Jefferson Journal

Hello Families,

As we enter the final month of the school year, we remain committed to not just counting down the days, but making the days count. Our students are doing an excellent job demonstrating their growth on state testing and end of the school year assessments, and your encouragement at home is helping us finish the year successfully. It is a joy to see students consistently showing PRIDE to earn Jag Tag punches, Positive Shout Outs, invitations to our Party with the Principals, and quarterly rewards. We also want to celebrate our successful Penny War fundraiser; congratulations to our third-grade winners and to everyone for supporting future fifth-grade festivities! We are looking forward to our upcoming events, including first and fifth grade music programs, the Book Fair, and the Ice Cream Social. We could use your help volunteering at our Book Fair and Field Day, too! Please read through this newsletter for opportunities to get involved. Thank you for your partnership in ensuring this final quarter is productive and rewarding for every student.

Thank you,

Mrs. Platt & Mr. Eberly

35980 Lakeshore Blvd. Eastlake, OH 44095

Office Email: tj.office@weschools.org

Main Office Line: 440-942-7244

Attendance Line: 855-612-7207 (24 Hours)

Transportation Department: 440-975-3736

• Mrs. Candace Platt, Principal
• Mr. David Eberly, Assistant Principal
• Mrs. Lori Dugger, Principal's Secretary
• Mrs. Wendy Flick, Administrative Secretary
• Mrs. Jacque Sparent, Family Liaison
• Ms. Katie Klemencic, School Nurse
• Ms. Priscilla Drewery, Health Aide

• 4/21- Final PTO Meeting of the School Year- 3:10 PM
• 4/22- 1st Grade Music Program- 7 PM at the PAC at North High School
• 4/27-5/1- Book Fair
• 5/1- Evening Book Fair Shopping and Ice Cream Social- 5:30-7 PM
• 5/1- Family Input Survey Due
• 5/4- Turn in a White T-Shirt for Field Day Tye Dye by Today
• 5/7- TJ Choir Singing at the Lake County Captains Game- 6:35 PM
• 5/11- TJ Being Honored at the Board of Education Meeting- 6 PM at the BOE Office
• 5/11- 5th Grade Music Program at the PAC at North High School
• 5/22- Field Day
• 5/22- Lake County Captains Reading Program Night
• 5/27- 5th Grade Day
• 5/28- Last Day of School for Students
• 5/28- 5th Grade DARE Graduation- 1:30 PM (Clap Out to Immediately Follow)

Many factors go into class placement decisions including providing balance, academic and behavioral needs of students, individual learning styles of students, teacher's qualifications, etc. While specific requests for teachers/classrooms should not be requested, there are a number of factors that parents can be instrumental in providing that assists in the placement process. Please use this form to share information about your child's learning needs as well as successes and areas of focus from this school year that will help to make the 2026-2027 year great! Information will be collected through Friday, May 1, 2026. Thank you!

• Our Field Day is taking place on Friday,5/22 rain or shine. If the weather does not cooperate, we will move the activities indoors We need volunteers to help run our activities. There will be no spectators, so if you'd like to attend, please plan to volunteer and sign up below.
• Please send your child in comfortable clothing, tennis shoes, sunblock, and with a water bottle labeled with their name on Field Day so they can safely enjoy the fun. Thanks!

Dear Families of Students in Grades 3-5,

In the weeks ahead, our building is preparing to embark on Ohio State Testing (OST) for students in grades 3-5. These tests are a culmination of skills they have learned throughout this school year and are completed on their Chromebooks. Students in grades 3 and 4 have to take two English Language Arts (ELA) tests and two Math tests. Students in grade 5 take two ELA tests, two Math tests, and two Science tests.

We have short testing windows to get these tests completed, so it is very important that students attend school on time the days of these tests. If they are not here to test with their class, they will have to make up their tests on the day they return to school, missing other class time. The building testing schedule is below. Please consider avoiding these dates, if possible, when making appointments. If you already know that your child will not be at school on one of these dates, please contact their teacher as soon as possible so we can make a plan to get their tests completed.

Please see the student-created PRIDE expectations for state testing. Students will earn raffle tickets throughout testing to get a chance to win great prizes if they meet these PRIDE expectations! Although we do not want students to stress about these tests, the results of them are important to the students, our teachers, and our school. Our students and teachers have worked hard all year, so our goal is for students to put their best effort into these tests to show all that they have learned! They should have their results on these tests before the last day of school.

Please visit https://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Testing for more information from the Ohio Department of Education & Workforce and contact your child’s teacher or me with any questions.

Thank you,

Candace Platt, Principal

Dear Parents,

As the warmer weather approaches and spring begins to bloom, we are reminded that for many students, seasonal allergies can be a challenge. With the increase in pollen levels, allergy symptoms such as sneezing, congestion, itchy eyes, and a runny nose can significantly affect a child's comfort and focus during the school day.

We strongly encourage you to consider starting allergy medication now, before the pollen counts rise. By beginning treatment early, you can help prevent symptoms from becoming overwhelming and ensure your child is better able to concentrate on their studies and enjoy the season.

Consulting with your child's pediatrician or healthcare provider can help determine the most appropriate course of action, whether it's over-the-counter antihistamines or other medications that may work best for your child.

Getting ahead of allergy season can make a significant difference in how your child feels, so we recommend taking action now to help set them up for a more comfortable and successful spring.

Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

Sincerely,

Nurse Katie

In March we were focusing on the "I" in our PRIDE Promise which is "Integrity". Students who exemplified this characteristic were invited to a Party with the Principals at the beginning of April. We had snacks, games, and play time to recognize these students. In April, we are focusing on "Dedicated" and "Excellence" and will celebrate with those students at the beginning of May.

Congratulations to the following students for showing "Integrity":

• Kindergarten:

  Brady Vahcic, Kara Warner, Khloe Karabinus, Lincoln Carrero

• 1st Grade: Grace Sevel, Chesney Pierce, Kalayah Smith, Sarah Chinski
• 2nd Grade: Vivienne Marountas, Max Vahcic, JJ Brown, Eddie Day
• 3rd Grade: Ioanna Weatherspoon, Aaron Wilson, Maximus Jackson
• 4th Grade: Aiden Gemmel, Max Sebrasky, Sofia Weisenburg
• 5th Grade: Ryan Carrel, Sam Champa, Emilee Terrano

Attendance Matters! Every week we award the homeroom with the best attendance from the week before with our attendance trophy! They get to have it (and bragging rights!) for the week until they pass it to the next winners. Any homeroom that wins three times in a grading period will get a special prize.

Congratulations to our winners: Mrs. Knauss' Class, Mrs. Lane's Class and Mrs. Brock's class!

Students are nominated by our staff members for showing PRIDE and kindness and recognized weekly. Keep up the great work!

We have a limited number of new Jefferson Rangers t-shirts left. Click the button below to order and we will send them home with your student immediately. Please be sure to type the student’s first and last name when ordering.

Welcome to the 2025-26 school year! We have a lot of fun things planned this year, but first get to know the PTO!

President: Diana Warner
Vice President: Marcia Gamiere
Secretary: Katie Pavlick
Treasurer: Melissa Grinstead

Contact: jefferson.pto01@gmail.com

We have a very active PTO and we are always looking for more people to get involved to help create fun, engaging, and memorable experiences for our students and families! You are already a member of the PTO by having a child attend our school. There are no membership fees and requirements- plan to attend a meeting!

PTO typically meets on the third Tuesday of every month at 3:10 PM at Jefferson Elementary. Your child can stay after school to have a snack and do a fun activity with one of our staff members while you attend our meeting! The meetings are typically under an hour each time. You can come to a meeting or two or attend every one throughout the year. We cannot wait to meet you!

Last PTO Meeting of the School Year

Our final PTO meeting will be:
April 21st
3:10 PM

During this meeting we will be nominating and electing next year’s PTO board, so if you are interested in getting involved, we would love to see you there!

Sign your student up for our after school fun HERE.

April Popcorn Day

April 22nd

If you did not pre-order popcorn at the beginning of the year, no problem!
Students can bring money the day of.

Just $0.50 per bag!

Annual Ice Cream Social

May 1st

Join us for our Annual Ice Cream Social! Please RSVP HERE.

If you would like to donate toppings you can also sign up for that above. Your support is greatly appreciated!

• Students may not pass out birthday invitations. If the family is having a party and wants to invite the entire class, the parent may contact the teacher and request for the teacher to pass the invitations out to all students in the class. NO FOOD BIRTHDAY TREATS MAY BE SENT IN TO SCHOOL THROUGH THE STUDENT OR DROPPED OFF IN THE OFFICE. We will contact the family to pick these up. Thank you for your cooperation!

• Outside Food Deliveries are Prohibited (Uber Eats, GrubHub, etc). If a student forgets a lunch, and the family can’t drop one off prior to the student lunch period, we will provide them with a school lunch.

• Student cell phones must be turned off and stored in student backpacks. Students may not have their cell phones in their pockets (pants, sweatshirts, jackets etc). Some bus drivers allow kids to use their phones on the bus, but they should not be walking in or out of school with them in their hands/pockets.
• Offense #1 - Staff Member reminds the student to turn the phone off and put it in their backpack (notify classroom teacher for tracking purposes).
  • Classroom teacher discretion whether to notify parents or not.
• ​​​Offense #2 - Staff Member takes the student’s phone and keeps it in their possession (or gives it to the classroom teacher to keep in their possession) until the end of the school day.
  • Classroom teacher will notify parents of the 2nd offense and warn about the consequences of a third offense.
• Offense #3 - Staff Member notifies the classroom teacher and brings the student’s cell phone to the office.
• Principal or Assistant Principal calls home and informs parents that the phone will remain in the office until picked up by the parent.

• Smart watches may only be used to tell time. If students are using them for communication or gaming purposes, they will follow the same rules above stated for cell phones.

  Students are not allowed to have their personal headphones (airpods, earbuds) during class time (unless approved by teacher for use), recess, or during ENCORE classes. Unauthorized use of these items will result in the above stated processes for cell phones and smart watches.

• Students should not bring their own toys, balls, or electronics to school and may not bring them out to recess. If they do bring them to school (for before/after school use), this is at their own risk, and they need to be kept in the student’s backpack. The school is NOT responsible for lost or stolen items.

• Students may wear hoodies inside the school, but they must keep their hoods down at all times. Having hoods up makes it difficult to identify students and their actions, and often leads to academic disengagement. Hats are not permitted inside the school unless it is a designated “hat day”.