Pioneer Weekly Updates

April:

3 - 7 - National Assistant Principal Appreciation Week

3 - 9 - National Library Week

4 - National School Librarian Day

5 - Early Learning Day

7 - Student/Staff Holiday

14 - Safety Drills

17 - 21 - Public School Volunteer Week

19 - Reading STAAR (grades 3, 4, 5)

20 - Reading STAAR makeup (grades 3, 4,5)

25 - Science STAAR (grade 5)

25 - School Bus Driver Appreciation Day

26 - Science STAAR makeup (grade 5)

26 - Administrative Professionals Day

May:

*Jewish American Heritage Month

*Asian American/Pacific Islander Heritage Month

*National Physical Fitness and Sports Month

1 - School Principal Day

1 - 5 - Teacher and Teacher Assistant Appreciation Week

2 - National Teacher Day

3 - Math STAAR (grades 3, 4, 5)

4 - Math STAAR makeup (grades 3, 4, 5)

10 - National School Nurse Day

25 - Last Day of School for Students

29 - Memorial Day

The events of the last week with the school shooting in Nashville have reminded us yet again how fragile life can be. Schools should be a safe place for our young learners to be, for our families to feel comfortable sending their children, and for our staff to be focused on the important job of educating our students. Recent events have brought up questions, so we want to take a minute to address safety at Patton.

Safety Protocols at Patton:

We have monthly safety drills to prepare us for all scenarios, including bad weather, fire, and threats to the school. Teachers and staff participate in yearly training to review safety protocols. Teachers keep classroom doors locked as well as reporting any adult on campus that does not have a badge or visitor sticker. We already have systems of communication in our office should anything be reported of concern and cameras are monitored by staff. Additionally, Patton's safety team performs weekly exterior door sweeps to ensure all exterior doors remain locked at all times.

Austin ISD Police patrols our campus and large events on campus such as field day are reported to AISD police in advance so there can be additional security check-ins. In addition to the physical safety of our students, we also need to ensure we are supporting their emotional needs. Teachers have been trained to watch for stress and anxiety signs in children, and as always our admin/counseling team are available and responsive.

Fencing:

As you know we have been working towards building an extended secure perimeter fence around the school. We currently have a fence, however, we're working to make upgrades. This has been quite a lengthy process with multiple CAC meetings, working with City Parks and Rec, soliciting community feedback and connecting often with construction management in central office. We are nearing the final stages and construction will hopefully begin before the school year is out.

How can you help?

As always, please continue to follow safety protocols for visitors at Patton. Be sure to bring your ID and sign-in at the front office upon arrival. It is also important for you to abide by our traffic safety expectations during morning drop-off and afternoon dismissal. We appreciate you honoring these protocols to keep all students and staff safe during these busy times of day.

If you ever see anything on campus that seems out of the ordinary, please let us know immediately by calling 512-414-1780. You can also notify AISD Police as well.

We have many upcoming end-of-year events and celebrations planned. Please make sure that as parents you help us out by bringing your identification and signing in along with displaying your visitor badge clearly for others to see. Thank you in advance for your patience with our front office staff as we sign-in visitors for these events. It can be busy, and we thank you for your understanding.

We appreciate your support in adhering to our safety protocols. We encourage you to visit the AISD website where you can learn more about school safety and security.

Should you have any additional questions or concerns, you can also join us during our CAC meetings where safety is a standing agenda item or reach out to Ms. Snowden directly.

As always, thank you for your support in helping us to ensure safety remains a number one priority at Patton.

We are so excited to get our future Pioneers registered and ready for the next school year! On Wednesday, April 5th we will be hosting the Patton Early Learning day for incoming Pre-K and Kindergarten students. (Currently enrolled Pre-K students will have a separate time to visit Kinder classrooms.) There will be two sessions-one in the morning starting at 8:30 and one after school starting at 4:30 p.m. Please note the morning experience will be different than the afternoon experience, but registration paperwork and a school tour can be taken care of at both.

ALL CURRENT STUDENTS RETURNING TO AISD FOR THE 2023-2024 SCHOOL YEAR MUST COMPLETE ONLINE REGISTRATION.

PRE-K4 Registration will open in April. More information to come.

Please follow the link below to sign into your Parent Portal to complete this process.

1. Enrollment landing page: https://www.austinisd.org/enroll

2. Important dates and deadlines: https://www.austinisd.org/transfer/dates-deadlines

3. For questions, please contact Let’s Talk https://www.austinisd.org/letstalk and click on “Student Services: Enrollment, Records, & Transfers."

To increase Pre-K and kindergarten enrollment and support families with registration, elementary campuses will host a districtwide Early Learning Day on April 5. Please save this date and share with your families and spread the word in the community.

On this day, families of rising PreK4 students and rising Kindergarteners will have the opportunity to:

• Take campus and classroom tours that highlight culture and student experience

• Complete online registration

• Complete the Pre-K screener

• Meet the principal and/or other administrative staff and teachers

Pre-K families please complete online registration now at https://www.austinisd.org/enroll and sign up for Pre-K updates.

AISD Student, Staff, and Family climate surveys will go live on Monday, March 20th. The survey window will remain open through Friday, April 14th. Surveys will be available online and can easily be accessed by computer, phone, and screen readers.

Survey note:

The questions have a range of 5 choices. Please be aware, the two 'positive' scores are joined together to create the 'positive' percentage. The middle as well as the three 'negative' scores are all joined together to create the 'negative' percentage. All neutral responses will count in the 'negative' score category for our campus.

LASA High School is hosting their annual Dance Clinic for students Kinder-11th April 1 from 8:00am-1:30pm. The kids that join will get to perform their dance at the Spring Show, April 15 at 7pm.

Registration information: https://tinyurl.com/vdtclinic23