Bobcat Blast

August 22nd

2:30 - 3:30pm: Meet your teacher and see your classrooms

3:30pm: Join other Bethany families outside to reconnect with old friends and make new ones.

Dear Bethany Families,

The start of a new school year is always an exciting time. Whether your child is eagerly anticipating the first day or feeling a bit nervous, please know that we are here to support every student every step of the way.

We're excited to welcome new staff to our community this year, including our new fifth-grade teacher, Leticia Lee Barrios. Ms. Lee joins us from William Walker Elementary School and will be a fantastic addition to our team.

Additional New Staff:

Chloe Dawson- Social Worker (Half-time shared with Rock Creek)

Monica Collins- Learning Specialist (Half-time- We still have Cindy Bryan)

Delmi Caamal Villaciz- Nutrition Services Assistant

Rachel Maneloveg- Speech Language Pathologist (Part time- We still have Ashley Purser)

Several schools will have news coverage on campus for the first day of school, including us! KGW will be at Bethany, KATU at Beaverton High School, KOIN at Ridgewood, and KPTV at Sato. I'm not exactly sure where the interviewer will be yet, but know that you can definitely avoid the cameras if you don't want to be on TV! 😃

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone tomorrow!

Toni

The first day of school is Next Tuesday!

1st - 5th Grades: All students start school at 7:45 on August 26th

Here is some important information

to help make the first day of school a smooth experience for us all

• For the FIRST DAY ONLY, families may walk their children to their classroom, entering through the teacher's outside classroom door. A quick Good-bye is always the best, so teachers can start their day. Doors will open at 7:45.

• If students are being dropped off or riding the bus, students will come in the main school lobby doors and go to the gym. Staff will escort them to their classrooms.

• School staff will be out and about on the school grounds and throughout the building to assist students with finding their classrooms.

• School staff will be available to support any student (and their family) who might need a little extra care starting a new school year.
• Breakfast & lunch will be available and offered to students beginning Day 1. Students will need to know their student ID number when getting breakfast and lunch. We will help them with this, but you can help us by practicing with them ahead of time.
• Please be sure you have let your child's teacher know about your student's Go Home plan.
• Please follow school procedures for drop-off and pick-up in order to keep everyone safe.

KINDERGARTEN FAMILIES: You may escort. your child to the classroom on the first day of school. Staff will be in the lobby to direct you. On the second day, you may escort them to the Art Literacy Room so they can begin to learn the arrival routine. Please scroll down for more information.

We request you try to time arrival to be between 7:30-7:45 am. Even ten minutes can be a long time for some children to wait. Students who eat breakfast at school can arrive at 7:25.

WALKERS / CAR RIDERS: ALL students coming from the front side of the school, whether by car or on foot, will enter the school through the Front door (near the flag pole).

BIKE / SCOOTER: If your child rides a bike/scooter or walks to school coming from the playground side of the school, they will enter the school through the Lobby Door by the garden.

BUS or DAYCARE VAN will be dropped off at the front of the school and guided to the Front door.

CAR RIDER STUDENTS: If you are DRIVING your child to school you will slowly enter the parking lot and get into the car line. Students need to exit your vehicle from the PASSENGER SIDE onto the sidewalk in front of the school (near the office). There will be school staff in bright yellow vests to open doors and greet children. Please stay in your vehicle and do all of your hugs and kisses before getting in the car (we try to keep the line moving so it doesn’t back up onto 174th Ave)

Waiting For Teachers:
KINDERGARTEN will wait in the Art Lit room until 7:45 am, and then their teacher will pick them up and lead them to the classroom.

1st through 5th grade students will walk through the front door to the GYM. Their teachers will pick them up at 7:45 am.

For safety reasons, we have limited points-of-entry inside our school in the morning. All adults must check in at the office and get a visitor badge prior to being allowed inside the school. All volunteers must be background checked.

WALKING/BIKING to PICK UP your child, you will meet them outside their classroom door. Children who walk or bike home with a family member will exit through the exterior classroom doors. Children that have permission from a parent/guardian may walk or bike home alone. We ask that you wait until the teacher opens the door. Please remember they are trying to maximize the instruction teaching time they have with students.

BUS RIDERS/DAYCARE VANS: Staff will escort young students to the bus and daycare vans. Older students walk through the school to the designated exit door and then go directly to the bus or van.

CAR RIDERS:

• Kindergarten pick up is in the FRONT OF THE SCHOOL by the first classrooms. Your children will be escorted by an adult to the pick up location and they will be assisted into your vehicle in the back seat on the PASSENGER SIDE. Young children should not ride in the front seat.

• Grades 1 and 2 will be picked up outside the far corner of the building near the parking lot exit. You will see staff members there to assist. Always look for the yellow vests! :)

• Grades 3, 4, and 5 pick up is in the FRONT OF THE SCHOOL by the flag pole. Stay on the FAR RIGHT SIDE and make the BIG LOOP in the parking lot and you will see a staff member, guiding students and cars in the designated location.

BETHANY CHILDCARE: Young students will be escorted to the cafeteria and older students will be released through the INSIDE of the school to Bethany Childcare. This is a daycare option for families that is a private business, separate from Bethany School. They rent space in our building. Please call (503) 690-7967 if you have any questions.

Kindergarten students will attend school in smaller groups for HALF DAYS during the first week of school for more personalized attention. Please click on the link below for important information about this schedule.

You can donate in a couple of ways:

• Pay online with a credit card starting today. Check out the links below for the online payment system and instructions if this is your first time.
• Cash or Check: We are now open so you can bring cash or a check to the school office. You can also pay during Lemonade in the Shade,

Starting this year the District will be adding a fee for using the credit card system to cover the transaction fees charged by banks:

• A convenience fee of 40 cents plus 3.69% of the sale amount will be applied to all credit card transactions. This includes both in-person payments at school locations as well as payments processed through the online portal. (The cost will be approximately $1.30 in fees). No fee will be applied to payments made by cash or check.

Instructions for Online Payment System

August

26th - 1st Day of School

September

1 - Labor Day - No School

3 - Back To School Night, 6:00 pm

10 - PTO Meeting, 7:00pm

22 - No School. (Staff Development)

26 - Jog-A-Thon

29 - Vision Screening. (K-5)

🌟 In previous years, we’ve kicked things off with everyone gathered in the gym for a welcome message from Ms. Rosenquist. This year, we’re trying something a little different! Ms. Rosenquist will be sharing her Principal message in a video that will be sent out ahead of the event.

This change comes from thoughtful feedback we've received—some folks have found it tricky to see the slides and hear clearly in the gym’s acoustics. We hope this new format makes it easier for everyone to enjoy and engage with her message!

In alignment with Governor Tina Kotek’s executive order, the district has made adjustments to the personal electronic device policy. All personal devices — including cell phones, earbuds, headphones and smartwatches — must be stored in backpacks during the school day, including restroom breaks and lunchtime. Students with IEPs or 504 plans that include device-related accommodations are exempt. If you need to get an urgent message to your child during the school day, please call the main office.

Please take a moment to review this policy with your child

to ensure a smooth start to the school year.

The online verification process through ParentVUE is now open. These verifications are meant for currently enrolled students. For safety reasons, we encourage parents to complete the required annual process before school begins. If you don’t complete this process before the start of the school year, it doesn’t mean your child isn’t enrolled in our school. Verification simply allows you to double-check that important information such as emergency contacts and any health/medication requirements are up-to-date in our system.

In ParentVUE, click on the “Family Updates and New Student Enrollment” tab in the top right-hand corner to start the verification process. A message will display in your ParentVUE portal with a link to the online verification screens for your review.

If you haven’t activated your ParentVUE account or if you have access concerns, please contact the office and we can give you your activation code. If you’ve forgotten your ParentVUE password, please follow these instructions to reset.

You may have noticed the work going on around our building. This summer Bethany is getting a new security fence.

When the fence is completed, it will be locked during school hours to keep students, staff, visitors, and volunteers safe. After school and on weekends, gates will be open for the community and sports to access the property..

The project is expected to finish before the school year begins. We will keep you posted on any updates.

For the second year in a row, all students in the Beaverton School District can get one free breakfast and one free lunch each day during the 2025-26 school year. Students will not need to pay or fill out extra forms to take advantage of this benefit.

For More Information: Free School Lunches

To safeguard the safety and well-being of our students and staff, each prospective volunteer must complete an application through our districtwide volunteer management system called Raptor and then submit to an Oregon criminal records check. You'll receive a confirmation email as soon as the application has been approved.

We encourage families to complete the volunteer application and background check this summer. Doing it now should help you get approved before school begins.

Our Jog-A-Thon is coming up in September, and we'll need many volunteers. If you'd like to help out, please make sure your volunteer application is finished beforehand.

Volunteer Information and Application

Our Jog-A-Thon will be in September and needs a lot of volunteers to cheer on children and help with their count cards. If you would like to help or just come to cheer on your child, you will need to have your background check completed. There will be a Spectator Area this year, but it will not be close enough to interact personally with the runners as they go by. If you want to High Five runners you will need to have done your background check. Do not wait until the week before the event and then be disappointed when you can not go outside and watch.

Bethany Elementary

Email: BTHY-Communications@beaverton.k12.or.us

• School Office Hours: 7:15am - 3:30pm

School Hours: 7:45am - 2:20pm

Phone: 503-356-2030

Attendance Line: Call the school number and push 1 when prompted for Attendance
Website: https://bethany.beaverton.k12.or.us/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bethanyBSD

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bethanyelementarybsd/