Monday Memo

Welcome back, Washburne families! We hope you had a restful, enjoyable summer and are excited to begin a new school year. We are very much looking forward to welcoming students back into the building and reconnecting as a school community.

We are also excited to officially welcome Britta Dahlberg as Washburne’s new Assistant Principal. While many families may have seen the District’s announcement in May, Britta and I have been working closely together since July 1 to prepare for a strong start to the school year. Britta brings 18 years of experience in education, including 15 years teaching middle and high school students, with a particular foundation in grades 6–8 mathematics. She has also served as a Dean of Culture and Dean of Students, leading schoolwide work focused on student culture and safety and supporting multidisciplinary teams of counselors, social workers, psychologists, and culture staff. We are thrilled to have her joining the Washburne community.

As we prepare for the first days of school, please keep these reminders in mind:

Meet & Greet is Tuesday. Additional information about locations is included below so that you and your child can plan for the event.

Our first several days will follow modified schedules designed intentionally to support students as they begin at Washburne. Staff will help students practice using their locks, finding classrooms and key locations, learning routines, and navigating the building with confidence. You can reinforce at home that it is normal for these skills to take practice—we will be there to help every step of the way.

Please make an arrival and dismissal plan with your child. Arriving on time is an important part of starting each day successfully, and knowing their plan for getting to and from school will help students feel prepared and confident.

A few additional reminders are included below as you navigate the opening days of school. If there is anything we can do to support your child or family, please do not hesitate to reach out.

We cannot wait to get the year underway!

Dr. Luke Livingston, Principal

Ms. Britta Dahlberg, Assistant Principal

August:

Tuesday, August 25 | Meet and Greet 11:30am

Wednesday, August 26 | First Day of School 11:50am Dismissal

September:

Monday, September 7 | No School Labor Day

Wednesday, September 9 | Go to School Night

Monday, September 21 | Yom Kippur No School

Tuesday, September 22 | Picture Day

Wednesday, September 23 | Fall MAP Testing Reading

Thursday, September 24 | Fall MAP Testing Math

Friday, September 25 | Back to School Bash

Monday, September 28 | Washburne Safety Week Begins

Wednedsay, September 29 | Shelter/Tornado Drill

Thursday, September 30 | Lockdown Drill with Winnetka Police Department

October:

Friday, October 2 | Fire Drill

Monday is Washburne Spirit Day:

On Monday's we will wear our Washburne gear to celebrate our school.

Washburne Practices and Guidelines:

These are friendly reminders about practices and guidelines related to Washburne: Practices and Guidelines 2026-2027

First Few Days of School:

Students will be spending time with their advisory during the first few days of school. We run a modified schedule to come together and kick-off the year:

Wednesday - Students are with their advisory. They spend time organizing lockers, walking the building, and their is a 7th/8th grade partner activity.
Thursday and Friday - We run a "Monday" Schedule where periods are shorter. For the final hour of each day we will have a school-wide assembly, popsicle party, and advisory challenge to kick-off the year.

Trimester 1 Schedule Changes:

Schedule changes during the first week of a trimester disrupt our elective classes. If students have concerns, they should see Dr. Livingston or Ms. Dahlberg before the end of the week (Aug 28th), as requests made afterwards will not be honored. We appreciate your support and partnership as we get the third trimester started.

Meet & Greet :

Tuesday, August 25th from 11:30am-12:15pm all Washburne students will have the opportunity to meet with their team teachers and connect with other students. This event will take place outside around Carleton Washburne School.

This is a great opportunity for 8th graders to connect with their teachers and classmates and for 7th graders to meet their teachers and fellow teammates. Students can stop by at any point during this timeframe to meet the teachers on their team. Each team will be located outside the perimeter of our building, near the door where students will enter the building each day.

Please see the image below to see the location for your child’s team. This image is updated from last week and slightly different.

Hot Lunch Starts Thursday:

Washburne has a hot lunch program and it begins on Thursday. You can find all the information here: Washburne Hot Lunch Details.

School Supplies:

If you were not able to order school supplies you can find the list on the PTO website.

School Supplies. If you ordered they will be present in advisroy on the first day of school.

Important Note (7th Grade Only): All 7th graders (regardless of team) will need to purchase a 1.5 inch red binder. This was left off of the supply list. You can order the red binder on amazon. Here is an example.

Preview of Fall Sports

Fall sports will be starting up right away this school year. We will once again offer 3 sports: Girls Volleyball (7-8), Coed Cross Country (6-8), and Coed Soccer (7-8).

The annual Washburne Sports parent meeting will be on Wednesday, August 26 at 6:00 on zoom. Please use this link to attend this brief session as we discuss all things related to sports for the 26-27 school year.

Requirements for all sports include being fully registered online (See below) and having a current physical on file with the Washburne Nurse.

Cross country and soccer will have their first practices on Tuesday, Sept 1st. Students who plan to participate in these sports should plan to meet their coaches on the back field after school, ready to participate. If there is rain, or the fields are unusable, the teams will meet in the hallway outside of the gyms for a quick team meeting.

Girls volleyball will have tryouts on Thursday, August 27th and Friday, August 28th from 3:30-5:30. If needed, we will have a 3rd tryout day on Monday, August 31 from 2:30-4:00. The 3rd tryout date will be determined after Friday's tryout and communicated to families immediately. Girls should plan to attend both days of tryouts. The first practice will be on Tuesday, Sept 1 from 3:30-5:00.

Registration for all three sports will be found online here. Registration may not be live yet - but can be found by following this link. If you have any questions, please reach out to Andy Becker at AndyBecker@winnekta36.org

Monthly Observances | September | LatinX Heritage Month & Patriot Day:

As part of The Winnetka Public Schools' ongoing commitment to equity by fostering connection and belonging, our schools will take time each month to recognize the contributions of people of diverse backgrounds. Observances will look different at all schools and even at different grade levels. Some activities might include art, music, book studies, research projects, sharing cultural holidays and celebrations, and other school activities.

For the month of September we are celebrating Latin X Heritage Month as well as Patriot’s Day. More information is included below…

In September, we celebrate LatinX Heritage Month in the United States each year. This tradition began in 1968, when President Lyndon B. Johnson issued a proclamation to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Week. The dates for LatinX Heritage Month were chosen to coincide with the Independence Day celebrations of many Latin American nations when they declared independence from Spain.

During LatinX Heritage Month, we celebrate the countless contributions that Hispanic Americans have made to our nation. We also take this time to recognize the trailblazing individuals who fought for progress and equity for their communities. Throughout this month, teachers will incorporate this into their classrooms with age and grade appropriate materials. In addition, our library will be sharing some resources for families at home. You can access two of the resources here:

Families can learn more about LatinX Heritage Month here.
You can access our library collection via Destiny here: Destiny collection

As a school, we will also celebrate Patriot’s Day on September 11th. Patriot’s Day is a national day of remembrance for those who lost their lives on September 11th, 2001. In the morning, our school will take a moment of silence when we complete the Pledge of Allegiance as a school community

Parent Volunteer Sign-Up/Form:

We are excited to announce that beginning this school year, The Winnetka Public Schools will be using Raptor VolunteerSafe to manage volunteer applications, approvals, and background screening requirements across the district.

Volunteers play an important role in supporting our students, staff, and schools. This new system will help us streamline the volunteer process, continue to follow The District’s Volunteer and Chaperone Guidelines and maintain a safe and secure environment for everyone on our campuses.

Through VolunteerSafe, volunteers will be able to:

Complete and submit volunteer applications online
Receive approval notifications electronically
Complete required background screening requirements
Manage volunteer information in one secure location
Easily participate in school events, field trips, and volunteer opportunities

All volunteers, including field trip chaperones and classroom volunteers, will be required to complete the VolunteerSafe application process prior to volunteering during the school year.

All volunteers, regardless of when you plan to volunteer in the district, will need to complete the volunteer application process and pay a $6.30 processing fee (paid during the registration). If you do not complete the Volunteer Safe application prior to September 1st you will not be cleared to volunteer in our buildings during the 26/27 school year. If you have an interest in volunteering this year, please complete the VolunteerSafe form.

We appreciate your partnership and commitment to making sure our campuses, students and staff are as safe to work and learn as possible. Together, we can continue creating a safe, welcoming, and engaging environment for all students.

Personal and Instructional Technology

Beginning in the Fall of 2024, The School Board approved the introduction of Yondr Pouches in grades 5-8, eliminating the use of personal technology on our middle school campuses. Personal technology includes items such as cell/smart phones, airpods/earbuds, smartwatches, etc. While our K-4 schools do not utilize Yondr Pouches, access to personal technology is not allowed on any of our school sites during school hours and will be enforced. Students are not to engage with personal technology during instructional hours and will be subject to disciplinary consequences for using personal technology, including but not limited to parents reclaiming devices in the main office, and/or loss of privileges. Parents may call the main office of their child’s school to relay any messages during the school day.

When it comes to instructional technology, these are tech devices that are issued by the District for student use. While we have an educational obligation to ensure our students are appropriately exposed to technology to equip them with the skills and discernment to be responsible users, we are also a school district rooted in a deep history of progressive education, which places a high value on experiential and meaningful learning through hands-on, imaginative, social and highly engaging learning experiences. We are committed to ensuring that these two educational responsibilities (technology and progressive education) co-exist in our classrooms. As a result, we will be seeking staff and family feedback on the use of instructional technology. We will use this information to help us shape clearer guidelines and communication for staff and families on the use of instructional technology in the classroom. Keep an eye out for opportunities to learn more and share your feedback.

Campus Safety & Security

In our continued commitment to ensure that our campuses are safe for students and staff to learn and work we are making some adjustments to our daily operations to improve security:

Outdoor play at all five campuses will be restricted to fenced or otherwise protected areas at the rear of our buildings.
Decorative safety bollards will be installed in phases to increase traffic safety during arrival and dismissal. Bollards are sturdy, reinforced posts designed to help prevent unauthorized vehicles from entering pedestrian areas while allowing students, staff, and visitors to move safely throughout campus. The bollards selected for our schools have been chosen to complement each building's architecture and historic character, blending seamlessly into the landscape while providing an important security enhancement.
Supervising staff will be easily identifiable in reflective vests while outdoors with students at any time.
Food delivery services like DoorDash and UberEats will no longer be permitted to enter our buildings, reducing the number of unidentified visitors to our campuses as well as the time it takes away from our office staff. Parents may drop off of forgotten lunches up until 10:30 a.m. on school days.

We know these changes create periods of adjustment for everyone; however, we have an obligation to prioritize safety over convenience and ensure our campuses are as secure as they can be for our students, staff and visitors. We appreciate your partnership in adjusting to these changes.

District Communication:

The latest edition of The 36 Mix is out now! Be sure to check out the 3-6 Things to Know from The Winnetka Public Schools. You'll find back-to-school information, photos from New Teacher Orientation and more.

PRINCIPAL MESSAGE PRINCIPAL MESSAGE

UPCOMING DATES UPCOMING DATES

PRIORITY INFORMATION PRIORITY INFORMATION

CONTACT WASHBURNE CONTACT WASHBURNE

PRINCIPAL MESSAGE

UPCOMING DATES

PRIORITY INFORMATION

CONTACT WASHBURNE