The Gator Gazette

Gator families, thank you for making this year special and memorable. As we close out this school year and face the closure of Spring Valley Elementary, we want to know how much we appreciate and love each and every one of you.

This coming week brings many special events and you are invited to come celebrate with us at our Swamp Rally and graduation celebrations. Please read below to find information about our new sign in procedures. If you will take a moment to sign in on the morning of your event, you can skip the line when you arrive!

Don't forget that our last day of school, May 24th, is an early release day. All students must be picked up at 1:10 on Friday.

Good news! We have a new sign-in system that will make coming to events at Spring Valley much easier for our guests. You will notice that you can sign your students in and out with an iPad station in the front office. In addition, you can check in remotely on the day of an event to make obtaining your badge go more quickly and smoothly.

• Beginning at 7 a.m. on the morning of the event you are attending, you can complete your sign in at this link. You will need your government issued ID in order to complete the check-in.
• Arrive a few minutes early with your ID in hand to pick up your badge that is already printed!
• If you are planning to volunteer for any of these events, be sure you have completed your background check on RISD.voly.org. Make sure you make it all the way to the end. It will prompt you to watch a video and electronically sign.

With Swamp Rally, graduations, and other fun events to close out the year, we hope this new system will help your visit go more smoothly.

All Spring Valley Elementary PTA members are invited to participate in the dissolution meeting on May 21st at 3:30 p.m. As you know, Spring Valley Elementary will close at the end of this school year. We would appreciate the support of our school's PTA members as we make decisions about the remaining assets belonging to the Spring Valley Elementary PTA.

RISD Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion - Family Engagement presents

ONLINE ENROLLMENT ASSISTANCE FOR RISD PARENTS

APRIL 17 to MAY 15, 2024 Time: 4:30 PM to 6:30 PM Come and Go

Find a location near you:

Every Wednesday: at Apollo Junior High 1600 Apollo Rd. Richardson, TX 75081

Every Wednesday: at Dobie Pre-Kindergarten School 14040 Rolling Hills Ln. Dallas, TX

75240

Every Wednesday: at Northrich Elementary 1301 Custer Rd. Richardson, TX 75080

APRIL 16 to MAY 16, 2024 Time: 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Come and Go

Every Thursday: at Forest Meadow Junior High 9373 Whitehurst Dr. Dallas, TX 75243

El departamento de Equidad, Diversidad, e inclusion - Compromiso Familiar de RISD

presenta:

Ayuda para las inscripciones en línea de estudiantes de RISD

DE ABRIL 17 a MAYO 15, 2024 Hora: entre 4:30 PM y 6:30 PM

Encuentre una escuela cerca de usted:

Cada miércoles: en Apollo Junior High 1600 Apollo Rd. Richardson, TX 75081

Cada miércoles: en Dobie Pre-Kindergarten School 14040 Rolling Hills Ln. Dallas, TX

75240

Cada miércoles: en Northrich Elementary 1301 Custer Rd. Richardson, TX 75080

DE ABRIL 16 a MAYO 16, 2024 Hora: entre 5:00 PM y 7:00 PM

Cada jueves: en Forest Meadow Junior High 9373 Whitehurst Dr. Dallas, TX 75243

Students who are at Spring Valley on a transfer will be returned to their home campus at the end of the 2023-2024 school year. If you do not wish to return to your home campus, you will need to apply for a transfer. If you need assistance with applying for a transfer for the 2024-2025 school year, please contact our student data specialist, Jocelyn Castillo (jocelyn.castillo@risd.org).

Many of you have been asking about the structure that has been installed on the school's front porch. We're excited to let you know that our Little Free Pantry is ready for use! Our own Spring Valley students would like to show you what our Little Free Pantry is all about.

The Little Free Pantry is in response to survey answers from our community. It is a resource for immediate food and hygiene needs. The rules are simple: take only what you need and give when you can. The pantry is open and unlocked daily and you do not need an appointment to take what you need.

You can find non-perishable foods and basic hygiene items such as soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste, and deodorant in the pantry. It is open for you to visit any time. We'd like to thank the Spring Valley PTA and neighbors from Wilshire Baptist Church for providing the funds and manpower to launch this new resource.

We hope this, along with our uniform closet, will be another way our Spring Valley community continues to show care for one another and that these resources make it easier for students to be ready to learn each day.

Parents, please review the birthday policy below. Any treats delivered that do not follow the guidelines will be sent back upon arrival. Thank you for your cooperation.

Richardson ISD has switched from Paypams to School Cafe for all prepayments and meal benefit applications. Any existing student balances will be transferred to the new system.

On School Cafe you can:

• Apply for free and reduced meals
• Manage account balances
• View purchases on your lunch account
• Get low balance alerts

Create an account today!

Join the SVE PTA and back your child's future! Membership is only $10. Join today at joinpta.org

Our PTA will have school supply kits and spirit shirts for sale this Friday on a first come, first served basis. See below for school supply kit pricing:

Focus Parent Portal is free!

Parents of enrolled RISD students are encouraged to sign up for an account or add a student to an existing account by visiting www.risd.org/focus.

Student Info at Your Fingertips

• Class schedule

• Upcoming assignments

• Current grades

• Transcript grades

• Attendance and absences

• Report cards

• Assessment results

• Online absence note submission

• More!

Focus Parent Portal is accessible through any web browser, the Focus App, or the RISD Mobile Parent App.

Have a question? Let us know: FocusParent@g.risd.org or 469-593-0811

If you are interested in becoming an RISD volunteer, please sign up through risd.voly.org.

Each year, all volunteers must make sure their contact information is up to date or create a new account if they have never signed up. The process takes about five minutes, and you will be able to customize your volunteer opportunities based on interest and school. All volunteers must complete a background check through the VOLY system.

Volunteer opportunities are available at some schools in classroom support, office support, and cafeteria support.

Needs at each school can change each day, and schools will confirm with volunteers if they are needed on that campus in that area on the day chosen. Please do not go to a school unless you have received a confirmation message from the campus or another RISD representative. If your campus of choice does not need a volunteer in your area of interest, please consider volunteering at a campus with greater needs.

Here are a few reminders about the school day at Spring Valley Elementary. Your attention to these details will help our procedures run quickly and smoothly.

VISITING OUR SCHOOL: In order to visit our school, you must have a government issued ID or passport. This includes meetings and conferences during the school day, assemblies and celebrations, and signing students out.

CAFETERIA: The cafeteria is no longer using Paypams for cafeteria payments. The new system is a user-friendly app called Schoolcafe. You can download the app to your phone from any app store. Scroll down for more information about Schoolcafe.

For the first few weeks of school, we will not have parents in for lunch as we establish cafeteria rules and procedures. When the schedule for parent lunches is set, the information will be sent weekly in The Gator Gazette.

Other information:

Spring Valley Elementary's "The Gator Gazette" is our WEEKLY school newsletter created for SVE families. Within this newsletter, you will find important information regarding our school and upcoming events for students and families. This newsletter is sent home electronically each week. Please make sure we have your current email addresses and phone numbers on file. We would hate for you to miss out on important information. Any changes must be made by the parent, on your "Parent Portal." Not sure how to access the parent portal? Scroll down for information about your FOCUS account.

If you need assistance updating your contact information, please call the office. Office hours during the school year are from 8:00- 3:30 daily. You can reach the office at 469-593-4600.

You can also find information pertaining to our school on our School Website: https://schools.risd.org/springvalleyes

School doors open at 7:30 a.m. each day during the school year. Students should be in their seats and ready to learn no later than 7:50. The end of the school day is 3:10 p.m. Please be sure to call the school to report if your child will be absent or if you will need to sign your student out early. For afternoon sign outs, students cannot be signed out after 2:40 p.m. On early release days, students will be dismissed at 1:10 p.m.

May 21 - PTA Dissolution Meeting

May 22 - Swamp Rally; 6th Grade Field Trip to Biz Town

May 23 - PK/K Graduation

May 24 - 6th Grade Graduation; Early Release 1:10 p.m.