they arrive at Renner. A staff member will be waiting to greet students as they get off the bus. Students will either report to the cafeteria for breakfast or go directly to their classrooms.
  • Car Riders: Drop-off begins at 7:55am. Students will report for breakfast in the cafeteria or go to their classrooms. All cars will enter Renner at the bottom east parking lot off Stoddard and use a single file line for dropping off students. If your child is late, arriving after 8:15, please escort them to the office to sign them in using our check-in system. Please be sure not to park or drop off students in the front bus loop between 7:55 and 8:15 am.


DISMISSAL:

  • Adventure Club: Pick-up begins at 3:15pm in the cafeteria.
  • Walkers: Students will be released to parents gate area on the sidewalk where car riders are dismissed.
  • Bus Riders: Students riding buses will be escorted by their classroom teacher to their bus starting at 3:10pm. Students will be met by bus greeters as they get on the bus.
  • Car Riders: Pick-up begins at 3:10pm. Cars will begin to line up along the curb. Students will be supervised in the gym until their name is called by our staff. Staff members use the name sign on your dash/visor to call student names in order of parent arrival. Students will stand by a designated cone and then be escorted by staff to their car. Cars without a visible name card will be asked to park and check out their child from the front office.

Attendance

School attendance is vital for student success and academic growth. Please help your student(s) be successful by arriving to school on time each day. We also ask for your help in this area by attempting to schedule any necessary appointments either after school hours or on non-attendance days. Please remember that the arrival time for Renner is 7:55am. Prior to that time, there is no adult supervision for students. Please do not drop students off before 7:55. Students are tardy if they arrive after 8:15am. If your child will be absent, please contact the school office by 8:30. Also, if you have changes in plans regarding transportation home, please notify your child’s teacher or the school office before noon at 816-359-4350. Thank you for making your child’s education a top priority!

Class Placements

Students will receive their teacher placements on the evening of August 14th, if their online residency verification and immunizations has been completed/submitted.

Food in Classrooms

Classroom Treats: To protect the health and safety of our students, homemade treats will not be distributed to students in the Park Hill School District. Due to allergies and other food intolerances, only birthday favors listed below are allowed.


Birthday Favors: Students may bring a birthday treat or favor to school to share with their classmates, as long as they come from our list of treats that contain none of the eight (8) major allergens - milk, wheat, egg, soy, peanut, tree nut, fish and shellfish.


Thank you for understanding that all classroom treats must come from this list, because we do not have the staff capacity to check for allergens that could threaten the health of some students. Please bring birthday treats ahead of time (two hours after the start of school, at the latest).

  • Stickers

  • Erasers

  • Pencils

  • Crazy straws

  • Blow Pops

  • Juice boxes

  • Popcorn

  • Smarties

  • Dum Dum lollipops

  • Jelly Belly

  • Nerds

  • Ring Pops

  • Skittles

  • Sour Patch Kids

  • Starburst

  • Swedish Fish

  • Life Saver Gummies

Health Room Information

Immunizations: All students need to be up to date on immunizations BEFORE starting school on August 21. Documentation of immunizations must be turned into the health room. No exceptions will be made.


Medication: Our health room is available if your child becomes ill or injured while at school. All non-prescription, over-the-counter medication must be sent in the original container with a written request by the parent or physician. If for any reason your child is on medication, before it can be administered, the medication must be in a prescription labeled bottle accompanied by a doctor’s note. The medication is kept in the health room. The medication authorization form must be completed and signed by the parent or guardian for all medications given at school. It is recommended that medication NOT be sent to school with the children. Parents should bring the medication to the health room. Please feel free to stop by and visit with Nurse Leigh Benton in our Health Room any time.

Infinite Campus - Parent Portal

Park Hill School District uses Infinite Campus as our student information system. You can access your child’s essential school information and district information quickly! This includes Attendance, Grades, Schedule, Bus Information, Technology Fees and School Communications.


To be able to access your child’s information, you must set up an account. You will need to log-in and enter the Activation Key, followed by setting up your own username and password.


Infinite Campus organizes students by household, so you can access your family in just one account. If you have questions, need technical support, or have misplace your unique access key code, feel free to call us at 816-359-4350

Kid Guard Insurance

Parents can purchase additional insurance protection for accidents that may occur during school classes and while students are away from school, at home, during weekends and vacation periods, including the summer months. For information regarding this optional coverage, visit www.kidguardinsurance.com for additional benefit and on-line enrollment information.

Meal Assistance Program

Families who think they qualify for the Free/Reduced Lunch Program will need to apply after August 1, 2023. This is a program you must reapply for each school year. If your child is eligible for free or reduced meal benefits, you can also receive additional benefits at Park Hill High School such as fee waivers, activity passes, free screenings and more.


Click here to learn how to check your eligibility and how to apply.


If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to our school social worker, Tara Davis at davist@parkhill.k12.mo.us or (816) 359-5547.


If you need the application translated, please use this link. https://www.fns.usda.gov/cn/translated-applications

Meal Information:

Students may bring their lunch from home or purchase a school lunch from the cafeteria. Students also have the option to purchase a breakfast upon arrival to school.


Breakfast: $1.50

Lunch: $2.70

Milk: $0.70

Park Hill Clothing Center

The PTA of the Park Hill School District runs a clothing center that provides free, gently used clothing and new socks and underwear to district students.


The PTA Clothing Center serves all Park Hill School District students from Kindergarten through 12th grade, and the PTA asks you to bring some proof that you are enrolled in a Park Hill school. This could be a student ID, bus pass, dated letter from a principal or social worker, class schedule or enrollment form.


Donations are welcome at the Clothing Center. Please make sure your donations are clean, in good condition and bagged in kitchen-sized bags that the volunteers can lift.


2023-2024 Park Hill PTA Clothing Center Shopping Dates

  • September 5th and 19th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • October 3rd and 17th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • November 7th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm.
  • December 5th and 19th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • January 16th and 30th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • February 6th and 20th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • March 5th and 19th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • April 2nd and 16th: 10:00-12:00pm and 5:00-7:00pm
  • May 7th: 4:00-6:00pm

Park Hill STAR Award Nomination

Our employees are the reason we are so successful here in the Park Hill School District, and we would like to recognize them for all they do for our students.

That is why we present the Park Hill Star award once a month to a Pre-K or elementary teacher, a secondary teacher and a support employee. Anyone can nominate an employee for this award by using the form below. It asks you to share how your nominee demonstrates our district values of continuous improvement, high expectations, integrity, visionary leadership and student focus. You can also share how your nominee supports the goals in our district’s strategic plan.
Nominate a Park Hill Star!

Use this link to nominate an awesome Renner staff member as a Park Hill Star!

PBIS (PRIDE) Positive. Respectful. In-Control. Determined. EVERYDAY!

School-wide Positive Behavior Intervention & Support (SWPBS) is a systems approach to establishing the whole-school social culture and intensive individual behavior supports needed for school to achieve social and academic gains while minimizing problem behavior for all students. SWPBS is NOT a specific curriculum, intervention or practice, but a decision making framework that guides selection, integration and implementation of scientifically-based academic and behavioral practices for improving academic and behavior outcomes for all students. A central feature of SWPBS is implementation of behavioral practices throughout the entire school. SWPBS defines practices that all students experience in all parts of the school and at all times of day.

  • Fewer behavior problems
  • Improved school climate
  • Reduction in discipline referrals
  • i.e.—Every faculty and staff member will have a protocol to follow.
  • Safer schools
  • More time spend on instruction and less on discipline
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Safety at Renner

Call Box at Front Entrance: All schools in Park Hill have a Call Box at the locked Front Entrance Doors. Front entrance doors will be locked when school is in session. Office staff will ask for your name and the reason for your visit before the door is unlocked. Each time a parent or a family member visits Renner, a photo ID is required to check out a student or enter Renner beyond the school office area.


Student Check Out Process: Please be prepared to show a photo ID when picking up your child early from Renner. Students will not be allowed to leave with siblings or other family members unless the sibling or family member is listed on the child’s authorized pick-up list or verbal permission is granted by the parent by phone. A picture ID is required when picking up students.

Student Lanyards

ALL students at Renner will receive a photo badge and lanyard which they will use each day to access their lunch account, check out library books, access print jobs and ride the bus. Students will be responsible for bringing their ID badge and lanyard to and from school each day. Students will wear badges all day. If a student is unable to find their badge, there will be a $5.00 replacement fee. Your help with this process is very much appreciated.

Title I Information

During Back to School Night, Mrs. Amanda Palmer and Mrs. Courtney O'Connor, our reading interventionists, will be hosting a short information session (10 minutes) about Renner being a Title 1 school. If you would like to attend, please visit room 112 from 6:00-6:10pm.

Transportation Bus Change

Bus transportation boundaries were revised which resulted in bus service being offered only to students living within a defined distance from Renner.


Park Hill School District will provide transportation services to students who live more than 0.5 miles from Renner.


Families received transportation update emails about their status. If you have concerns or questions, please email the Transportation Department at transportation@parkhill.k12.mo.us.

Transportation Information

For the safety of all our students, communication is the key! During Back to School Night, please be sure that you communicate with your child’s teacher the details of your child’s mode of dismissal transportation. Families must establish their child as one of the following:


  • Bus rider:
  • Car rider
  • Walker or Bike Rider
  • Adventure Club


During the year, please notify the school office of any transportation changes prior to 2:00pm. Thank you for your assistance!


Additional Bus rider information: In early August, our bus company, First Student, will be sending an email with your student’s bus information if you live within the bus boundaries. Our recommendation is for you to contact First Student if you have any concerns regarding your student’s stop. First Student can be reached at 816-359-4560 or contact Kay Burnos at kay.burnos@firstgroup.com.

Visiting and Volunteering at Renner:

Visitors: Visitors are welcome at Renner! Visits should be prearranged with the appropriate Renner staff member at least one day in advance of the visit. All visitors must check in at the office, identify the purpose of the visit, and will receive an ID sticker to wear during the visit.


Lunch Visits: Parents are welcome to join their students for lunch at school. Lunch visitors must check in at the office. We have a designated area for students with lunch guests to accommodate space for visitors. Lunch visitors may only have lunch with their own children. Any visitors who are not listed as a contact for the student will require advanced permission from the student's parent or guardian.


Volunteers: We welcome all volunteers into our schools and classrooms, with prior arrangements made with Renner staff. All volunteers who work with our students need to complete background screening by Park Hill. Forms for the screening are available in the Renner office. Volunteers must check in at the office and wear an ID sticker.

Helpful Links

Contact Renner Elementary

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Email: Kleinmeyer@parkhill.k12.mo.us
Website: www.renner.parkhill.k12.mo.us

Location: 7401 NW Barry Rd Kansas City, MO 64153
Phone: (816) 359-4350
Facebook: www.facebook.com/RennerElementary