Pierce Downer This Week

Pierce Downer Families,

Today at Pierce Downer School we had our active threat drill. Like other safety drills, we hold this drill to prepare our students and staff for the unlikely event of an active threat in our school. In a true emergency, we consider an “active threat” to be any occasion in which a perceived dangerous intruder enters the school. Please know that ahead of this drill, teachers and staff communicated and emphasized to students that this was a practice drill. This drill is conducted in partnership with the Downers Grove Police Department.

This week, our 5th-grade students enjoyed a field trip to the Morton Arboretum. We also had our all-school PD Promise Assembly. At the assembly, the Student Council officer candidates presented their speeches for why they believed they would be the best person for the position. Additionally at the assembly, it was great to recognize our first Panthers of the Month for this year!

Coming up next week, we will have our first PTA assembly of the year on Monday 10/9 with The Jesse White Tumblers! The Jesse White Tumblers were created in 1959 to provide a positive alternative for inner-city kids. Team members must stay away from gangs, drug, alcohol, stay in school and maintain a minimum “C” average. The team consists of male and female participants as young as age 6.

With that being said, please do not hesitate to reach out. You can email me at LWagner@DG58.org or call the Pierce Downer Main Office at 630-719-5860.

As always, WE are PD!

Dr. Leland (Lucky) Wagner

All students are invited to take part in the 2023 Pierce Downer Haunted House Competition. Students can work alone or with one other student to create a haunted house. Bring your finished house to the Library the week of October 23-27. Voting will take place the following week. Please note the following important guidelines:

• Houses must be based on a SINGLE shoe-box or similar-sized box

• You can buy decorations, but haunted house kits are not allowed

• Battery-operated lights on your house are fine, but no sound effects

• Haunted houses must be school-appropriate (no weapons, violence or blood)

• Houses that do not meet the guidelines will not be allowed in the competition

As a reminder, every MONDAY students are dismissed at 2pm. We also invite students to wear orange on Mondays to support our commitment to a positive mindset, and spirit wear or school colors (blue and white) every Friday!

Our 5th grade students went to the Morton Arboretum this week! This field trip is a mix of guided programs that allows a member of the Morton Arboretum staff to share their wealth of knowledge with our students along with self-guided activities for students to have exploration time on their own.

Congratulations to Mrs. Acevedo, RISE teacher at Pierce Downer School, on being this week's PD Cup recipient. Mrs. Acevedo brings an uncompromising commitment to education and relationship building.

Thank you Mrs. Acevedo for everything you do!

This year Pierce Downer has the exciting opportunity to pilot a schedule that includes three lunch and three recess periods. Our goal is to reduce the overall number of students within each lunch and recess period in order to maximize staff supervision and increase student safety. This is also a part of our continued efforts to support positive student behavior. It is important to note that as with any pilot, if we do not find success by implementing this model, we will revert to our typical lunch and recess schedule. The pilot schedule is as follows:

• Kindergarten and First Grade will eat lunch at 11:20 am
• Second, Third, and Fourth Grade will eat lunch at 11:40 am
• Fifth and Sixth Grade will eat lunch at 12:00 pm

District 58 is pleased to continue using the Raptor Visitor Management System in all of our schools to strengthen our program of campus safety for students and faculty. Part of keeping students and faculty safe is knowing who is in our buildings at all times. The Raptor system will better allow us to screen visitors, contractors, and volunteers in our schools and provide us with a safer environment for our students and staff. Community High School District 99 currently utilizes the same platform on its campuses.

Upon entering a district building, visitors will be asked to present photo identification, such as a Driver’s License, which can either be scanned or manually entered into the system. If a parent or guardian for any reason does not have a US government-issued ID, the school staff member can use any form of identification and manually enter the person’s name into the Raptor system. The Raptor system will check to ensure that registered sexual offenders are not entering our school campuses without our knowledge. The Raptor system checks the visitor's name and date of birth for comparison with a national database of registered sex offenders. The registered sex offender database is the only official database checked by the Raptor system. No other data from the ID is gathered or recorded and the information is not shared with any outside agency. Once entry is approved, Raptor will issue a badge that identifies the visitor, the date, and the purpose of his/her visit. A visitor’s badge will not be necessary for those who visit our schools simply to drop off an item in the office or pick up paperwork.

The safety of our students is our highest priority and the Raptor visitor management system allows us to quickly identify those that may present a danger to our students. Thank you in advance for your understanding and your support in enhancing the school safety protocols in our district.

October 9

PTA Sponsored Assembly

October 12

Parent/Teacher Conferences

5-8pm

October 17

Picture Retake Day

October 18

Parent/Teacher Conferences

5-8pm

District 58 has partnered with Safe2Help to give students a safe and confidential way to report potential threats or crises. Safe2Help was launched by the State of Illinois in December 2020 and aims to help prevent suicide, bullying, school violence and other threats to school safety.

With Safe2Help, students can connect with a trained crisis professional during their own crisis, or to report a potential threat. Students can submit a Safe2Help alert via the following ways:

• Website: https://app.safe22helpil.com
• Text: SAFE2 (72332)
• Phone: 844-4-SAFEIL (844-472-3345)
• App: "Safe2Help Illinois" app available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store
• Email: HELP@Safe2HelpIL.com

All alerts are responded to by a trained Safe2Help crisis professional. Safe2Help is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

District 58 staff are not the initial responders to the alert and will receive each alert after the Safe2Help professional provides support. District 58 staff will review alerts sent by Safe2Help during regular school hours, unless the nature of the alert necessitates immediate school action.