Timberwolf Times
August 9, 2019
Tiffany Ridge Elementary School
School Hours: 8:40 - 3:30
School Phone: 816-359-4400
Principal: Desiree Rios
Assistant Principal: Megan Pudenz
Counselor: Leslie Andes
Welcome to the 2019-2020 school year!
We hope you have enjoyed a great summer with family and friends. Teachers and Staff at Tiffany Ridge have been working hard to prepare for the students to return on August 14th. We are looking forward to another great year with our students and families! I am confident that we will have an exciting, enjoyable and learning-filled year! If you are brand new to Tiffany Ridge, we want to personally welcome you to a wonderful school community that embraces diversity and encourages all parents to be actively involved. We operate with the vision of “Challenging Today’s Learners to be Tomorrow’s Leaders.” Our mission is that Tiffany Ridge will provide a caring environment dedicated to helping students feel safe, take risks, solve problems, and reach their highest potential.
You can expect an email from the school each week called the “Timberwolf Times.” This
newsletter will be filled with important reminders and information about events at Tiffany Ridge. Please take a few minutes each week to read the email for important announcements. Prior to the first day, we invite all families to our “Back to School Night” on Monday, August 12th from 5:30-7:00 pm. We also want to invite everyone to “Parent Orientation” to come and meet new staff, learn about your student’s classroom and find out about Tiffany Ridge on Thursday evening, August 22nd from 5:30-7:00.
School begins Wednesday, August 14th! Arrival time is between 8:20 and 8:40, with dismissal at 3:30. On behalf of the entire TR staff, we look forward to working with all of our Tiffany Ridge Timberwolves! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
It’s a great day to be a Timberwolf!
Desiree Rios, Principal
Megan Pudenz, Assistant Principal
Important Dates for Upcoming Events
August 12th: Back to School Night, 5:30-7:00
August 14th: First Day of School, 8:40-3:30
August 22nd: Parent Orientation, 5:30-7:00
August 23rd: Kindergarten Night at Mercury Gym, 6:30-8:00
September 2nd: No School, Labor Day
September 5th: Ice Cream Social, 6:00-7:30
September 12th: Early Release, Dismissal at 1:30
September 12th: PTA Meeting, Library, 6:30-7:30
September 18th: School Picture Day
September 20th: Donuts with Dudes, 7:30-8:30
Back to School Night
Our Back to School Night is on Monday, August 12th! Stop by anytime between 5:30-7:00pm.
Come and meet your child’s teacher, drop off school supplies, purchase spiritwear, join PTA, and more! It helps everyone make a smooth transition on the 1st day of school. We hope you can join us for this exciting event!
Parent Orientation
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 Park Hill Elementary schools is 8:20. Prior to that time, there is no adult supervision for students. Students are tardy if they arrive after 8:40. If your child will be absent, please contact the school office by 9:00am. Also, if you have changes in plans regarding transportation home, please notify your child’s teacher or the
school office before noon at 816-359-4400. Thank you for making your child’s education a top priority!
School Start Times
Based on overwhelming feedback from our Park Hill parents, staff members, students and community members, we decided not to change our start times for the 2019-2020 school year. However, we still have challenges due to the nationwide shortage of bus drivers. In addition, while costs for transportation increased sharply over the last few years, state funding for transportation has not kept up. Because we have some money in our reserves, this gap in funding is not an immediate crisis, but we cannot keep taking money from the reserves indefinitely for this and other costs.
The district has an advisory committee, which will take the findings from our Sleep and Start Times work group and make some recommendations to the district and the Board. We will also ask for more public feedback to inform the Board as it makes its decision. In addition to an in-person public feedback meeting, we will continue to get your feedback using our public engagement web site, Park Hill Listens. To get the latest information and give us your feedback, go to https://www.parkhilllistens.com/school-start-times.
Confidential Resource Checklist
Please fill out this form and drop off at the office for any resources or information you need.
Cafeteria Information:
Students may bring their lunch from home or purchase a school lunch from the cafeteria. Menus are sent home on a monthly basis. You can access your child’s lunch account at www.schoolcafe.com. Lunch prices for the 2018-2019 school year are as follows:
Breakfast - $1.50 Lunch - $2.40 Milk - $0.60 Juice - $0.40 Adult Lunch - $3.50
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, please consult your classroom teacher before sending any pre-packaged treats to school.
2019-2020 Free and Reduced Lunch Applications
Healthy meals help your children succeed in school. Your children may qualify for free meals or for reduced price meals. Forms are available in the office and will be in each classroom at Back to School Night. Guidelines for qualifying for free or reduced price lunches available on the Park Hill website, which you may access HERE. Online application forms may be accessed HERE. Please fill out and drop off at the front office. These forms do not carry over and have to be filled out each school year. Should you have any questions, please contact our Family Support Specialist, Mrs. Laney at 816-359-6229.
Student Transportation Information
For the safety of all our Timberwolves, 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: Your student's ID badge will designate their bus information. A sticker with their bus number will be placed on the back of the badge on the first day of school. Please confirm your child's bus number with his/her teacher.
- Car rider (loop A/B): All families with car rider students will need to pick up a car name tag to place in the front car window to assist teachers assisting with student pick-up.
- Walker or Bike Rider
- Adventure Club
During the year, please notify the school office of any transportation changes prior to 12:00pm. 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. 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 816-741-4023 or contact Kay Burnos at kay.burnos@firstgroup.com. On August 14th, the first day of school, each Tiffany Ridge bus driver will issue a colored wristband with the bus number for students to wear on their wrist. Students are encouraged to keep the wristbands on for at least the first several days of school.
Parent Transportation Plan: Arrival and Dismissal
Arrival
Adventure Club: Drop-off begins at 6:30am and parents must check in their child through the lower level entrance.
Walkers: Students may enter the building at 8:20 and have two entry points; the main entrance or the lower level entrance.
Bus Riders: Students will be released from the buses as soon as they arrive at Tiffany Ridge and will either report to the cafeteria for breakfast or go directly to their classrooms.
Car Riders: Drop-off begins at 8:20am. Students will report for breakfast in the cafeteria or go to their classrooms. All cars will enter Tiffany Ridge at the NE parking lots and use a single file line for dropping off students. If your child is late, please escort them to the office to sign them in using our check-in system.
Dismissal
Adventure Club: Pick-up begins at 3:35pm through the lower level entrance.
Walkers: Students will be released to parents at the main entrance.
Bus Riders: Students riding buses will be escorted by their classroom teacher to their bus starting at 3:30pm.
Car Riders: Pick-up begins at 3:30pm. Cars will begin to line up in Loop A and Loop B along the curb. Students will be supervised in the main hallway 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.
Health Room - 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 Snodgrass in our Health Room any time.
STUDENT ID BADGES
ID badges and a school-issued lanyard will be REQUIRED to be worn every day. The ID supports our safe and caring environment by providing proper identification and improved processes for transportation, lunch, and more.
Used for
- Proper identification: Students, teachers and visitors to the building will all be properly identified with badges. For our students, this helps insure safety and inclusion.
- Efficient lunch purchasing: Students will use their ID badges to purchase lunch each day. This dramatically cuts down on the time a student spends in the lunch line and allows more time for eating.
- Transportation safety: Each student’s badge will register each time he/she gets on or off the bus. This allows school administrators and necessary personnel to keep track of students and ensure they are arriving to school and home safely.
- Library-media checkout: Students can use their ID badges to check out books and other materials from the library. This improves checkout efficiency and allows resources to properly be tracked.
What does this mean for my student?
Your student will wear his/her ID badge to and from school each day on a school provided lanyard. No other lanyards may be used and no alterations may be made to the provided lanyard. Your student will use the ID badge daily to access his/her lunch account, check out library materials, and monitor bus transportation. Please ensure your student wears his/her badge every day.
What if my student loses his/her badge?
Students will be provided one replacement badge, if needed, free of charge. After the first free replacement badge, there will be a $5.00 fee for each additional badge issued.
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 GUID code, 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 816-359-4400.
PTA Reflections 2019-2020
Looking for something creative to do before summer ends? Get a head start on your PTA Reflections entry. We want to encourage you to unleash your inner artist through PTA’s Reflections Arts Program. This year’s theme “Look Within” calls for your own unique interpretation through the arts. This is your chance to express yourself through one of six categories: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, or Visual Arts. More information can be found by clicking HERE.
Tiffany Ridge PTA
PTA will be at back to school night selling spirit wear. Membership forms will be available as well. Or sign up online now and bypass the line!
2019-2020 PTA Board
President: Staci Moran
Vice President of Membership: Michelle Anderson
Vice President of Fund Raising: Rachel Blankenship
Secretary: Meagan Imgarten
Treasurer: Jeff Imgarten
Coffee and Conversations!
Image/Contact Information Opt-Out Designation
Park Hill School District often takes or allows members of the media to take photographs and audio-video recordings for positive recognition and promotional purposes. If you wish to opt out of any media or photographs of your child, an opt-out form is available through the school office.
Tiffany Ridge Elementary
Follow us for up-to-date information on all the events at Tiffany Ridge through social media. Each week we will send out a newsletter link with upcoming events and details.
Dr. Desiree Rios-Principal
Megan Pudenz-Assistant Principal
Email: kitej@parkhill.k12.mo.us
Website: https://tiffanyridge.parkhill.k12.mo.us/
Location: 5301 Northwest Old Tiffany Springs Road, KCMO, MO, United States
Phone: (816) 359-4400
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TiffanyRidgeElementary/
Twitter: @TiffanyRidgeES