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MAIZE unified school district 266
CONNECTING.
LEARNING.
LEADING.


FEBRUARY 2019
Maize South Elementary

3404 N Maize Rd.
Wichita, KS 67205
(316) 462-8300
A NOTE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Parents,

Earlier this year Dr. Higgins sent out a message about the changes in our emergency drills. Kansas law changed this year and schools must now conduct almost monthly crisis drills. This past week we saw the benefit of these practices at MSES.

One of our students choked on his chicken nugget in the lunchroom last Thursday. This was a very serious emergency as staff worked for over two minutes to dislodge the food from his airway. The food was stuck and didn’t want to come out. The student couldn’t breathe. Thankfully, we were eventually able to work the food out and the student is now absolutely fine.

What amazed me, in this situation, was the reaction from the rest of our students. I took the microphone and addressed our students in the cafeteria. They were told there was a critical situation occurring and I needed everyone to stay calm, listen, and follow my directions. Our students were amazing! They got quiet and silently left the cafeteria.

No one enjoys a crisis, but I am so thankful for our drills. Staying calm, staying quiet, and looking to an adult for additional instructions is what we teach our students. And, when we needed this to happen our students rose to the occasion.

Student safety continues to be at the forefront of all we do in education. Thank you for all your support in this endeavor.

Meg Thimmesch
MSES Principal NOTE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
VISITORS / VOLUNTEERS
Visitors please be prepared to show photo ID
A reminder that all visitors who wish to enter the school during school hours must present a government issued photo ID, such as a driver's license on their first visit. This includes parents, guardians and grandparents. Please allow for extra time to either run the driver's license or to look up their information if already in our system. Thank you for allowing us to keep our students and staff safe.
VALENTINE PARTIES

Come join your child for fun at our Valentine Parties
on Thursday, February 14.



All day kindergarten through 5th grade parties will celebrate from 2:45-3:30pm. Parents will not be permitted to go to the classroom until 2:30pm
    
Dear Parents: I am going to ask for your support during our Valentine's Day parties. We have three big celebrations at the elementary schools. We have fall parties, Valentine's Day parties, and spring parties. We like this to be a time we focus on enjoying our elementary aged students. Sometimes middle school and high school aged students use these days to visit previous teachers. Unfortunately, there are times these students are not supervised by an adult which can lead to unwanted behaviors. In order to focus our efforts on our current students we are asking middle and high school students to not visit during our parties. Only students supervised by their parent will be allowed access to our building. Thank you for understanding and have a wonderful month.  

Meg Thimmesch, MSE Principal

THIRD GRADE MUSIC PROGRAM - IT'S SATURDAY!
YOU ARE INVITED TO MAIZE SOUTH ELEMENTARY’S
3 rd GRADE VOCAL MUSIC CONCERT

It’s Saturday!

Thursday, February 28 th ,
7:45 p.m.
Maize High School

Please note that each child should arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the performance. The children will meet in the Maize High vocal music room to warm-up. The concert will be held in the Maize High School Auditorium.

We are looking forward to sharing with you!
INCLEMENT WEATHER SNOW DAY NOTIFICATIONS
In the event of school being dismissed or canceled because of inclement weather, the district will send out an e-mail, phone notification, and -- for those who have opted to receive them -- a text message to the primary contact associated with both Family 1 and Family 2, if applicable, for each student. Those phone notifications will go out as early as 5:30 a.m. on the day of the closure. If a decision is made the night before to call off school, calls and texts will go out no later than 10:30 p.m.

It is wise to verify that we have your correct contact information on file. To do so, please log on to  Skyward Family Access    and click on "Student Info." If you are unsure how to log on to Skyward Family Access, please contact your child's school for assistance.

District officials will update the  district's web site  , official Twitter account (@maize266), and official Facebook page as soon as the decision is made to call off school. We also will contact local media outlets about any closures. When in doubt, we encourage parents to verify school closings by consulting multiple official sources.

Similarly, in the event of an emergency in your child's school, the district will use the Blackboard Connect parent notification system to notify you of the situation and alert you to steps you need to take in order to reunite with your child. Communications would go to all contacts listed in Skyward Family Access "Family 1" and the main contact in "Family 2."
LUNCH MONEY
USD 266 uses the Skyward Food Service and RevTrak fee payment systems. Please check your email and phone numbers in Skyward, so you may be alerted when their child has a balance of $7.00 or less. Parents receive an email when your child has $7.00 left in their account. Parents receive a second email after their child has one lunch left. When no money is left on the account, your child will go to the office and call his/her parents. Please put money into the account that day. Parents will also receive a third email when their child has a zero balance.

Please check with your child if he/she is eating breakfast at school or getting a second milk, the charges add up quickly. If you have more than one child, please check both lunch accounts. We are not allowed to go into one child's account to pay for a sibling.

Parents may keep as large a balance as they wish in a child's account (for example: $5.00, $10.00, $15.00 or more). If the student doesn't have enough in his/her lunch account to cover a meal, the account will be charged for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and milk if the student chooses to take one. No meal charges will be allowed.

If you have any questions regarding Skyward and the RevTrak system, please call our school office. We want every child to have a good lunch, every day!
ALERTS & NOTIFICATIONS USED IN
THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY
In the event of an emergency in your child's school, the Blackboard Connect parent notification system will be used to notify you of the situation and will alert you to steps you need to take in order to reunite with your child. Voice messages will be sent to all phone numbers and email listed in Skyward Family Access "Family 1" and Guardian 1 of "Family 2". To view the contact information the district has on file, please log on to Skyward Family Access and click on "Student Information." If you are unsure how to log on to Skyward Family Access, please contact our school for assistance.

YEARBOOK
I f you did not purchase a Yearbook during enrollment, you may do so before
Friday, February 22 nd .

You may purchase a yearbook by sending $20.00 cash/check (payable to MSE), to the office.

This is your last chance to order a Yearbook.

NOTE: No extra Yearbooks will be purchased to buy after the deadline.
NEWS FROM PTO
Hello MSE Families!

In April PTO will have Family Bingo Night! At Bingo night we will have a raffle as our spring fundraiser. We are looking for items to be donated to raffle off that evening. If you would be willing to donate something or contact a business or organization about a donation please let us know. In your email please include your name, the company/organization you are contacting, and what item will be donated if you know.

We will be making more detailed plans for Bingo Night and the Raffle at our next meeting February 21 at 6:00pm in the cafeteria at MSE. If you are unable to attend but have ideas for us to consider please email them to us.

Our email address is  mseslighthousepto@gmail.com
We hope to see everyone at the PTO meeting and at Bingo Night!

Thank you!
Jaynann Donker
2018-2019 PTO President
IMPORTANT DATES AND INFORMATION
Reminder Button image
  • Deliveries: MSES can NOT accept deliveries of flowers, balloons, candy, cookies, etc. This is per USD 266 District Policy. We appreciate your cooperation.
  • Party Invitations: Party invitations CANNOT be distributed at school. We ask that you mail invitations for personal events or parties directly to the home of the student(s) you are inviting. 
  • Student Directory: Parents and guardians may opt to include your address, primary phone number, email addresses, student's school and student's grade level in the Skyward Family Access Student Directory so that other families with login rights to Family Access can view your contact information.
  • Cell Phones: Please  remember  the use of cell phones by students  while at  school is not allowed.
  • Homework: When your child is absent from school and you wish to pick up homework you must request it before 10:00am. All assignments and necessary textbooks will be available in the office after 2:00pm. Thank you.   




February 14
K-5 Valentine Parties, 
2:45-3:30pm

Count Your Kid In Preschool Screening Clinic, 316-794-8641

February 15
NO SCHOOL, K-12, Professional Development Day

February 19
SITE Council Meeting, 6:00pm

February 21
PTO Meeting, MSE Cafeteria, 6:00pm

February 22
Deadline to order Yearbook

February 28
3rd Grade Music Program, MHS Auditorium, 7:45pm
March 7
Chick-fil-A Spirit Night, 4:00-8:00pm

March 8
End of Term

March 11-15
NO SCHOOL, K-12, 
Spring Break

March 28
Kindergarten Enrollment, MHS Commons,
5:00-7:30pm
April 1
1st Grade Music Program, MHS Auditorium, 7:15pm

April 16
4th Grade Music Program, MSHS Auditorium, 6:30pm

5th Grade Music Program, MSHS Auditorium, 7:30pm

April 17
Parent/Teacher Conferences, K-12,
4:00-8:00pm

April 18
NO SCHOOL, K-12, Parent/Teacher Conferences,
12:00-8:00pm

April 19
NO SCHOOL, K-12, Conference Comp Day

PICKING YOUR CHILD UP AFTER SCHOOL
MSE Traffic Flow Map
SAFETY FIRST:
  • Stop for pedestrians
  • Drive slowly
  • Refrain from using electronic devices
  • Do not park in handicap parking unless you have an issued permit
  • Please do not park in our reserved itinerant teacher parking
  • Please keep the no parking area open when there is no movement in line.
A concern has been brought to our attention regarding parent pick-up. Some drivers are leaving spaces in the line while waiting for dismissal. Other drivers are then filling the open spaces in front of cars already in line. Please be sure to pull up and fill gaps between cars when in the pick-up lane. The only area which should be left open while waiting for dismissal is the drive to the east of our building. Leaving this area open allows staff who park on the east side a way to exit. Once movement in the line begins cars may pull up into the intersection. We would like to also remind everyone that children should load and unload only in front of the sidewalk. Thank you for helping us create a safe orderly dismissal for all by following these procedures. .
BUS DRIVERS NEEDED
Three reasons to take the wheel with
Maize USD 266

We are hiring school bus drivers! 
Apply at www.usd266.com


1. BONUSES
In addition to competitive pay, our drivers receive a monthly $50.00 bonus for perfect attendance.

2. FLEXIBLE SCHEDULE
Our typical bus driver schedule is 6:00-9:00am and 2:00-5:00pm on school days, convenient for small business owners, college students and those who want to be off when Maize USD 266 students are off. No evenings, weekends or holidays.
Fall Break, Winter Break and Spring Break off.

3. BENEFITS
Retirement earnings through KPERS (Kansas Public Employees Retirement System), nine paid sick days a year and $250.00 each month paid toward your health insurance. . .
PICKING UP & DROPPING OFF STUDENTS
School begins at 8:30am and we dismiss at 3:40pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Students should arrive at school at 8:20am and should be picked up at 3:40pm.  

Every Wednesday school will dismiss at 3:05pm and students must be picked up at that time.  

We do not provide supervision for students before 8:10am or after 3:40pm. On Wednesdays, we do not provide supervision for students after 3:05pm.
 
We want all of our students, staff and family to be safe at all times at Maize South Elementary. If you are picking up or dropping off your child at MSE, please follow these guidelines.

  • Please enter from the southeast entrance of the parking lot, follow the arrows around the new parking lot, and exit from the southwest.
  • Please pull up to the farthest possible drop off or pick up point.
  • Students should exit and enter from the passenger side of the car directly to the sidewalk.
  • Students should be ready to exit the vehicle quickly.
  • Stop for pedestrians in the crosswalk.
  • Please do not block the crosswalk with your vehicle or step out of your car in the parent pick-up lane.
  • There should only be one lane of traffic in the loading zone.
  • When waiting to pick up, if vehicles in front of you have left, please carefully move your vehicle up in the line to allow more vehicles to get in the line.
  • Adults must walk all students through the parking lot and across the school crossing for safety reasons.
  • Parent may park and come up to the school building to collect their child at dismissal. Please do not enter the building. Use the sidewalk in front of the cafeteria and you may collect your child from the east cafeteria doors. 
  • Keep your child with you in the crosswalk and all the way to your vehicle. Students must be escorted by you when using the crosswalk. Students will not be allowed to use the crosswalk by themselves.
  • Students must walk their bikes on the sidewalk in front of the school.
  • Please remember to drive slow and watch for children who might be using the crosswalk. We do have students who walk or ride their bicycles to school.
  • Please refrain from using electronic devices when dropping off or picking up to ensure all attention is on the safety of the students.

Students are asked to walk on the sidewalk closest to the grass.  Please remind your child to walk at all times during drop off or dismissal.
ADDITIONAL STUDENT TRANSPORTATION INFORMATION

Notification by parent:

Please send a note signed by the parent or guardian if there will be a change in plans on how your child will be getting home after school. Your child will be expected to ride the bus if that is the normal way of transportation without a signed note. This is the PREFERRED method of communication.

If you are unable or forgot to send a note and you wish to pick up your child, you may email the teacher  before 12:00pm . Please copy the secretaries to help ensure your child will receive the message. Teachers have been instructed to reply to your email. If you don't receive a response, the teacher likely did not receive the message in time.


In the case of an emergency and you were unable to send a note or email the classroom teacher, you may call the office  before 2:30pm (2:00pm on Wednesdays).  Please consider this method a last resort. If the office is NOT notified before the 2:30pm (2:00pm on Wednesdays) deadline, your child will be expected to follow normal procedures and ride their bus.
 
Your cooperation is greatly appreciated. . .
ATTENDANCE AND TARDY INFORMATION
Unexcused Absences:  
If a child is absent from school, parents are to notify the office. If the office is not notified, the school will call the home to verify the reason for the absence. If there is not an answer or response as to why the student is absent, the absence will be marked unexcused. Three consecutive unexcused absences from school or five or more unexcused absences in a semester will be brought to the attention of the building principal and the State Department of DCF. The principal or the designated representative has the discretion to determine if an absence is excused or unexcused. An attendance letter, regardless of excused or unexcused absences, will be sent to parents after eight accumulated absences. Subsequent letters will be sent if Absenteeism continues to be a concern

Tardies/Half Day Attendance:  
Students not in their assigned classrooms at the set beginning school time will be counted as tardy if they report to class without a school-related excuse. Students with three consecutive or five total tardies in a single grading period will be brought to the attention of the building principal. A student will be considered tardy up and until an hour after school begins. After that time, a student will be considered absent ½ or one full day. Teachers will take attendance when class begins and again after their assigned lunch periods. If a student leaves an hour before school is out, the student will be considered absent for a ½ day in the afternoon. Students not present for one of these periods will be counted ½ day absent in the morning or afternoon. 
EARLY RELEASE EVERY WEDNESDAY
MSE students will be dismissed at 3:05 p.m. every Wednesday in order for teachers to have time to meet in their Professional Learning Communities (PLC's). During PLC time, teachers participate in discussing curriculum, instructional strategies, data review, state standards and more.
 
Students will be transported home as soon as school is dismissed at 3:05pm. Please plan accordingly for supervision of students who will arrive home earlier on Wednesdays.    
DRESS CODE
The parent and student are responsible for ensuring that the student is in compliance with all aspects of the policy during the time the student is at school or participating in school-related activities. Failure by the student to correct dress code violations may result in disciplinary action. Building administrators are the final authority as to whether clothing is or is not in compliance with dress code policy.
 
The guidelines for appropriate attire are:
  • Pants, capris, shorts and skirts must be worn properly and not sag.
  • Shirts should be modest and appropriate for school. Straps must cover undergarments and midriff. No halter tops are allowed.
  • Shoes must be worn at all times.
  • Hats are not to be worn except on special days as approved by the administration.
Any item that advocates or advertises tobacco, alcoholic beverages, drugs, illegal substances, violence, racist organizations/symbols, gangs, obscenities, or nudity are not allowed.
USD 266 MEDICATION POLICY -
GIVING YOUR CHILD MEDICATION AT SCHOOL
  • Complete a request for Administration of Medication form.
  • The medication must be in the original container.
  • The medication must be current. Expired medication will not be administered.
  • The medication must be age appropriate. Any medication for a person older than the child will require a signed form from the doctor.
  • All prescription medications require a signed form from the doctor.  
  • All prescription medications must have the pharmacy label with the student's name on the bottle box.
  • Students may not self administer medications in the elementary schools.
WATCH D.O.G.S.

Please sign up for Watch D.O.G.S.! 

Dads can now sign-up for a total of TWO days.  

Here's how it works in 3 easy steps: 




1. Click this link to go to our invitation page on SignUp.com: http://signup.com/login/entry/146981652604256021 

2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on SignUp.com) 

3. Sign up! Choose your spots - SignUp.com will send you an automated confirmation and reminders. 

Please remember to complete a volunteer background check on our school website at least a week before volunteering. Also please remember that we are unable to debit your child's lunch account for your lunch. You are welcome to bring cash or bring  a lunch from home.

We are looking forward to seeing you!. .
VOLUNTEER BACKGROUND CHECK
Maize USD 266 is extremely thankful for the many volunteers who selflessly give of their time in our classrooms. Our schools are stronger thanks to the help and support of our community members, and our students benefit from this relationship.

Safety is a top priority for the district, which since 2008 has conducted background checks of potential volunteers.  According to Maize Board of Education policy, "volunteers who work in a classroom on a regular basis, supervise students during a field trip when a staff member is not present, or work with students away from the supervision of a classroom teacher are required to have a background check."  This extra step helps ensure that we are keeping our students safe.

Those interested in becoming elementary school volunteers can visit their school page on our district website  and click on the "Volunteer Background Screening" link in the left rail to  begin their background check process through the National Screening Bureau. After providing some information, would-be volunteers will be prompted to pay $22 by credit or debit card on a secure system and will receive a receipt via email. (The National Screening Bureau uses a secure server and cutting-edge screening technology in order to protect privacy.)
 
Thanks to all parents and volunteers for continued support of our students and district!

Background checks are conducted on an ANNUAL BASIS. If you have any questions about the background check process, contact Meg Thimmesch at 316-462-8300.  

CHARACTER ED
February - Honesty
Speaking the truth...
keeping your promises...
being trustworthy and reliable...
being sincere in both actions and words...
doing what you know is right.
MSE MISSION STATEMENT
M aking a Difference
S triving for Excellence
E mpowering Young Minds
Meg Thimmesch_MSE Principal
Principal
Meg Thimmesch
mthimmesch@usd266.com
Carrie Thrash_MSE Assistant Principal
Assistant Principal
Carrie Thrash
cthrash@usd266.com
ONEMA1ZE  #OneMa1ze