Jefferson Journal

It’s been an exciting few weeks at Jefferson! Our first PTO meeting was a great success, and we’re grateful to everyone who joined us. There’s a lot to look forward to this year, and the PTO will continue to play an important role in supporting our students and school community.

In the classrooms, students have been busy finishing their first few units in ELA. They’ve been working hard and having fun with culminating activities that tie into our Portrait of a Graduate competencies—emphasizing skills like collaboration, communication, and creativity.

We’ve also completed our initial assessments, and we’re using that data to form learning groups that will allow us to provide personalized support or extension, depending on each student’s needs. This ensures that every student is challenged at the right level and supported where they need it most.

Please take a moment to read through the rest of this newsletter to stay in the know about what’s coming up—we’re excited for all that’s ahead!

Warmly,

Mrs. Platt & Mr. Eberly

35980 Lakeshore Blvd. Eastlake, OH 44095

Office Email: tj.office@weschools.org

Main Office Line: 440-942-7244

Attendance Line: 855-612-7207 (this is a 24 hour line and a message can be left at any time!)

• Mrs. Candace Platt, Principal
• Mr. David Eberly, Assistant Principal
• Mrs. Lori Dugger, Principal's Secretary
• Mrs. Wendy Flick, Administrative Secretary
• Mrs. Jacque Sparent, Family Liaison
• Ms. Katie Klemencic, School Nurse
• Mrs. Jennifer Healan, Heath Aide

• 9/24- Skating Party
• 9/25- Family Paint Night
• 10/9- Rangers Spirit Day- Beat South!
• 10/10- No School- NEOEA Day
• 10/14- Picture Day
• 10/17- No School for Students- Professional Development Day; End of the First Quarter
• 10/23- Conferences- 3-6 PM
• 10/29- Conferences- 3-6 PM
• 10/31- Halloween Parties

• Monday, September 29th- Tornado Drill
• Tuesday, September 30th- Lockdown/Barricade Drill
• Wednesday, October 1st- Mass Evacuation to Safe Location(s)
• Thursday, October 2nd- Situational Drill (Lockdown/Barricade/Evacuate)
• Friday, October 3rd- Fire Drill

Please talk with your students about the importance of these drills. These drills are not intended to scare students or make anyone nervous. We want our students to understand what to do in case of an emergency and how we can keep ourselves safe. These drills are required by the state, and having them all done in one week helps us keep everyone prepared. Please contact Mrs. Platt if you have any questions or concerns.

• Classroom parties are an exciting time for students and we appreciate our volunteers!
• All classroom party volunteers will sign up using Sign-Up Genius again this school year.
• On Friday, 9/26, at 6 PM, Mrs. Platt will blast out the Sign-Ups for the Halloween Parties (10/31), Holiday Parties (12/18), and Valentine's Day Parties (2/14).
• We have limited spots for volunteers. To allow opportunities for more parents to attend, only one adult per child can sign up for one party for the school year. If you, or another adult in your family, sign up for more than one party, your additional sign-ups will be removed to make room for other volunteers.
• If we end up having spots unclaimed, we will open the Sign-Ups again for any volunteers closer to the date of the parties.

We have a limited number of new Jefferson Rangers t-shirts left. Click the button below to order and we will send them home with your student immediately. Please be sure to type the student’s first and last name when ordering.

We’re excited to launch a new, more convenient way for families to report student absences: SafeArrival!

Starting now, all absences, whether your child is staying home sick, arriving late, or leaving early, can be reported quickly and easily.

2 Simple Ways to Report an Absence:

• Use the MyPowerHub Parent Portal
  
  

• Call Toll-Free – 855-612-7207 and follow the prompts

Absences You Can Report: Full-day absences, Late arrivals, Early pick-ups
You can even upload doctor’s notes directly through the app!

Why Families Love SafeArrival:

• Available 24/7 — report absences in advance or on the same day
  
  

• Instant confirmation once your report is submitted
  
  

• Information goes directly into PowerSchool — no need to call the office
  
  

• Still using the old attendance line? It now forwards to SafeArrival automatically
  
  

We’re confident this system will make attendance reporting easier and help keep our school safe and efficient.

Please see the information below for instructions on how to set up your student(s) account before photo day - please read this form in its entirety and if you have any questions, please reach out to Cirino Photography - they are here and happy to help.

New for this year, all students in the Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools may enjoy one free breakfast meal and one free lunch meal daily. Breakfast and lunch are provided free for every student at no charge. There are no income requirements to qualify due to the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), a federal program.

If families need assistance with the payment of school fees, the Household Survey Form must be completed and returned to school to determine eligibility.. The form should be returned to the school office. It only needs to be completed for fee waiver assistance, not for meal services.

Information on the new RevTrak (for paying school fees) and Meal Magic (monitoring of student meal accounts) will be shared soon. Both of these systems will be available to access from the MyPowerHub parent portal.

For questions about Food Services, contact stephanie.kemna@weschools.org.

For questions about the Household Survey Form, contact pam.clair@weschools.org

All families in the Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools will have the option to receive free breakfast and lunch daily for all students, regardless of income, at no charge. No forms are needed for receiving free breakfast and lunch. To determine eligibility for various additional state and federal program benefits for qualified students, please complete, sign and return the application form to your school building if your income falls within or below the guidelines listed on the attached chart. The free breakfast and lunch option is provided through the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) Community Eligibility Provision (CEP).

• Student cell phones must be turned off and stored in student backpacks. Students may not have their cell phones in their pockets (pants, sweatshirts, jackets etc). Some bus drivers allow kids to use their phones on the bus, but they should not be walking in or out of school with them in their hands/pockets.
• Offense #1 - Staff Member reminds the student to turn the phone off and put it in their backpack (notify classroom teacher for tracking purposes).
  • Classroom teacher discretion whether to notify parents or not.
• ​​​Offense #2 - Staff Member takes the student’s phone and keeps it in their possession (or gives it to the classroom teacher to keep in their possession) until the end of the school day.
  • Classroom teacher will notify parents of the 2nd offense and warn about the consequences of a third offense.
• Offense #3 - Staff Member notifies the classroom teacher and brings the student’s cell phone to the office.
• Principal or Assistant Principal calls home and informs parents that the phone will remain in the office until picked up by the parent.

• Smart watches may only be used to tell time. If students are using them for communication or gaming purposes, they will follow the same rules above stated for cell phones.

  Students are not allowed to have their personal headphones (airpods, earbuds) during class time (unless approved by teacher for use), recess, or during ENCORE classes. Unauthorized use of these items will result in the above stated processes for cell phones and smart watches.

• Students should not bring their own toys, balls, or electronics to school and may not bring them out to recess. If they do bring them to school (for before/after school use), this is at their own risk, and they need to be kept in the student’s backpack. The school is NOT responsible for lost or stolen items.

• Students may wear hoodies inside the school, but they must keep their hoods down at all times. Having hoods up makes it difficult to identify students and their actions, and often leads to academic disengagement. Hats are not permitted inside the school unless it is a designated “hat day”.

• Students may not pass out birthday invitations. If the family is having a party and wants to invite the entire class, the parent may contact the teacher and request for the teacher to pass the invitations out to all students in the class. NO FOOD BIRTHDAY TREATS MAY BE SENT IN TO SCHOOL THROUGH THE STUDENT OR DROPPED OFF IN THE OFFICE. We will contact the family to pick these up. Thank you for your cooperation!

• Outside Food Deliveries are Prohibited (Uber Eats, GrubHub, etc). If a student forgets a lunch, and the family can’t drop one off prior to the student lunch period, we will provide them with a school lunch.

Welcome to the 2025-26 school year! We have a lot of fun things planned this year, but first get to know the PTO!

President: Diana Warner
Vice President: Marcia Gamiere
Secretary: Katie Pavlick
Treasurer: Melissa Grinstead

Contact: jefferson.pto01@gmail.com

We know making a commitment to the PTO Board takes a lot of time and dedication. So in an effort to secure the future of the Thomas Jefferson PTO, and to slowly introduce the workings of the PTO to potential future board members, we will be creating 3 Coordinator positions. These positions will:

• Have one specific duty throughout the year to assist the PTO Board (ex. stocking the book machine, making Facebook Posts, etc.).
• Give the ability to get first hand knowledge of the behind the scenes of the PTO to make the potential transition into a Board Officer easier.
• Give the Coordinator exclusive volunteer opportunities to be more involved with the school.

If you feel you may be able to dedicate a little more time next year to help us and the school, please let us know via email: jefferson.pto01@gmail.com. Once we create the official job titles and duties, we will email you the information to apply.

We have a very active PTO and we are always looking for more people to get involved to help create fun, engaging, and memorable experiences for our students and families! You are already a member of the PTO by having a child attend our school. There are no membership fees and requirements- plan to attend a meeting!

PTO meets on the third Tuesday of every month at 3:10 PM at Jefferson Elementary. Our next PTO meeting will be Tuesday, 10/21. Your child can stay after school to have a snack and do a fun activity with one of our staff members while you attend our meeting! The meetings are typically under an hour each time. You can come to a meeting or two or attend every one throughout the year. We cannot wait to meet you!