School Times

Dec. 2, 2022

Today is National Special Education Day. Many thanks to the hundreds of special education teachers and paraprofessionals in RISD. We see you, and we appreciate you.

Many thanks to Tongue in Cheek Ice Cream for celebrating RISD special education teachers, specialists, paraprofessionals, and staff today at the Professional Development Center.

Richardson Independent School District provides a continuum of programs for students between the ages of 3 and 21 with disabilities. The school district's goal is to assist students in their intellectual, developmental, social, emotional, physical, and communicative growth, empowering them to participate successfully in society. #RISDBelieves

The RHS Theater Magnet had a dozen students qualify for nationals after their performance at the Texas Thespian Festival. Four student-actors from Lake Highlands High School and one from Pearce also qualified for nationals.

Please click here to view RISD's national qualifiers. Congratulations to all these budding thespians! #RISDGreatness #RISDBelieves

RISD administrators once again surprised and celebrated #RISDSuperTeachers. This time for the second grading period.

These teachers were named Super Teachers for the second quarter of the 2022-23 school year:

• Catherine McCrea – Jess Harben Elementary School
• Alexis Bell Perry – Richardson Terrace Elementary School
• Wendy Niimi – Pearce High School
• Kimberly Cox – Lake Highlands High School
  

#RISDGreatness #RISDBelieves

FOCUS is the safe and secure online portal available to RISD parents to access their student’s grades, schedule, attendance, and assessment history.

Beginning Jan. 4, RISD parents and guardians will be able to submit an absentee note electronically via FOCUS. Handwritten notes will still be accepted at all campuses, as well.

Click here for a short tutorial on how to submit an attendance note via FOCUS.

All RISD parents can receive daily or weekly notifications from the FOCUS portal, which is also accessible via a secure mobile app.

Learn more about signing up for a FOCUS account here.

The Dallas Central Appraisal District has been impacted by a ransomware attack that has prevented DCAD from providing the resolution of disputed values and changes in exemptions to taxing jurisdictions like Richardson ISD.

Until the RISD Tax Office receives information regarding adjustments finalized by DCAD, the RISD Tax Office can only proceed with the currently available information:

• Any account that has not been billed or assessed for 2022 will not be required to pay until the bill is assessed, at which time the property owner will be given an opportunity to pay without penalty and interest.
  
• Property owners who wish to make a payment without an assessment will be allowed to do so based on last year’s assessments. Payments will be held in escrow until the property value is assessed. Please note that once the account is billed, the property owner could owe more money or be entitled to a refund.
• Property owners who are waiting for an update (exemptions or value change) to be applied are encouraged to make a good faith payment using last year’s levy to avoid the account falling into delinquent status.
  

• Taxes are still due upon receipt of the Tax Bill and will be deemed delinquent if paid after Jan. 31, 2023. There will be no extensions to the delinquency date unless provided for under the Texas Property Tax Code.

• November/December Live Wise/Live Healthy Focus: Mental Health Awareness (en español)
  
• Dec. 8 - Board of Trustees Regular Meeting
  
• Dec. 16 - Early Release
• Dec. 19-Jan. 2 - Winter Break
• Jan. 3 - Student Holiday/Staff Professional Development
• Jan. 4 - Second Semester Begins
• Jan. 12 - Board of Trustees Regular Meeting
• 2022-23 Student Academic Calendar (en español)

Meetings, Events, Fundraisers & Resources

• Dec. 2-Jan. 25 Registration Open for Semester 2 Accelerated Online HS Courses
• Dec. 5 - Practical Parent Education Classes
  
• Dec. 6 - Practical Parent Education Classes
• Jan. 19 - Internet Safety for Parents, Guardians, and Community Members
• Fall 2022 Connect Magazine (en español)

• The RISD Podcast
• Volunteer in RISD
  
• Pandemic Protocols
• School Safety & Security

Flu Season is Upon Us

Flu spreads easily and can cause outbreaks in schools. Vaccination is the best way to protect your child from the virus, according to Dallas County Health and Human Services. Teaching children simple precautions will protect them from the flu.

Keeping your child at home while they’re sick and notifying their school if they have the flu will help health officials determine if an outbreak is occurring. Sick students should not return to school until free of symptoms for at least 24 hours.

Volunteers Needed: We Read Together

We Read Together is RISD’s volunteer initiative to champion early literacy skills for students. For the 2022-23 school year, the goal is to grow volunteer efforts to serve more students at additional campuses. About 600 volunteers are needed to reach this goal.

Please visit the We Read Together website to find out more about the program and how you can get involved.

Thank a Teacher

Richardson ISD wants to recognize the work teachers do to support every child, every day. RISD believes there is an opportunity EVERY day to show appreciation for teachers and all they do to ensure student success.

Click here to learn more, and we will connect you with a campus.

Let's Talk!

Richardson ISD utilizes Let’s Talk!, a customer service and communication platform on RISD.org that will allow RISD community members to submit a question, comment, concern, suggestion, or compliment, and they will receive a timely response.