10/23/20: School Messenger

• School News (NEW)
• Upcoming Dates (NEW)
• Websites to Know
• Updates to Meal Service (NEW)
• Pandemic EBT Update (NEW)
• MESD Immunization Letters (NEW)
• Online Yearly Verification Ends Oct 31 (NEW)
• Social gatherings in Sunnyside Park
• Anti-Racist Reading and Resources (NEW)
• SES PTSA News: Holiday Pie Fundraiser, Poinsettia and Wreath Sale (NEW)

School News (NEW)
Dear Sunnyside Community,

Thank you to all of you who could make it to our Back to School Nights.  It was wonderful to see your faces again, and hear how things are going.

Today we launched our second StoryWalk! Brand new book! Brand new route! This one falls between SES and 20th, Hawthorne and Belmont and features Los Gatos Black on Halloween. Sarah Rosman narrates the book in Spanish at each stop and does a vocabulary intro at the beginning. Gillian reads it in English. Sarah Wagner, Iris, Steph, Indigo and Gillian added activities along the way. This will run for two weeks; please encourage kids to go in costume as a socially-distant alternative to Trick or Treating. There is a treat that can be earned if kids solve a little riddle along the way! Special thanks to Leslie Lothamer for getting a ton of goodies in gift certificate format from local businesses for the prizes! The first stop is in front of the school near where the last StoryWalk started. Finally, please pass along any feedback you and your students have to Gillian at ggrimm@pps.net. Note: Listening to the read alongs works best if your phone has Google Drive pre-downloaded.

Happy Fall,
Alix and Amy
 

Upcoming Dates (NEW)
Check the school online calendar here.

Websites to Know

• District COVID Resources & Info
• PPS Family Resources Page
• Sunnyside School Page
• SES PTSA website

Updates to Meal Service (NEW)
English | Español | Tiếng Việt | 中文 | Русский | Soomaali

PPS will be pausing services at Clarendon, Sacajawea and Harriet Tubman Middle School due to low participation. The last day of service at these three locations will be Friday, October 30. Families who have been visiting these sites are encouraged to visit one of the other PPS meal sites close by or request home meal delivery. 

Starting November 2, PPS’s grab-and-go curbside serving locations will be open from 3 to 4:30 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Some schools might shift their serving location on campus to help keep employees dry and visible. To see the full list of meal sites, please visit the Nutrition Sites During Distance Learning website. 

Finally, PPS is re-opening access to home meal deliveries, a service for PPS families that are not near a meal site or need assistance accessing meals. To request meal delivery service, please complete the request form.

If you have any questions about meal service, please email nutritionservices@pps.net.

Pandemic EBT Update (NEW)
The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) was approved to provide additional Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) benefits to eligible students enrolled from July 1 - September 22. Similar to the spring, benefits are provided to children who receive free or reduced price school meals through the National School Lunch Program that are not attending school in-person.

Every child who is eligible will receive at least $100 and some will receive more benefits based on when school began. The initial $100 benefits were distributed on September 28th. If a child qualifies for any additional benefits beyond $100, this will be provided through a second deposit. Eligible students who receive Oregon SNAP benefits, or who received an Oregon EBT card in the mail with P-EBT benefits in the past, received these September P-EBT benefits on their existing Oregon EBT card. For lost EBT cards, families can request a new one by calling a local ODHS office or calling the EBT replacement line 1-855-328-6715.

If eligible families did not receive P-EBT benefits, they can send an email to the PPS Meal Benefits Office at mealbenefits@pps.net with the following information: Student name, school name, and parent contact information (address, phone). Once the student is verified as eligible an email will be sent to the P-EBT email address (ebt.schoolmeals@dhsoha.state.or.us) on the behalf of the family for follow up.

MESD Immunization Letters (NEW)
The Multnomah Education Service District (MESD) recently sent out letters regarding incomplete immunization records. These letters were generated earlier this year than any other school year. As a result, families that have in fact submitted immunization information were incorrectly notified that the records were incomplete. If you had a new student and completed, signed, and returned the Oregon Certificate of Immunization, you can disregard this letter. Our Student Health Assistant Amy Liber will be reaching out to families later this fall if they need to update immunization information.

Online Yearly Verification Ends Oct 31 (NEW)
Each year parents and/or guardians are asked to review and update the information on file for their students. This information can be reviewed, edited, and submitted online via PPS ParentVUE: Verify Online.

Benefits of verifying online via ParentVUE:

• Complete yearly verification of your student's information
• You can update your communication and language preferences
• Ensures your school has the most up to date information
• Saves paper and time

The deadline for Yearly Verification is next Saturday, October 31st. After this date, parents and guardians will see a message on their ParentVUE account that halts login until the verification is complete. Remember, this process allows you to update phone numbers, emergency contacts, medical information, etc. If you need to update your address, you can do so as well then submit the address verification to our school secretary Sarah at sconley1@pps.net.

Social gatherings in Sunnyside Park
Dear SES Community,

I wanted to share some important information about in person “meet ups” on the school grounds. So far we have held 12 different family informational sessions, and we also have three back-to-school nights coming up over the next week. One of the themes that has come out of those meetings is that our students are feeling lonely, some are feeling isolated, and many kids and their home adults are yearning for human, face-to-face connection.

Read Amy’s full letter on the SES website.

Anti-Racist Reading and Resources (NEW)
Take some time to learn about the history of one of the centers of the Black community in Portland, the Albina neighborhood in NE Portland.

SES PTSA News (NEW)

• SES PTSA Holiday Pie fundraiser (NEW)
  You can order your pies, cobblers, and frozen fruit for the holidays while benefitting SES! All pies are made with local, non-GMO fruit and are made by hand by Willamette Valley Pie Co. Please click here to be taken to the pie order form on School Pay. At the top of that form there is a link to an ingredient list. Pie orders must be received by 9pm on November 1 and pie pick-up is in the afternoon of November 16th at Sunnyside. All pies are frozen fresh and ready to be baked in your oven. You don't even have to wait until the holidays. Please feel free to share the link to the order form with friends and family!
   
  Please don't hesitate to reach out to Holly Cook with questions or if you want to help distribute pies on the 16th: cookholly@gmail.com.
  
   
• Poinsettia and Wreath Sale (NEW)
  Support SES and women farm workers, and bring some cheer to your home, by ordering a wreath and colorful poinsettia potted flowers. The SES Wreath and Poinsettia Sale is a school-wide fundraiser that benefits our entire community. This year our wreath sale will again support Sunnyside and Mujeres Luchadoras Progresistas (Women Striving for Progress). MLP is a group of farm worker women who create economic development and promote leadership among women in their community.
   
  - Handmade Noble Fir wreaths, 24-26″ in diameter: $35
  - Lush red, pink, or white poinsettias: $12.50 for 6″ pots or $21.50 for 8″ pots
   
  Poinsettia orders are due by Sunday, November 8. Wreath orders are due by Monday, November 23. Pick up your order in the SES auditorium on Wednesday, December 2 between 3 and 7pm. Click here to place your order via SchoolPay. Questions? Contact SES parent Karen McCleary at mccleary.karen@gmail.com.
  
  
  
• SES Back to School Ask
  This week, you should have received mailed paperwork with information about the SES Back to School Ask. You can also access details and donate directly to the Back to School Ask on the PTSA website. This is a very important annual fundraiser for Sunnyside. Things are definitely different this year, but we still need donations to fund art, music and gardening programs, as well as grants for teachers and virtual field study programs.

Upcoming Back to School Night dates are:

• Tuesday, October 13: 3rd-5th grade

• Wednesday, October 14: 6th-8th grade

• Wednesday, October 21: 1st and 2nd grade

Dear Families of PPS Secondary Students,

During Comprehensive Distance Learning, opportunities are built into the schedule for all families to be able to connect with teachers during office hours. As in a traditionally formatted year, we will also be offering Parent-Teacher Conferences (morning to evening) on November 23-24. 

Dear PPS Families,

With the announcement that Portland Public Schools is extending Comprehensive Distance Learning through at least January 28, we want to make you aware of upcoming updates to our meal service as we adjust to the coming colder weather and shorter days.

Dear PPS Families and Staff,

We are now several weeks into Comprehensive Distance Learning, and simultaneously working on the next phases of a gradual re-opening of schools. PPS remains focused on published health metrics from the county and state and our medical experts. We also continue to observe Oregon Department of Education guidelines as we contemplate introducing limited in-person opportunities. While we are anxious to have all of our students back on campus, we will proceed in a measured and prudent manner that prioritizes the health and safety of our students and employees. 

Dear PPS Families and Staff,