August, 2022

Dear Southwestern Families and Students,

It is with great excitement that we welcome everyone to the 2022-2023 school year! We hope everyone is enjoying a fun and relaxing summer. Our staff is preparing to welcome our students back to engage in meaningful learning experiences. We are all excited to have students back in our classrooms and hallways filling them with energy and enthusiasm. It is our goal to help every child feel welcomed, connected, and part of the Southwestern Family.

We recently completed another successful Summer Enrichment Program. Students engaged in meaningful learning experiences each day. Our Summer Enrichment Program had a theme for each week. These themes included friendship, kindness, mindfulness and feelings, and gratitude. We rewarded students for their hard work with a pool party and concluded Summer Enrichment with a field trip to Long Point State Park.  

We will do our best to keep open communication with our families. We are always available to answer questions or address concerns. We will work to ensure that our students have the tools necessary to be successful as we provide high quality teaching and learning. We will continue to send out a bi-monthly newsletter called the Trojan Tribune to keep everyone informed on what is happening in our school. The Trojan Tribune will be sent to your email. Keep your eyes open for our newsletters. If you are not receiving the Trojan Tribune and would like to, please let us know.  

Some curriculum changes we are making this school year include extending swimming to 2^nd grade as part of Physical Education. All 2^nd grade students will receive swimming one day in the 6-day rotation. The Physical Education teachers will be focusing on beginning swimming skills with our 2^nd graders. Students and staff will be focusing on celebrating and educating the diverse cultures within our school and community. We will be teaching students how other cultures celebrate holidays and working to create a culture of kindness and acceptance in our school community.

Changes to the School Day

This school year we are modifying the school day by 10 minutes. Please see the updated times below:

• 8:40 Doors open (please DO NOT drop students off prior to 8:40. We do not have adult supervision)
• 8:45 Breakfast-Any students eating breakfast can proceed to the cafeteria 
• 8:50 Morning Bell-Students will proceed to classrooms
• 9:05 Tardy Bell-Students should be in their classroom and ready when this bell rings
• 11:35 AM Pre-K Dismissal
• 12:50 PM Pre-K Arrival
• 3:15 Walker Bell-Dismissal for students being picked up by a caregiver
• 3:20 Bus Dismissal

New Staff
We are welcoming several new staff members to our building. Kaitlin Ring started this summer in her new role as Assistant Principal. Abbey Soffel will be starting as our English as a New Language Teacher, Madeline Lodestro will be joining us as a Reading Teacher, and Jennifer Flanders will be starting as a Teacher Aide. Maddy Alexander will also be working with our 5^th graders as a School Psychologist Intern. We are excited to welcome all of them to Southwestern Schools and our community.  

Visitors

We ask that any time you are coming to the school you let the office staff know ahead of time. No visitors will be allowed in the building without an appointment. Students can be signed in and out of school on the sign-out sheet located outside the main office.

Start of the School Year

The first day of school is Tuesday September 6^th. Students can be dropped off beginning at 8:40. Students will be allowed to wait in the main entrance at that time. No visitors will be allowed in the building at any time. Any students that are being picked up by an adult will be dismissed at 3:15. Students that are riding the bus are dismissed at 3:20.

Open House for Pre-K and Kindergarten students will be held on Thursday September 1^st from 6:00-7:00. Any students that are signed up for transportation will have the opportunity to ride the bus with their family. Open house for students in grades 1-5 will be held on Thursday September 15^th from 6:00-7:30.

Transportation 

Anyone that will be riding a school bus at any point during the school year must register for transportation. This can be done on the district website or using the survey that was sent out via Remind on July 18^th. Please be at your bus stop 10 minutes early for the first few days. After the first week, the bus route will settle into a routine and a regular time will be established. If you need to change your child’s regular transportation, please send a note with your child in the morning or call as soon as possible. Transportation modifications requested after 2:00 p.m. cannot be accommodated. If you choose to transport your child, please review the drop-off and pick-up procedures. 

Our school will be stronger with the support of its community. We invite you to take advantage of the opportunities to support our students’ learning and experiences. We look forward to meeting you and working with you this academic year.

Please contact our office if you have any questions or need additional information.

Warmest regards,

Matt Langworthy                                                      Kaitlin Ring    

Elementary School Principal                                   Elementary Assistant Principal