News and Events

Board adjusts meeting time starting June 6

At the School Board’s Executive Committee meeting in April, the committee decided to start the regular Board meetings earlier to prevent meetings from running late into the evening.

Beginning on June 6, Board meetings will start at 4:15 p.m. Public testimony will begin at 5 p.m., before the Board hears from staff on introduction and action items on the agenda. Board members believe that the 5 p.m. public testimony start time still allows the public to meaningfully engage with the Board.

The Board will monitor how the meetings proceed for the next few months and revisit the decision in the fall. If the 5 p.m. start time for public testimony does not allow for family members and community members to testify, the Board will revisit the issue and make any necessary changes.

Board meetings are held the first and third Wednesdays of every month. Families, staff and the community can come in person to the meeting at the John Stanford Center, 2445 3^rd Ave. South, or view the meetings streamed live on SPS-TV mms://mediaserver.seattleschools.org/live or on Comcast Cable Channel 26. For more information on viewing options, visit http://bit.ly/SPSboardmeetings.

The Board also accepts written public testimony if someone cannot attend the Board meeting. Testimony and feedback can be sent to SchoolBoard@seattleschools.org. For rules on testifying at a Board meeting, visit http://bit.ly/SPSpublictestimony.

The School Board’s Executive Committee also recently released its Board meeting calendar for the 2012-13 school year: http://bit.ly/SPSBoardCalendar

For more information, please contact the School Board office at: schoolboard@seattleschools.org or (206) 252-0040

The City Council will hold a public hearing to receive community input on this proposed levy. Everyone is welcome to attend and address the City Council.  

City Council Public Hearing, 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 3

Council Chambers
Seattle City Hall
600 Fourth Ave., Floor 2

Read the flyer 

For more information on the proposed levy, please go to “Libraries for All.”

Volunteers are needed in several different areas; see below!

Sound Partners

Sound Partners is a successful, with a proven track record, phonics-based tutoring program that provides supplemental reading instruction to elementary school students grades K–3 with below average reading skills. The program is designed specifically for use by tutors with minimal training and experience. Instruction emphasizes letter-sound correspondences, phoneme blending, decoding and encoding phonetically regular words, and reading irregular high-frequency words, with oral reading to practice applying phonics skills in text. The program consists of a set of scripted lessons in alphabetic and phonics skills and uses Bob Books beginning reading series as one of the primary texts for oral reading practice. McGilvra is actively looking for Sound Partner volunteers to expand this program.  The commitment is one or more mornings a week for 1 1/2 hours.  There will be a required training offered (in the next few weeks).  If you are interested in making a difference at McGilvra by becoming a Sound Partners tutor, please contact the Reading Specialist, Anne Manning at awpresecan@seattleschools.org.  

Hearing and Vision Screening

Lynne Carveth, McGilvra's school nurse, is looking for a couple of parents to assist her with hearing and vision screenings.  She has 4 classrooms left to screen and is planning on doing these on a few upcoming Thursdays: the mornings of March 15th and 22nd and all day on March 29th.  If you would like to help with her with this task and can commit to helping out on at least 2 Thursdays, please contact Kenna Hart at kennahart@gmail.com.  

The Messenger 

We are looking for a parent that can take over publishing McGilvra's weekly newsletter, The Messenger.  If this is something you would like to learn more about, please contact Kenna Hart at kennahart@gmail.com.

2012-2013 PTA Board

The PTA board nominating committee is busy trying to recruit next year's board.  The available positions are Co-President, Co-Treasurer, Fundraising, Operations, Secretary, Legislative Chair, Special Ed Liaison, Student Programs Chair and Volunteer Coordinator.  If you are interested in learning more about these important positions, please contact Season Hamilton at seasonhamilton@hotmail.com.

When we are expecting snow or inclement weather, a Seattle Public Schools Central Office team continually monitors conditions across the District. After consulting with other agencies, we will decide whether to delay school by two hours or if a closure is necessary. You can learn if school will be delayed or closed through: local TV and radio stations, the District website at www.seattleschools.org, an automated phone call you will receive, and the Public Schools Emergency Communications System at www.SchoolReport.org.

On January 12, 2012 at 6:30 PM in the library the PTA Board will hold a Budget Planning Workshop.  This workshop will be especially helpful to new parents who would like a better understanding of the PTA budget process and want to provide input on the 2012-13 budget recommendations – Recommendations that will directly impact their child’s education.

We will discuss:

• Budgeting history and overview
• Budget process and timing
• Input on programs, priorities, fundraising needs, and reserve policy for 2012-13
• Recommendations for enrichment teacher staffing (Math, Reading, Art , Computer, Counselor, etc)

Take our BUDGET PLANNING SURVEY by January 10^th, here is the link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/K93HGVG

Ms. Scott and I really appreciated the following people donating their time to help make our first Dance Event a success:  Carol Lawrence, Jennifer Booth, Kelly Moore, Brittany Blue, Anne Sheeran, Anne Friedlander, Wallis Bolz, Jane Alston, Todd Bare, Glenn Ader, Leila Saneei, Portia Maisano-Torres, &  Andy Jensen.  In addition to the parents listed, we had many, many, more that jumped in to help with clean up after the event.  I also want to personally thank our PTA board members, the McGilvra faculty and staff, and the dance instructors for putting this enriching program together for our children.  Again, many thanks to the dedicated McGilvra community of volunteers for creating a truly great night!   

Thank you to Bob Steedman, Maria Bridge, Tonya Dressel and Heath Foster for touring prospective families around McGilvra this week!

Thank you to Suzanne Shaw and everyone that volunteered their time and worked at the book fair.  Because of the book fair, we were able to stock our McGilvra library with close to $4,000 in new books!  

Ms. Scott is looking for volunteers to help with the "Winter Dance" event that our kids are doing next Tuesday, December 13th!  Specifically, she is in need of volunteers to help with.....

1.  Lighting - directing the gym lights during and after each performance

2.  Computer - starting and stopping the music, starting videos during transitions

3.  Set-up and take down chairs

4.  A parent from EACH CLASS to help organize the students in their classrooms before the performance, at 6:15 pm!  

Bingo night is going to be held on January 6th from 6-8:30pm in the gym.  It is a fun filled night with prizes and pizza slices for sale. The other component is the bake sale! We need parent volunteers to bake something that will be sold for 25 cents per/piece/cookie/bar/cupcake.  We also need volunteers to sell pizza, help with bingo sheets, as well as help with set up and clean up.

If you are interested in any of these upcoming volunteer opportunities, please contact Kenna Hart at kennahart@gmail.com or 773.936.2981.

A big thanks to everyone that has come out this week to help our kids tie-dye their shirts for this Friday's Run-a-thon celebration.  Karen Cretekos and Justine Way continue to be a driving force behind this year's VERY SUCCESSFUL Run-a-thon.  Thank you for your all of your hard work!

Love McGilvra?  We are hosting tours for prospective families next Monday, December 5th at 10 am.  We are in need of five volunteers that can come in and take families through the building and talk about all of our wonderful programs. 

Bingo Night is going to be held on January 6th from 6-8:30pm in the gym.  It is a fun filled night with prizes and pizza slices for sale. The other component is the bake sale! We need parent volunteers to bake something that will be sold for 25 cents per/piece/cookie/bar/cupcake.

We also need volunteers to sell pizza, help with bingo sheets, as well as help with set up and clean up.

If you are interested in either of these upcoming volunteer opportunities, please contact Kenna Hart at kennahart@gmail.com or 773.936.2981.

The Seattle School Board will decide this winter whether to conduct a national search for a Superintendent or whether to appoint Interim Superintendent Dr. Susan Enfield. Before the School Board decides, they will seek input on the traits members of the public would like to see in a Superintendent. The School Board has partnered with the Seattle Council PTSA to help gather this information from Seattle Public School families. We are, therefore, hosting three community meetings in November where families can share their thoughts with members of the School Board. There will also be a survey seeking the same input available in mid-November. 

Families of all students in Seattle Public Schools are encouraged to attend and share their comments in these free and welcoming community meetings hosted by the Seattle Council PTSA. 

Monday, Nov. 14, at Roosevelt High School, 7-8:30 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 15, at Denny International Middle School, 7-8:30 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 17, at South Shore PreK-8, 7-8:30 p.m.

Childcare and light snacks will be available starting at 6:30 p.m. at all locations. For interpretation services, please email barbara@seattlecouncilptsa.org or call (206) 364-7430.

Sincerely,

Lauren McGuire
President, Seattle Council PTSA

Michael DeBell
Vice President, Seattle School Board

Please support the McGilvra school library and celebrate the joy of reading by visiting the Book Fair after Thanksgiving break.   The Book Fair features a great selection of Scholastic books so you’re sure to find something for all of your favorite elementary school readers.  The sale benefits McGilvra with 30 percent of all proceeds directly supporting our school library. 

When:  Monday, November 28^th – Friday, December 2^nd

Where:  The McGilvra Library

Hours:  8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.

We need volunteers!  If you’d like to work at the Book Fair or help with set-up the week prior please contact Suzanne Shaw at suzanne_dennehy@hotmail.com or contact our school librarian, Ms. Powers dcpowers@seattleschools.org.

This Friday, October 28^th, 6:15 – 8:30 PM

Can anyone feel the chill in the air?  The leaves are falling.  The winds are starting to swirl.  That means it’s time to celebrate the changing of the seasons--the transformation of the landscape--at McGilvra’s annual Harvest Dance.  Bring the entire family in costume as we celebrate the fall season with schoolmates. 

Here is the plan: 

After school, families are invited to help set-up in the gym for a while.  Then, go home or take a break, get your costumes on, and eat something beforehand.  At 6:15, bring fruit, snack veggies, or a dessert for the treat buffet (paper serveware, please).  Then, the fun starts: 

--Visit the Tattoo Parlor.

--Get your fortune told.

--Do some Halloween crafting.

--Dare to stroll through the spooked out garden.

--Pre-order u-picked Thanksgiving herbs from the garden. 

Don’t forget to capture the moment with a photo by McGilvra parent and professional photographer, Dan Langley (please do this early as the line can get long; donations suggested).  The Dads Band will be playing--their seventh year--until 7:45.  Following their gig, DJ Bob will share his dance mix-up.  At 8:15, we’ll wind down the evening with a showing of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”  

Mark your calendars for a couple of very fun family events!  On Friday, October 28^th we will have our Annual Harvest Dance and Celebration.  This evening will be packed with student and family activities, including a walk through the “Spooky Garden”, games, dancing, and a viewing of “It’s a Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”  Costumes are encouraged and families are asked to bring a dessert to share.  (We will not provide a potluck dinner this year, so parents should feed their children ahead of time.)  Another, just for fun activity, is scheduled for Tuesday, November 1^st at 7:00pm.  The Reptile Man will visit our school on that school day and present an assembly for all students grades K-3.  That evening he will provide a special family presentation at 7:00.  (A one dollar per person donation will be collected at the door to support the cost of this event.)  Bring your family and learn about these amazing animals and participate up close and personal!  We want to extend a special invitation to our new families and hope that you will join us for these two fun community building activities. 

Mary Lane
Principal

Mark your calendars!  The Run-a-thon is this Thursday, Oct. 20th at 1:30 p.m.  Come cheer for the kids and marvel at their stamina as they run laps around the school to raise money for the Annual Fund!   

We can still use volunteers--please email Justine Way (justineway@gmail.com) if you can help out.  

Release your inner cheerleader!  We still need more parents to join the squad.  Everyone is welcome--men, women, grandparents, caregivers--help us cheer for the kids!  If you have a "uniform" in mind, bring it along.  Are you a former cheerleader?  Prove that you can still sport the uniform by wearing it to the Run-a-thon!

Important T-Shirt Update!

The weather forecast for Thursday is not looking sunny--though, as Seattleites we all know how quickly that can change.  Knowing that kids, paint and rain are a recipe for disaster, we have decided to use the T-shirts for our fabulous final Run-a-thon assembly.  You still have time to send in a shirt for your child--we have extended the deadline to Nov. 11.  The children will be doing a special project with the t-shirts at school and the PTA will provide extras so that everyone can participate.  Are you curious?  Then come to the final assembly on Nov. 28th!

Pledge Form Reminder

New Teacher Pages Available on our Web Site

Some of your children's teachers now have pages available on our new website where you can find information on your child's schedule, homework, and more. Click the Staff link on our website to see if a page is available yet for your teacher.

If you would like to see your child's teacher page, you need to create a Parent/Guardian account on The Source. (Your child already has one, but you need to create a parent account so you can see all your children in the Seattle School District.)

Click here to view instructions on how to create a Parent/Guardian account on The Source: Viewing Teacher Pages

All-School Run-a-thon Kick-off Assembly: 

September 30/Friday/Gym/2:30/Parents Welcome!

Children will come home with their Pledge Packets.

Run-a-thon:

October 20/Thursday/Play-field/1:30 Parents Welcome! 

Come cheer our kids on! Music, treats and more!

Then collect those pledges! Our goal is 100% participation!

More information will arrive weekly about the Run-a-thon, but for now we need...

White T-shirts:

We need plain white T-shirts for each child to wear during the Run-a-thon. 

It would be great if parents could send in a shirt with their child to their classroom by October 6th.

Please place T-shirt in a zip-lock bag with your child's name and grade on it.
If families want to buy t-shirts together, there is a fabulous deal at Walmarts: 2 packets of 5 white shirts for $13 (10 T-shirts total).
Anyone who would like to donate more please feel free to do so! We would love to tell you more but it is a surprise!

A Few Good Men:

WANTED: Cheerleaders

PURPOSE: Cheer on our kids on at the McGilvra Run-a-thon

WHEN: October 20  

TIME: 1:30 - 3:00PM

GENDER: dad/male

REQUIREMENTS: Wildcat spirit, great sense of humor, adequate personal grooming and a very positive attitude!!!

CONTACT:

justineway@gmail.com

karen.cretekos@gmail.com

As many of you know we typically have our weekly school newsletter “The Messenger” up and running by the end of the first week of school. We hope to begin “The Messenger” next Wednesday, September 21^st.  In the mean time, I would like to give you some important updates and introduce our new staff members to our community.

Our first week of school has gone very well.  Our enrollment numbers are at 295 and we do not anticipate any reduction in our teaching staff as our enrollment numbers are a close match to our projections.  We now have three section of kindergarten and our 4/5 multi-age program is up and running.   Although our class sizes are higher than in the past, we are settling into the normal routines and our students seem to be happy to be back in school.

We have three new staff members to introduce.  As many of you know, Mr. Whittemore moved to a position in West Seattle closer to his home, which resulted in late opening within our Kindergarten program.  We are happy to have Ms. Linda Brownstein, a very experience Early Childhood Educator from California join our staff.    We also have a new Counselor, Ms. Lilia Goldsmith.  She will be at our school on Tuesdays and Thursdays and every other Monday.   She has been a long time Counselor in Seattle Public Schools and will be continuing the work that Mr. James began last year.  Our new Special Education Teacher is Ms. Drue Hawrylak.  She has many years of experience and comes to us from Broadview Thompson.  We are very happy to be able to welcome these new educators to our McGilvra staff!

We have BIG news regarding our McGilvra Website! The Website's new format that will be linked to the Seattle Public Schools website.  As you may have read in our new First-Day Packets, we have posted most of our forms, procedures, Parent Handbook, and school communication on the new website, and we are working to practice more “green friendly” procedures for school to home communication.  For example, we will email our weekly “Messenger” rather than print copies for all students/families.  If you do not have internet access we are, of course, happy to provide you with hardcopies of any communication or school documents.  Please let us know if this is your situation.  We hope you will spend some time exploring the new website and bookmark it for a quick reference.  Our Weekly “Messenger” will also be posted and calendar information will be continuously updated.  I would like to publicly thank Dana Armstrong for all of her help with the website and for her willingness to serve as our school/parent webmaster.  Thank you Dana!

We have had a great start to the year and we appreciate your participation in our opening day assembly, and for those of you that have already signed up for volunteer positions, THANK YOU!  We still have several positions to fill, so please think about how you might contribute. 

Sincerely,

Mary Lane, Principal

The Kindergarten Open House will take place on September 6th from 1:00 to 2:00pm.

Class Lists will be posted by 4:00pm on Friday, September 2.

First Day of School:  Wednesday, September 7, 2011

NOTE NEW START/END TIMES!
School Begins 8:55am / Dismissal at 3:00pm

Schedule for the First Day of School:

8:55 School Begins
9:15 First Day Welcome Assembly on the front steps (or gym if raining)
9:45 PTA Parent Reception in the Library
3:00 Dismissal

Lunch Times  for 2011/2012

Grade 2 and 3 11:25 -11:45
Grade 4 and 5 11:45 -12:05
Grade K and 1 12:05 -12:25

Meal Prices

School Lunch $2.75
Breakfast $1.75
Milk .50