3-25-26 PAW'S PRESS

Dear Cherokee Families,

We hope that you have a wonderful Spring Break! We have a HALF DAY on March 27th with dismissal at 11:44 AM. Spring break begins at dismissal.

As in the past, the Paw's Press newsletters will include key information and typically will be sent at the end of each week. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help make the school year a success for you and your child! See you soon!

Sincerely,

Heather Batko

Cherokee Principal

hbatko@cvs.k12.mi.us

Even though lunch is free for all students, we still need parents to complete the digital online ordering form so that we have an accurate count and enough food for all students.
Click here to order school lunch for April.
Click here for a printable version of the April lunch menu.
Ordering deadlines: Please note that we have received communication from food services that families need to order lunch by 9:30 AM the school day prior. For example, when ordering lunch for pizza on Monday, please order by 9:30 AM on Friday. This helps with the accuracy of our lunch count. We of course always order extra but this helps with accuracy.
There is a charge of $1.50 for ordering doubles.
Click here for the Food Services website.

Sale runs April 1st- May 22nd

Cherokee Student Council will be selling lawn signs for the end of the year. It will run from April 1, 2026 - May 22, 2026

Celebrate your child's big milestone with a personalized Celebration Lawn Sign! These bright, cheerful signs are a way to recognize our Kindergarten - 5th grade students as they complete an important year and get ready for what's next.

Each sign will include a celebration message and your child's class year, making a special keepsake to display at home. All proceeds from the lawn sign fundraiser will support our leadership student’s end-of-the-year activities and future events.

Signs will be distributed before the end of the school year so families can proudly display them during our end-of-year celebrations. Thank you for helping us celebrate our students and support our school.

Sale Link: https://www.payschoolsevents.com/events/details/43424

Each middle school in Chippewa Valley will host a 6th grade parent orientation on Thursday, April 9th. Cherokee students are assigned to Algonquin, Seneca or Wyandot based on their address. Please save the date below.

INFORMATION FOR INCOMING SENECA 6TH GRADE PARENTS

Dear Incoming Sixth Grade Parents,

We would like to welcome your child to Seneca Middle School. To ensure a comfortable transition from elementary to middle school, we are offering the orientation programs described below.

Incoming students will be visiting Seneca on Tuesday, April 7 or Wednesday, April 8. During the orientation, students will attend a short presentation where they will meet some of our staff and have the opportunity to ask questions. They will also be given a tour by some of our sixth grade students and view a performance by the Seneca band and choir.

An orientation for parents only will be on Thursday, April 9, at 6:30 p.m. in the Seneca cafeteria. We will be discussing important information to help your child be successful in middle school. Parents will also be able to meet some staff and tour the building. We encourage all parents of incoming 6th graders to attend this evening. Please park in our North Lot, off Cougar Drive, and enter through Door 6 or 7 (our Athletic Entrance). (Flyer attached to this email.)

We look forward to welcoming our new 6th grade class for the 2026-2027 school year and to meeting you on April 9th. School will begin on Tuesday, September 8, 2026. If you have any questions, please call Ms. Lublin, next year’s 6th Grade Counselor, at 586-723-3940 or email at jlublin@cvs.k12.mi.us.

Looking forward to beginning this new chapter together!

Jodi Pirog

Principal

Seneca Middle School

(586) 723-3900

jpirog@cvs.k12.mi.us

Registration for students who will be entering Kindergarten in the fall of 2026 began on Monday, January 26th. Registration is done through central office.

NOTE: This is NOT for students who are currently enrolled in Kindergarten at Cherokee this school year. This is for the 2026-2027 school year.

Start here by entering your preliminary information: https://ps.cvs.misd.net/public/formbuilder/form.html?formid=5737884

We are already planning for NEXT school year. If you have a Kindergarten student for the 2026-2027 school year, save the date for our Kindergarten Kick-Off on May 12th.

This is NOT for current Kindergarten students.

Click here to apply.

Updated 3/10/26

Throughout the school year we are required to complete 5 fire drills, 3 lockdown drills and 2 tornado drills.
We completed 3 fire drills in September. The other two will be in the spring.
Both tornado drills have been completed.
All lockdown drills have been completed.

We have many students at Cherokee with severe peanut/tree nut allergies. Therefore peanut/tree nut products and products contaminated in a facility that processes peanuts/tree nuts may not be consumed in classrooms.
A designated area/table in the cafeteria will be available for students with peanut/tree nut allergies. Peanut/tree nut products may not be consumed in this designated area/table. The area/table will be labeled as a peanut/tree nut alert zone.
Your child's teacher will review guidelines and answer any specific questions.
Click here for the Snack Safely Guide. This guide has recommendations for foods that do not have peanuts, tree nuts and are not processed in facility with these items. This guide updates regularly so it is best to check the link below rather than printing.

Click here for the district calendar.

Several years ago we created the Paw's Pals Lunch Volunteer Program at Cherokee. The name for the program was inspired by our school mascot, Paws the Wildcat.
This program is very similar to the Watch D.O.G.S program that was in place at Cherokee prior to the pandemic. It is not limited to male volunteers as the Watch D.O.G.S program was.
The purpose of the program is to help children have a sense of belonging and build positive relationships. Kids love extra attention at lunch! They love to talk about sports, toys and what they like to do for fun! Having extra adults at school shows children that education is important and they are important!
Please understand that these volunteers are not in place of lunch monitors.
Our lunch monitors will be responsible for supervising the students, cleaning, etc.
Paw's Pals volunteers will have time to chat with their own child (children) and other Cherokee students during lunch periods.
Just like any other school volunteer, our Paw's Pals volunteers will respect the privacy of our students. Volunteers are asked to stay in the designated area (cafeteria) and not visit other areas of the building during this time.
In order to participate in the program there are 3 steps to complete.
Step One: Volunteers need to have a background check on file for the 2025-2026 school year. If you have not completed the background check for the 2025-2026 school year, please email Mrs. Krellwitz at ykrellwitz@cvs.k12.mi.us If you are not sure if you have a background check on file, please email Mrs. Krellwitz. Background checks take at least three weeks to process.

Step Two: Click here to complete the Paw's Pal's Application.
Step Three: Click here to sign up for a date in March. Even if you can't stay the whole time, we would love to have you!