Sellwood Principal’s Newsletter – May 28, 2020

Greetings Sellwood Community,

A few weeks ago we celebrated teacher appreciation week.  There was an outpouring of love and care from families, students, the community, and many local businesses.  The cards, letters, and gifts made all of our educators feel special.  Following this link will take you to a video where staff share their heartfelt gratitude for all of your support. 

https://youtu.be/SYVIguKcsBk  Mil Gracias!

The 2019/20 School year is rapidly winding down.  Many of you have been asking about when you would have the opportunity to collect your students’ belongings from their lockers.  Unfortunately, there have been restrictions preventing us from accessing the building, and we were hoping that restrictions in Multnomah County would be lifted in time for us to allow students in tightly controlled groups to enter the school and retrieve their items.  Unfortunately, that is not going to happen so we are moving on to plan B.  Since students and parents cannot enter the building, custodians are collecting belongings from lockers and placing them in bags, labeled with locker numbers.  We will be distributing these bags on designated days, along with yearbooks and other items.  We also plan to collect textbooks, library books, and instruments on these dates.

Students will be assigned a date and time based on their grade and first letter of their last name.

Please see below for more details and dates and times.

Sincerely,

Jeandré Carbone

Sellwood MS Principal

Important Dates to Remember

June 3: 8^th-grade Items Collection (see schedule below)

June 8: 6^th-grade Item Collection (see schedule below)

June 9^th: 7^th grade Item Collection (see schedule below)

June 9:  8^th-grade Promotion Video Virtual Party, 7PM

June 10: 8^th-grade Teacher Car Parade, 1PM

June 10: Last Day of School

June 17: Sellwood Middle School Foundation Meeting

Collecting Items from School

We ask that all students and family members wear masks and keep physical distance of at least 6 feet.  Please also limit the number of people in your group as much as possible.  At your scheduled time students will be directed to a table and asked for their locker number and a quick description of the locker’s location, for example – first floor near Ms. Bond’s room.  A runner will enter the building and retrieve the bag with the locker’s contents.  

Sellwood 6^th and 7^th-graders share lockers, which adds another challenge to the process.  Because we cannot determine on our own whose items are whose in any shared locker, when the bag for your shared locker is brought out, students will put on a fresh pair of gloves (that we will provide) and remove their items from the bag.  An additional challenge is that some students have left items in lockers that were not assigned to them.  We will only allow students to retrieve items from lockers assigned to them.  If a student knows they left an important item in a friend’s locker, they should remind the friend to get their item and return it to them when it is safe to do so.

There will also be tables for yearbook distribution and other items, and locations for dropping off textbooks and library books.

Please keep in mind that while we will do our best to keep items from becoming contaminated, any items transported by others should not be considered sanitized, even if the person was wearing gloves.  Please assume that any items you are taking home may have been handled by someone, and be sure to sanitize them and wash your hands.

Here is the schedule for the collection of items:

June 3^rd: 8^th-graders

• 9:30-10:30 – Last names A-C

• 10:30-11:30 – Last names D-G

• 11:30-12:30 – Last names H-L

• 1:15-2:15 – Last names M-R

• 2:15-3:15 – Last names S-Y

June 8^th: 6^th-graders

• 9:30-10:30 – Last names A-D

• 10:30-11:30 – Last names D-J

• 11:30-12:30 – Last names K-M

• 1:15-2:15 – Last names N-R

• 2:15-3:15 – Last names S-Z

June 9^th: 7^th-graders

• 9:30-10:30 – Last names A-C

• 10:30-11:30 – Last names D-G

• 11:30-12:30 – Last names H-L

• 1:15-2:15 – Last names M-R

• 2:15-3:15 – Last names S-Z

Message for Sellwood 8th grade families:  

We realize that this year is ending quite differently for all of us.  Our 8th-graders, especially, are missing out on several traditional activities that would have marked the end of their middle school years and the transition to high school. 

Here are a few details about our planned 8^th-grade promotional events.  On Wednesday, June 3^rd, 8^th-graders can pick up their t-shirts along with their yearbooks and locker belongings.  On Tuesday, June 9^th, at 7PM, we will release the 8^th-grade Promotion Video for a virtual video viewing party.  On June 10^th, at 1PM, teachers will do an 8^th-grade celebration drive through Sellwood neighborhoods.  The final details of the route are being worked out, and we will share them, along with an estimated timeline, early next week.  We are trying to make the route pass as many of your homes as possible.