Wildcat News
~ October: Month of Kindness - Conference Sign Up~
Wood Wildcats! Safe, Responsible, & Kind
Wood Families:
KINDNESS
At Grant Wood, October is the month during which we focus and nurture Kindness among our students, our building, and our community. Nationally, October is also National Bullying Prevention Month. Kindness is a readily available character trait with which we can counter and prevent bullying behaviors. Similarly, at our disposal are daily opportunities beyond the school day to work together in community to nurture kindness over conflict.
NOVEMBER
As previously mentioned, coming up in November are Parent-Teacher Conferences. This year we will have three dates for Parent-Teacher conferences (see dates below). Also this year, parents will have the option of attending conferences in person (on site) as well as virtually via zoom. Please use this link access the sign up form for your student's classroom teacher.
ATTENDANCE
Daily school attendance has such high impact that studies have shown that students who attend school regularly achieve at higher levels than students who do not have regular attendance. The impact of daily and timely attendance can be seen throughout our students; school experience and academic achievement. Daily and on time attendance nurtures a student's sense of connectedness to their school community - feeling a stronger sense of connectedness fosters a stronger sense of engagement with peers, school staff, and the curriculum.
Note: Our school day starts at 7:55am - it is our goal to have all our students in their classroom by the start of our school day.
- If your child will be absent from school please contact and provide a reason for the absence to our attendance secretary, Ms. Kara Steggall by calling: 319-688-1180 or email Ms. Steggall at: steggall.kara@iowacityschools.org Providing a reason for the absence helps us determine the appropriate District-approved code for the absence.
Lastly, please see the below "Dates to note" section - for information on the VNA Flu and Covid-19 vaccine clinic next month.
Proud Wildcat,
Ms. Maria (she, her)
Principal
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OCT. Dates to note:
Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month: September 15th - October 15th
Oct. 17th - ICFD Fire Prevention Presentation (KG-4th) at Wood during school day
NOV. Dates to note:
Nov. 2nd (Wednesday) - VNA (Visiting Nurse Association) Flu & Covid-19 vaccination clinic at Wood (3:15-6:00 PM). Full schedule at: https://www.iowacityschools.org/Page/16933
Nov. 8th (Tuesday) - No School day
Fall Parent-Teacher Conferences will take place on three dates this year:
- Nov. 9th from 3:10pm - 7:10pm (last conference ends at 7:10pm);
- Nov. 17th from 2:10pm - 7:10pm (last conference ends at 7:10pm);
- Nov. 18th from 7:40am - 3:40pm (last conference ends at 3:40pm)
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Principal: Ms. Maria, martin.maria@iowacityschools.org
Office Secretary: Ms. Kiana, samaniego.kiana@iowacityschools.org
Attendance Secretary: Ms. Kara, steggall.kara@iowacityschools.org
School Facilitator: Mr. Brown, brown.ryan@iowacityschools.org
Counselor: Ms. Newman, newman.heather@iowacityschools.org
Student & Family Advocate: Mrs. Palante, palante.alyssa@iowacityschools.org
Instructional Design Strategist (IDS): Ms. Fischer, fischer.stacy@iowacityschools.org
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#GrantWood-SAFE
#GrantWood-RESPONSIBLE
#GrantWood-KIND
#TheWildcatWay
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Email: martin.maria@iowacityschools.org
Website: https://www.iowacityschools.org/Domain/552
Location: 1930 Lakeside Dr, Iowa City, IA 52240, USA
Phone: 319-688-1180
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/grantwoodwildcats/
Twitter: @GrantWood_IC
Parent/Guardian Feedback
Your feedback is welcomed and valued - let's celebrate our positive experiences while also work on areas in need of continued improvement - as a learning institution committed to growth and progress in areas of culture & climate as well as academic achievement.
Please provide us your feedback about the 2022-23 school year so far at Wood.
Next Meeting Oct. 26th, at 5:30pm
Thank you to the parents that have already attended and expressed their commitment to support our students, our staff, our school. I look forward to our continued collaboration throughout the year and into future years. Grant Wood's PTO can be contacted directly at ICGrantWoodPTO@gmail.com
22-23 PTO Leadership:
Kailynn Ekle, President
Danielle Trujillo, Vice-President
Elizabeth Mackenzie, Secretary
Deanna Schwietzer, Treasurer
email: ICGrantWoodPTO@gmail.com
Classroom Celebrations - no longer holiday affiliated; but school-wide inclusive through equity lens
For cultural or religious reasons, many of our families opt for their students not to participate in one form or another. For those that do participate, access for all students is not the same (i.e. lack of costumes, food, cards, etc.). It is for those reasons that we will continue with the practice of no classroom parties (of this nature) moving forward.
We understand that celebrations are an important part of our students’ school experience. Each of our schools will continue to find inclusive ways to have classroom and school-wide celebrations, that don’t fall around holidays, throughout the school year. While these may look different, they will continue to be part of our system of support.
We strive to make all students and families feel welcome and included in all aspects of our school day and our school community.
Ombuds Office Introduction
My name is Janet Abejo-Parker, and I was appointed to the Ombuds ("awm-buhdz") position as of August 2021.
The Ombuds Office is an informal concern and conflict resolution resource and serves as a resource for all students, parent/guardians, and staff.
My primary duties are to: 1) Assist individuals with exploring options to address District and school-related conflicts and concerns; and 2) Raise awareness of emerging issues and concerns.
The following guiding principles are what make my office a unique resource:
Independence: separate from other District departments;
Impartiality: understands all sides and works collaboratively with all parties involved;
Informality: a voluntary resource that does not participate in formal processes; and
Confidentiality: communications are confidential to the maximum extent permitted by law (exceptions apply for concerns involving mandatory reporting, Title IX, and risk of imminent harm).
Please view the Ombuds Introduction video at https://youtu.be/7Wd9s1twd3Q or visit www.iowacityschool.org/ombuds for more information on the Ombuds Office.
Shine Awards - Recognizing Teachers/Staff
The school year is well underway and we are focused on our students learning and growing, as well as acknowledging them for representing The Wildcat Way: Being Safe Responsible, & Kind. We are committed to establishing positive working relationships with students and families. Several emails, pone calls, as well as in-person feedback indicate that strong positive, supportive, and collaborative relationships are in fact part of our Wood experience. If you are so inclined to nominate a Wood teacher or staff member for a District Shine Award, you may do so at the Shine Award Nomination Form.
The Shine Award honors employees who go above and beyond for the students and schools in our community. Honorees positively influence, inspire, and leave a lasting impact with the work they do every day, helping to fulfill the overall District mission.
Nominations can be submitted by completing the Shine Award Nomination Form. If preferred, you can also copy and paste the following link into your web browser: https://bit.ly/3QeTeUP. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration.
RUN FOR THE SCHOOLS
Register: https://bit.ly/3faTsPk
Volunteer sign up: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0e44aaa628aaf94-runfor1
Wood's Wildcat Way: Be Safe, Responsible, & Kind
We have confidence that together, collectively, we can positively nurture a safe and welcoming school community, as well as a safe and supportive learning experience for all our students.
Voice level expectation - will be determined by context and circumstance - and communicated to our students accordingly throughout the school day and year.
*Additional details within our previous Wildcat News newsletter.
Let us be a community working together to teach our kids to be Safe, Responsible, and Kind.
District Message - High Reliability Schools
Dear Families,
The Iowa City Community School District is excited to become a High Reliability Schools district! For the past several months, our administrators and teachers have been preparing for this framework that will lead to academic and culture improvements.
First and foremost we are focused on serving our students in a positive culture that respects and celebrates differences. A top priority in the pursuit of that is creating a culture that provides a safe and orderly learning environment. Covid created several different challenges in our systems. HRS is a sophisticated framework that provides an opportunity to reset and focus on the best educational practices giving teachers tools to maximize every student’s potential in every classroom.
High Reliability Schools brings all our buildings into alignment so that our administrators and teachers are working toward the same goals, learning from each other, and performing regular audits of our practices. If something isn’t working, we want to fix it!
HRS also requires collaboration with you! Throughout the year, we will ask for feedback from students and families. Please stay tuned for information about these opportunities.
We’ve been through difficult times together. By implementing this school improvement model, our District is further renewing its commitment to creating an exceptional educational environment for all of our students.
Sincerely,
Matt Degner
Superintendent
Iowa City Community School District
22-23 Office Hours Update
Wood's office will be open 7:30-3:30pm Monday through Friday.
It is highly recommended that our families call first, when possible, before coming to the school building.
**Our Office will be with reduced staff, while our office staff take their lunch breaks or assist with matters away from the front desk; we appreciate your patience at all times but especially from 11:30am - 1::30pm.
Your understanding when our phone lines may be busy - will be needed and is ALWAYS appreciated greatly. Busy phone lines can also impact our ability to answer the door buzzer. For everyone's safety it is imperative that everyone needing in-person assistance use the office entrance and check-in at the office for any and all assistance or questions you may have while on campus, during our office hours.
As part of our safety protocols, all visitors, including parents coming to Grant Wood for meetings with staff, or with an interest in having access to their child's classroom, will need to sign in - there is a new sign in system which will require that you provide your phone number upon signing in. Additionally, we at Wood require that all visitors (including our parents) sign a paper log when exiting the building.
Your understanding, cooperation, and collaboration in helping us ensure a safe and welcoming school environment - personifying and modeling the Wildcat Way: Being Safe, Responsible, & Kind is always appreciated! Thank you!
PBIS - Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports
PBIS invests in proactive prevention. Some of the strategies include:
- Ongoing recognition of appropriate behavior—including verbal praise & documented recognitions, ClassDojo points reedemable for tangible rewards, and the traveling Golden Ticket class plaque;
- Proactive intervention—identifying expected building behaviors throughout all school settings;
- Active teaching & reteaching—teachers, students, families, and community members often work together to teach and model appropriate and expected behaviors;
- Clear, consistent responses to inappropriate behavior;
- Additional support for students with more significant needs; and,
- Collecting and using data to inform decisions
More PBIS information available here.
Needing Tech Help...
If your child experiences difficulties with the school-issued device (i.e.their chromebook) or school related accounts such as Seesaw, Dreambox, Lexia, Canvas, or ClassLink - our staff, including the Library staff may be able to help, however, it may help you and your student to contact the Iowa City Community School District Technology Help Desk:
- Phone, 319-688-1001 Ext: 4357 | Email: helpdesk@iowacityschools.org | Chat With Us!
Monitoring Children's Internet Use
ICCSD is entering its fourth year of using Securly, a service that filters internet access on District devices and also includes the SecurlyHome Parent Hub, which parents can use to monitor internet usage, receive usage notifications, and establish limits on what your child can access. Limits parents can set include turning school-issued devices off at parent-determined times (such as bedtime).
You may have already received an email from Securly when your child was issued their 1:1 device. You can access Securly at https://www.securly.com/parent-login, and your login email will be the primary email address listed for your child(ren)'s contacts in PowerSchool. If you have trouble accessing Securly, please verify your primary contact email in PowerSchool or contact your child's school to do so (Grant Wood, 319-688-1180). You can also contact Securly support if you've confirmed your email in PowerSchool and are still having trouble accessing Securly.
Additional information about content filtering and about Securly can be on the ICCSD Technology & Innovation Blog.
Care Assessment & Securly Monitoring Tool
In 2018, our Board directed the administrative team to create a safety committee. The goal of the committee was to conduct research and make recommendations back to the Board on safety measures to be implemented across our District. Care Assessment was one of those recommendations.
Care Assessment is a program to prevent violence and resolve conflicts proactively. The goal is early detection and attention to problems such as bullying, harassment, teasing, and conflict before it escalates into violent behavior. This is accomplished through staff observation, student reporting, and the Say Something incident reporting tool. In addition to these methods, our District implemented the Securly 24 monitoring tool for District technology devices.
Our District uses Securly content filtering to block access to inappropriate websites and material on school-owned devices. In addition to blocking inappropriate content, Securly alerts the district when they detect activity such as searches, sites visited, or emails sent and received that indicate a student may be considering self-harm and harming others. The goal of this monitoring is to provide early notification of concerns so that families and schools can work together to provide intervention and support in an effort to circumvent violence and harm to oneself.
For additional information on the process Securly uses when concerning activity is detected, please visit the Securly informational page located on the District’s website.
If you have any questions regarding Securly and its use within our District, please visit our Care Assessment webpage or contact Kate Callahan at callahan.kate@iowacityschools.org.