Note From Principal Atkins

Families,

Happy Friday! As we get into the groove of this new year, we are finding our rhythm and stride. I am proud of our students working so hard while also being so helpful with all of the COVID precautions in place.

The federal government announced the availability of free tests and we encourage families to place your orders! We have more information on how to do so below.

As the weather gets colder, I want to remind families that we do NOT have supervision on our playground until 8:40am for our K-5 students. Please do not drop off students before that time (ECE students must always be signed in at their classroom). We do not let students in the building prior to 8:55am unless the temperature is below 27 degrees, so on chilly days you may not want to drop them off much earlier than bell time. Thank you for your help with this. If your child is in need of a winter coat or accessories, please contact Ali Larson (alison_larson@dpsk12.net).

We have two staffing changes to announce: Corey Hill, who has been our Discovery Link supervisor here at Stedman, has decided to leave Discovery Link which means we will be getting a new supervisor next week. We will share more in next week's newsletter about this transition, but we are looking forward to working with the new partner to continue to improve communication and support from Discovery Link.

It was with sadness this week that we had to inform our 5th Grade students about the departure of Mr. Pete Kuhn. He has decided to step back from teaching to allow him time to focus on himself and his family. We are thankful for his time at Stedman and very much looking forward to having Ms. Brooke Trexler step in to serve as the classroom teacher for the remainder of the year. We feel lucky to have such an experienced teacher here in the building who already knows all of the students to help with this transition.

As we continue to focus on our character trait of Optimism this month, I want share this quote from Nelson Mandela: "Part of being optimistic is keeping one's head pointed toward the sun, one's feet moving forward." And so onward we move!

Please continue to practice safety out and about, and be sure to alert our office of any exposures or positive test results so we can monitor students as needed. We appreciate each and every one of you!

Michael Atkins