Saturday, December 20, 2008

With the weather forecast for the upcoming week, I have doubts that the kids will be back in school before January 5th.

Please continue to watch the news and www.schoolreport.org for updates.

For those of you with sweat orders that were not picked up. They will be in the office when we return.

Wishing all of you the happiest of holidays.

Julie Rooney
PTSA Class Liaison 2011
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Mark your calendars-upcoming 2009 dates:
First Semester Finals Schedule
Parent Information Nights
BSF News

2008-09 FIRST SEMESTER FINALS SCHEDULE 1/28-1/30

PERIODS
DAY
DATE
TIME
Tutorial
Wednesday
January 28
7:30 – 8:10
2
Wednesday
January 28
8:15 – 10:15
Break
Wednesday
January 28
10:15 – 10:25
6
Wednesday
January 28
10:30 – 12:30

1
Thursday
January 29
7:30 – 9:30
Break
Thursday
January 29
9:30 – 9:35
3
Thursday
January 29
9:40 – 11:40
LUNCH
Thursday
January 29
11:40 – 12:25
5a & 5b
Thursday
January 29
12:30 – 2:30
Tutorial
Thursday
January 29
2:30 – 3:00

4
Friday
January 30
7:30-9:30
Break
Friday
January 30
9:30-9:35
7
Friday
January 30
9:40-11:40
LUNCH
Friday
January 30
11:40-12:25
0 and make-ups
Friday
January 30
12:30-2:30
Tutorial
Friday
January 30
2:30-3:00

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Parent Information Nights 09-10 school year:
11th grade parent night for next year's Juniors (that's us) will be at Newport on February 12th at 7:00 p.m. Counselors will present by grade-level information for parents about registration for the 09-10 school year.

8th grade parent night for incoming 9th graders will be at Newport on February 5th at 7:00 p.m. in the theater. Please pass this on to anyone that has an incoming 9th grader from Tyee, Tillicum or private schools that live within our school boundary.

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Bellevue Schools Foundation News:

Looking for a meaningful way to honor a teacher this holiday season?

Thank your favorite teacher with a gift to Bellevue Schools Foundation in their honor. We'll send your teacher a holiday card notifying them of your support and appreciation. Meanwhile, your gift will join with others to support great teaching across the District!

It's quick, it's green, and it helps Bellevue students while thanking excellent teachers!

Honor your teacher with a gift to BSF
Click here to give

Simply click here to make a secure online donation on behalf of a teacher - and honor your favorite teacher while making a difference in Bellevue schools.

Teachers Matter: Why BSF Funds National Board Certification

Congratulations to the 79 Bellevue teachers who just achieved National Board Certification (NBC), a rigorous benchmark of teaching excellence! See the list of newly-certified teachers here.

Why does National Board Certification matter? Studies show that NBC teachers are more effective and their students learn more. Read about National Board Certification in Bellevue here.

With 5 years of funding from BSF, Bellevue now has 208 Board-certified teachers, more than any other district in Washington State! With extra support and mentoring funded by BSF and the district, Bellevue teachers achieve certification at a rate over twice the national average.

BSF is proud to continue supporting Bellevue teachers with a $190,000 grant to provide mentors and cover fees for 77 more teachers pursuing National Board Certification this year.

Thank you for supporting Bellevue students!

Bellevue Schools Foundation raises funds to promote and help fund the best possible learning opportunities for all students in the Bellevue School District.

Learn more about the programs BSF is funding this year at www.bsfdn.org. Sign up to receive BSF updates here!

A message from Bethany Spinler, Newport Principal,

Every year when the holidays approach, we see grateful and thoughtful parents and community members want to find ways to express their appreciation to our teachers and other employees for their work by giving gifts to the individuals they know. Gifts that are of a nominal value or which are a token remembrance or appreciation are fine, but the acceptance of gifts of significant value or monetary benefit is not allowed. Often parents, especially if their work experience has been in the private sector, are not aware that gifts to publicly-paid employees are not permitted or appropriate.

For our employees, gifts that are beyond a nominal value raise serious questions about equity between and among schools/programs, about why some employees in some roles get gifts and others do not, about a violation of board policy that disallows gifts, and about the propriety of substantial gifts being given for public service. Therefore, the giving of expensive gifts to individuals must be strongly discouraged. When the value of a gift to a person gets beyond $25.00 it is can well be considered to be more than a token gift or expression of appreciation – but even gifts of that size are not to be encouraged.

If parents or others wish to provide more than a token of gratitude to an individual employee, they can make donations to a specific classroom (but not something that could be considered the teacher's personal property), they can donate to a school or program, they can make a contribution to the Bellevue Schools Foundation, the PTSA, or other charity in recognition of an employee's work, and/or they can do something for the entire school's or program's benefit. Sometimes vendors will want to give a school, office, or program a box of candy or fruit that can be jointly shared with everyone, and that is acceptable (assuming not something unusually expensive) and so long as no particular individual is singled out as the sole recipient or benefit.