Friday is here and our students were able to enjoy Spirit Week here at Woodlawn! Today was one of our favorite days as students were able to wear their PJ’s to school. Good times! To make it even better, it was Special Lunch from Urban BBQ. Again, just a few items this week.
Parking Lot Reminder
Woodlawn parents, this is your annual message from the principal of Woodlawn, telling you that we need to slow down in the parking lot before someone gets hurt. I have been getting a number of complaints about poor driving behavior in the parking lot. PLEASE HEAR ME... I HAVE TO KNOW THAT THE STUDENTS AND TEACHERS ARE SAFE IN THE PARKING LOT. Slow down, form one line and be safe. It is a parking lot, drive slower.
Visit the PTO Blog
Team/Club Pictures
Team and club pictures were today. Order forms were made available to the students but I cannot promise that your child picked one up. I kept a stack and have them available in the office in case you may want one.
Keeping Kids Safe (From BGPD)
As we know, many people contribute to keeping kids safe in our community.
If you or someone you know is interested in helping in that effort, be advised that the Village of Buffalo Grove Police Department will be hiring an additional substitute crossing guard.
Buffalo Grove Police Department Traffic Sergeant Michelle Kondrat invites interested individuals to contact her at [email protected] or call her at 847.808.2634.
Student Led Conferences
You can start signing up for student led conferences with the your child’s homeroom teacher beginning Wednesday, February 21st. Please call the Woodlawn main office to set up your conference time. 847-353-8500.
No School Monday
This Monday, February 19th is Presidents’ Day. I am not sure if you have any special Presidents’ Day traditions, but feel free to tell your student that cleaning their room was valued by U.S. Presidents' #1 & #16.
School Safety
The unthinkable happened...again. This time in Florida. Student safety continues to be our top concern in D96. Through my discussions with our School Resource Officer, Cliff Paul, we continue to analyze how our safety systems look and things that we can do in order to make our campus safer. I am excited to report that our drill a few weeks backs, Officer Paul talked about the great job our students did with the classroom discussion. I highly recommend that you talk to your child about the experience. Here is a little more about our safety systems:
We all are devastated by yet another school shooting this week. It is always our top priority to keep all kids not only physically but emotionally safe. A little over 6 years ago, District 96 invested in remodeling our school entryways to require a "double buzz in" system paired with cameras and an immediate background check system. At that time we also updated our perimeter door processes and procedures. District 96 has a crisis committee that includes administrators and representatives from the police department, first responders and the fire department, and other community agencies. This committee meets monthly and the district crisis plan is up to date and aligned with best practice recommendations. The most recent update has included new training for all staff and students and improvements to our drill processes. While we cannot share any more specifics related to our crisis plan, please know that we are diligent in its implementation and in our consultation with experts. Please keep all of those impacted by the recent tragedy in your thoughts.
From the Band & Orchestra Boosters:
Find the latest information from the District 96 Band & Orchestra Boosters in their BLOG.
From Our District Nurse
"Flu season is spreading within Lake County and KCSD 96. In the event your child is not feeling well, please notify the school office for absences including symptoms, if they have a fever, or if they are diagnosed with influenza from a medical provider. Please see the link below for more specific guidance on illness related absences."
http://www.kcsd96.org/student-services/health-guidlines
Finally, I am heading out to Arizona next week for a conference/awards ceremony. I mentioned a few weeks ago that Woodlawn was a finalist for a very prestigious award, and this coming Thursday, we will find out if we get it. For Woodlawn, being nominated is an amazing honor because of what this particular award ( DuFour Award) represents. As a district, we follow a system called the Professional Learning Community model. All of the greatest minds in education follow this model and talk about the benefits of being a PLC. As a principal, I have never been a part of any other system. In my first year as a principal, I was introduced to this system and fell in love with it. I was able to read about the theory of a PLC, work within our district systems and ultimately, develop our own systems within Woodlawn. As community members, what this all means to you is that your student is getting the highest level of focus and attention based on their needs and your teachers are collaborating at the highest level. Stay tuned next Friday to see if Woodlawn gets this outstanding award! I am struggling with the arrogance of writing an acceptance speech. I wonder if the actors and actresses at the Oscars go through this kind of mental torture. I prefer the Stanley Cup. Give me the award and let me run around the stage with it above my head. I digress. Stay tuned.