Trail Talk Newsletter

The SFT PTA has so many exciting events lined up for February and March. We hope to see you at the magical family fun night, skating party and at the Totally Rad Trivia and Auction Spring Fundraiser coming up March 2! Read on for details and don't forget to proudly show your Chiefs spirit this week!

February 7: Wake up and Win Wednesday; Wear PJ's!

February 8: Throw a Touchdown Thursday; Wear Chiefs Gear!

Stay connected with the SFT community on Facebook , Instagram and the New SFT PTA Website!

• Parties are Feb. 14, 2:00-2:50 pm.

• Students may bring food-free valentines. Please send enough for all students in the class.

• Only room parents and parents that are assisting with the party should attend.

• SMSD guidelines: All foods for sharing must be in packaging labeled by the manufacturer, except whole fruits/vegetables. No homemade food items, sodas or energy drinks.

The next SFT Skating Party is February 20, see you on the rink!

• 6-8 pm. at Skate City
• 9800 W. 62nd Terrace, Merriam
• $7 admission to skate, $2 skate rental
• Dinner Special: $4.50 for a hot dog, chips and a drink
• A portion of admissions that evening go back to the SFT PTA

The next SFT PTA general meeting will take place in the SFT library and on Webex on Wednesday, February 21 at 6:00 pm.

Meetings are one hour, and all are welcome to attend. PTA Officers will report on current and future initiatives and Principal Leiker will provide a report. There are many opportunities to help out this spring, we would love to tell you how! See you there.

Legislative Season has begun. The Shawnee Mission Area Council PTA Legislative Coordinator has provided a summary of topics they are watching. Each of these items are among the legislative priorities for Kansas PTA and SMSD. You can get more information by visiting the website or following along on social media.

• Tax policy — flat tax bill that significantly reduces state revenues and puts education funding at risk was passed by both chambers.

• Fully Funding Special Education — This is probably our biggest issue this year.
• SMSD is having to use $10 million from the general education budget to cover the shortfall, impacting all kids.
• Here is a copy/paste email template bit.ly/SMACFullyFundSPED.

• Medicaid Expansion — There is a big push to get this done in 2024. It’s part of the SMSD’s legislative platform as there are a number of families who fall in the gap and are uninsured. Healthy families make for students who are better able to learn.

• Vouchers — divert public tax dollars to private and/or home schools.
• Public tax dollars should remain with public schools that accept and educate all children.

Congratulations to SFT 6th graders Brooklyn Jenkins and Mia Menking, both winners of the Santa Fe Trail Citizenship Essay Contest. The theme this year was "I will lift other up by...."

• Mia is celebrated for winning the Poetry category.
• Brooklyn is celebrated for winning the Essay category.

Both girls' wonderful winning work will go on to the Shawnee Mission School District-level competition.

Congratulations, Mia & Brooklyn!

Secure your spot in SFT PTA's Adults-Only Spring Fundraising event, the ultimate 90s trivia showdown, hosted by The Garcia Family aka Trivia Master Extraordinaires. Register (as a team or free agent) HERE by Feb. 23.

• Each team of 8 will gather around an 8-foot long table complete with a few complimentary snacks and simple decorations.
• Choose a 90's sub-theme and unleash your creativity by embracing the vibe with nostalgic flair, donning costumes and adding more decorations to transform your space. The stakes are high, as the most inventive table will claim a prize.
• There will also be a prize for the best male and female look-alike costume. Pick your favorite character and enter the contest during one of our trivia rounds.

Elevate the experience by bringing your own treats or meal to share with your tablemates. However, kindly note that outside drinks are not permitted. There will be a cash (or credit) bar for your enjoyment!

Streamline your experience at our event by purchasing raffle tickets in advance HERE. Skip the lines and order your tickets now or buy them the night of the event with your preferred method of payment-cash or credit. Upon registration, you'll receive your physical tickets, giving you the flexibility to target specific raffle items. While you don't have to be present to win, you must arrange for someone to be there on your behalf to claim your winnings. Please ensure they bring proof of the winning ticket to make the process smooth and swift.

Tentative Schedule of Events: Doors Open at 6:00 pm

• 6:00 Registration/check-in, raffle ticket pick-up, trivia table prep, raffle sales and bar open.
• 6:30-7:20 Trivia Rounds 1-4.
• 7:20-7:50 Trivia Intermission/Live Auction.
• 7:50-8:40 Trivia Rounds 4-8.
• 8:40-10:00 Dancing.
• 9:30 Raffle Drawings.
• 9:45 Last Call! You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.

If you haven't yet, please consider giving towards your classroom donations by Feb. 9. Venmo @emily-beecher-5. The class with the highest donations will win a surprise!

Questions? Please reach out to your fundraising co-chairs

Emily Beecher polkadotte@gmail.com

Angie Bright angelabright@outlook.com

Jennifer Harms tmntgirl@gmail.com

Come One, Come All! Don't miss your opportunity to join the behind-the-scenes crew of our beloved Spring Carnival. Planning is underway and we would love to have you join us at our next committee meeting Wednesday, Feb. 14 at 10 am at Urban Prairie in Mission. Contact Shae Paradise at shaestark@gmail.com for more information and to join in on the planning fun!

If you want students in SMSD -- possibly your own kids! -- to have the opportunity to start learning a world language in elementary school, here's an easy way to advocate for that. SMSD leaders are starting their 5-year strategic planning process, which includes an invitation for all of us to provide input through what's called a Thought Exchange. When you take a few minutes to participate in this easy digital input process, you can tell the district what you think is important.

Here's all you have to do:

1. Click this link: https://tejoin.com/scroll/219107980
2. List "Bilingual" as a key skill: When asked what "skills our current students will need to be college and career ready," type in your priorities, including keywords such as "bilingual", "dual language program" and "world language as a special in elementary." This lets the district know people are interested in adding this type of programming to our elementary curricula. (When it comes to learning another language, the earlier the better, so let's no longer make our kids wait 'til middle school!)
3. Vote up similar ideas: After you provide your own thoughts, you'll have the opportunity to "vote up" the ideas that other people have already submitted. When you give a high rating to other thoughts supporting bilingualism and these Dual Language/World Language initiatives (and other ideas that are important to you), it helps show these ideas have broad support.

And that's it...easy peasy! Participating in the Thought Exchange is the best way to add your voice to the conversation about what SMSD will prioritize for the next 5 years. Take a few minutes now to fill it out before you forget. :) Survey closes Feb. 9.

SFT Families,

Thanks for all you are doing to support our students and staff. We greatly appreciate that the PTA is planning to provide dinner on conference night. Evening conferences will take place on from 4:30-7:30 on Thursday, Feb. 8 and from 8:00-3:30 on Friday, Feb. 9. Some families may have scheduled conference earlier in the week. Thank you for taking time to conference with your child’s teacher. By communicating and working together, we can assist your student to achieve their growth goals and acquire the skills that are a priority for their grade.

We recently celebrated The Kindness Challenge Week at SFT. The students did a great job of helping promote random acts of kindness both at school and home. I want to thank all parents who also participated in Kindness Week by doing one or more of the suggested activities; and I want to express a special thank you to the many parents and students who consistently lead by example when it comes to being kind and respectful to everyone. Hopefully, The Great Kindness Challenge will remind us of all that it is actually fun to be kind to others and surprise them with a random act of generosity or kindness. I have reminded students many times that they will go further in life and will be more successful in a job if they develop habits of respect and kindness. Let’s all commit to extending Kindness Week to Kindness Year, and then to practicing a lifetime of kindness!

Educationally yours,

Ms. Leiker

Pre-K and Kindergarten Registration Now Open

We encourage all in our district to share this information with any families in our community who have a child who is Pre-K or Kindergarten age.

Attendance is Important

The most recent federal data show that in the 2020-21 school year, at least 14.7 million students nationwide were chronically absent. This means that chronic absence has almost doubled from the more than 8 million students, pre-Covid-19, who were missing so many days of school that they were academically at risk. Chronic absence — missing 10 percent or more of school days due to absence for any reason — excused, unexcused absences and suspensions can translate into students having difficulty learning to read by the third grade, achieving in middle school, and graduating from high school. Read this research summary for more details. We encourage you to listen to the Shawnee Mission Mic'd Up Podcast Episode 9, The Importance of Student Attendance explaining the post-pandemic rise in student school absenteeism. The SFT December Chronic Absenteeism Rate was 9.0% (missing at least 8 days of school out of 82 school days). Families can now report a student’s absence online in Skyward using a desktop computer or a mobile phone.

Arrival

There has been an increase in the number of students coming in after the 8:10 a.m. bell. Please plan on leaving a few minutes earlier to make sure your student is dressed appropriately for the cold weather and in their seat ready to learn at the 8:10 a.m. bell. Click and find out more about district attendance guidelines.

Circle Drive

Help us keep everyone safe by following the city signs on 71 St. Street. Vehicles heading west on 71st St. cannot make a left turn into the circle drive during posted times.

Do you want to recognize a fabulous SFT employee? Nominate them for the Shawnee Mission School District's All Star Award! The SMSD All Star review committee meets monthly to complete the selection process for submissions in advance of the Shawnee Mission Board of Education meetings. It's easy! Fill out the form at the link below and show the district that SFT teachers and staff are the best! The form includes basic information about the employee and three questions.

All Star Nomination Form

Get ahead of the game this spring and order your SFT yearbook today!

Order Now

Help PTA earn cashback donations by shopping brands and restaurants you love. It's simple! With Givebacks, when you shop and dine at participating stores and restaurants, those merchants automatically donate a percentage to the cause of your choice. To make sure you're all set up to give, register for a Givebacks account and securely link your credit card. Then, select Santa Fe Trail as the cause of your choice. https://www.givebacks.com/join/sft

2024

Feb. 08 --> Evening Conferences 4:30 - 7:30 pm

Feb. 09 --> No School; Conferences

Feb. 14 --> Valentine's Day Class Parties

• AM Pre-K Party: 10:00-10:45 am
• PM Pre-K and K-6: 2:00-2:50 pm

Feb. 16 --> SFT Family Fun Night Magic Show 6:00 pm

Feb. 19 --> No School; Presidents Day

Feb. 20 --> SFT Skate Party 6-8 pm

Feb. 21 --> General PTA Meeting SFT Library 6:00 pm

Mar. 02 --> SFT Totally Rad Trivia Spring Fundraiser

Mar. 06 --> SFT Variety Show

Mar. 07 --> SFT Open House 6-7 pm

Mar. 08 --> No School; Teacher Workday

Mar. 11-15 --> No School; Spring Break

Mar. 18 --> Beginning of 4th Quarter

Apr. 10 --> General PTA Meeting SFT Library 6:00 pm

Apr. 16 --> SFT Skate Party 6-8 pm

May 03 --> SFT Carnival

May 10 --> Field Day

Email: sftptapresident@gmail.com
Location: 7100 Lamar Avenue, Overland Park, KS, USA
Facebook: SFT Trailblazer Connection | Facebook

Website: www.sftpta.org