LISD School Newsletter

Dear LISD Families,

Thanks to all who attended conferences last week. I hope you enjoyed connecting with your child's teacher(s) and that the discussion was rich and informative.

Also, thanks to LIPTSA for another awesome annual pumpkin carving event, and to everyone who came for some fall fun! To me, this is the perfect event. You can come any time in a three hour window and stay as long as you like, the mess is made and left at school (not at your home!), and some happy Lopez pigs get to eat all the pumpkin guts. Win-win-win!

Thank you for coming out to support our varsity fall sports teams last Monday and Tuesday. It was senior night for the volleyball team on Monday and both soccer teams on Tuesday. All three teams won their games in front of an appreciative home crowd and we celebrated our senior athletes...Betty Burt, Dani Arnott, Kaileah Poole, Naima Garcia, Mae Krantz, Evelyn Aguilar-Clavel, Andris Meissner, Nikolai Kazakov, Ben Stephenson, and Oliver Rick. We had a couple really joyous days/evenings in the gym and on the field...and we even had a debut performance by our new Lobo pep band.

One more note of appreciation...

Thanks for coming to Trunk-or-Treat in the Village on Halloween and staying to enjoy the first MPPACT concert of the year. Many of our musicians and vocalists are new to MPPACT and were a bit (or a lot!) nervous to perform. Your smiling faces, cheers, dancing, and general positive vibes make it safe and fun for them.

Have a fabulous first week in November!

All my best,

Martha

• Nov 3: First day of Lopez Island Wrestling Club! 5 pm, MPR
• Nov 4: Election Day - Don't Forget to Vote!
• Nov 5: School Board Work Session, 4 pm, LMC
• Nov 10: Veterans Day Assembly, 12:55 pm, MR Buffum Gym
• Nov 11: Veterans Day - NO SCHOOL
• Nov 19: School Board Meeting
• Nov 26: Day Before Thanksgiving, 2 pm dismissal
• Nov 27 - 28: Thanksgiving Break
• Nov 29: Holiday Bazaar, 10 - 3 pm, MR Buffum Gym

The Lopez Island School District Board of Education is accepting applications for a School Director to fulfill an unexpired term for Position # 3. This position expires on 11/30/2027.

To be eligible for appointment, applicants must be registered voters and reside within the boundaries of the Lopez Island School District. The School Board meets the fourth Wednesday of each month for regular meetings.

Interested parties should submit a letter of interest to Board Secretary Brady Smith, c/o Lopez Island School District #144, 86 School Road, Lopez Island, Washington 98261 or via email bsmith@lopezislandschool.org no later than 4pm on Monday, November 17, 2025.

Interviews of qualified candidates will take place at the regular meeting on Wednesday, November 19, 2025.

Wrestling club starts today! The Lopez Island Mat Club practices on Monday nights starting November 3rd and continuing through the end of January. We will meet in the school cafeteria. Elementary grades will practice from 5:00 to 5:45 PM and grades 7-12 from 5:45 to 6:45 PM. Wrestlers need a $25 membership card to participate for liability coverage. Email Robb Ellis if your student has not participated in wrestling club before and you want more details at: rellis@lopezislandschool.org

Elementary Program now open! 5th Graders get to choose between elementary or secondary options! Sign up for all grades now - NO COST TO FAMILIES

Students in grades 9-12 will have an opportunity to tour the campuses of Western Washington University and Bellingham Technical College on December 2nd. There are 25 spots for this field trip and priority for those spots will be given to students in the upper grades first, but 9th and 10th grade students can attend if spots are available. We will leave early at 6:45 AM from the school and return about 5:15 PM. Students should contact Robb Ellis if they are interested in being part of this trip.

October 29 was eventful for seniors and their post-high school planning efforts. In the afternoon we had a college application essay workshop led by school counselor Robb Ellis. One of our English teachers, Tawnya Renelle, presented tips on writing college admissions essays. Asia Citro, along with two board members from the Lopez Island Community Scholarship Foundation, Mary Bywater-Cross and Claudia Rempel, met with seniors one on one helping them brainstorm ideas for their essays. Five seniors attended this workshop and got great advice from the mentors in attendance.

In the evening we had a Financial Aid 101 presentation in the school library media center presented over Zoom on the big library screen. Our partners in Bellingham, Futures Northwest, presented the ins and outs of filling out the FAFSA and how to pursue grants and scholarships for college. They also discussed topics like student loans and other financial aid options.

Please help us honor veterans in our community by the following ways:

1. Invite a veteran to our Veteran's Day assembly on Monday, Nov 10 at 12:55 pm.

2. Share a photo of them to be posted on campus. Submit photos and details via this form.

Lopez Island Elementary Cheer is holding its third annual Poinsettia sale! All proceeds go towards Lopez Island Cheer program, run by The Pack. Deadline for orders is November 12. Order online here.

Elementary students are taking part in the Library / Tech Time Enrichment this year. Each class has read-aloud time with Ms. Deirdre, book checkout, and partakes in "TechTime". During TechTime, students access keyboard instruction through Common Sense Media's K-12 Digital Citizenship curriculum, adopted by our school district. 1st-3rd graders are enjoying Jungle Junior and the 4-6th graders are learning via Typing Jungle. The LMC is fortunate to have three student assistants assigned to the library this year. Wren Skyriver and Isaac Gibson both provide assistance during TechTime with the elementary students. Sophie Citro assisted Deirdre in the scanning of the entire collection of our school District's yearbooks (1951 to present). The Book Eye scanner is on loan to us from the Lopez Museum. We are grateful for this positive and supportive relationship, and we're happy to say that scanning was completed October 29th!

Student volunteers are a huge help to vendors and organizers of this event. Help is needed for set up, tear down and during the event itself. Contact lopezbazaar@gmail.com to volunteer.

Brady Smith, Superintendent

Martha Martin, K-12 Principal

The Lopez Island School District does not discriminate in any programs or activities on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, veteran or military status, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The following employee(s) has been designated to handle questions and complaints of alleged discrimination: Civil Rights Compliance Coordinator, and Title IX Coordinator Sarah Rucker; Section 504, Mary Fordham. OR contact by phone, 360-468-2202, OR mail to 86 School Rd, Lopez Island, WA 98261.