Dear Chief Joseph Elementary Families,

As we wrap up this school year and move into summer, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and yours the very best. May your summer be a safe, healthy and happy one! 

We would like to congratulate our students on completing another successful school year, and wish our outgoing 5^th graders the best in their future endeavors and academic pursuits. We are very proud of our students.  I also want to share my appreciation for all of the hard work, dedication and perseverance that our teachers and staff consistently demonstrate to the children we serve. We accomplished a lot this year and will continue to build on the strength of our community. It truly is special to attend a neighborhood school where your classmates are your neighbors, and families come together to build a community within the school as well as the larger surrounding community.  A special thank you to families, who continue to support our school at home, and through communication and volunteering with the school.

The academic calendar for the 2024-25 year is out and posted on the district website. The first day of school for our 1^st- 5^th grade students will be Tuesday, August 27^th.  Parents should expect to receive a welcome back letter from the school in mid August with preliminary class placements and back to school information.  

Kindergarten will have a ramp-up schedule to help with the transition to school during the last week of August; this schedule will be mailed to families in August.  The first full day for all kindergarten students is Tuesday, September 3rd.

The district has set the Community Care’s day where we will have a work party at the school on Saturday, August 17th from 9am – noon. We hope that you can mark your calendar and join us for this annual tradition.  

I also want to remind parents of the big shift in the student day.  Next year, the student day will begin at 8:00 am, with the doors opening at 7:55.  Breakfast will be provided in the cafeteria beginning at 7:45.  Due to the change in start time, we will no longer have morning supervision on the playground and ask that parents supervise students before school.  Students not with an adult will be asked to go to the cafeteria where they can be supervised.  

We will continue to be a CEP school, which means breakfast and lunch will continue to be free for all students.  There are still a number of moving parts when it comes to staffing, as we are impacted by layoffs and seniority across the district.  I will be able to tell you more in August.

Regards,

Amber Gerber

Principal