The Panda Press - For Families
October 27th, 2023
Principal Message
We can't believe that we are approaching the end of the first 9 weeks of school. The weather is getting cooler, the days are getting shorter, and report cards will soon be on their way. We would like to take a moment to remind you that if your child is showing any illness symptoms that we keep them home to keep our staff and other students safe.
It is always a pleasure to serve our community, our students, and our guardians.
We understand that we are entering some turbelent times, but we will get through it together.
Thank you all so much for your support.
Chris Burns & Shannon Wardrop
Costumes on Tuesday
Any family that is interested in their child wearing a costume on Tuesday 10/31 is welcome to do so. However, there are some guidelines that we would like to put in place. Please ensure that the selected costume:
- Adheres to the school dress guidelines and is school appropriate
- Has no blood or gore
- Is not scary
- Does not include props, any props brought to school will be stored for students until the end of the day.
Thank you all so much!
PAT Strike
Dear families and caregivers,
The Portland Public School District and the union representing District educators, Portland Association of Teachers (PAT), are negotiating the union contract. In the event that an agreement cannot be reached in the next few days, I wanted to send some updates about what would happen if a strike were to occur. All of this information can also be found on the PPS Family Resources website.
Nutrition Services: We will provide free grab and go meals for all children 1-18, during the strike. Meals will be available for pickup on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays between 11:30 am- 1:00pm, beginning on Wednesday, November 1st. Note: if one of these schools is closer to your home you can access food there. For a map of the closest sites to your location, you can look HERE]
Additional Student Supports: All childcare services provided at schools will be canceled as long as schools are closed to the public due to the strike. This includes early childcare and before and after school care. PPS Student Health Centers at Benson, Cleveland, Franklin, Jefferson, McDaniel, and Roosevelt will remain operational during the strike. Services will be provided both in person and virtually, including new patient appointments. A full list, including clothing closets, food pantries, and accessing mental health services can be found HERE.
Additional updates to bargaining will be sent home from PPS through the Remind app.
Regards,
