As the pending teacher strike approaches, I know there is considerable uncertainty and feelings of stress. If an agreement between the PAT and PPS district is not reached by Tuesday, there will be no school starting on Wednesday, November 1st. During a strike, teachers will not be allowed to provide any work for students. Teachers will not have access to their PPS devices, curriculum, or our school building. Therefore, if you have questions or concerns, you may contact the front office.

The district will be providing information to families regularly, so please check your emails for PPS updates. Below is information from our district to guide our families.

• Nutrition Services - All students 18 and younger will be able to pick up breakfast and lunch from the nutrition site located closest to you. A list of sites is HERE. (NOTE: Laurelhurst School will NOT offer grab-and-go meals, so please look at the map to see which other school building that is providing services is closest to you.)

• Building Access - The building will be closed to all students, families, and teachers. All sports and enrichments taking place at PPS schools will be canceled for all K-8 students. (Note: YMCA is not running their program at Laurelhurst School during the strike.)

• Our district will be providing a collection of online resources for students. To access materials and get more information visit PPS’s Resource for Learning Page. There will not be any requirement for school work to be completed and no new assignments will be provided to students. Middle school and high school students are encouraged to use this time to get caught up on any outstanding assignments. All students will have access to optional, supplemental learning resources. Please use this website to access the resources.

• We encourage students to read, write a letter to a family member, do step-by-step drawings, play games, use learning apps on the PPS landing page, and play outside.

• Clubs and After School Activities - All after school clubs, enrichments, and activities will be canceled during the strike. Enrichment providers will communicate with you directly regarding how they will handle the closures.

• PPS District Parent Page - This link includes ideas about how to talk with your child about the strike and other helpful information.

Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding during these challenging and uncertain times. Be sure to check for emails from our school and from PPS with any updates. Also, a reminder that regardless of a work stoppage (or not) there will be NO SCHOOL for students on Friday, 11/3. This is a planned teacher work-day for grading.

To stay connected with other families and get information on community activities surrounding the strike, you can check out postings on the PTA-run Konstella app.

Dear Laurelhurst Families,

With the holiday season and school breaks approaching, if there is anything your student(s) or your family needs, you can fill out THIS FORM. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out to your student's school counselor:

Chelsea LaValley (KG-4th): chelavalley@pps.net

Andrea Bloch (5th-8th): abloch@pps.net

Thank you!

The process for using district Chromebooks is a little different for each grade level. Please know that there will no academic expectations for students during a strike. If your student has access to another computer outside of school we encourage you to leave your student's Chromebook locked up at school. However, if you would like to take a district Chromebook home for the duration of the teacher strike, read on to find out about the process for your student's grade level.

KINDERGARTEN THROUGH 2ND GRADE

The district distributed on online form last week. Families who requested a device via that form will have a Chromebook sent home in their student's backpack on Monday or Tuesday of this week. Quick login cards—credit-card sized card with a QR code—will go home with Chromebooks for easy access to district materials.

3RD GRADE THROUGH 5TH GRADE

Students will receive a Chromebook unless families opt out of having a device sent home. IF YOU DO NOT want your student to take their Chromebook home, please fill out THIS FORM as soon as possible.

MIDDLE SCHOOL

All students will have take home their assigned Chromebooks as usual. Please ensure students take care and keep track of their Chromebooks, and they should come to school with them fully charged on the first post-strike school day.

If you have any questions, please contact the main office for help!

Enjoy a moment of quiet before you pick up your children? Enjoy organizing and seeing results for your work? Then you should sign up to volunteer in the library! Ms Lang could use help with shelving and other library projects on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from 2:25-3:15. Please note that you must have completed your PPS Volunteer Background Check first before signing up.

To sign up see this document: Fall 2023 Library Volunteer Sign Up. Questions? email Ms. Lang at mdlang@pps.net. Thank you!