SUN PRAIRIE COMMUNITY SCHOOLS
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Want to support SPCS? Check out the SPCS Gear Store - click here!
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Jamie Racine, Program Coordinator for Sun Prairie Community Schools modeling the new gear! |
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We have so many things to be thankful for this November.
- Our Westside Mobile Food Pantry occurs each Tuesday at 4 pm and will continue through December 22. Please feel free to come to pick up food for you and your family. You are also welcome to pick up food for neighbors or family members who may not be able to get here. Thanks to Second Harvest Food Bank, the YMCA, Neighborhood Navigators, and the many community volunteers who help with this event each and every week.
- A huge shout out to Sunshine Place, who packed and delivered Kindness bags to each elementary community school. The bags were donated by the Bank of SP and include lots of healthy and nutritious snacks that students can enjoy over our holiday break in December. Our thanks to all!
- Thank you Project Toasty Toes for the donations of warm winter boots, snow pants, and coats which will be used to keep our students warm, especially those that walk to and from school. This project was led by Paige Alexander, a SPHS senior and her mom who promoted and collected all of the items! Thanks to all who donated!
- Our partner, Door Creek Church, held a Diaper Drive this month for our community schools. Each community school received a supply of diapers and wipes to have on hand for families. Thank you Door Creek Church members for donating!
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We are excited to welcome Shenika Moss, CHB’s new Community School Site Coordinator! Please see her welcome note below!
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Hello, my name is Shenika Moss,
I am the new Community School Site Coordinator for CH Bird Elementary School. Here's a little bit about myself. I am a mother of 4. Shawn (25), R'Reona (19), and Treasure and Dream (twins). Treasure passed away from a liver transplant at 22 months. Dream is now 14. She was diagnosed with ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) at the age of 7. To dominate the statistics, I told her, her ADHD means All Dreams Have a Destiny! I would not let that label define her life. I taught her to be fabulous at everything she does. At the age of 10 Dream was diagnosed with scoliosis. A year later she had a spinal fusion. So, I joined a few organizations to expand my knowledge about children's learning and physical disabilities. The Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health opened the doors for me to grow as a parent advocate by being a Lived Experience Partner and I became the Co-Chair for the S.A.F.E. (Service Access Family Engagement) Committee. I also became a coalition member at Mental Health of America, a Parent Leader at The Parent Network, an Advisory Board Member for the Next Step Clinic for children with autism, and also an attendee of CPTI (Community Pediatric Training Institute) under the direction of Dr. Earnstine Willis of the Medical College of Wisconsin. All of my accomplishments are to help families.
There are no warning signs when life takes a shift and we all need support at some time. I am a nurturer by nature and a jack of all trades. I also have my own businesses called "Kandle Freak LLC" which I make gift baskets for any occasions and of course soy wax/massage candles, essential oils, and healthful bars (soap) and "We Made That LLC" which I make T-shirts and I'm learning more of my talents with my Cricut machines. I am very grateful for this life-changing opportunity with a community that is growing and thriving. Thank you all for welcoming me.
Remember: All Dreams Have a Destiny! Including Yours!
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Update
We at Northside held our site leadership meeting on November 13th. It is always a pleasure to join forces with such like-minded individuals. Wonderful ideas for the upcoming holiday season were formed. We are working on bringing 2021 in with several acts of kindness. Northside works to ensure families and their students feel the love from us not just during the holiday season but throughout the year as well.
Stories
Many wonderful staff at Northside donated funds to help feed a family during the Thanksgiving holiday season. It was so wonderful to see so many reach into their own pockets for the good of someone else. Each teacher was given a personal thank you card from the Site Coordinator Ms. Tenisha Win to ensure they knew just how much their donation meant.
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Our community partners at The United Methodist Church made homemade shawls. Each shawl was either knitted or crocheted by the wonderful women of their congregation. The shawls came in an array of beautiful colors and truly brought joy to those who requested one.
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Northside Community Schools partnered with the City of Sun Prairie Parks and Rec Department for our 1st Annual Trunk or Treat celebration. Ms. Tenisha Winn was proud to be Northside’s mascot Nellie for this event. Alongside Ms. Winn were the wonderful Jamie Racine and her daughter Mattie who both dressed as mermaids. Many families turned out for this event. It was an absolute pleasure! Northside won 2nd place for the best-decorated trunk. Life is better under the sea. |
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Our 1st annual trunk or treat event!!! “Life is better under the sea”. Site coordinator Tenisha Winn as Nellie….mascot for Northside. WE WON!!!!!!!!! 2nd place is the best place!! |
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Northside partnered with Black Student Unions of Sun Prairie, Neighborhood Navigators, Why Not Us, and American Family Insurance, to distribute Thanksgiving meals to 87 families this holiday season. It was truly an honor to work with an amazing group of people to partner for such an amazing cause. |
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Update
Patrick Marsh Community School continues to build partnerships with community businesses and organizations. We would like to welcome Joy Matthews to Patrick Marsh’s Site Leadership Team. Joy is Vice President Total Rewards at QBE and also sits on the Board of Boys and Girls Club of Dane County.
In addition, we continue to work diligently to transition our clubs into a virtual format. Last month we transitioned our Art club, in partnership with Prairie Music and Arts (PMA) into a synchronous virtual format. In December, we will transition our Step dance club, in Partnership with Life Church of Dane County, into a synchronous virtual format, with our Drama club, also in partnership with PMA, to follow in January.
Story
Saturday, November 21 was the Community Cares Event and we helped to deliver 87 pre-Thanksgiving meals along with essential items and gift baskets to families throughout the Sun Prairie Community. Thank you to The Sun Prairie Black Student Unions (SPHS, CHUMS,
and PMMS), Why Not Us, Neighborhood Navigators, and American Family Insurance for continuing to support our families and communities. It is truly a blessing to be able to come together and serve our community.
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Filling gift baskets with essential items and goodies for families for the Community Cares Event. |
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Sorting pre-Thanksgiving meals to deliver to the families for the Community Cares Event. |
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PRAIRIE PHOENIX ACADEMY UPDATE |
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Update
Community Schools at PPA is busy, both in and out of the school day. There is out-of-school programming running Mondays -Thursdays, with the YMCA and Oddly Arranged Media running workshops for students. The YMCA is holding healthy living and active lifestyle classes for PPA scholars, while Richard Jones of Oddly Arranged Media is focusing on academic enrichment outside of the school day, with music and media workshops that appeal to our students’ creative sides. During the school day, PPA’s teachers continue to weave Community Schools’ objectives through daily workshop curriculum and activities.
Story
Over the past few weeks, I had the opportunity to work with PPA instructors Mary Hillebrand and Terri Simpson in their academic workshop, “Refining Your Voice: Writing for Your Future.” In this workshop, students examine varying styles of writing and how professionals use writing in their day-to-day lives. I had a chance to speak to students about what I do--how to reach out to a partner, the process of working together to develop programs for students, and how writing plays a role in that. We talked specifically about tone and style in professional emails, and students practiced professional writing by crafting emails that they then shared with me. Building these connections and relationships with students allows for future work with Community Schools, including partnering around securing employment and internships in the Sun Prairie Community.
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Drive-Thru Boo Event
Our Trick or Treating in the neighborhoods and our Drive-Thru Boo events on Friday, October 30 were both huge successes! Huge shout out to our partners, the YMCA, and Neighborhood Navigators for helping to plan and coordinate these events.
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Update
Our Kids Achieve Together after-school program kicked off at the beginning of October. We started with limited in-person programming and many virtual programming options that are being offered such as Drama Club with our partner, Prairie Music and Arts, virtual field trip club, STEAM club, SoFit activities with our partner, Special Olympics of Wisconsin, cooking classes, a garden club in addition to virtual math and reading tutoring sessions. We have been excited to bring the new world of virtual learning to our after-school programming with our Wildcats using the same platform they use during the school day for distance learning, Seesaw. Our Kids Achieve Together program actually has its own page where activities are posted for our scholars to do at home.
Below is a screenshot of what our virtual Kids Achieve Together classroom looks like with a couple of activities including this week’s What Are You Thankful For and Matching Sums Scavenger Hunt activities:
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Stories
- Our We Are One Family project continues to help meet the needs of Westside families in our community. We have performed over 320 acts of kindness thus far since mid-March. Examples of our acts of kindness include:
- Help to meet basic needs (assistance with food, clothing, furniture, cleaning supplies masks, baby supplies, and transportation)
- Help families navigate community resources (assistance with rent, utilities)
- Help with stress management in the form of gift cards for shopping or restaurants and games/crafts
- Help families become familiar with the new world of distance learning
- Leverage our community partnerships with the YMCA, Second Harvest FoodBank, Neighborhood Navigators, Sunshine Place, and many others to help meet these needs. From this grew two new programs which continue to this day: Fill The Van event with Door Creek Church, which stocks our school pantry, and our Westside Pop Up Mobile Food Pantry, mentioned above.
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Drive-Thru Boo Event
Our Trick or Treating in the neighborhoods and our Drive-Thru Boo events on Friday, October 30 were both huge successes! Huge shout out to our partners, the YMCA, and Neighborhood Navigators for helping to plan and coordinate these events. Bonus in that Mrs. Darga loved being a Phabulous Pharoah for the events!
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- Donations of non-perishable food items, paper goods, and toiletries at any one of our Sun Prairie Community Schools for their school food pantry
- Donations of school supplies, like markers and pencil cases, and reusable water bottles at Westside Elementary
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- Westside Site Leadership Team meeting was held Tuesday, November 10 at 5:15 pm. Patrick Marsh Site Leadership Team meeting was held Tuesday, November 17 at 3:00 pm. Northside held our site leadership meeting on November 13th. This team helps shape our community schools’ programming for the school year. We will be taking a break during the holiday and will meet again on January 12 at 5:15 pm (WS) and January 19 at 3:00 pm (PM).
- Mrs. Darga continues to be at The Element lunch site each day from noon - 12:30 pm. It’s a chance for her to see our Wildcats and connect with our families. Families also appreciate the food, toiletries, and cleaning supplies she brings along each day. Feel free to join us any time and stop by and say HI!
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This month we will partner with Life Church of Dane County to host the first annual Sun Prairie Scavenger Hunt. The scavenger hunt will take place on November 28, 2020. If your family is interested in some socially distant outdoor family fun, register HERE today.
- Join us virtually for a three-week financial fitness workshop series led by our partner, the Bank of Sun Prairie, where we will cover topics such as: how to reduce your debt, creating a budget, and more. The Series will be held on December 3, 10, and 17 from 4 - 5 pm. Please direct any questions to Stacy Darga, our Westside Elementary Site Coordinator at 608-834-7546 or sadarga@sunprairieschools.org. Hope you can join us and become more financially fit!
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On December 11, 2020, at 1:30 QBE in partnership with Colorcoded WI will host a virtual field trip to QBE for middle, high, and college-age students to explore internships, careers in coding, and computer technology. Click Here to register your student today
- Our Site Coordinators continue to be at the three lunch sites in our community as their schedules allow. In addition to bringing along food and toiletries for families, they are also giving out warm hats, mittens and gloves, and coats to families and community members who may need them.
- Holiday Shopping Event on Wednesday, December 16 from 4 - 7 pm for CH Bird and Westside families with our partner, Door Creek Church. Door Creek Church members are once again donating gifts that can be used as parents/guardians can then “shop” for their children. So that all safety protocols are practiced, there are a limited number of time slots for families to pre-register for the event.
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CONTACT US
Jamie Racine
Program Coordinator
608.834.6534
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Shenika Moss
Site Coordinator
C.H. Bird Elementary
608.834.7320
Tenisha Winn
Site Coordinator
Northside Elementary
608.834.7160
Lisa Goldsberry
Site Coordinator
Patrick Marsh Middle School
608.834.7661
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Bobby Finn
Site Coordinator
Prairie Phoenix Academy
608.834.6920
Stacy Darga
Site Coordinator
Westside Elementary
608.834.7546
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