Brave Bulls Bulletin
Tom Lea Elementary
EPISD delays reopening following sharp rise in COVID-19 cases
EPISD Administration is delaying the reopening of campuses due to the rising rate of COVID-19 cases in El Paso County.
In the last week alone, the rate has steadily risen each day to almost 8 percent on Thursday, Sept. 24. The World Health Organization’s guidelines state that it is safest to reopen when a community reaches 5 percent positivity rate for 14 consecutive days.
EPISD used the 5 percent benchmark when it applied for, and received, a reopening extension waiver from the Texas Education Agency.
However, under the current waiver, the TEA has mandated that EPISD open its doors by Oct. 19.
Virtual instruction will continue for those that chose that option.
EPISD students will be on intercession the week of Oct. 12-16.
On-campus student groups will be phased in on the following dates:
- Oct. 19: AIM, Pre-k, kinder, first and second grade.
- Oct. 26: Third, fourth and fifth grade.
EPISD has spent months working with health officials and experts to develop a thorough School Reopening Guide for Students & Parents, as well as a guide for all employees. To view the guides, visit the EPISD School Reopening webpage at https://www.episd.org/reopeningplan.
Story by Gustavo Reveles
Tom Lea's Virtual Art Show
Library News
There are still many military families who don’t know about the Tutor.com for U.S. Military Families program. Help us spread the word about this valuable education benefit.
COVID-19 Support Update
To support DoD-affiliated personnel and their families impacted by COVID-19 disruptions, no-cost eligibility has temporarily been expanded for the Tutor.com for U.S. Militaries™ program. As of April 2020, all DoD service members, civilian personnel, and all dependent family members are eligible. (DoD military children and Coast Guard families who were eligible to use Tutor.com for U.S. Military Families prior to April 2020 will continue to access the program as usual.)
Looking Ahead....October is National Bullying Prevention Month
National Bullying Prevention Awareness Month
Every October, schools and organizations across the country join STOMP Out Bullying™ in observing National Bullying Prevention Month. The goal: encourage schools, communities and organizations to work together to stop bullying and cyberbullying and put an end to hatred and racism by increasing awareness of the prevalence and impact of all forms of bullying on all children of all ages.
A MONTH OF ANTI-BULLYING ACTIVITIES! A MONTH OF ACTION!
Monday, October 5, 2020 #BlueUp
The Week of October 5th
Make friends with someone you don’t know at school
If you've ever been isolated from others at school or you were new at school and it took time to make friends, you know what it feels like to be left out. Or even if you were never isolated, imagine how it would feel.
Make friends with someone at school on-line who you don't know. You probably wish someone had done that for you.
Be a leader. Take action and don't let anyone at school be in isolation.
Challenge Others To Be Kind
Make kindness go viral with an act of kindness and challenge friends and classmates to pay it forward with their acts of kindness. Make a video of everyone doing acts of kindness and submit it. We'll add it to our website.
https://www.stompoutbullying.org/national-bullying-prevention-awareness-month
This is your chance to make bullying prevention heard around the world! You can begin to change the culture by putting an end to Bullying and Cyberbulling
Hello Parents,
We have some exciting news for our students and parents! We have partnered with the YWCA's Teen Leadership Program. They offer some really great services via video conferencing. This includes tutoring and SEL arts/crafts sessions. The purpose of the arts and crafts is to give the children an opportunity create and decompress from their day. Sufficient exercises will be conducted to build up their social emotional learning and resiliency. The arts is the medium for expression allowing the children an environmentthat is unassuming, while they receive support for their feelings.There will also be academic support provided through tutoring sessions. Students will get additional practice on concepts they may be struggling with or reinforce skills they already know.
*If you would like your child(ren) to participate in these services, please email Ms. Rebecca Montoya rxmontoy@episd.org or Ms. Una Millan ubmillan@episd.org. Please include the name of your child, grade level and which services you would like them to participate in (tutoring/Arts & Crafts). Thank you!
Tuesdays: K-2nd Arts and Crafts 3:30-4:30
Thursday: K-2nd tutoring 3:30-4:30; 3rd-5th Arts and Crafts 3:30-4:30; 3rd-5th tutoring 4:45-5:45
Family Engagement
Parents,
We held our Annual Title 1 meeting and Benefits of Family Engagement Presentation on Tuesday. We will have our last presentation Monday, Sept 28 at 5:30 p.m. during the Tea with the Principal. This is an opportunity for you to learn more about Title 1, the funds associated with Title 1 and your rights as a parent at the school. Also, during the Tea with the Principal, we will be answering questions regarding the reopening of school. Please join us via Zoom meeting 232 953 2013 password: parent. Included below is our Campus Policy and School-Parent Compact in both English and Spanish. These can also be found on our webpage episd.org/tomlea > parents tab > parent engagement or the link:
https://www.episd.org/Domain/6353
10K for 100 Days! This is a great opportunity to stay active or to start moving! Please register via the link by Sept 30 and review the "rules" https://redcap.elpaso.ttuhsc.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=F8MY3CFEFR. Enter "Tom Lea Elementary" in the other section under organization. We would love to have at least 100 parents (kids count too!) and staff register. We will be provided a report on how many participants and how many steps we covered.. you know, for bragging rights! 🙂 Be on the lookout in future newsletters and class dojo for monthly Saturday morning meetups to walk together (socially distanced, of course).
Have a great week!
Jennifer Baca
Parent Engagement Liaison