September 5, 2017

Welcome Back Markham Families,

We are off to a great start!  There were many hands, much effort and time that went into making our start of school a success. We had lots of help during our Community Care Day.  Thank you to our volunteers who organized the event from set-up to coffee and snacks.  We even had a special guest, PPS Board Member Julia Esparza Brown, come and assist us.  A big thank you to our PTA for organizing the stuffing of our Back to School Packets, our new staff Meet and Greet, Supplies Drop Off and Kindergarten Welcome.  We had former Markham students who currently attend Jackson Middle School lend helping hands for our first day, thank you.  They along with current Markham students conducted school tours for our new families. I want to send out a huge thank you to the parent volunteers who assisted us in the office by making sure bus tags were correct and attached to backpacks.  

More words of appreciation are in order.  Thank you to the A Miracle Foundation for supplying our two ISC classrooms with backpacks fully stocked with schools supplies and water bottles.  For more information on this foundation, please go to:  https://amiraclefoundation.org

Thank you to Huron Consulting Group who gave us an abundance of school supplies.  Our parent, Ms. Keo, who works at Huron nominated and Markham was selected to be the beneficiary of their fundraising event! Thank you Ms. Keo.

Another Markham parent, Ms. Reynoso, delivered a $450 check to Markham from her employer, Wells Fargo.  These funds were used to purchase our 2nd and 3rd grade First Move curriculum and materials.  

Please join me in welcoming new staff to Markham:

Krista Franklin – 1st Grade

Sarah Lee – 3rd Grade

Rose Addis – 4th Grade

Sheree LeDoux-Leos – ESL Teacher

Linda Rozman – Grade 1st-5th Reading Support

Debra Fuller - 1 day a week Speech Pathologist

Tatum Megli – Kindergarten Educational Assistant with Ms. Nelson

Katie Harmier – Para-educator

Allison Schierholtz – Para-educator

Joshua Sevier and Marzouk Ibrahim – Evening Custodial Crew

School Nurse – Mary Corcoran RN, and Sasha Salko – School Health Assistant

Nurse Corcoran is at Markham on Tuesdays in the AM and Ms. Salko is all day M-F.

We are so happy to have them a part of the Markham Team.  We will soon have a full-time Speech Pathologist and another Para-educator joining us as well.  Nurse Sabrina was assigned to different schools this year.  She will be missed, and I wish her a wonderful year.  

Ms. McNutt is still with us at Markham but in a different role.  She is now our Literacy Coach.  She will be supporting us in the new literacy adoption which she piloted last school year.  Markham is a phase two school which means we are a part of a group of ten schools implementing the second year of an augmented implementation schedule.  Congratulations to Ms. McNutt in her new position!

Important Dismissal Information:  During dismissal time benches in the main hall are for students only. All benches are reserved for students from 2:45-3:00.    The main entrance benches are all for our kindergarten students.  The benches below the display cases and in front of the “Children Shine” artwork in center hall are all for 1st – 5th graders who are waiting to be picked up.  Also please keep the center hall clear in order for teachers to safely get students where they are going in an organized manner.  Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Reminder:  Lunch application forms have to be filled out each school year.  You can go online or pick up a hardcopy application from the cafeteria or office.  You can access an online meal application at:  www.pps.net/nutrition.  

Mark your calendars for Back to School Night.  It is on Tuesday, September 19th from 6:30 to 8:00.  We will begin in the auditorium and then dismiss for classroom visits.  This is a parent only event due to limited space in the auditorium and limited time for classroom visits.  Teachers will share important information specific to their classroom which you will need to better partner with them and support your child in having a successful school year.  You will have the opportunity to sign-up for fall conferences happening in November.  Please remember that this is a time for teachers to share important classroom information regarding curricula, activities and expectations.  If you are needing to meet with the teacher to discuss your child’s progress or other in depth information, Back to School Night is not the appropriate event. Please contact your child’s teacher to set up an appointment.

Markham has four initiatives:  Literacy Adoption (Also, referred to as EBBL- Equity Based Balanced Literacy) PBIS (Positive Behavior Intervention Supports), The Right Brain Initiative, and Equity.  Our Equity work is like the umbrella for which the other three initiatives come under due to the fact that all of our professional development is viewed through an equity lens.  The main threads of continuity integrating these initiatives are students’ academic achievement, engagement, social and emotional growth and support.  Each of these initiatives are also reflected in our CAP, Comprehensive Achievement Plan.

Here are the dates for the 2018 focus option lotteries. 

• HS Lottery applications are available from November 13th to December 1st, 2017.  Offers will be made to families in mid-January.  Final lottery results will be in SYNERGY around February 1.
• K-8 Lottery applications are available February 7-March 2.  Offers will be made to families in mid-to late-April.  Final lottery results will be in SYNERGY mid-May.
• Pre-K and inter-district lottery applications will be available in May. 

I am looking forward to a wonderful school year and with a community such as Markham, you can’t lose.  I appreciate how collectively we put each child first.  

Here is to a great year with much gratitude,

Shawn Garnett,

Principal