Welcome Back to School!

Two Focal Points This Year: Community and Attendance

It was great to see so many of you at Back to School Night! The start of a new school year is always exciting and filled with new possibilities. I have two school wide areas of focus this year that I want to bring to your attention, and concerning which we need your help.

The first area of focus is community. Since the COVID shutdowns, it seems that many people have retreated away from community. Students are reluctant to get involved, and their work ethic has deteriorated. We've also noticed that parents and families are far less likely to involve themselves in the life of the school now than five years ago. I would like to change those things. We'll be working with students on improving their work ethic, and we would love to increase parent involvement this year. There are many ways you can be involved from volunteering at school to helping with fundraisers. Please sign up on this form to indicate how you'd like to be involved in our community!

Our second area of focus this year is attendance. To be frank, our attendance last year was not great. Obviously, students being at school has a direct impact on their achievement. Also, poor attendance is an anchor on our school report card and reflects very poorly on the school. So, this will be an area of focus this year. We'll be offering positive rewards for good attendance, and Portage County has revamped their truancy policy to improve attendance everywhere. The fine for truancy is now $500. So, please make sure you student gets to school every day!

As I mentioned last night, we are honored that you choose to trust us with your child's education and we do not take that responsibility lightly. We're looking forward to a great year! Don't hesitate to reach out with questions!

25-26 PoDS School Handbook

25-26 PoDS Yearly Permission Form

Covers all in-district field trips for 23-24 school year in one form!

Camping Letter for 7th-10th Grade Families

7th - 8th Grade Camp Permission Form

9th - 10th Grade Camp Permission Form

9th - 10th Grade Camp - Trees for Tomorrow Information

Daily Medications for Camp

What if my student needs to take daily medication while camping?

25-26 Over the Counter Medication Permission Form

With this permission form, we will provide and administer the listed over-the-counter medication to your student as needed. This form needs to be completed each school year.

Prescription Medication Form

Must be completed by the physician for each prescription medication your child needs to take while at camp and/or school. PoDS fax number is 715 254 0203 if your physician wants to fax it directly to the school.

Non-Prescription Medication Permission Form

For Over-The-Counter medications at camp or school that are not provided by the school.