EPE Express
East Pennsboro Elementary School Newsletter
June 2021
Principal's Message
The completion of the 2020-2021 school year is upon us! It has been quite the journey navigating the year though the pandemic and various modes of instruction. While we all had challenges at times, we believe that in-person education will benefit from many of the experiences we have had this year including the use of technology, student and staff collaboration in a 21st century environment - building the skills needed in a technologically advanced future, and the important skill of flexibility. On that note, I extend a sincere thank you to all of the students, staff, parents, and guardians for working together during this time. Let's continue the collaboration into the next school year, which at this time, looks to be a much more typical structure for everybody, featuring in-person learning five days per week!
Have a safe and relaxing summer!
Respectfully,
Mr. T. and Mr. Etter
717-732-0441
Panther Spotlight
We appreciate the positive feedback from parents who are utilizing the EPE Panther Spotlight link below! Take a look at the latest examples of EPE excellence:
"Mrs. Bryson has brought the joy of art back into school. My son is completing creative projects and is enjoying doing so; he never was like that before. The projects are well thought out and well taught, and you can see the care she takes to ensure that each student understands what to do!"
"Mr. Houtz has been an amazing teacher this year, especially between distance learning and live-streaming while also navigating a huge change in his life. He works hard to ensure that each child gets what they need. He is always positive, and my son absolutely loves being in his class."
"They’re two of the best and they book end our school counseling department perfectly! Betsy has been a stable presence for our kiddos in this community for decades, and Heather has been incredible in her first year with the district. EPE is lucky to have such incredible school counselors like these fine ladies!"
"I am nominating Mrs. Beaver, she is amazing with my son and all the students she has in her class from the first day of school. She has many students and still manages to know each one by their own little personality and always makes sure they are on track with learning. She goes above and beyond for her students and the parents, I appreciate how she makes everyone aware of what is going on and gives helpful tips on how to help teach my child at home as well. I love this district and am hoping to keep my child here till graduation."
"Mrs. Garlinger has been the most informative teacher we’ve had since we started at EPE since kindergarten. She not only provides a positive environment for her students but she also provides them with patience, love, growth, and mindfulness. She is the example of what this year’s core values are an EPE! We appreciate everything she does not only for our daughter, Olivia, but for us as parents as well!"
"I really appreciate that Ms. Michael reached out to the livestream students to include them when they were learning ukuleles. My son was very excited to participate in that, and the fact that she didn’t just assign other work to replace it without checking first was very appreciated."
"Mrs. Wilcox is a fantastic teacher. She communicates incredibly well with her students and with the parents. During this school year, she dedicated her personal time to read books to her students via Zoom on Saturday evenings. Our teachers devote so much of their personal time to prepare for each school day. I am so thankful that my daughter has such a caring and thoughtful teacher. Thank you, Mrs. Wilcox!"
"Mrs. Lewis has been very patient with my son. Its been difficult for him working through all issues this year. Coupled with Covid and all other issues I feel with Mrs. Lewis's patience, he was able to work through it all."
Please consider nominating an EPE staff member by clicking the link below: https://forms.gle/63F7PuEL3qYZ8rnm8
2021-2022 School Year Calendar
EPE 5th Graders Toured the Middle School
On Friday, May 14th, all 5th grade students had an opportunity to go on a guided tour of the Middle School, attend a question and answer seminar, and each lunch in the MS cafeteria!
EPE Field Day 2021
EPE Kindergarten Celebration
Please park in any available parking spaces in the front of the school building, along the access road, or at the administration building near the field hockey area.
Students will be able to be signed out afterwards at your child's teacher table on the playground. Please be prepared to show your identification, such as a driver's license, so that we can ensure each kindergarten student goes home with the correct person.
This is an outdoor event and will be held on the side playground. Families may bring lawn chairs/blankets to view the procession from the grassy area.
We will have an area for photos to be taken with a sign similar to the one pictured below.
We are really looking forward to seeing you there!
3rd Grade Multiplication Bee
Mrs. Smith Awarded a Grant!
Great work Mrs. Smith and thank you to the EPEF for awarding us the grant for this innovative project!
EPE Character Awards
EPFH Youth Camp
5th Grade Celebration
Kindergarten Registration!
General EPE Information:
Change in Routine Procedures
The classroom teachers follow routine dismissal procedures daily. Changes in those routines
should be for urgent reasons and must be accompanied by a Change of Routine Notice or a
written parental notice requesting such a change. All student verbal requests for such changes will be denied without written notice or a phone call from a parent/guardian. Seesaw messages, text messages, and emails will not be accepted during the school day of a change of routine. Please have these requests into the school ahead of time so we can ensure students are where they need to be for a safe and secure dismissal.
Attendance
General Attendance Process:
OTIS Parent Accounts
Parents and guardians have access to an online program that offers a variety of videos and tutorials pertaining to numerous topics. The online platform is called Otis. https://otis.teq.com/
Currently, employees of East Pennsboro Area School District utilize Otis as a professional development tool.
Parents may access the platform to find information about troubleshooting and using iPads for learning, troubleshooting and using Chromebooks as learning tools, how to use and understand Google Classroom, how to help your student(s) with remote learning, how to apply for college loans, and much more.
We encourage parents and guardians of students in East Pennsboro Area School District to take advantage of this free and helpful online learning tool.
Please use the attached information to create a free account.
Important Dates
June:
2 - Kindergarten Celebration at EPE (for Parents/Guardians) 12:30-1:45 EPE Side Playground
3 - Last In-person Student Day
4 - Last Student Day (Friday Online Day, Group C will attend in-person)
July:
5 - Buildings Closed - Independence Day
August:
23 - First Student Day of the 2021-2022 School Year
All above dates are subject to change based on current federal, state, and district guidance regarding the COVID-19 epidemic.
Please see our previous newsletters:
About us
Email: rtysarczyk@epasd.org
Website: https://www.epasd.org/
Location: 840 Panther Parkway, East Pennsboro Township, PA, USA
Phone: 717-732-0441
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EastPennsboroElem/