The Growler

Inspiring future leaders to imagine and build a better world through thoughtful action and kindness.

• Carnival is Coming!
• Halloween Festivities and Expectations
• Goal Setting Conferences
• Save the Date: Math Night November 8th
• Veterans Day
• Winter Care Box Project Starting soon!
• Back to School Family Survey Results Update
• Volunteering at School

We will be holding our school-wide Halloween festivities in the afternoon on Friday, October 27th. Kindergarten and first grade students may wear their costume to school. Students in grades 2-5 will change after lunch. Parents may come and help with dressing and applying make-up after 12:15.Here are our costume guidelines for keeping it safe, respectful and responsible:

• Wear shoes and costumes that students can run or walk in
• No blood or gore
• No full face masks
• No weapons
• No costumes that imitate a culture that isn't yours (Indian costume, afro or dreadlock wigs, makeup that mimics another natural skin color that isn't yours)

The costume run/walk will begin at 1:00 and we will walk around the track at the end to admire each others' costumes before doing an all school dance on the blacktop, followed by a classroom party. Parents are welcome to come and watch at the track about 1:30. If you are directly supervising students that aren't yours, you will need to clear our volunteer process, listed below.

There will be alternate fun activities in the computer lab in the afternoon for students that don't celebrate Halloween. Please reach out to your child's teacher if you would like your student to be included.

The Saturday before Halloween, the Bellview PTO hosts a Halloween Carnival for our community. It is not intended to be a major fundraiser, but a fun family event. We keep the cost low so that all kids and families that want to come and have a good time together, can! This event requires MANY volunteers. Please consider signing up for a shift, it's fun! Click on the link below to sign up.

Carnival Sign Up Link

Please join us for fall goal setting conferences! You and your student are invited to join and set goals for your student for the year. Conference days are October 30, 31 and November 1. Please arrange a time for an in-person or Zoom conference with your child's teacher.

This year, we will not have school on November 10th to observe Veterans Day. We will have a brief assembly on the 9th explaining what that day is about to students. If your family has connections to Veterans, consider filling out a Veteran Sheet (linked below) to discuss how that person is important to your family, and we will hang the poster in the gym so students can make those connections. You can make as many of these as you like! Please send completed sheets to school by Wednesday, November 8th.

Each November, our school holds our annual Winter Care Box project. With donations from Bellview families and community partners, we gather the main ingredients for a holiday meal, along with gifts for each child under 18 in the household, and some other staple items, to provide families in our school community that are struggling financially with some holiday cheer. Each classroom is assigned an item or two for students to bring in a small item to contribute to the project, and we start an electronic "giving tree" exemplified by the helping hands tree that goes up in our lobby during the holiday season. The Presbyterian Church in town has generously donated all of the hams and turkeys! If you feel like your family needs this support this year, please reach out to Christine McCollom.

Here is the list of items we are asking families to donate:

• Brooks: 2-4 kid toothbrushes, 1-2 kid toothpastes
• Lawrence: 2-4 toothbrushes (older child or adult sized), 1-2 toothpastes
• McGowne: 1-2 jars of peanut butter, 2-4 cans of tuna
• McAlvage: 1-2 jars of peanut butter, 2-3 hairbrushes
• Eddington: 1-2 boxes of kid bandaids, 1-2 bags of rice
• Hansen: 2 boxes of candy canes, 2 bags of holiday candy
• Gayton: 2-4 children’s shampoos, 1-2 boxes of hot chocolate
• Voorhies: 2-3 packages of hair ties, 2-4 cans of beans
• Gates: 2-4 cans of vegetable soup, 2-4 children’s bath soap/body wash
• Preskenis: 2-3 jars tomato sauce, 2-3 packages of spaghetti/pasta
• Carnes: 2-4 cans of green beans, 2-3 packages of macaroni and cheese
• Tejada: 2-puzzle books/Mad Libs, 2-3 small boxes of crayons
• Schmeling: 2-4 boxes of Stove Top stuffing, 2-3 bottles of sparkling cider

Link to gift item donations coming soon!

At the Back to School BBQ, families were given a survey to help guide our decisions and planning over the course of the year. Here are the updates results (had a few more come in!):

Number of surveys returned: 133

How long has your child attended Bellview?

Less than 1 year: 27

1 year: 9

2 years: 17

3 years: 29

4 years: 15

5 years: 11

6+ years: 9

I have a child attending Bellview in the following grades:

K: 32

1: 21

2: 46

3: 34

4: 31

5: 26

I feel welcome at Bellview School

Strongly Agree: 100

Agree: 33

Disagree:1

Strongly Disagree: 0

My child feels comfortable at Bellview School

Strongly Agree: 100

Agree: 32

Disagree: 1

Strongly Disagree: 1

Bellview Supports and Values a Diverse Community:

Strongly Agree: 90

Agree: 50

Disagree: 2

Strongly Disagree: 0

Bellview teaches children to be respectful:
Strongly Agree: 91

Agree: 39

Disagree:1

Strongly Disagree: 0

Bellview fosters a sense of responsibility in children:

Strongly Agree: 72

Agree: 56

Disagree: 0

Strongly Disagree: 0

Bellview develops childrens’ critical thinking skills:

Strongly Agree: 62

Agree: 65

Disagree: 0

Strongly Disagree: 0

Bellview staff keeps us informed of our child/ren’s academic and social progress:

Strongly Agree: 61

Agree: 52

Disagree: 1

Strongly Disagree: 0

To stay informed about Bellview activities I read:

Class Newsletters: 90

School Newsletters: 91

School Website: 34

Emails from Teacher: 107

Facebook: 14

Fliers/Papers sent home: 90

I would like more information on how to support my child at home in the areas of:

Reading: 31

Writing: 39

Math: 29

Behavior: 22

Mental Health: 18

Technology Use: 13

Diversity and Bias: 8
Growth Mindset: 28

What do you love about Bellview?

• The extra support my child gets, the sense of community, and the quality of teachers
• How the school is set up and how nice the teacher/staff are to my child/me
• The teachers and staff x 2
• It’s a very welcoming school. Children show kindness to others.
• How close it is to my house, feel incredibly supported and welcomed!
• We love our teacher, teaching philosophy
• The staff and emphasis on character building as well as academics
• Science Fair
• Teachers are so kind
• Sense of community
• Tight knit community
• Small school
• Small, close knit community
• How kind everybody is
• Wonderful staff all around
• All the staff know and acknowledge all the kids, not just their specific teachers. Everyone is so kind and supportive, love it!
• Feels like family x 2
• I love the more formal environment Bellview provides. It feels more like the elementary education I received (good thing).
• Diverse programs and learning
• Nice amount of opportunities for community engagement (jog-a-thon, BBQ, Carnival)
• Everyone is always positive and helpful
• That it’s about kids’ learning
• The emphasis on social/emotional, learning about the brain, and meditation
• Great teachers x 3
• Everything x 10
• The teachers all seem to know most of the kids in school. It feels incredibly tight knit.
• Very supportive and friendly staff, greeted by the principal and visited with teachers.
• I love the teachers’ passion.
• The happiness it brings my kiddo.
• Supportive teachers, reading & math support
• Quality people and a great atmosphere
• How welcoming the school is and how caring the kids are to each other
• Kind and caring staff/faculty
• We love how much the teachers and staff care about the children
• My kids come home happy and excited every day
• Access to the principal and meetings when needed
• The spirit, support and compassion
• The teachers are so kind!
• I love the atmosphere here. Seems great for learning. Our children are so happy here.
• Everyone is welcoming
• All the staff is very “hands on”
• I love how helpful the staff is. Every communication I have had has been great.
• The fact that all the teachers put the children first and treats them with respect
• The special education services are fantastic and love how everyone knows my child. It’s a very positive environment.
• Great teachers, great kids, great community. We are all so lucky. X2
• The community x 8
• The transition to public school has been easy and welcoming so far
• Very community driven
• Music, PE, extra help from aides, library, fun/great classroom environment
• The consistent effort for each child
• We are new so we love everything about Bellview so far
• Great place
• My son feels comfortable and safe here
• I love how my child comes home happy and talkative about her day. She loves her teachers and friends and this school does a great job of making learning fun
• Individual attention
• Ms. Lawrence! She is amazing! The connection between the school and parents
• The history
• The teachers! We have been so impressed with the caliber and character of teachers.
• I love this school because from the moment my daughter arrived at school despite speaking another language, she was very well received and everyone made her feel comfortable and happy. Absolutely all the staff who work here are very friendly and polite
• Now it feels like family
• They pay attention to behavior and teach kindness
• Great school: clean, organized, wonderful staff
• I love that my children love their classes and their teachers
• Small community, amazing teachers, character development
• Teacher, families
• How kind people are to my child
• Love the learning goals on the board
• All teachers, EA’s and Admin have been amazing- love the growth mindset work & SEL that happens in addition to the focus on academics
• Size, pace, additional assistants
• We love how welcoming and inclusive everyone has been
• The Bellview Staff has given us so much support through very difficult times, and continues to do so. It made a huge difference in my child and our family’s life. I am forever grateful and have so much love for Bellview.
• Community, teachers and staff

In what ways can Bellview improve?

• So far so good! X 2
• Unsure x 2
• Utilize the small and big businesses around town to help sponsor events/fundraising/matching gifts etc.
• School lunches, providing healthy options that taste good.
• I love everything about Bellview, so nothing
• More communication x 2
• Mindfulness, mental health, humanistic compassionate values
• More time outside, more cursive
• Please include a content summary in the title of emails
• Encourage more parent involvement… it can feel exhausting that the most involved parents often get used again and again
• More information and resources for students with Dyslexia
• Add swimming pool and go cart track (for the parents) 
• More free play and time outside
• Increase support of students not in TAG but who are ahead of their grade level
• Install the playground x 2
• Facilities improvement
• Build confidence in math
• Lunch line too long, time to eat too short. X 2
• Finding new ways to intuned with the students
• More feedback/progress reports on assignments/classwork
• Being more transparent
• Pay the teachers more- Always 
• More fun ways to learn
• At times we have felt that the administration is unapproachable and when approached, we rarely feel heard/validated. We’d love to have the administration feel as welcoming and community centered as the rest of the staff.
• More outside time/activities
• I feel lunch could be longer. My kids used to complain they didn’t have enough time. Not so much lately though.
• Bus stops on Middle Clay St.
• Diversity

How To Become a Volunteer:

Step 1:
Complete the Volunteer Registration Form, which includes the Notice of Background Check form.

Once completed, please submit the forms and a copy of your driver’s license to the Office Manager of the school where the volunteer position is needed. Forms may also be mailed or faxed to the school office. If no school is specified, forms may be submitted to 885 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520.
Once you have passed your background check, you are cleared to apply to volunteer for any position throughout the school year. No additional background check is necessary, however, it is necessary to repeat this process each school year.

Step 2:
Mark your calendar with the agreed upon days and times. Please note that certain positions require training and a time commitment. Make sure you can fulfill the volunteer commitments before agreeing to the position.

Be prompt and dependable. Call ahead if you are ill or unable to keep your appointed times. When you commit to volunteering, people are depending on you.

Principal, Bellview School

She, Her

Email: christine.mccollom@ashland.k12.or.us
Website: https://www.ashland.k12.or.us/o/bes
Location: 1070 Tolman Creek Road, Ashland, OR, USA
Phone: 541-482-1310
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Bellview-Elementary-School-104141858437771