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Vestal Elementary School
Our richly-diverse community nurtures life-long learning to support all students
in achieving their very highest educational and personal potential.

161 NE 82nd Avenue•Portland, OR 97220•Ph (503) 916-6437•Fx (503) 916-2679

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Vestal
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  • Looking ahead

    8/13/2024
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    Monday, September 15 - PICTURE DAY — the photographers will begin at 8:15, don't be late!

    Tuesday, September 16 - Is the start of Fresh Veggies and Fruits they will be delivered to all classrooms on Tuesdays and Fridays by 9:30 throughout the school year.

    Wednesday, September 17 - Early release for Students (11:50)

    Back to School Night and Resource Fair! Thursday, Sept. 18th!
     

    Back to School Night (BTSN) and Resource Fair Sept. 18th!

    The Resource Fair will run from 4:30-7:00

    Classrooms can be visited from 5:00-6:30.

    Burritos will be available anytime, 4:30-7:00!


    Our goal for BTSN this year is to share tons of local resources, let kids show their family around the school, let kids show off their classrooms, have families meet the many people who help Vestal be so great, and invite everyone to enjoy a relaxed fun community night!


    Your child/ren will get a BINGO card when they first arrive. Each place they visit will earn them a stamp! We hope kids fill up the whole BINGO card and turn it in for a prize before you leave!


    We hope you and your family can join us next Thursday, Sept. 18th for BTSN and the Resource Fair!!!


    ** Just to be super clear — there WILL NOT be a school-wide presentation in the auditorium, as we have done in the past. This will be more of an open time for people to walk around and visit all the different resources! You can come anytime between 4:30-7:00!

     

  • Garden Schedule - subject to change

    2/8/2024
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    Schedule

     

Community Buzz

  • Hello all, Happy Thursday! It has been yet another wonderful week here at Vestal- the cooler weather has made a huge difference in being able to focus on new learning!

    I hope you saw my note yesterday about Back to School Night and Resource Fair! This is Sept. 18th 4:30-7:00...please see my previous email for details!

    ALSO happening next week- Wednesday is our first Early Release. We have Early Release once a month. This happens Wed. 17th. Students are dismissed at 11:50. They will have both breakfast and lunch available.

    We had a wonderful suggestion come from a Kinder parent- she asked about ALL the many ways we at Vestal communicate with home...turns out we use many tools and it can be a lot to sort out. I am going to send a separate email that should follow this one that lays out all the ways we communicate and how to access them. This is such a great example of having someone ask for something we were not providing that would  helpful for our families! If you have ideas- please share! We know there is ALWAYS room for growth!

    Tomorrow is our spirit day! This includes wearing Vestal gear or clothing with Social Justice messages and the Spinny Wheel happening at lunch.

    Parents of younger students- please talk with your child about the Spinny Wheel- it is a time where every class brings ALL of their Vestal bucks to lunch, I choose three from each class and those three kids get to spin the wheel and pick a prize. It I fun but also hard for some kids to understand why they don't win even if they had a lot of Vestal bucks! We use the saying, "Well, maybe next week!" to encourage students, but I am sure a little conversation at home would help,too.

    Thank you, as always for trusting us with your students every day!
    Ms. Sabrina

    From our PTA-
    There is a Green team mtg. next week, 9/16 from 7-8. It is virtual.
    Follow this link for more info- https://www.vestalpta.com/greenteam

    Notes from Specialists-
    Each week I will include notes from one of our specialist teachers. This includes Music, Library, Art, and Library!! This weeks is from our awesome Music teacher, Mr. Williams-

    Hello Vestal families,
     
    Welcome back to a new school year! I am Mr. Williams, and this will be my 5th year teaching music at Vestal Elementary. I'm excited for another beautiful year of music-making with our students!
     
    We started our year by learning how to find and keep the steady beat in our music. By finding and moving to the steady beat, we can connect better with the music, no matter the genre or style. We've explored genres such as Rock and Roll, Pop, Classical, and even movie scores; all while keeping the steady beat with our bodies and instruments! Ask your student to show you a way they've kept the steady beat in our classes. 
     
    I am unfortunately at my other school site during our Back-to-School night and will not have a chance to connect with our new families in person. I am happy to answer any questions you have about our music program via email at evwilliams@pps.net. I look forward to meeting you soon. Have a great week!
     
    Musically Yours,
    Mr. Williams
       

District News

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  • Two Lincoln High School Grads Win National Merit Scholarships

    6/12/2025

    Congratulations to Lincoln High School students Richard Deng and Coral Platt! Both were awarded National Merit Scholarships of $2,500 toward their college studies.

    They were chosen from more than 15,000 finalists nationwide. Richard plans to pursue a career in politics and Coral is looking at a future in the legal sector.

  • Two PPS Educators Named OnPoint Educators of the Year

    6/2/2025

    Two exceptional PPS educators, Ricardo Barber and Hang Jones, were recently named OnPoint Educators of the Year for 2025.

    As part of this prestigious honor, both teachers will have their rent or mortgage paid for an entire year, and their schools also receive a $2,500 donation. 

    Ricardo Barber teaches third grade at Faubion, and Hang Jones serves as a social worker at Marysville Elementary. 

    The OnPoint Prize for Excellence in Education celebrates educators who embrace innovative teaching techniques that ignite enthusiasm in their students. 

    Congratulations to Ricardo Barber and Hang Jones! And thank you both for everything you do to make a difference in the lives our students.

  • Student Filmmakers Showcase Their Monster Talent

    5/22/2025

    The assignment their teacher gave them was simple – make a short film that begins with a phone call and ends with someone hanging up. Benson first-year students Dylan Martinez-Torres and Dariel Soriano Zamora ran it all the way to a small city populated by two very big and rather iconic monsters – Godzilla and Hedora.

    The result, Sorry, Wrong Number, is one of the more than 90 films entered into the annual Best of PPS Film Festival. The festival is a celebration of exceptional student filmmaking that includes a showcase at the historic Hollywood Theatre. 

    The fourth annual installment of the festival took place on May 21 and included a screening of 13 standout films. The films came from all over PPS and ran the gamut from Dylan and Dariel’s monster short to documentaries, film noir, and broadcast journalism. 

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  • Join the Climate Crisis Response Committee

    5/19/2025

    If you are a passionate student or community member that wants to make a difference at PPS, apply to join the Climate Crisis Response Committee! This is a committee that reports to the PPS Board of Education.

    On the committee you will learn about how PPS is making progress towards our climate justice and sustainability policies, provide input and recommendations to the PPS Board on how to better support PPS staff as we advance these policy goals, and connect with other passionate members of our PPS community from diverse backgrounds, knowledge areas, and lived experiences.

    No previous professional experience in climate change or sustainability required! Students can apply via this form. Community members can apply here.

    Deadline to apply: June 6. 

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