News for the Nest
Clayton Family Update for March 10, 2024
A Message from the Principal
Dear Families, we have had an incredible few weeks here at Clayton. Our younger students learned about different careers during Career Day on Wheels. Students heard from local firefighters, electricians, bus drivers, construction workers, police officers, and more about their jobs. In some cases, students even got to enter the vehicles!
Our older students experienced a different type of Career Day this week. First, students took interest inventories to identify career strands they are most interested in learning about. Then, students made plans to learn from specific presenters. We were fortunate to have presenters from most career domains, including engineering, the arts, biological sciences, marketing, education, healthcare, community services, and more. THANK YOU to our community partners who supported our two Career Day events, as well as our amazing counselors who organized these events, Megan Lanier and Pam Martin.
Another big celebration at Clayton this week is our students’ showing at the Austin ISD District UIL Meet. UIL is the University Interscholastic League, an academic competition that includes schools from across our district. I am so proud to announce that our Clayton Cardinals placed in all four events at the elementary level, Spelling, Number Sense, Social Studies, and Ready Writing. Thank you to our coaches and coordinator, Dana Sposeep, for your leadership. Way to go, Cardinals!
Finally, Track and Field day was a huge success this week! I hope your student has shared with you all the fun experiences they had with their classmates at this event. From the dance station to the inflatable obstacle course, Dragon Tails, and more, our kids had a blast! Please join me in thanking our P.E. Coaches, Adrian Guerra and Cassandra Cantu, for their vision and leadership.
We are privileged to have an amazing community here at Clayton. We could not provide these rich experiences to our students without the support of families, neighbors, and community partners. This week, the week of Spring Break, marks four years since students and educators left school for vacation, but were not able to return due to the pandemic. I was reminded over and over again this week of the strength of our community. Seeing our campus supported by so many visitors and families this week has left me feeling joyful and full of gratitude that we can come together to serve and support our students. Thank you!
I wish you a safe Spring Break, whether you are staying local or traveling. See you March 18!
Sincerely,
Karen McCollum
Upcoming Events
March 18-22 AISD Pride Week
Monday, March 18
- Happy Birthday Ms. Baykal, Teaching Assistant
Tuesday, March 19
- Happy Birthday Ms. Rowland, SCORES Teacher
5:00-6:30 🎨2nd Grade Art Show🎨
Thursday, March 21
Friday, March 22
- Happy Birthday Ms. Arredondo, 5th grade Teacher
Saturday, March 23 PTA Adult Fundraising Event at Austin Central Library (info below)
UPDATES
Austin ISD Pride Week is March 18-22
(This information was also shared via email on March 6, 2024)
AISD Pride Week is coming up March 18-23. What is Pride Week?
In Elementary, Pride Week means…
All are welcome
Everyone should be able to be who they are
Differences are awesome!
We Promote Acceptance, Not Discrimination
Every day we meet people different from ourselves. Promoting an attitude of acceptance supports a positive environment for everyone to be who they are.
WHY PRIDE WEEK?
Refer to our AISD website (link) or our LOCAL BOARD POLICY
The District has established as a core value respect for every individual and as a goal fostering and modeling this core value. The District believes that a valuable element of education is development of respect for all individuals, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, immigration status, or any other basis prohibited by law. The District is committed to providing all students a positive learning environment that enhances personal safety and promotes respect, dignity, and equality.
Austin ISD Pride Week Themes
Monday, March 18 - All Are Welcome
Tuesday, March 19 - Differences are Awesome
Wednesday, March 20 - Austin ISD Shows Respect
Thursday, March 21 - Pride and You - Creative Expression
Friday, March 22 - Local Pride and Spirit Day
Saturday, March 23 - Pride Y'all! Connect and Celebrate
10 am -1 pm. - Austin ISD Performing Arts Center, 1500 Barbara Jordan Blvd.
Activities: The Pride Week activities our campus plans to implement can be found here (link).
Pride Week activities do not include instruction regarding sexual orientation.
Swag: Our front office will have Pride and Ally stickers, and flags out on a table for students to take if they would like. We will not be passing out Pride swag to all students.
[Info Session: Ms. McCollum held an info session on Friday, March 8]
Thank you and we look forward to celebrating Austin ISD Pride Week with you!
In Case You Missed It
PTA Adults Only Fundraiser Event at the Austin Public Library
We hope to see you at our adult's only event. Tickets are limited, so buy yours today - HERE
If you can't make it, please consider sponsoring a member of our staff or checking out our silent auction. We have some amazing summer camp donations.
Join the PTA Board!
Clayton PTA Executive Board is recruiting for 2024-2025. Please email communications@nanclaytonpta.org for more information.
Austin ISD 2024 Scorecard - opportunity for info and engagement
The Austin ISD Board of Trustees will be working throughout the spring to develop the district’s Scorecard. This process is done in collaboration with families, staff, students and community members.
The Scorecard is composed of goals and constraints. The goals are a reflection of the community’s vision and the constraints act as guardrails that safeguard the community’s values in pursuit of that vision.
View a summary of Austin ISD's Student Performance and Data in English and Spanish.
Check out the opportunities below to weigh in on the district’s vision and values that will guide the district’s work over the next five years:
Thought Exchange
The board invites the community to share their ideas about the district’s vision and values to guide the development of the district scorecard.
Please take a few minutes to complete the Vision and Values Scorecard Thought Exchange by Sunday, March 11.
Engagement Meetings
Students, families, staff and community members from across the district are invited to participate in any of the below engagement opportunities. Each meeting will be facilitated by two trustees. Please click on the image above for details about virtual and in-person options.
We are hiring!
Our school has be allocated an additional Special Education Teacher position for the current school year. If you know someone who has a passion for teaching students with disabilities, please encourage them to reach out to me at karen.mccollum@austinisd.org
Link to job description
Culture Night is coming March 28 🌍
Save the Date!!! Culture Night 2024 will be on Thursday March 28th 2024. There are so many ways to get involved and have fun with our Clayton community!
Booths
Are you wanting to be part of culture night and teach our community more about your amazing culture? Please sign up to set up a booth. Any and all country booths are welcome! Please follow this link to sign up:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1sCr9b7B9Wmq1ofWaj_vZDxcWpDFfxpfpuGKNHfAKP6o/edit?usp=sharing
Potluck and Parade of Nations
Come one, come all and sign your child up to be part of the parade of nations. Children will start our Culture Night festivities as they walk in a parade holding flags from their country and culture. All are welcome. Also don't forget to sign up to bring a dish to our Culture Night Potluck and secure your ticket to the event. Finger foods preferably that are ready to be served! We look forward to seeing all the yummy dishes our community will bring.
Link for people to sign up for Potluck/Parade of Nations :
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0E4EADAE2BA5F58-47855713-clayton
Send in your family celebration photos! Clayton Celebrates
In order to acknowledge and display the family cultural celebrations of our students and staff, we will display small 2-D artifacts from students and staff in the foyer on the installation "CLAYTON CELEBRATES." The artifacts will represent the holidays or celebrations that we participate in. These may be holidays or celebrations in the winter months, or throughout the spring.
Please send a small photo of 2D artifact, no larger than 4 inches by 4 inches, to be included in our display. Children may bring in artifacts at any time throughout the year. Thank you!
Follow us on our new Instagram page!
@claytonaisd
Trail of Resolution
The Trail of Resolution is a problem-solving path we will use at Clayton Elementary. The purpose of the Trail of Resolution is to address questions and concerns in an effective and efficient manner. If you have a question or concern, first contact the person who is directly involved in the situation. For example, if you have a question or concern about something in the classroom, first contact the teacher to seek clarification. Follow the trail if the concern persists.
Teacher → Assistant principal → Principal
RAVE = Recognizing All Valuable Employees
Has someone at Clayton gone above and beyond for your family? Austin ISD uses the RAVE platform to Recognize All Valuable Employees. To send someone a RAVE, use the link/button at the bottom of this newsletter. The employee and principal receive an email to celebrate their recognition. Thank you!