Principal's Newsletter 1.26.2024

Sellwood Principal’s Newsletter – January 26, 2024

Greetings Sellwood Community,

It was great to see many of you at Sellwood last night for in-person Parent/Teacher Conferences.  See below regarding the virtual conferences that were re-scheduled due to the snow & ice storms.

Congratulations to Mr. Patterson and family who welcomed baby Wesley last night!

Today is the last day of 1st semester. There is no school for students on Monday, January 29, as it is a planning day for teachers. 

Have a good weekend, and we look forward to seeing students on Tuesday.

Sincerely,

Jeandré Carbone

Sellwood MS Principal

jcarbone@pps.net

 

PARENT/TEACHER CONFERENCES

As you know, due to snow and ice storms, we must reschedule the cancelled 1/16 and 1/17 Parent/Teacher Conferences.  The new dates for virtual conferences are January 29 & 30th, from 5-8PM.  There are a few teachers that need to hold conferences on a different date due to time conflicts, but those teachers should have already reached out to the parents of their students.

Please see the linked conference sign-up Google Doc, which contains all you will need to sign up for conferences.  There are written instructions, as well as a video Screencast tutorial, and links to all Sellwood teachers and counselors appointment calendar.

Please keep in mind that you will need to use desk or laptop computer to sign up, as the Google appointment calendar does not seem to work properly with cell phone or iPads.

As a reminder, these are the dates and times for re-scheduled conferences.

  • January 29: 5:00-8:00 PM - Virtual
  • January 30: 5:00-8:00 PM - Virtual

Here is the link to the conference sign-up document.  If you have trouble with that link, copy and paste the following url into your browser.  

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1b63sY1FP4iL0bagD8xM1GDKeS9T4QiikRO2v_Xh4Qus/edit?usp=sharing

CLEVELAND DESIGN WORKSHOP RESCHEDULED FOR SATURDAY, FEB 3
Due to the recent winter storm we had to reschedule this workshop. The CHS Modernization project is at an important stage in the comprehensive planning process and we need your input! Please join your friends and neighbors at the upcoming Cleveland Design Workshop on Saturday Feb 3rd from 9:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m. in the cafeteria. Come early at 9:00 a.m. for a light breakfast.  Your participation at this time is very important and thank you for being flexible.

Project Update
Comprehensive Planning for Cleveland began in late September with the selection of the Comprehensive Planning Committee (CPC).  This 40+ person committee is made up of parents, school staff, students, alumni and community members. The CPC has had several meetings with the design team working in a community-centered process to produce a high-level plan for the future of Cleveland High School. The plan will address how to improve student safety in and around the campus, provide direction on where building and program elements will be located and most critically, determine whether to renovate the historic building or completely rebuild the school. 

The Public Design workshop taking place on Saturday, Feb. 3rd at 9:30a.m. is the next opportunity for community members to provide their feedback on the design options for Cleveland High School’s modernization.  Important decisions about the future design of Cleveland High School are being made by PPS. Community attendance and feedback shared with the Design Team is vital to this process.

Provide Feedback on Cleveland Design Options
The modernized CHS will need to add about 50,000 square feet of space to accommodate modern learning needs. To fit a larger building on the site, several options are being considered:

  • Whether to keep some of the existing building or to completely rebuild
  • Adding a new building on the current parking lot site
  • Adding more athletic facilities on the current track site

Come provide your feedback on these design considerations with the Project Team.

Translation services are available upon request
PPS recognizes the many diverse voices within the Cleveland community and wants to hear from them. Language translation services are available upon request at CHSBond@pps.net Please respond by Tuesday, January 30th so we can arrange to have an interpreter to meet your needs.

Visit the website regularly for more information
The Cleveland modernization website, www.pps.net/ClevelandBond will keep you updated on the latest developments, has previous meeting minutes and presentations to view and provides a list of upcoming engagement opportunities.  You can also join the Cleveland Modernization project mailing list by emailing CHSBond@pps.net.

Thank you for helping us create a modernized Cleveland High School.

PROGRAMS, EVENTS & RESOURCES

Camps, Classes, & After School Programs:

Preschool Programs:

Community Events & Information:

Vaccinations, Health & Wellness:

8TH-GRADERS – CLEVELAND FORECASTING INFORMATION

Below are the links and information you will need to help your student forecast for their high school classes.  We ask that all students forecast for Cleveland High School even if they are planning on attending a different school.   If your student is planning on attending a PPS school other than Cleveland please reach out to the high school counseling office for next steps in forecasting. 

Forecasting Support:

--

Katie Francis, Licensed School Counselor

PIL YOUTH SPORTS

PIL sports registration, schedules and calendar found HERE. Sellwood falls under the "Cleveland Cluster". If your student is playing a sport or any extracurricular activity outside of the PIL, we would love to support them as well. Send an email to Mr. KB (akennybrew@pps.net) including the schedule, including playoff information, and team pictures. Thank you 

SELLWOOD YEARBOOKS FOR ALL

Who wants a yearbook at the end of the year?  It turns out, pretty much everybody wants one!  Each year, we set aside some time for students to commemorate the end of the school year with a yearbook signing ritual.  However, not everyone orders a yearbook, often because they are busy and don’t realize until after the ordering deadline.  Sometimes students don’t think they want a yearbook, but when they see them, they realize they really do want one.  The truth is, there are many reasons why families don’t order yearbooks, and we never have enough yearbooks for everyone who wants one.  We do not like to disappoint students and families.  So, what if we ordered yearbooks for every student?    In fact, if we order more yearbooks, the price per book will go down.  We envision the last day of school when every student has a yearbook to sign!  However, we will need your support in order to make this sustainable.  We are requesting a suggested $20 donation to our Sellwood Yearbook Donation account in School Pay (the price for a yearbook was $25 last year).  You can donate more, especially if you have more than one child at Sellwood.  We hope that our “Yearbooks for All” plan will make for a more enjoyable and equitable end of the year experience for all.  Thank you for your support.


Here's the link to SchoolPay.  If you need assistance with SchoolPay, the SchoolPay parent help

phone number is 833-731-2600.

COUNSELING CORNER

Students with last names A-L: Mr. KB – akennybrew@pps.net

Students with last names M-Z:  Ms. Katie – kfrancis@pps.net

MAIN OFFICE

The best way to reach us is by email.  

  • Melissa Whiteside (mwhitesi@pps.net) is our school secretary and registrar.  
  • Claire Howard (choward1@pps.net) is our principal’s secretary and bookkeeper.
  • Our Sellwood website (pps.net/sellwood) has many “Quick Links” to help you immediately.   

The Office Phone Number

The office phone number is 503-916-5656.  

When prompted:

  • press 4 for Melissa;
  • press 3 for Claire 
  • press 2 for all Attendance matters. 
  • press 5 for Records, Registration.
  • press 0 for the front counter; however, students may answer this line.  Do not discuss anything confidential or leave any confidential messages.  

Secured Building 

Sellwood is a locked and secure building.  

Please ring the doorbell to the right of the main doors to reach the office.  We will guide you accordingly.

Parent/Student Requests:  

Please email both Melissa and Claire for student pick up or if you must get a message to a student.  For student pickup, advance notice is strongly recommended to minimize classroom interruptions. No pickups/dismissals will be allowed after 3:30 pm.

Guides to Help you:

To access your student’s attendance in Synergy: Log into ParentVue. 

To make changes to your student’s registration in Synergy:  ParentVue/StudentVue

Please email Melissa Whiteside (mwhitesi@pps.net) for:

  • Passwords:  If you have forgotten your password, have been locked out of your account, or do not have login credentials
  • ParentVue (if your account has been disabled).   

Please email Claire Howard (choward1@pps.net) for:

  • School Pay/Bookkeeping/accounting issues.
  • Administrative Support:  Messages or matters of support to the principal or assistant principal.

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER

  • January 29: No School for Students – Teacher Planning Day
  • January 29: Parent/Teacher Conferences – Virtual 5:00-8:00PM
  • January 29: Parent/Teacher Conferences – Virtual 5:00-8:00PM
  • February 19: Make-up day (President’s Day – previously not a school day)
  • March 12: 5th-grade Parent Info Night
  • March 25 to March 29: Spring Break
  • April 5: No School for Students – Teacher Planning Day
  • April 8: Make-up Day (Previously not a school day for students)
  • May 27: Memorial Day – NO SCHOOL
  • June 6: Showcase Night
  • June 12-14: Make-up Days
  • June 14: Last Day of School

 
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