The Cheetah Coalition #6

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PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE: BUILDING OUR ATKINSON COMMUNITY

This was a big week for community building at Atkinson! On Wednesday, we had our first Early Release Day of the year, and students met their cross-age Buddies. Throughout the year, Buddies will spend time together during our Early Release days, giving our older students opportunities to be mentors, helpers, and friends while our younger students build relationships with a caring older student. These experiences are an intentional part of how we help every child feel known, connected, and that they belong at Atkinson.

We also gathered for our first All-School Assembly. These assemblies are another important part of building our school community. We sing together, celebrate students and classrooms, and recognize the things we value as a school—including showing up and being at school. Regular attendance matters academically, but it also matters because so much of belonging happens by simply being here: participating in traditions, seeing friends, building relationships with adults, and being part of the experiences and memories we create together.

And finally, thank you to everyone who joined us for Back to School Night! It was wonderful to see so many families in the building. Events like this help children see that the adults in their lives are working together on their behalf. That partnership helps students feel safe, supported, and connected to their school.

Buddies, assemblies, family events, and our everyday classroom routines are all part of the same intentional work: creating a school where every student feels connected, capable, and ready to learn.

Thank you for being a part of our caring school community,

In service to students,

Debbie Armendariz

Principal

Email: darmenda@pps.net

School Main Number: (503) 916-6333

Here are some photos from our first All-School Assembly!

CORE ENRICHMENTS NEWSLETTER

Read the first Core Enrichment newsletter in English.

Read the first Core Enrichment newsletter in Spanish.

YEARLY VERIFICATION IN PARENTVUE

Please login to ParentVUE and complete the Yearly Verification by Wednesday, September 30. Anyone who has not completed Yearly Verification by that date will not be able to navigate freely in ParentVUE until they do.

ATTENDANCE REMINDERS

Welcome back to school! School attendance is very important. Did you know:

Students who miss 10% of the school year (or 17 days throughout the year) are considered chronically absent?
This number includes excused AND unexcused absences.
Missing 10% or more of the school year can make it harder to learn to read.
Attendance is one of the three school success indicators reflected in our school’s report card issued yearly by the state.
When students reduce absences, they can make great academic gains.

Last year, 16.3% of Atkinson students were chronically absent. We are working to decrease that number this year and in the years to come by providing outreach, school wide attendance awareness, and resources to students and families.

If you have any questions about your child's attendance or if you need resources for your family to help support school attendance, don't hesitate to call the main office for our School Counselor.

STUDENT PHOTOS [REPEAT]

Student photos will be taken on September 21 and 22! Kinder–2nd grade students will have their photos taken on Monday, September 21, and 3rd–5th grade students will have their photos taken on Tuesday, September 22. If your student misses their photo day or you want a retake, those will occur on Tuesday, October 13.

WE'RE HIRING: BILINGUAL DUTY SUPPORT! [REPEAT]

We’re looking for a caring, dependable English/Spanish bilingual speaker to join our Atkinson team as a Temporary Duty Support person. This role helps keep our students safe and supported during lunch and recess, while reinforcing positive behavior and building relationships with students.

The position is Monday–Friday, 10:30 a.m.–12:15 p.m., and is a great opportunity for someone who enjoys working with children and being part of a school community. Experience working with children in a school, childcare, youth, sports, or community setting is required.

Spanish speakers are highly preferred! If you or someone you know would be interested in joining our team, please check out the job description details here. The job posting will soon be appearing on the PPS jobs website.

SEPTEMBER CLASSROOM NEWSLETTERS [REPEAT]

See below for September class newsletters from homeroom teachers:

English Scholars Classes:

DLI Classes:

PARENT VOLUNTEERS NEEDED [REPEAT]

The Atkinson Student Store is a fun opportunity for students to practice responsibility, communication, and money-management skills. We're looking for parent volunteers to help run the Student Store during the school day. It is open most Mondays from 9–10:30 a.m. and 12:30–2 p.m. No experience is needed, just a willingness to lend a hand and connect with our students!

If you're available to volunteer or interested in learning more, please email our school counselor, Bri Henderson, at brhenderson@pps.net. Thank you for supporting our students and school community!

FIRST DINE OUT [REPEAT]

Our first Dine Out for Atkinson is Wednesday, September 23 from 5–9 p.m. at Migration Brewing at 2828 NE Glisan St. 10% of all sales will be donated to Atkinson PTA. This goes for to-go sales and packaged beer sales as well for those who can't hang out but still want to participate! And this is an Atkinson parent-owned business, so we'll be supporting our community too!

UPCOMING DATES TO KNOW

Monday, September 21 — School Pictures for Grades K-2
Tuesday, September 22 — School Pictures for Grades 3-5
Wednesday, September 23 — Dine Out at Migration Brewing from 5–9 p.m.
Friday, September 25 — Principal's Coffee in the Cafeteria at 8:10 a.m.
Thursday, October 8 — PTA Meeting, 6:30-8 p.m.
Friday, October 9 — Oregon Statewide Teacher Inservice Day, NO SCHOOL
Tuesday, October 13 — Picture Retakes Day
Friday, October 16 — Run for Atkinson!
Wednesday, October 21 — Early Release @ 11:50 a.m.
Friday, October 23 — Principal’s Coffee in the Cafeteria, 8:10 a.m.
Friday, October 23 — PTA Fall Harvest Festival, 2:30-4 p.m.

Access the full school calendar here.

EARLY RELEASE DAYS

We have early release at 11:50 a.m. on the following Wednesdays: October 21, December 16, January 20, February 17, March 17, April 21, and May 19.

EMERGENCY DRILLS SCHEDULE

PPS works hard to ensure that all staff and students are trained to respond effectively and efficiently during an emergency at or near school. One of the many ways we accomplish this is through our mandatory drill requirements. These drills are essential in ensuring our school community is as prepared as possible for emergency situations. Atkinson's emergency drill schedule for the remainder of the school year is as follows:

Friday, September 18 — Lockdown
Thursday, October 15 — Earthquake and Evacuation
Monday, November 2 — Fire/Evacuation
Thursday, November 5 — Secure the Perimeter
Thursday, December 3 — Fire/Evacuation
Tuesday, January 5 — Team Response
Friday, January 8 — Fire/Evacuation
Monday, February 8 — Fire/Evacuation
Tuesday, March 2 — Fire/Evacuation
Friday, March 12 — Lockdown
Thursday, April 15 — Earthquake and Evacuation
Friday, May 14 — Fire/Evacuation
Monday, June 7 — Fire/Evacuation

Learn more about PPS Emergency Management here.