Dear Shepard Families:
Happy Pi Day. We hope you get some delicious pie or spend some quality time working on some math problems today with this beautiful weather. At Shepard this week, visiting educators from nearby high-performing districts spent time in our classrooms and hallways to help us explore our focus question inquiring about the extent to which we engage our learners in productive struggle. We want to extend a big thank you to the parents who made the time to join for a focus group as well as our students and staff who gave up time to join focus groups of their own.
We debriefed today with our visitors who expressed immense appreciation for the perspectives they gained from those conversations and the time spent in classrooms. We discussed the value and character development that comes from productive struggle while simultaneously acknowledging that seeing your children/students struggle is difficult. We look forward to continuing learning and working alongside you to support our Spartans in this work academically, socially, and emotionally. Thank you for all you do for your children!
In this edition, you will find:
New Information:
- Parent-Teacher Conferences and Interpreter Needs
- Panorama Survey Parent/Guardian Participation Due by March 21st
- Attendance Alert Emails
- We Want to Hear Your Great Ideas
- Culture Fair Sign Ups for May 16th Due by March 21st
- Potential Bus Delays Due to Hazel Ave. Construction
Sincerely,
Rob Wegley, Principal
Cathy Van Treese, Associate Principal
Ginger Logemann, Director for Student Services
Again this year, parents/guardians across Illinois have an opportunity to participate in the annual survey to provide feedback about the schools their children attend. District 109 is fortunate to be able to use the Panorama platform for this survey, which is the same used for students. Ultimately, the family survey is designed for you to share your thoughts on the home-school partnership and other important elements of school effectiveness. Your responses help guide our improvement.
To take the survey, please visit https://surveys.panoramaed.com/deerfieldil/1589963429/surveys and select your child’s school. The survey should take no more than 10 minutes to complete and will close March 21st.
If you have children in multiple schools, we encourage you to provide feedback on both schools! Please know that your identity and responses are confidential and will not be connected to you or your child. Thank you in advance for taking the time to give us this important feedback.
Our goal in District 109 is to work together to ensure the success of every child. As we head into the last few months of the school year, we want to remind you that regular attendance at school is vital to your child’s success.
If your child has been absent for 12 or more days so far this school year, you will be receiving an attendance alert email from us early next week. The email is solely for notification purposes, as we want to make sure you are aware that your child is at risk of being considered chronically absent by the end of the school year.
Chronic absenteeism is defined as absences totaling 10 percent or more of school days—including absences with or without valid cause—during the school year. If a child is absent for 17 days or more during the school year for excused or unexcused reasons, that child is considered chronically absent.
We are committed to supporting your family with any concerns regarding student attendance. There are many people in our building ready to help address any challenges in getting to school regularly or on time. We can also help identify barriers to regular attendance and implement key resources to support your family in these efforts. If you receive an attendance alert letter next week, please do not hesitate to reach out so that we can discuss how to best support your child moving forward.
Dear Parents/Guardians,
As a reminder, we will be holding a Culture Fair on Friday, May 16, 2025 at Shepard Middle School.
Just in case you forgot to sign up, we are looking for participants from all over Deerfield or connected members of Deerfield families to lead interactive sessions so students can experience something significant to your cultural or religious background.
Due to the District’s allergy policy, food consumption cannot be part of this event. However, a recipe or food demonstration would be fine (i.e. a tea ceremony).
Presenters would be at Shepard for approximately 3 hours. Presenters will be asked to plan a 10-15 minute long experience which would repeat for all three grade levels.
Please complete this form for you or any family members interested in taking part in this event. Submissions are due by Friday, 3/21.
Please reach out to any of the following Culture Fair Committee members below with any questions. Thank you for your continued support.
Warm regards,
Matthew Brown, Kelly Hunzinger, David Komie, Jamie Mall, and Amanda Schatz
Shepard Culture Fair Committee
As we strive to keep you informed about important events and updates at Shepard Middle School, we are excited to use the Remind app again as a valuable tool to strengthen our school-family partnership. Through this app, you will receive announcements from our Student Council (also known as StuCo), led by Mrs. Greenberg. These announcements will not only keep you informed about spirit days, fundraisers, and other important events throughout the school year but will also actively involve your child in the exciting activities shaping our school community.
To sign up, please follow the directions below. Check out this video if you would like step-by-step instructions.If you require any assistance setting up the app, please do not hesitate to reach out to Mrs. Greenberg.
Our amazing PTSO shared information on this in their welcome back letter, too, but we wanted to add a reminder that you can purchase school lunches through Lunch Solutions in advance! Ordering opened Tuesday, August 6th. Ordering for the following week closes at 10:00 am on THURSDAY each week. For information and ordering, please visit http://ptgms.com/lunchsolutions/shepard.
Medication
Please do not send any medication, over-the-counter pain pills (Tylenol/Advil/aspirin), or cough drops with your students. State law prohibits students from taking medication at school outside of the nurse's office with a doctor's note on file. We will confiscate any medications as listed above found outside of the nurse's office.
Attendance
If your student will not be in school, please report the absence to the health office by phone—(847) 948-0620 x5103 or email (shepardattendance@dps109.org) before 8:00 am. If you do not contact our school nurse by this time, she will contact you at home or at work to ascertain your child’s whereabouts. Children must be fever free for 24 hours before returning to school. Students will only be dismissed to a parent/legal guardian or to emergency contacts designated in Family Access.
Student Tardiness to School
Students who arrive late are greatly disadvantaged because they miss starting the day with their peers and miss out on the instruction given at the beginning of class. This means that they are often unsettled and confused about tasks, resulting in reduced achievement, regardless of academic ability. It is also very important that students establish good routines and habits in preparation for the rest of their lives. Punctuality is a life skill that is important to develop.
Tardiness to school will be unexcused even if a family member brings the student(s) to school. Oversleeping, missing the bus, car/traffic problems, etc. are all unexcused. Tardies are excusable under the following circumstances: personal illness of student, serious illness or death in the family, a doctor/dentist/professional appointment (a note or phone call from a parent or a professional), family emergencies, and religious holidays.
School begins promptly at 8:00 am. Students are expected to be in class ready to learn by 8:00 am.
Student Tardies to Class
Students are expected to be in class, in their seats, ready to learn at the start of class. Students who are not are subject to school discipline.