Pontiac School News

January 9, 2020

A message from our school principal, Dr. Katie Barber

We in education talk a lot about the importance of community support and family engagement. But what exactly do we mean?

Often, we say we want businesses to partner with schools to provide resources and opportunities, for example, sponsoring events, providing class speakers, offering internships, or donating equipment.

Even when we consider our interactions with our parents, many of our requests are for things like attending parent-teacher conferences, supporting fundraisers, and buying school supplies.

And while such interactions are important, we believe it is possible to move beyond them to a deeper engagement.

I am privileged to serve as the principal of Pontiac Elementary and I am honored to work with our dedicated staff, exceptional students, and proud parents.

Community involvement and family engagement is at the core of our mission, our district beliefs, and our school’s values.

This year our School Improvement Council has set a goal to increase reading initiatives at Pontiac through strong community partnerships. In fact, we are one of 10 schools in the state that was recently recognized for the work our SIC has done towards our goal! We’d love your help to continue our efforts!

One way we hope to do that is through the addition of a book vending machine in our school. Check out the link here for more information: https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/30/health/book-vending-machine-trnd/index.html

With the addition of this new vending machine, we are seeking funds from families and community partnerships to help us purchase books to include in the book vending machine. All students will have the opportunity to reap the benefits of the books inside this new machine and we hope to continuously encourage incentives that give students the opportunity to select a new book.

Currently, the estimated cost of a shelf of books for the vending machine is approximately $100. A monetary donation from your family, local business, or other organization will help us keep the vending machine filled with new books for our students! Additionally, we will recognize your monetary contribution on each book we purchase using your generous funds.

Thank you in advance for your consideration!

I invite you to help me make a difference in the lives of our children. These children will become leaders in our community. Together, we can develop a literacy partnership to provide the best for the children of Pontiac Elementary School and our greater community.

Warm Regards

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Congratulations to our School Improvement Council

SC-SIC has announced that 10 local School Improvement Councils from across the state have been named to this year’s SIC Honor Roll as part of the 2020 Dick and Tunky Riley Award for School Improvement Council Excellence process.

This year’s Honor Roll SICs are, in alphabetical order:

Academic Magnet High (Charleston County School District)
Bluffton Middle (Beaufort County School District)
Bookman Road Elementary (Richland School District Two)
Chapin Middle (School District Five of Richland and Lexington Counties)
Flowertown Elementary (Dorchester School District Two)
Millwood Elementary (Sumter School District)
Pine Grove Elementary (Richland School District One)
Pontiac Elementary (Richland School District Two)
Round Top Elementary (Richland School District Two)
St. James High (Horry County School District)

From the Honor Roll, five (5) SICs will be selected to advance to the Winners Level. The recipient of the 2020 Riley Award will be announced at the SC-SIC Annual Meeting on Saturday, April 4, 2020.

If you are a parent and are interested in getting more involved at Pontiac, our School Improvement Council would love to welcome you to our team. Our next meeting will be held on January 23 at 7:45am. Meetings last no more than an hour. We hope to see you there!

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Class Picture Day

CLASS PICTURE DAY IS FRIDAY, JANUARY 10.

ORDER ENVELOPES WERE SENT HOME IN

THE WEEKLY COMMUNICATION FOLDERS

BEFORE WINTER BREAK. PLEASE FILL OUT

AND RETURN ENVELOPE WITH YOUR CHILD

IF YOU WISH TO ORDER A CLASS PICTURE.

THE COST IS $10.00 PER PICTURE.

PLEASE KEEP IN MIND, WE START TAKING

PICTURES AT 8:15 AM. IF YOUR CHILD IS TARDY

ON FRIDAY THEY MAY MISS BEING A PART OF THEIR

CLASS PICTURE.

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African American Read In

The faculty and staff of Pontiac Elementary School cordially invite you to be a guest reader for our “African American Read-In.” During the month of February we want to heighten student awareness of the importance of reading. Our focus will be on books illustrated, written by or about the culture of African-Americans. You can bring your own selection or we will have books available for you in the library. Please accept this invitation to bring reading to life for the children of Pontiac by filling out the attached form.

Pontiac Elementary Elementary School is located at 500 Spears Creek Road, Elgin, SC 29045. Light Refreshments will be served in the Media Center.

Sign up for a time HERE.

A message from our music teacher, Ms. Rayner

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2020 Tri-District Arts Consortium Summer Program. Middle school students who attend the public schools of Lexington One, Lexington/Richland Five and Richland Two are eligible to participate. This year marks the 35th year Tri-District has provided students with an outstanding and concentrated study of the arts through this summer program.

The program is designed for artistically gifted and talented students who are rising sixth through ninth graders in the summer before the 2020-2021 school year. Students may audition in creative writing, dance, music (strings, vocal and wind/percussion), theatre or visual arts. Parents may nominate their sons and daughters by completing the nomination form from the Tri-District website. Nomination forms for all art areas, along with general information about the Tri-District Arts Consortium are available online in each school district and on our website at www.tridac.org.

The Summer Program will be held on the campus of the Palmetto Center for the Arts (PCA) at Richland Northeast High School June 29 through July 18, 2020. Classes meet Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM till 3:15 PM. Friday, 3 July will be observed as a holiday. Tuition and lunch for the three-week experience is $400.00.

All nominations must be received by January 15, 2020. Applications will be sent to each nominated student and parent/guardian. Spaces for qualified students from each district are limited.

Auditions for Creative writing, Theatre, Visual Arts, Vocal, and Wind/Percussion will be held on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at Richland Northeast High School. Auditions for the areas of Dance, Strings, and Visual Arts will be held Saturday, March 14, 2020 at Richland Northeast High School. There will be no make-up auditions.

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Law Enforcement Appreciation Day

Today we celebrated Law Enforcement Appreciation Day! We wore blue to honor our very our Deputy Proctor for all that she does to keep us safe each and every day at Pontiac. Thank you, Deputy Proctor!

Student Spotlight

We are so proud of Lauryn Jowers for her beautiful heart! Over winter break, Lauryn chose to collect items to give the homeless instead of receiving gifts for herself! Lauryn, thank you for shining your light with all of us and reminding us of the joy of giving! Please see pictures below from Lauryn's experience.