
Peter McElwain Elementary
News from the Nest ~ August 13, 2020
Peter McElwain Elementary Euberta Lucas, Principal
Website: http://www.katyisd.org/campus/pmce
Location: 6631 Greenwood Orchard Drive
Phone: 281-234-4800
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KISDMcElwain/
Twitter: @KISDMcElwain
Upcoming Events
August 17-Home Access opens - You can view your child's homeroom teacher for both KVA and Face-To-Face (F2F) instruction.
August 17 - You will receive an email from your child's homeroom teacher to sign up for a virtual Meet the Teacher meeting (KVA and F2F students)
August 17 - Grab and Go - See Attachment
August 17 and 18 - Virtual Meet the Teacher meetings
August 19 - First Day of School - KVA and F2F (online until September 4)
September 7 - Labor Day - No School
KVA and Intermittent/In -Person Learning Options
All learning will be virtual beginning August 19 through Sept. 4. KVA will continue to be virtual after Sept. 8. In-person students are scheduled to start In-Person learning on Sept. 8. Parents will be able to access student homeroom teachers for all students via HAC on August 17. The Intermittent Virtual Learning and KVA Resource Guides are now available! Guides can be found on the Smart Restart webpage under “Return to School Information.” Beginning on Monday, August 17, you will begin receiving emails from your child’s homeroom teacher.
Annual Student Update
Last week, parents and guardians who have an email address on file with the district were emailed a unique Snap Code for each of their enrolled students. Once you have a Snap Code, visit the Katy ISD online registration page and select the “Annual Student Update” link. The Snap Code allows parents and guardians to securely update their student’s information for the upcoming school year.
Parents and guardians who have not provided an email address will receive their Snap Code by US Postal Mail. If you have not received your Snap Code, or you are having issues with PowerSchool, please submit a Help Desk ticket and a Technology staff member will contact you within 24 business hours.
Grab and Go
The McElwain curbside Grab and Go campus distribution of start-up materials and devices will take place on Monday, August 17 from 8:45-11:00am and 12:30-3:00pm. Campus Grab and Go check-outs will include distribution of all devices requested via the Online New Student Enrollment & Registration, the Katy Virtual Academy commitment form, the Annual Student Update in PowerSchool and/or the Student Device Request Form.
School Supplies
those will be handed out during our Grab and Go on August 17. For our Face-to-Face students who ordered supplies from PMCE, those will be in your child’s classroom when they return for in-person instruction on Sept. 8.
PreK and Kindergarten Parents
Do you have a PreK or Kinder student starting school at PMCE this year? If so, please see the attachments for tips on starting/returning to school. Together we can help to make this a smooth transition for your child.
Meet Your Teacher Night
Meet Your Teacher Night has always been a fun event where students and teachers get to meet for the first time. This year the event will be virtual and will look a little different. You will receive information regarding Meet the Teacher on Monday morning. A PowerPoint will be emailed to parents with general information. Homeroom teachers will schedule Zoom meetings with students and families to meet virtually on Monday afternoon or Tuesday morning. Please be on the look-out for more information.
Information from Food Services
On Wednesday, August 19 all Katy ISD students will begin school virtually, either through Katy Virtual Academy (KVA) or through Intermittent School to Home Virtual Instruction. In addition to providing a quality education, it is the District’s commitment to continue providing nutritious meals through the Katy ISD Curbside “Grab and Go” Meal Distribution Program.
Beginning August 19 and through September 4, “Grab and Go” Meal Service will begin for the 2020-2021 school year. This meal service is available to all students during the first three weeks of school at 23 food distribution sites established across the District. Families who wish to apply for Free/Reduced cost meals may complete an application by signing into their SchoolCafe account.
Touchless meal payment will be used at the “Grab and Go” meals distribution sites to promote healthy and safe food distribution practices. Families are encouraged to use the Pay N’ Go mobile app to provide student meal money, in place of cash. Parents can pick up meals without their student(s) present. However, parents and/or students must show a student ID, which is scanned for meal payment. ID badges will be distributed to elementary students at their home campus on August 17 in the PMCE Grab and Go. Student ID’s from the 2019-20 school year can also be used for meal payments, if available. Otherwise, elementary and secondary students will be able to access a temporary ID badge via the Student ID App available on the My Katy cloud. Families will receive an email on Friday, August 14 with instructions on how to access and use the Student ID App.
On September 8, students choosing to return to schools for In-Person instruction will receive their meals at their designated campus. KVA students will continue to be able to access meals in a “Grab and Go” format. Information about the updated sites for KVA participants beginning on September 8 will be released prior to that date.
Parent Support
We realize that parents are going to need support with helping their child navigate learning for their child. The district is offering some great Zoom sessions for parents. This is for KVA and Face-to-Face students who will be doing the intermittent remote learning. Click here to register. Note that the recording will be available as well if you can’t make one of these live sessions.
Katy ISD COVID-19 Self-Reporting and Notification System
The District has a COVID-19 Reporting System in place to allow staff, students and parents to self-report if they have received a COVID-19 positive test result. The self-reporting system enables the District’s Emergency Management team to conduct contact tracing, as well as call and notify individuals in Katy ISD buildings who may have been directly exposed to the infected person. A general email notification is also sent to campus staff and families whenever the district is informed of a potential “indirect” COVID-19 exposure in their building. Receipt of the general notification alone indicates that the recipient was not directly exposed to the COVID-19 positive case reported for their building.
Many school personnel have begun returning to campuses for various trainings. Should there be a potential COVID-19 exposure on any campus, a general notification will be sent to staff at the work site impacted by 5:00 p.m. on the day in which the self-report was submitted. Staff who may have been directly exposed because of failed COVID-19 safety protocol will be notified directly by a member of the Risk Management Department.
Parents will begin to receive applicable campus-based general notifications when students return to schools for the in-person instructional option.