Family Communication- Sept 11th-15th
Dear Southside Families,
Thank you for a wonderful first week of school! It was such a joy to welcome our students back - we had a week filled with reconnecting, building community, new friendships, learning routines, reviewing prior knowledge and learning new concepts, laughter and curiosity. The beginning of the school year transition holds so much…and can be exhausting! Thank you for all the ways you support your student(s) and our staff during this season.
Upcoming Events
-
Tuesday, September 11: 6pm - School Board Meeting (Hospitality Hall)
-
Monday, September 25: No School, Conferences (scheduled with teachers)
-
Tuesday, September 26: 6pm - Southside Annual Meeting (Hospitality Hall)
Reminders
-
During the first week of August, we sent a communication folder with all forms we need completed by you. Please click on this Welcome Back Folder if you still need to complete those forms (health office forms, emergency contacts, permission for internet usage, media release, and our social justice pledge).
-
If you have had a change of address, phone number or email address over the summer, please contact Jamesha (jamesha@
southsidefamilyschool.org) as soon as possible so we can update your information. -
Our lunch sign up will be emailed by Jamesha the last week of each month.
-
If your student needs to sign up for bus transportation, please reach out to Jamesha as soon as possible. Setting up a new stop can take up to 2 weeks.
-
Thank you for your support as we work on practicing our new pick up system. Here is the map for pick up - by having our line of cars move all the way to the end of the building and leaving the left lane open, we can minimize the cars in the street, enable you to safely drive out in the left lane once you have your student(s), and create more safety for our students as they are leaving the building.
Needs and Invitations
-
Our classrooms are in need of supplies. If you are able to donate, the biggest common need is for composition notebooks and pencils. Additionally, here is a class specific list (check the tabs on the bottom for your student’s class) if you have the capacity to contribute more supplies.
-
We are still enrolling students in our Kindergarten class for this year. If you and your family know of any interested students/families, please connect them with Tarik (tarik@southsidefamilyschool.
org) for more information. -
At the Annual Meeting on September 26, we will end the evening with School Board elections. Based on our current members term completions, we will be electing two new family member positions and one community member position. We are looking for individuals who are able to volunteer their time to commit to various areas of work as stewards of our school’s mission and that supports the financial health and sustainability of our school community. If you are interested in learning more about running for one of our School Board positions, please contact Alissa (alissa@southsidefamilyschool.
org).
Bus Transportation Update
We would like to apologize for any inconviences you all may have experienced over the past week. As a result of our transportation being contracted through Minneapolis Public Schools our pick up times can sometimes be delayed due to issues that may arise from MPS school routes. This applies to pick up and drop off of students riding the bus to school.
In order to provide information to help navigate your child(s) daily transportation to and from school we highly recommend that you all download the Here Comes the Bus app. This applies to students as well, especially those who have cellphones on their person during the school day. Although the productivity of the app is contingent on whether the assigned buses are running it still is a powerful tool for information regarding daily transportation. For help downloading the app use this link. To set up an account you will need the DIstrict Code 87018 along with your MPS transportation Student ID. To find out your student's MPS transportation Student ID please see your student’s bus slip or contact the front office/your student’s teacher.
Lastly, as drivers become more familiar with students and their routes we expect most transportation delay issues will be resolved heading into the next few weeks. If your morning bus is a no show please call to inform us soon as possible. When calling please let us know the student’s name and bus number so we can assist. For late or no show buses, families can also call 612-668-2300. If drivers are running late for school pick up in the evening we will begin to notify families starting at 5:30pm. Delays are typical at the beginning of the year as drivers are learning new routes and changes are made to accommodate new transportation requests. We thank you all for your patience in this matter and please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have in regards to your student’s transportation needs.
Alissa Case, PhD (they/them)
School Leader
Phone: 612-872-8322
Southside Family Charter School
Would you like to schedule a time to connect? Please schedule something with me on my Calendly Link!