As you can see from the rest of our community brief, we have a lot going on this week. I want to especially highlight some causes that affect so many friends, and families. First, Ms. Glenn’s Future Farmers of America will kick off our food drive to help families in our community with food needs over the holiday breaks that are coming up. On Tuesday, students can bring in a non-perishable food item and receive a piece of candy in return. But our food drive will continue through November 15th. Students are encouraged to bring in food to their first period teacher for collection. We will also have a donation box up front if families have larger drop offs.  

While this entire week is Red Ribbon Week, Wednesday is our “Pink-Out” in recognition of breast cancer awareness. My mother passed away from her battle with breast cancer two years ago after battling for 10 years. I say this as a testimony of how far medicine has come in treating this terrible disease. Simple tasks like this lead to financial contributions that lead to research that lead to saving lives. I am extremely proud of our students that recognize causes greater than the individual. In fact, over 300 of our 8th grade students that are pursuing the IB certificate will begin service projects in the next quarter that will make a difference in the school or community. This is just another example of the Glenridge Difference.  

In closing, when I sit down to write this out each week I try to keep it short and relevant to all 1,200 families that read this. This week, we had three events that resonated with me, and it is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the teachers we have a Glenridge, and by no means are these the only examples. They just happened to have occurred in the same week and have been important to me since I arrived as an assistant principal at Glenridge in 2019. Ms. Welcome coordinated her first field trip of the year with her students to learn life skills that go beyond the classroom. Ms. Glenn expanded our Agriculture Science Farm to include two baby sheep. Our Ag science/FFA students rival many high schools in our district. Ms. Hodges’ theater troupe put on an unbelievable one act performance that they will take on the road to compete with schools around the state. This is all above and beyond, “what we get paid for” and the reason that these teachers are putting in the extra time is so the students have the best experience possible. Test scores and grades are important, but I know that the memories and experiences that these teachers are creating are what will keep our students working hard on their academics. Thank you to them and all the teachers I didn’t mention this week. but continue to sacrifice on our students’ behalf. 

Have a wonderful week!

Daniel Kempinger

Principal

Pictured very top: Highlights of our ASD students during their field trip last week (eating at Chick-fil-A, riding the Lynx bus, and visiting the Five Below specialty retail store).