WOH For Tuesday, August 31, 2021

Words of Hope for Tuesday, August 31, 2021

Back to School! By Kristen Okabayashi, Hope School Principal   

Welcome to the 2021-2022 school year! It was lovely seeing many of our new and returning families at the back to school event yesterday and we can’t wait to see everyone tomorrow for the first day of school. Hope’s school theme this year is “In All Things”, based on Colossians 1:15-20. Throughout the year in chapel and faith classes, we will explore the idea that we are all connected together through the Christian story – nothing and no one is left out.

Along with this overarching theme, we recognize another underlying theme of flexibility and continued patience. We are entering into our third school year affected by the pandemic, which in some ways is stunning to realize. Last year’s success in navigating through safety protocols has given us confidence as we head into this year, and yet we realize we will have to be more flexible than we imagined even earlier this summer. Hope will continue to communicate with you any changes in procedures and protocols, as we again rely on you to work together with us in keeping our community healthy.

My role has already proven to be flexible and different this summer, as I have added Seattle Lutheran High School to my principal duties. At Hope, I’ve come to rely on Assistant Principal Jennifer Neafcy to take over some of the day-to-day job responsibilities I’ve done for years, and she has risen admirably to the challenge. She previously served as an assistant principal and interim principal at other Lutheran Schools, and so has embraced the challenge with ease. We have found a rhythm that highlights each of our areas of strength, which will benefit our students and school in the long run.

Last Friday we sent out a short video for you to watch regarding our back to school procedures including the arrival screening, cleaning protocols, and uniform reminders, among others. Please click here to watch the video..

Blessings on the beginning of the school year!

 

School and Pandemic Handbooks

At the back to school event yesterday, in addition to classroom materials, we handed out 2 paperwork packets from the office. The first is our usual updated School Handbook, which includes all our normal policies and procedures for the school year. This handbook does not have any big changes from last year’s handbook.

The second item is an updated Pandemic Family Handbook. This handbook details our specific changes in policies and procedures necessary to run a school in a pandemic. Please take some time to familiarize yourself with these documents. Remember that due to the extreme difficulty in teaching on Zoom and in person simultaneously, we do not plan to teach in a hybrid model at this time. If necessary due to quarantine, we will switch to a full virtual model. 

 

Calendar of Events – Click Here

Wed. 9/1: First Day of School / School Milk and NEST Hot Lunch programs begin

Wednesday-Friday 9/1 – 9/3: Kindergarten Only 11:50 AM Dismiss – ESC “XTRA” Open

Friday 9/3: Early Dismissal – ESC “XTRA” Open

Mon. 9/6: School Closed for Labor Day 

 

New Email for Hope School Office

Parents please use our new office email address office@hopeseattle.org for communication between our two office managers, Shari Wallace and Tammy Shelver. This will be for all communications including reporting a student’s absence or tardiness.

 

Update Your Email in GradeLink

This is a reminder to parents to please log into our SIS (Student Information System) GradeLink to update your email address. The school will use GradeLink to communicate important information via text through SmartSend as well as by email. Teachers will also be updating their classroom pages weekly in GradeLink in lieu of their class page on our website which will be phased out in the near future.

 

Volunteers Needed

If you are fully vaccinated we could use your help! 

We need lunch recess help on Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays from 11:30am to 1:00 pm. If you can volunteer for a day or all three days please let us know at office@hopeseattle.org. 

Our middle school teachers would like help on Tuesdays to stuff our communication envelopes. Thank you!

 

Uniform Drive

If you missed our back to school event on Monday and would still like to shop, contact the school office to arrange a time to come in. 

 

School Milk – Begins Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021

Milk can be purchased through our SMART Buy Now link: https://bngn.smarttuition.com/?id=bzd030en5td

 

Hot Lunch Program – Begins Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021

Our NEST Hot lunch program is available 5 days a week during our 1st trimester to all PS – 8th grade families. The registration form is being update and will be available soon on NEST’s website:  http://www.cafestellinacatering.com/NEST-School-Lunch-Program.html orderable and payable on a month-to-month basis.

 

Hope School Apparel

Hope school apparel items can be purchased through our SMART Buy Now link:

https://bngn.smarttuition.com/?id=jlhbqek3lpt. Deadline for orders are due by Friday, September 10.