Cougar Connect

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Dear Kennedy Community,

We have a busy week of fun and celebration. I look forward to connecting with you at one of our school events.

On Thursday, we have our RCSD Reclassification Ceremony for our Kennedy Cougars who reclassfied as English proficient in the spring. We are so excited and proud of our multilingual learners' achievement. Families have been notified by email, text message, and a paper invitation. We look forward to celebrating with you on Thursday evening at Hoover School.

On Friday morning, please join me at 8:45 a.m. in the Kennedy Library for my October Principal's Coffee.

Friday evening, our second annual Fall Carnival/Carnaval will be at 5:00 p.m. on the Kennedy Blacktop. Enjoy music, performances by Kennedy students, carnival games, and socialization with Kennedy families. Invite your friends and neighbors!

We will also have our annual High School Fair in the Kennedy Gym at 6:00 p.m. This event is open to the Redwood City Community. Local public, private, and charter high schools will share information about their high school. While this event is geared for 8th grade students and families, all are welcome.

Grades

Have you checked your student's grades? Are you signed up with PowerSchool? Our Family Center will identify which families do not have access to PowerSchool and they will reach out to make sure you are connected. Families should check their students' grades at least once per week to monitor progress. If you need support with PowerSchool, please reach out to Cynthia Cardona (ccardona@rcsdk8.net) and Maria Segundo (msegundo@rcsdk8.net) in our Kennedy Family Center.

Attendance Contact

When attendance concerns arise, please email Jessica Perez. She will update your student's attendance.

The Kennedy office is open from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Phone Contact: (650) 482-2409

Principal: Chandra Leonardo cleonardo@rcsdk8.net

Assistant Principal: Dr. Shanna Laney slaney@rcsdk8.net

Assistant Principal: Enrique Pin epin@rcsdk8.net

Office Manager: Liz Avalos lmavalos@rcsdk8.net

Office Assistant (Attendance): Jessica Perez jpperez@rcsdk8.net

Office Assistant (Student Records, Student Health): Maritza Gutierrez mggutierrez@rcsdk8.net

Have a great week!

Chandra Leonardo

Principal

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Dear Families,

We are writing to inform you that SamTrans will be adjusting the timing of Route 79 to address concerns related to on-time arrival at Kennedy Middle School. Both of these routes will start 10 minutes earlier in the morning in order for the routes to arrive at school on time at 8:20am. This change will be effective starting October 6th.

Please refer to: https://www.samtrans.com/schedulesmaps for more information about the new schedules. Attached is the new schedule.

If you have any concerns or questions, please call SamTrans Customer Service at 1-800-660-4287.

We recognized our September Students of the Month last Thursday. Teachers selected students who showed preparedness. The following students received a certificate, they were recognized in Homeroom, and they received a donut from Donut King.

Andrew Ferrante, Riku Saito, Amelia Velleno, Anthony Garcia Ruiz, Moises Lagarda, Nayelli Zarate Vazquez, Bella Guajardo, Alejandro Torres, Jeremiah Alvarez, Joanna Sandoval Olmos, Ryan Seeberger, Violet Walter, Alijah Mendoza, Grace Moreno Garcia, Lizbeth Ruiz Espindola, Michael Mejia, Pelepetua Pelemo'onia Tangitau, Nia Seeberger, Matthew Vera Avalos, Ethan Sanchez, Alitza Ruiz Gonzalez, Jose Valverde Zamora, Evelyn Weaver, Alondra Ortiz Ramos, Camila Betancourt

Grand Canyon Reminder! Signups are happening now for the incredible 7th Grade Grand Canyon Trip. Here is the overview information. Please sign up right away on this form. Our goal is to fill two buses for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If you have questions regarding the trip or financial assistance, please see the Family Center.

The PTO is looking for a parent to help as co-communications chair. This person would help create fliers for events and school activities and help post events on our social media accounts. The PTO is also looking for a Parent Liaison for both the Music and Art programs. The Program Liaisons support Kennedy’s electives by working with the elective teacher and representing the program's needs within the PTO.

This Friday! Kennedy’s Fall Carnival 5-9pm!

Enjoy games, music, and food, and celebrate our community. Don’t miss the carnival fun! 🎉 Kennedy Dance and Advanced band performance will take place at 6:45!

There will be a raffle at the carnival with amazing prizes—including sports tickets, concert tickets, and family fun packages! Be sure to stop by and grab your tickets!

More Volunteers needed! Sign up to help make it a success here

Direct Drive Kickoff! Our Direct Drive has begun with the goal of raising $75K towards our total annual goal of $245k. Please join your Kennedy Community in contributing to raising crucial funds for our students. We ask each family to contribute $500 or an amount comfortable for them. Our community goal is 100%

participation. More details here at https://kennedycougarspto.org/direct-drive!

Volunteers Needed!

All Kennedy event volunteer opportunities here

Here is a list of our PTO Leadership Opportunities

Or complete this Kennedy parent volunteer form to let us know how you can help!

PTO Monthly Meeting

Our next PTO Meeting is Tuesday, October 28 from 7-8:30p in the Kennedy room 101. Please join us in person! If not possible, then our Zoom Meeting Link is: https://zoom.us/j/94614875671

Meeting ID: 946 1487 5671

Have an idea or a question? Email info@kennedycougarsPTO.org

Don’t forget to check out our website: https://kennedycougarspto.org/

Kennedy School Site Council will meet this Wednesday, October 1, at 5:00 p.m. via Google Meet. Here is the agenda for this week.

We are continuing to partner with Marine Science Institute (MSI) for the 2025-26 school year. Our 6th grade students will learn about the Bay Area's watershed through canoe field trips and creek studies. This week, Mr. Wright's second-period science class will go on the canoe field trip on Wednesday, October 1. Field trip permission slip forms must be turned in by Tuesday in order for students to attend.

Dear 7th Grade Families,
We’re excited about this year's Grand Canyon field trip! If your student is interested in joining, please remember that we are still accepting interest applications until September 26. This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to explore and learn outside the classroom.

If you have any questions or need assistance with the application, feel free to reach out!

Grand Canyon Application 2026

🏀Redwood City PRCS Basketball Registration August 1-October 30🏀

🍁SEPTEMBER: Heritage & Belonging

Somos Kennedy: Celebrating Hispanic Cultures

• Planning Day~No School Sept. 29
• School Site Council Oct. 1 Virtual 5:00-6:00 p.m.

🍂OCTOBER: Identity, Courage & Belonging

Know Your Story, Honor All Stories

• Principal’s Coffee Oct. 3 Library 8:45-9:45 a.m.
• Kennedy Family Carnival Oct. 3 Blacktop 5:00-9:00 p.m.
• High School Fair Oct. 3 Gym 6:00-7:00 p.m.
• Indigenous Peoples’ Day ~ No School Oct. 13 All Day
• ELAC Meeting Oct. 15 Room 101 6:00-7:00 p.m.

• Food Distribution Day for Families Oct. 16 Blacktop 2:30-4:00 p.m.
• 6th-8th Grade Fall Dance Oct. 17 Gym 6:00-8:00 p.m.
• 8th Grade Yosemite Trip Oct. 19-24 Yosemite National Park
• PLCs-District Wide-Minimum Day Oct. 22 8:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m.
• Picture Day Make-up Oct. 28 Gym 8:30 a.m.-3:15 p.m.
• PTO Meeting Oct. 28 Room 101/Zoom 7:00-8:30 p.m.
• School Site Council Oct. 29 Virtual 5:00-6:00 p.m.

All events are subject to change. Please read the weekly newsletter for updates. Click here to view the Calendar of Events.

Our Kennedy PTO has added our Calendar of Events to their website. You can click the link on the calendar to add all Kennedy events to your own Google Calendar. Click here to view and add these events to your calendar.

Volleyball Games

6th Grade

• Tuesday, September 30: Kennedy Green vs. Redeemer @ Kennedy 6:15 p.m.
• Thursday, October 2: Kennedy White vs. Clifford @ Red Morton 6:15 p.m.

7th Grade

• Tuesday, September 30: Kennedy White vs. Kennedy Green @ Kennedy 4:00 p.m.

8th Grade

• Tuesday, September 30: Kennedy Green vs. MIT/NSA @ Hoover 5:30 p.m.
• Thursday, October 2: Kennedy White vs. Roy Cloud @ Kennedy 4:00 p.m.

Flag Football Games

• Tuesday, September 30: Kennedy vs. Redeemer @ Hawes Field 5:00 p.m.

Each month, families can download and read the Parent Institute newsletter. Each newsletter provides tips and updates for families about how to support their Kennedy Middle School student.

This month's topics include how to help your student transition into middle school, how to connect with teachers, and how to help your student stay organized.

• Please click this link to view information about high school shadowing and other details from Sequoia Union High School District and local charter high schools.
• Please click here to view the information presented to families on Thursday, September 11 at Back to School Night.

Kennedy students will have nightly math and reading homework. If your student says they do not have homework or they finished their homework, please ask them to show you what they completed or worked on during the day.

All 6th grade students will have planners, and they will write in their planners. Students will also have homework folders with sections for assignments to complete and assignments to turn in.

Your student should have at least one reading book at their reading level that they enjoy reading. They will also have texts to read in their English language arts, ELD, and/or Expository Reading & Writing classes.

Attendance is important at Kennedy. We continue to improve our attendance rates, and our goal this year is to improve our attendance by 5%. Students need to be at school on time every day. Please schedule doctor's appointments after school and schedule vacations and trips during RCSD's scheduled breaks.

If your student must be absent, caregivers are expected to notify our office staff by calling our attendance line and leaving a message. You may also email the details of your student's absence to Ms. Perez: jpperez@rcsdk8.net.

Click here to read Kennedy's attendance policy and guidelines.

Remember

• Calling in an absence does not mean the absence is excused. An absence is excused if a student is ill, has a medical need, must attend a funeral of an immediate family member, or for religious reasons. You may view the California Ed Code policy on excused absences here. If a student's absences do not meet these guidelines, the absence is unexcused.

• Absences must be called in during the week the absence occurs. We are unable to change or update absences after the school week ends.

• A doctor's note is required after two days of illness.

• Truancy letters are generated by our district and are sent to families.

• Caregivers should check PowerSchool weekly to ensure attendance is accurate.

In order to make our handbook for students and families more accessible, we have digitized it. Please know that the information in the handbook will be continually updated to ensure families are informed.

Click to view and save the Kennedy Student & Family Handbook.

With a commitment to excellence, Kennedy Middle School engages, encourages, and empowers students in challenging and creative learning opportunities while preparing them for their futures in high school and beyond.

Website: https://www.rcsdk8.net/kennedy
Location: 2521 Goodwin Avenue, Redwood City, CA, USA
Phone: 650.482.2409
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kennedymiddleschool