A Knight's Tale | May Newsletter
Dear North Side Community School Friends,

It is bittersweet that this is my last week serving as the Executive Director for North Side Community School. I want to send a very special "thank you" to the North Side community for all of its support over the past 13 years. Our staff is very excited to welcome Dr. Doug Thaman into this role, and we are confident that he will continue the vision of North Side, and serve our students well!

I would also like to thank everyone who attended and supported North Side at The Magic of Childhood Gala last month. The event was a huge success, and this would not have been possible without you!

This past month we have had many celebrations. The first week of May was Teacher Appreciation Week, when we took time to celebrate all of the hard work and dedication that our teachers have poured into the lives of our students. We celebrated our second graders who worked hard all year and had their stories published with Student Treasures. Last week we held our 8th grade graduation, our graduates are moving on to great high schools such as Cardinal Ritter, Clyde C Miller, CBC, SLUH, McKinley, Notre Dame, St. Mary's & more! We will continue with celebrations this week as our kindergarten students graduate and students and staff receive special recognitions.

Thank you again for all your support this school year.

Sincerely,
John Grote
Executive Director
Thank You for Your Support!
We are sending a HUGE thank you to everyone who attended and supported The Magic of Childhood gala on April 29th.

Nearly 250 guests attended The Magic of Childhood Gala. We are excited to share that over $216,000 has been raised to support our students.

Funds raised from these efforts will contribute to our efforts to provide individualized attention to our students through increased in-class support, enhance our prekindergarten program and upgrade classroom supplies and equipment.

Thank you to all attendees and volunteers who made this event a success!
Published Writers' Celebration
Students in Ms. Turney's 2nd grade class have had the opportunity to have their writing published!

Ms. Turney shares: "My class has successfully submitted their stories to be published with Student Treasures. This has been a long-term project that has boosted not only their writing, editing and revising skills but also their confidence. They truly see themselves as writers and it has been so exciting to see them eager to write and share their stories."
Beyond North Side
On May 20th we held the second annual Beyond North Side event. Thanks to support from the Des Peres Baptist Church Endowment Fund for Inner-City Ministries, our 7th and 8th graders participated in a full day of workshops from various high schools and colleges. Students also took a career inventory assessment and heard from board member Mike Quinlan and volunteer Bob Watt on selecting career paths that fit their strengths and interests. Award-winning author, speaker, and entrepreneur Tony Thompson provided a keynote address on the importance of making good choices for your future. Co-founder, Stella Erondu, also joined us to talk to our students about responsibility and planning for success. Additionally, students participated in a hands-on experience to create tiles using glass.

Students shared "we enjoyed learning about our options for high school and college and hearing motivational speeches to plan for our future."
The John Grote Elementary Campus


The elementary campus has been renamed to honor John Grotes' 13 years of leadership and service to students and families of North Side.

North Side's Board of Directors were excited to unveil the naming of the John Grote Elementary Campus.
Staff Spotlight: Sara Paracha
Sara Paracha, Director of Development, was honored as one of five Outstanding Young Professional's by the Global Association of Fundraising Professionals.

The award recognizes fundraisers under the age of 31 who display excellence in raising funds, inspiring donors, managing campaigns and dedication to the charitable sector.

Sara accepted her award earlier this month at AFP ICON - the world's largest fundraising conference. Congratulations Sara!