Your Weekly Principal Message

This week we had behavior assemblies with all students to remind them of the Keppel Behavior Expectations. Please talk with your student about what our 4 behavior expectations are and how they will achieve those throughout the year. See our Behavior Matrix below.

Traffic on Virginia was really hectic this week. Remember that the Virginia Gate opens at 7:30 (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday) and at 8:30 on Thursday for students in grades 1 -5 and we have supervision available. Please do not allow your children to exit the car in the middle of the street. This is dangerous. Additionally, please do no stand in front of the gates. This needs to be an open area for students to enter campus. Thank you!

We would like to give a BIG Cougar thank you to PTA and MKS for the fabulous Back to School Picnic on Friday. It was such a great event that allowed our families to connect after the summer.

Also, on behalf of all Keppel Staff, we want to say THANK YOU to our PTA, MKS Foundation, Parents, and community members for redecorating and refurnishing our staff lounges. What a magnificent improvement to our campus. Thank you for making these spaces welcoming and comfortable for our staff and teachers. We appreciate you tremendously!!!

We cannot wait to see you tomorrow!

Principal Scott and Assistant Principal Seese

Tuesday, August 25 MKS Meeting in the library at 8:10am.

Thursday, August 27 - Back to School Night

5:00 PM PTA Meeting

6:00 PM Grades 3, 4, 5 Classroom Sessions

6:45 PM Grades Tk, IK, 1, and 2 Classroom Sessions

This event is designed for parents.

Friday, August 28 - Minimum Day

Dismissal Times:

TK - 10:55

K - 11:27

1, 2, and 3 - 11:50

4, and 5 - 12:12

Monday, September 7 - No School - Labor Day Holiday

• If your student is going home at dismissal and they will eat lunch then, you do not need to read any further.
• If they do not go to aftercare (CDCC) you want them to eat a school lunch they will get it at recess and eat it then.
• If they go to aftercare (CDCC) and want a school lunch they will eat it with CDCC after dismissal. (Please know that if a student eats lunch at recess and then at CDCC wants a 2nd lunch, they will be charged $2.75.)
• Please tell your student what you prefer them to do and the teachers will try to clarify the choice as well as lunch counts are taken in the morning and recess starts.

Instructions to Complete Your Student Information Update

• Visit the Q ParentConnection portal at parent.gusd.net
• Log in using your email address or PIN and password
• On mobile, click the “Log In” link in the upper-right corner
• Click “Annual Student Information Update” in red at the top of the page
• Update your student and parent/guardian information for each section
• Need extra help? Check out our step-by-step guide

All volunteer guidelines for the school district have been updated. Even if you were previously cleared to volunteer, you must go through the new process. Please find all of the details and steps here. (gusd.net/volunteer)

All Tier 2 clearance (we rarely have anyone who would be a Tier 1 volunteer) is done through the school district office and may take several weeks to complete, so please get started now if you plan to help on campus, be a field trip chaperone, support a class event, etc. Mark Keppel can not clear volunteers, there are no exceptions under the new policy. Once you receive the email from GUSD that you are cleared, please forward it to Rita Janoyan, school secretary, so we have a record of it. (ritajanoyan@gusd.net)

GUSD is currently working to process 500+ parent volunteers for the upcoming school year. Thank you for your patience through this process.

As part of this process, volunteers are required to complete a TB clearance, which can be fulfilled through a TB Risk Assessment. To help support families, we are having a TB Risk Assessment Clinic at Keppel on Thursday, August 27th from 7:30 - 11:00 AM. This is for volunteers who still need to complete this requirement and have already applied to be a Tier 2 volunteer through the GUSD website at gusd.net/volunteer.

Sign up here

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0545AFAC2FA4F94-65315387-keppel#/

Call us with questions! We are here to assist!
818 244 - 2113
Go Cougars!

Let’s Reach 100%!

PTA membership is just $17 per person, and every dollar goes directly to programs and activities that support our kids and strengthen our Keppel community. Our goal is 100% family membership this year!

Join here: https://jointotem.com/ca/glendale/glendale-mark-keppel-elementary-parent-teacher-association-inc

Join us at Back to School Night for our first PTA Association Meeting of the year, Thursday, August 27, from 5:00 to 6:00 PM at the Lunch Benches. This is where you hear what is coming, meet your board, and have a say in the year ahead. All parents and caregivers are welcome. Come connect, get involved, and help us make this year a great one for our kids.

PTA Reflections is a national arts recognition program, and this year's theme was made for a school like Keppel. Culture is the food your family makes, the language you speak at home, the stories your grandparents tell, the music that plays at every family gathering. That is the inspiration. The art is how your child chooses to share it.

Your child does not have to be an "art kid" to enter. They just have to have something to say. Every student who submits an entry is recognized, and work that earns an Award of Excellence at the school level advances to Glendale Council, then First District, then California State, and finally the National level. But the point is the making, not the placing.

Six Ways to Enter
Students may enter one or more of the following categories: Visual Arts, Photography, Literature, Film Production, Music Composition, and Dance Choreography. One entry per student per category.

Important Dates
Entry Deadline: Monday, October 12, 2026. Drop off entries at the school office.

Judging: Mid-October

Showcase and Awards: October 21, 2026 at our PTA Association Meeting, where all entries will be displayed.

How to Enter
Download the entry packet below. It includes the Student Entry Form, Official Rules, Category Guidelines, and a brainstorming worksheet to help your child find their big idea.

Download the 2026-27 Reflections Entry Packet (PDF): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CQfC8YUZFDymTqlL-TC9ssvTXAuncSoZ/view?usp=share_link

Complete the Student Entry Form, attach it to the finished artwork, and drop it off at the school office by the deadline. Please do not fold or roll artwork.

Questions?
Contact keppelptareflections@gmail.com or visit capta.org/programs-events/reflections for more information.

Over the summer, a group of generous parent volunteers gave their time and their sweat to redesign and refresh the teacher lounges in both the Main Building and the 3000 Building. Here's a few sneak peek before and after photos of the lounges!

Keppel PTA is partnering with Mabel's Label's with personalized waterproof name labels for all of your student's belongings. The labels work on clothing tags and water bottles alike and are perfect to stock up on at the beginning of the school year.

Visit www.campaigns.mabelslabels.com and search for Keppel PTA (Glendale). When you purchase your labels, Keppel PTA earns 20% from every purchase.

Many hands, big impact, stronger community. Whether you have a little time or a lot, there is a way to plug in this year. Welcome Back Picnic, Fall Picture Day, Boo Bash, Winter Fest, Bingo and Game Night, Red Ribbon and Yellow Ribbon Weeks, our Toy Drive, and Coin Wars all run on parent help. Volunteer at an event, join a committee, or pitch in from home. Sign up links are coming soon. In the meantime, email keppelpta@gmail.com and we will get you connected.

Some of our best work happens on short, focused teams that come together for one project, then wrap up when it is done. Boo Bash, our Trunk or Treat, carnival, and biggest fundraiser of the year, runs September through October and needs all hands on deck. Multicultural Fair and the Keppel Together Talent Show will follow this spring. Reflections is up and running now, with its own section above. Want in on any of them? Email keppelpta@gmail.com.