We are excited to welcome back our students and families for another great year!

Please check out our previous posts to review drop-off/pick-up procedures & school start/end times. Students will bring home a School-Home Communication Folder this Friday (August 29). Inside will be back-to-school updates, permission slips, and the Personal Electronic Device Contract for grades 3-5. The School-Home Communication Folder should be returned at the start of each week and will be sent home once a week (all classes/all grades) with hard copies of important newsletters, calendars, etc. as well as student work. We are hoping that using the folders in conjunction with our electronic communications will ensure all folks have the opportunity to know what is going on in your students' class and across the building. 

SAVE THE DATE! Our first Coffee Chat will be September 18 from 8-9:00AM. I hope to see you there! Our focus will be Q & A related to the start of the school year as well as introducing our Volunteer Handbook. 

We are excited to welcome our student and caregiver community back for another great school year! In response to feedback from our community regarding safety drop off and pick-up, please note the following important details:

Parking in front of the school at Drop Off and Pick Up is designated 5 minutes only and the driver must stay at the wheel. This is in effect from 7-9AM and 2-4PM every school day. 

Please do not park in front of the school while waiting for the bell to ring. Additionally, please do not park in the handicapped spot if you do not have a handicapped permit.

For your students' safety, please do not drop students in the middle of the road (while heading toward Stark). This is a very dangerous practice and puts both students and caregivers at risk. 

Drop Off: 

Kinder & First Grade will meet their teachers on the front lawn outside of the building starting at 7:53AM.

Grades 2 – 5 will enter through the front doors at 7:53AM.

Pick Up:

For all grades: Students will not be released without a caregiver present.

Kinder & First Grade will meet caregivers in the same place as drop-off.

Grades 2 – 5 will meet caregivers with their class & teacher on the upper playground. 

Breakfast at Pine Street Entrance; doors open 7:40am

All students eat free for breakfast and lunch!

First Bell: 7:53am

Tardy Bell: 8:00am

Dismissal: 2:30pm (grades K-1 in front; 2-5 on upper playground)

Early Release Dismissal: 11:50am

Early Release Days

• Student pick up @ 11:50AM
• NO SUN programming
• Champions 2:30pm to regular Champions end time

Congratulations to Lincoln High School students Richard Deng and Coral Platt! Both were awarded National Merit Scholarships of $2,500 toward their college studies.

They were chosen from more than 15,000 finalists nationwide. Richard plans to pursue a career in politics and Coral is looking at a future in the legal sector.

Two exceptional PPS educators, Ricardo Barber and Hang Jones, were recently named OnPoint Educators of the Year for 2025.

As part of this prestigious honor, both teachers will have their rent or mortgage paid for an entire year, and their schools also receive a $2,500 donation. 

Ricardo Barber teaches third grade at Faubion, and Hang Jones serves as a social worker at Marysville Elementary. 

The OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education celebrates educators who embrace innovative teaching techniques that ignite enthusiasm in their students. 

Congratulations to Ricardo Barber and Hang Jones! And thank you both for everything you do to make a difference in the lives our students.

The assignment their teacher gave them was simple – make a short film that begins with a phone call and ends with someone hanging up. Benson first-year students Dylan Martinez-Torres and Dariel Soriano Zamora ran it all the way to a small city populated by two very big and rather iconic monsters – Godzilla and Hedora.

The result, Sorry, Wrong Number, is one of the more than 90 films entered into the annual Best of PPS Film Festival. The festival is a celebration of exceptional student filmmaking that includes a showcase at the historic Hollywood Theatre. 

The fourth annual installment of the festival took place on May 21 and included a screening of 13 standout films. The films came from all over PPS and ran the gamut from Dylan and Dariel’s monster short to documentaries, film noir, and broadcast journalism. 

If you are a passionate student or community member that wants to make a difference at PPS, apply to join the Climate Crisis Response Committee! This is a committee that reports to the PPS Board of Education.

On the committee you will learn about how PPS is making progress towards our climate justice and sustainability policies, provide input and recommendations to the PPS Board on how to better support PPS staff as we advance these policy goals, and connect with other passionate members of our PPS community from diverse backgrounds, knowledge areas, and lived experiences.

No previous professional experience in climate change or sustainability required! Students can apply via this form. Community members can apply here.

Deadline to apply: June 6.