Bobcat Blog

• May 16: Spring Sing ~ 6 pm Kindergarten ~ 6:30 pm 1st Grade ~ 7 pm 2nd Grade
  
• ** May 17: Spring Sing ~ 6:30 pm 4th Grade ~ 7 pm 3rd Grade
  
• May 18: Parents' Night Out! (see flyer below)
• May 19: Bobcat Bolt in the morning (see flyer and schedule below)
• May 19: 3rd Gr Instrumental Recruitment Assembly
• May 29: Memorial Day ~ No School
• June 2: Olympic Day
• June 2: End of Year Picnic
  
• June 8: 5th Grade Event
• June 9: LAST DAY OF SCHOOL
  

Happy Mother's Day Sunday to all of the moms, mom figures & moms to be! I am out today because our twins both graduate college tomorrow; unfortunately the same day so we have to divide up. I am headed to Ohio today with our oldest daughter to see Megan graduate from Miami of Ohio. My husband and his sister head to the University of Illinois today to see Patrick graduate. It is just hard for me to believe where the time has gone.

Next week is action packed here at Beye! I look forward to seeing many of you at the Spring Sings, at the Parents' Night Out Thursday, or cheering on the students at the Bobcat Bolt Friday! Thank you to the PTO for organizing the Parents' Night Out and the Bobcat Bolt. These are two important fundraisers for Beye so thanks in advance for helping us out.

Thank you for all of the support and love you showed the teachers and staff this week for Teacher/Staff Appreciation Week. I know they will love the lunch today. Thank you so much to Molly Greenwood-Whalen for taking the lead, and thank you to all of the parents who made contributions. We truly appreciate it!

There are 4 spots still available for Hephzibah's After School Program next Fall

Join other parents at the Friendly Tap on Thursday, May 18 from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Hawaiian or beach wear encouraged for this summer theme!

Buy Tickets HERE

The summer session of SMART Hephzibah provides a preview of the upcoming year’s math curriculum. It is funded by registration fees for participating, and financial aid is available to all who request it. Our goal has been to make this accessible to every student who could benefit. SMART Hephzibah offers both “regular” and “advanced” classes. The regular classes will focus on strengthening knowledge of grade-level material and the advanced classes will go beyond the grade-level curriculum. There is also a parent-child class for 1st graders.

Online registration for kindergarten and new students is now open for the 2023-24 school year. Kindergarten and new students may register from May 5, 2023, through July 1, 2023.

Kindergarten Eligibility:

In order to register your student, you must be the custodial parent/guardian and currently reside in Oak Park. Students who are registering for kindergarten for the 2023-24 school year must be at least 5 years old and must be born on or before Sept. 1, 2018.

All students entering kindergarten, including those currently enrolled in one of District 97’s early childhood programs, are considered “new students” and should follow the kindergarten and new student registration process on May 5. All other currently enrolled District 97 preschool students who are not entering kindergarten should register as a returning student beginning on May 26.

Please click the links below to learn more about the registration process for kindergarteners and new students.

• Kindergarten Registration

• New Student Registration

Returning student registration will open on Friday, May 26. Instructions for returning students will be shared in the coming weeks. We appreciate your partnership in preparing for a successful 2023-24 school year!

Village Hosting Free Firearm Lock Giveaway on Saturday, May 13

Gun violence is a public health crisis. District 97 is committed to partnering with the Village of Oak Park to address this crisis and help keep our community safe.

The Village of Oak Park police and health departments are hosting a free firearm lock giveaway on May 13, 2023 to encourage safe storage of firearms so our community can be safe and healthy. Attendees of the giveaway event can receive a free firearm lock from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 13 in the courtyard at Village Hall, 123 Madison St. No registration is required.

Both the health and police departments remind residents that safe firearm storage is a simple action a gun owner can take to reduce access to guns among young people, keeping families safe. Safe gun storage is an issue that impacts the entire community and saves lives.

• School Kits: Order your school kits now and avoid the lines! Beye School List Kits order by June 25)

On Monday, April 10, District 97 will begin accepting applications for the early childhood blended classrooms at Whittier Elementary School for the 2023-24 school year. There will be a limited number of spaces available. Click here to view the 2023-24 D97 Blended Preschool flyer >>

District 97 is seeking students who:

• are non-IEP students who will be between the ages of 3 and 4 years by Sept. 1, 2023;

• demonstrate age-appropriate language and social skills;

• are Oak Park residents;

• are not enrolled in a preschool program.

The registration window will be open April 10, 2023, through May 19, 2023. For more information about the Early Childhood Blended Program or to apply, please visit https://www.op97.org/teach-learn/ecblended.

The Beye school 2022-23 yearbook is coming along nicely-- it's time to order!

We're making these using TreeRing, which is the same company as in past years.

If you've never used it before, the link for ordering a yearbook is

https://www.treering.com/purchase?PassCode=1015276181452624

(If you ordered in the past, it should remember you!)
The cost is $14.53 + tax.

You can customize pages for your child using their website!
All orders are due by June 9 for free shipping (they will ship to the school)
(It's possible to order anytime after this date too, but they charge about $6 to ship it individually.)

We'll get these yearbooks during the summer -- probably mid to late July -- and we'll have multiple occasions for you to pick them up! If you have questions, feel free to e-mail me at pivarski@gmail.com -- I'll do my best to find the answer for you!

Also, if you have any awesome pictures of school events, classroom parties, or field trips, feel free to send them my way! We can always use more content! And if you'd like to be in charge of the page adjacent to your kid's class, let me know-- it take between 30-60 minutes to finish one of these, and it's an easy activity to do. (I have instructions for the interested!)

Thanks!
Melanie (Rowan's mom in 4 A/T)

As Field Trip season ramps up, please make a point of getting your background check done (especially if you are new to the District)! You need to make an appointment at the District Office, here is the link.

District 97 partners with a company called BrightArrow to deliver important information to families through calls, emails and text messaging. Next week, the BrightArrow system is adding a new texting phone number to speed up text delivery. Please note that your family may start seeing text messages from our school coming from the short code phone number 79041, in addition to the number 87569.

As a reminder, you may opt-in to text messages from our school at any time by sending YES to the shortcode 87569 and 79041. You must have your phone number on file with the school to receive text messages. Once you opt-in, BrightArrow will send you a confirmation that your phone number is opted-in.

Thank you Beye Green Team for extending this throughout the year. Old sneakers can be brought to school and then dropped off in the office vestibule. Check out the photo of the latest batch of shoes going to be recycled instead of going into the landfill.

Recycle your old sneakers and earn money for Beye School!

Bring any and all sneakers, in any condition, to the school for donation through the end of the school year. Athletic shoes only please.

The Beye Green Team has partnered with gotsneakers.com to keep sneakers out of landfills and earn money for Beye!

The breakfast and lunch menus for our elementary and middle schools are available at http://www.op97.org/business-office/food-service. During the 2022-23 school year, students may:

• Bring a nut-free lunch from home.

• Order school lunch.

PLEASE NOTE: During the 2022-23 school year, all students will be required to pay for their breakfast and lunch meals unless they are directly approved by the State of Illinois or approved after completing the 2022-23 Free and Reduced Meal Application.

Process for Reporting Positive COVID-19 Cases to D97 Schools
If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19, they must complete the following steps:

1) In order to notify the school nurse and receive a return-to-school date, families/staff must complete the confidential COVID-19 Positive Case Notification Form as soon as possible following the positive test. Information provided will also be shared with the Oak Park Department of Public Health.

2) Families must continue to report student absences via the school attendance line, and staff must enter their absences in Frontline.

To see the rules for isolation and quarantine, click here. Additional resources are linked below.

• Summary of District 97's COVID-19 Mitigations
• 2022-23 COVID-19 Health and Safety Plan

Cheryl Sullivan

Beye Principal

csullivan@op97.org

Location: 230 North Cuyler Avenue, Oak Park, IL, USA
Phone: 708- 524-3070
Twitter: @MrsSullivand97